Library

History

Below are suggested resources to use when researching a History topic. For research strategies and techniques, visit the resources linked from the menu at the left.

Getting Started | Chronologies | Atlases and Maps | Biographies | Speeches and Notable Quotes | Finding Articles | Getting Fulltext | Demographics and Statistics | Writing and Style Guides

Specific Research Topics: U.S.- Colonial to Contemporary | U.S.- Cultural & Intellectual | Europe | Colonialism | Historiography | Other

 

Getting Started

Before jumping in and looking for research, it is a good idea to have a refined topic and to know a little about it. Start with broad resources like encyclopedias, bibliographies, and handbooks to start to get a sense of what is available on your topic in the universe of information.

The American Historical Association's guide to historical literature / ed. Mary Beth Norton.
Ref D20 .A55 1995 (2 vols.).
Working with more than 400 contributors, the editors have produced a monumental work of historical bibliography. It is composed of more than 26,annotated entries in 48 sections that cite books, articles, and chapters in books primarily in English published from 1961, the date of the last edition, through 1992. Each section begins with an introductory essay followed by a guide to the arrangement of that section.

Andromeda encyclopedic dictionary of world history [electronic resource] / ed. John Haywood.
Access Credo Reference online version of this title in the Simmons Library catalog.

Dictionary of American history / ed. Stanley Kutler.
Ref E174 .D52 2003 (10 vols.).
The third edition of this classic reference work, like all works of historical scholarship, reflects the time of its writing as well as the nature of its subject. This edition places increased emphasis on social, cultural, and demographic topics, and it is characterized by diversity and inclusiveness.

A dictionary of world history [electronic resource].
Access the online version of this title in the Simmons Library catalog

Encyclopedia of American history / ed. Gary B. Nash.
Ref E174 .E53 2003 (11 vols.).
Unlike other encyclopedias, EAH is arranged chronologically rather than alphabetically. Volume 1 covers prehistory through the founding of Jamestown (1607); the second volume runs from 1608 to 1760. The remaining eight volumes cover ten- to fifty-year time spans apiece, while volume 11 serves as the set's index.

Encyclopedia Americana and Encyclopedia Britannica.
Access to these encyclopedias is available from the list on the Library's Databases A-Z page.

  • Encyclopedia Americana provides over 45,000 articles covering all academic fields and curriculum topics. The online version includes maps, flags, over 155,000 supporting internet links, over 150,000 cross links between articles, and is updated quarterly.

  • Encyclopedia Britannica ("EB Online") allows you to find more than 72,000 articles, over 10,000 illustrations, including photographs, drawings, maps, and flags, and more than 75,000 definitions, including pronunciation guides and word histories from Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.

Encyclopedia of historians and historical writing / ed. Kelly Boyd.
Ref D14 E53 1999.
This work consists of three types of entries: essays by individual historians assessing their contributions to the literature, articles focused on nations or geographic regions, and topical pieces. Topical entries cover areas such as social history and familiar historical controversies (e.g., the Industrial Revolution). All entries include substantial bibliographies.

The Greenwood encyclopedia of women's issues worldwide / ed. Lynn Walter.
Ref HQ1115 .G74 2003.
In more than 3,300 pages, this set covers women's issues in the world's most populated areas. Separate volumes cover Asia and Oceania, Central and South America, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, North America and the Caribbean, and Sub-Saharan Africa. Country coverage includes a map, national profile, overview of women's issues, education, employment and economics, family and sexuality, health, politics and law, religion and spirituality, violence, and outlook for the 21st century, and includes notes, a resource guide, and a bibliography that cites all formats.

The Oxford companion to United States history / ed. Paul S. Boyer.
Ref E174 .O94 2001.
This companion will help both students and enthusiasts understand U.S. history through entries for personalities (especially those who were first in their fields), events, major Supreme Court decisions, landmark legislation, social movements, ideologies, technological/scientific changes, social processes such as immigration, and influential books (the latter are especially intriguing).

Political and historical encyclopedia of women / ed. Christine Fauré.
Ref HQ1236.5.E85 E52 2003.
This collection reconsiders the distinctive nature of women's actions to "make visible the boundaries that limit the political condition of women" in the Western tradition since the Middle Ages.

Routledge international encyclopedia of women: global women's issues and knowledge / Cheris Kramarae.
Ref HQ1115 .R69 2000 (4 vols.).
International in focus, the encyclopedia "represents more than three decades of worldwide scholarship--especially, though not exclusively, feminist scholarship in numerous fields of knowledge."

