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Lura Sanborn – Reference Librarian
Reference Books
Articles within a Reference Book often begin with a broad topic (i.e. France) and then focus in on a narrower aspect of that topic (i.e. France – agricultural developments in the Middle Ages). Browsing the index of a Reference Book will often reveal the interconnectedness of multiple topics.
The list below identifies Reference Books recommended for those beginning the Humanities V research paper. You may find other useful Reference materials during your research process.
Dictionary of the Middle Ages REF 909 St8
Dictionary of Scientific Biography REF 509 Am3
Encyclopedia Britannica REF 032 En2
Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood REF 305.23 F26
Encyclopedia of the Enlightenment REF 940.2 K84
Encyclopedia of Religion REF 203 EL4
Encyclopedia of the Reformation REF 270.6 Ox2
Encyclopedia of the Renaissance REF 940.2 G86
Encyclopedia of Western Colonialism REF 325 B43
Encyclopedia of Women and World Religion REF 203 Y8
Encyclopedia of World Biography REF 920 M17
Europe 1450 to 1789 REF 940.2 D51
European Social History REF 306.094 St3
The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Clothing Through World History REF 391 C75G V1
Groundbreaking Scientific Experiments REF 509 G91
Grove Dictionary of Art REF 703 G91
Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians REF 780.3 G91 N
New Catholic Encyclopedia REF 203 C28
Oxford Encyclopedia of Women in World History REF 305.4 Ox25W
Science and It’s Times REF 509 SCH32
Women in World History REF 920.72 C73
World Book Encyclopedia REF 031 W89
The Library also purchases online versions of: Encyclopedia Britannica (Britannica Online), Grove Dictionary of Art (Oxford Art Online) and Grove Dictionary of Music (Oxford Music Online). Click HERE to see the full list of online databases available.
Recommended Research Process
- Explore your topic in reference books, noting specific dates, names, events, etc.
- As you use reference books (and later, additional materials) you will locate keywords and subject headings that describe your topic. Include these keywords and subject headings in your notes & use them when implementing the steps below.
- Use keyword and subject searches in Ohrstrom’s on-line catalog to locate books and other materials about your topic. Consider using the Library of Congress official subject headings (the big red books in the library’s lobby).
- Use keyword and subject searches in the library’s online databases (i.e. JSTOR, Proquest, Historical Newspapers) to find periodical articles.
- Evaluate the materials you find—is the material reliable? How do you know?
- Have you found both primary and secondary sources?
- Cite all sources accurately (see the Noodlebib PDF handout HERE).
- Please feel free to ask a Librarian for help at any step along the way.
Note: Research rarely goes exactly as planned. You may find you need to veer from, re-sort or revisit the steps listed above.
Locating Magazine, Newspaper and Journal Articles
To locate periodical articles, consider searching any or all of the databases listed below. Click HERE to see the full list of online databases available.
You are more likely to retrieve relevant articles if you first refer to reference sources and other books to identify and gather specific terms, names, and events. Search your gathered terms separately or in combination with one another.
- EBSCOHost – Material type: Mixed periodicals including, magazines, journals & newspapers.
- Historical Newspaper Collection (U.S.) – Material type: Newspapers.
- JSTOR – Material type: Scholarly Journals.
- Proquest – Material type: Mixed periodicals including, magazines, journals & newspapers.
- The Times (of London) 1785-1985 – Material type: Newspaper.
Tip: You can download relevant articles and/or e-mail them to yourself.
Free Web Sources to Consider
OAIster : Part of the Open Archives Initiative: From the University of Michigan Libraries. A catalog of over 19 million digital resources: audio, video, images, and text.
The Internet Archive : Text, images, video and audio (including live music). U.S. and international coverage.
Europeana : Europe’s Digital Library with content from museums, archives and libraries. Over 4 million items with a proposed 10 million items by 2010.
World Digital Library : Digital archives from libraries & institutions around the world. Sponsored by UNESCO & the Library of Congress.
NY Public Library Digital Collections : Dozens of digitized collections from the New York Public Library. Includes photos of GM cars & trucks, 700 Years of Scientific and Medical Illustration, Posters of the Russian Civil War, 1918-1922 and many more. Searchable.
Einstein Archives Online : Includes scientific and non-scientific writings, photos and travel diary entries.
First World War Digital Poetry Archive : Manuscripts, letters and diaries from major WWI poets. Photographs, video & audio also included as part of the online Imperial War Museum. From the University of Oxford.
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History : Art history from the Met. Images, timelines & essays.
For additional recommended websites, visit the Ohrstrom Library link collection available on Delicious HERE.
Download a PDF version of this research guide by clicking HERE.