World history: a dictionary of important people, places, and events from ancient times to the present / Bruce Wetterau.
Ref D9 .W47 1994.

The WWW Virtual Library History Index is an index of web resources, divided into categories that include Eras and Epochs, Historical Topics, and Countries and Regions. The latter links to general resources about each country, both historical and non-historical.

Chronologies

Before jumping in and looking for research, it is a good idea to have a refined topic and to know a little about it. Start with broad resources like encyclopedias, bibliographies, and handbooks to start to get a sense of what is available on your topic in the universe of information.

Chronology of women’s history / Kirstin Olsen.
Ref HQ1121.O47 1994.
Written from a feminist perspective, this chronology of landmarks in women's history starts with the period "Prehistory to 3000 B.C." and continues into 1993. More than half of this extensive factbook covers the years after 1726. Entries are arranged in chronological periods.

Eyewitness Accounts "Your ringside seat to history - from the Ancient World to the present” highlights excerpts from primary source material, articles, and photographs about important people and events throughout history. You can choose a category (Ancient World, Middle Ages/Renaissance, World War I) or use the index to see a listing of all featured events in chronological order.

Timelines of History features a detailed listing of events in history from “The Big Bang” to present. Most entries have a reference citation, and the web site includes a legend of sources. If dates are contradictory, the contradictions are listed with references to the alternatives.

The timetables of women's history: a chronology of the most important people and events in women's history / Karen Greenspan.
Ref HQ1121 .G74 1994.
Covering a broad time period, 4000 BCE to 1992, and with no geographical limits, this chronology offers an array of quick facts that demonstrate the magnitude of women's historical influence and achievement through the ages.

Atlases and Maps

Atlas of the world.
Ref G1021.A7545 2003.

Concise atlas of world history [electronic resource] / John Haywood
Access the online version of this title in the Simmons Library catalog

Hammond atlas of the world.
Ref G1021.H2665 1997

Hammond atlas of world history / ed. Geoffrey Barraclough.
Ref G1030.H34 1999.
A global view of the world at the beginning of the 21st century.

Historical atlas of the United States / Mark C. Carnes.
Ref G1201.S1 C28 2003.
The atlas depicts the history of the U.S. from Asian migrations 18,000 years ago to the September 2001 terrorist attacks, using over 300 maps and little else. Each of the 21 chapters consists of one or two pages of introductory text followed by five to 22 pages of maps.

Historical atlas of the United States (National Geographic Society, c1988).
Ref Atlas Table

The National Geographic MapMachine is a dynamic atlas that lets you explore hundreds of maps, satellite images, and historical cartography to customize your own experience. It includes not only current maps for more than 190 contemporary countries, but also dozens of historical maps.

The Routledge atlas of African American history / Jonathan Earle.
Ref E185 .E125 2000

The Routledge atlas of American history / Martin Gilbert.
Ref G1201.S1 G56 2003

The Times atlas of European history.
Ref G1797.21.S1 T5 1994.
This volume might more accurately be called an atlas of European political history. In certain cases, disputed territories are shown with overlapping colors; and vaguely defined spheres of influence, like Volga Bulgaria, are shown as splotches of color without defined borders.

Biographies

To search for historic individuals, try Biography Resource Center from the the list on the Databases A-Z page. In addition to looking for a person’s name, you can search by Occupation, Nationality, Ethnicity, Birth/Death Year, Birth/Death Place, and Gender.

American National Biography (ANB) / ed. John A. Garraty.
Ref CT213 .A68 1999 (10 vols.).
Offers a single, authoritative, current resource of high quality a first resort that should find place on the shelves of every academic and public library. The editors of this new national biography set out to create a work much more inclusive and representative of the evolving face of American history. African Americans, Native Americans, women, and immigrants are among those to whom it gives greater prominence.

Dictionary of American Biography.
Ref E176 .D56 (10 vols.).
Profiles of people who influenced American life and history, published 1927-1995.

Oxford dictionary of national biography...from the earliest times to the year 2000 / ed. H.C.G. Matthew.
Ref DA28.D4 O95 2004 (60 vols.).
Biographical sketches “of 54,922 dead Brits--glorious, vainglorious, noble, or downright crooks.” Coverage extends from the pre-Roman period to 2000 CE.

Women in world history: a biographical encyclopedia / ed. Anne Commire.
Ref HQ1115 .W6 1999-2002 (17 vols.).
“ Locating information on women is difficult and the editors have done a fine job assembling and publishing information extant on individual women from many nations both living and dead.”

Speeches and Notable Quotes

Bloomsbury biographical dictionary of quotations [electronic resource] / ed. John Daintith.
Access the online version of this title in the Simmons Library catalog.

Familiar quotations : a collection of passages, phrases, and proverbs traced to their sources in ancient and modern literature / John Bartlett.
Ref PN6081 .B27 1980

The History Channel web site features speeches "where you can hear the words that changed the world." The collection of speeches is drawn from the most famous broadcasts and recordings of the twentieth century.

The Oxford dictionary of quotations / ed. Elizabeth Knowles.
Ref PN6081 .O9 1999.
Published for over 50 years, the 6th edition has over 17,000 quotations from a broad range of individuals over time and from a range of sources, including literature, movie scripts, speeches, diaries, letters, songs, epitaphs, and biographies.

Respectfully Quoted: A Dictionary of Quotations Requested from the Congressional Research Service / ed. Suzy Platt.
Access the online version of this title in the Simmons Library catalog.

Speech index : an index to 259 collections of world famous orations and speeches for various occasions / Roberta Briggs Sutton.
Ref AI3 .S85 1966

Voices of multicultural America : notable speeches delivered by African, Asian, Hispanic, and Native Americans, 1790-1995 / ed. Deborah Gillan Straub.
Ref PS663.M55 V64 1996

Finding Articles

Search the following indexes to find articles on the topic of History. See individual Resources by Subject guides for more specific indexes covering topics within the broader field of History.

Getting Fulltext

Because not all indexes are fulltext--or 100% fulltext--you may have to elsewhere to find an article for which you have a citation. Consult the resources below to find out how to get access to the articles you need.

Demographics and Statistics

Statistics and demographics are important to many research projects, but they can be hard to find. Try some of the resources below when looking for statistics. If you still cannot find what you need, contact a librarian.

International historical statistics: Europe, 1750-1988 / B.R. Mitchell.
Ref HA1107 .M5 1992.
In spite of some limitations (e.g., raw data rather than analysis), “[it] “remains the best published source of global comparative historical statistics in print.”

International historical statistics: the Americas 1750-1988 / B.R. Mitchell.
Ref HA175 .M55 1993
“ Provides key economic and social indicators for the last 250 years for countries on the American continent [and] serves as an essential reference source for hard-to-find historical data.”

Historical statistics of the states of the United States: two centuries of the census, 1790-1990 / comp. Donald B. Dodd.
Ref HA214 .D63 1993.
A major problem in using statistical data for historical analysis is that of identifying data items that are available and consistently defined throughout the period desired. This work definitely enhances the value of census data for plotting historical trends. It is also a source of state-level census figures for libraries that lack the original census volumes. Recommended for all libraries where such information will be used.

Writing and Style Guides

Preparing and writing a good bibliography is an important part of any research paper. An accurate bibliography reflects your depth of research. It also serves as a testimonial to the time and effort you have put into your paper, so use the opportunity to impress your reader.

The Simmons Library web site includes an overview of how to create a bibliography and cite references in several different styles, including MLA, APA, and Chicago . If you need assistance, please contact a librarian.

Finding information on Specific Research Topics

For more information on more specific topics within the discipline of History, see the resources under the categories below. Please note that other Subject Guides are available for related subjects such as Africana, East Asian Studies, and Women’s Studies (under Social Sciences). As always, if you need further assistance, please contact a librarian.

United States--Colonial to Contemporary America

American decades: 1900-1909 [...] 1990-1999 / ed. Victor Bondi.
Ref E169.12 A419 (10 vols.).
Each volume contains chronologies of world and national events, snippets of headline news, brief biographies and essays, excerpts from historical texts, black-and-white photographs, bibliographies, and even death notices.

The Blackwell encyclopedia of the American Revolution / ed. Jack P. Greene and J. R. Pole.
E208 B635 1991.
A useful reference work for the era of the American Revolution, from the Colonial background to the making of the Constitution. The social and cultural development of the Revolution is fully treated, including areas pertaining to women, Native Americans, and African Americans.

The encyclopedia of colonial and revolutionary America / ed. John Mack Faragher.
E188 E63 1990.
Covering the U.S. to about 1785, and designed as a quick reference tool, this volume has numerous entries on people, places, religious themes, and economic and political terms. A special feature of this encyclopedia is the topic guides.

Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War / ed. Stanley I. Kutler.
Ref DS557.7 E53 1996.
“ No previous attempts to provide a reference overview of the Vietnam War are as comprehensive as this encyclopedia.” Coverage is complete for the French War (1945-54), the American War (1961-73), and South Vietnam's collapse (1973-75), although emphasis lies on the American phase.

HistoryLinks: A Selection of Web Links to Digitized Primary and Secondary Sources from a Variety of Archives around the U.S.: Pre-Revolutionary to Post-Reconstruction America http://leep.lis.uiuc.edu/publish/kpardue/HistoryLinks/HistoryLinks.htm
A “work in progress,” the website is intended to draw attention to the increasing number of historical primary and secondary sources that can be found in digital archives/libraries on the Web and is targeted toward history student researchers in undergraduate history classes, though all visitors may benefit from this listing.

Reading the early republic / Robert A. Ferguson.
E209 .F46 2004
These fine essays analyze U.S. texts from the 1760s through the 1820s and illustrate the forms of expression, assumptions, conflicts, and ambivalences of the era. The texts include a remarkably broad spectrum, from the canonical Common Sense through slave narratives, notable court cases, popular novels, and the architecture of Monticello to The Last of the Mohicans.

United States--Cultural and Intellectual History

Africana: the encyclopedia of the African and African-American experience / ed. Kwame Anthony Appiah, Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Ref DT14 .A37435 1999.

Encyclopedia of African-American culture and history / ed. by Jack Salzman, David Lionel Smith, and Cornel West.
Ref E185 .E54 1996 (5 vols. and Supplement).
Undergraduates and graduate students may use this set as a starting point for researching the cultural, social, political, economic, and intellectual history of African Americans, especially for the later 19th and 20th centuries. It includes brief biographical sketches of 1,188 men and 382 women representing education, medicine, politics, religion, sports, the social sciences, and especially the creative arts. It also offers 500 short- to medium-length topical entries covering historical events; organizations; social, political, and cultural movements; business enterprises; the professions; and other subjects relating to the African American experience.

Encyclopedia of American cultural & intellectual history / ed. Mary Kupiec Cayton, Peter W. Williams.
Ref E169.1 .E624 2001.
For perceptive, mature readers the 221 essays in these volumes will prove thought-provoking and valuable departure points for further study and reflection, but some essays, in attempting to promote "point of view" history, may mislead undergraduates seeking a more balanced overview of a topic. This set should be used in connection with other sources.

Encyclopedia of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender history in America / ed. Marc Stein.
Ref HQ76.3.U5 E53 2004.
One of the foremost gay historians in the U.S., Stein has an impressive track record trying to bring gay history into the mainstream while promoting its separate development. The encyclopedia has more than 500 signed entries, each with a bibliography; many also have illustrations, of which there are over 200.

Encyclopedia of women in American history / ed. Joyce Appleby, Eileen K. Cheng, and Joanne L. Goodwin.
Ref HQ1410 .E53 2002 (3 vols.).
Each volume of this solid addition to the growing reference literature on women in the U.S. covers a separate period: 1585-1820, 1820-1900, and 1900-present. Each begins with a brief time line, a table of contents, and essays with bibliographies that situate women in the context of the period.

The Gale encyclopedia of Native American tribes / ed. Sharon Malinowski.
Ref E77 .G15 1998.
This easy-to-use encyclopedia offers both historical and current information concerning approximately 400 Native groups in the Americas written or reviewed where possible by Native American authors or tribal councils. Within each volume the material is clustered by geographical regions, most with signed regional overviews.

Europe

The Oxford illustrated history of modern Europe / ed. T.C.W. Blanning.
D299 .O84 1996.

History derailed: Central and Eastern Europe in the long nineteenth century / T. Iván Berend.
D359 .B47 2003.
Berend's "long century" extends from the French-Industrial Revolutions at the end of the 18th century to WWI, a period of dramatic social, political, economic, and cultural transformation for Central and Eastern Europe, the zone between Germany and Russia, and the Baltic and the Balkans.

The Oxford history of the British empire. / ed. William Robert Lewis.
DA16 .O95 1998 (5 vols.)
The five volumes cover the origins of empire, the 18th, 19th and 20th centures, and historiography.

The making of modern woman: Europe, 1789-1918 / Lynn Abrams, Lynn.
HQ1587 .A27 2002.
This synthesis of European women's lives through the "long 19th century" deepens understanding of their crucial role in promoting both historical continuity and change. Exceptionally valuable is Abrams's historiographical introduction, in which she describes the necessity of an alternative approach to women's history.

History of the Holocaust: a handbook and dictionary / Abraham J., Edelheit and Hershel Edelheit.
D804.3 E33 1994.
The scholarly and well-organized presentation of this material notably fulfills the Edelheits' stated purpose of providing a concise overview of Jewish history during the Nazi era, a comprehensive Holocaust glossary, and a tabular and graphic presentation of applicable information.

The Holocaust: memories, research, reference / eds. Robert Hauptman, Susan Hubbs Motin.
D804.348 .H65 1998.
A collection of essays explores this historical tragedy from three different directions. This work is a significant reference tool in itself as well as a guide to further research. This is a must-have for all libraries, especially those with patrons interested in Holocaust documentation and research.

Colonialism

Colonialism: an international, social, cultural, and political encyclopedia / Melvin E. Page, Penny M. Sonnenburg.
Ref HV22 .C59 2003.
The scope and meaning of the term is approached in more than 600 entries, which portray modern colonialism as a world phenomenon since about 1400 CE. They focus on the phenomenon of colonialism as primarily, but not exclusively, European. Interspersed in the text are useful maps of world empires and informative illustrations.

Cultures in conflict: encounters between European and non-European cultures, 1492-1800 / trans. Ritchie Robertson.
D32 .B5713 1989.
Written by one of the world's foremost scholars on cross-cultural encounters (Urs Bitterli), this translation is one of very few of his works available in English. Culture may fail not only because of destruction of the native population by disease but also because their culture offers no philosophical explanation for the presence or the power of the strangers.

Postcolonialism : an historical introduction / Robert J.C. Young.
JV51 .Y68 2001.
A panoramic view of the political and intellectual origins of postcolonial thought. Highly recommended for upper-division undergraduates through faculty.

Tensions of empire: colonial cultures in a bourgeois world / Frederick Cooper, Ann Laura Stoler.
D359 .T4 1997.

Historiography

Fortunes of history: historical inquiry from Herder to Huizinga / Donald R. Kelley.
D16 .K26 2003.
Kelly is widely recognized as a leading authority on the history of historical writing. Most of the chapters deal with developments during the "long nineteenth century," in Germany, France, and England, although other chapters look at historical writings in the smaller European countries and the U.S.

Encyclopedia of historians and historical writing / ed. Kelly Boyd.
Ref D14 .E53 1999.
This work is impressive and well organized, consisting of three types of entries: essays by individual historians assessing their contributions to the literature, articles focused on nations or geographic regions, and topical pieces.

New dictionary of the history of ideas / ed. Maryanne Cline Horowitz.
Ref CB9 .N49 2005 (6 vols.).

Encyclopedia of twentieth-century African history / ed. Paul Tiyambe Zeleza.
Ref DT29 .E53 2003.
The editors have produced an important encyclopedia that complements, updates, and reconceptualizes earlier encyclopedic treatments of Africa. Articles fall under 15 major historical categories but are arranged in alphabetical order. The longer entries provide excellent critical interpretations.

Navigating world history: historians create a global past / Patrick Manning.
D21.3 .M285 2003.
An indispensable reference for all students and teachers of world history at the secondary, undergraduate, and graduate levels. This is a survey not of the history of the world, but rather of the still emerging field of world history--a historiography, analysis, and critique of that expansive subject.

The Oxford history of the British Empire, Vol. %: Historiography.
DA16.O.95 1998.
Volume 5 includes 41 historiographic essays written by recognized experts and covers subjects ranging from the First Empire to the Commonwealth, along with geographical areas such as Canada and West Africa.

Other Countries/Topics

The Simmons Library has 71 individual country studies published by the Library of Congress Federal Research Division (in the Simmons Library catalog, search by Author for Library Of Congress Federal Research Division to see the entire listing). More up-to-date are the studies on the Library of Congress web site. Over 101 countries and regions are covered; notable omissions include Canada, the United States, France, the United Kingdom, and other Western nations, as well as a number of African nations. The Country Studies Series presents a description and analysis of the historical setting and the social, economic, political and national security systems and institutions of countries throughout the world.

Encyclopedia of Latin American history and culture / ed. Barbara A. Tenenbaum
F1406 E53 1996.
Focusing on Latin American history and culture including the contemporary scene, this encyclopedia meets a longstanding need for comprehensive, up-to-date information in English based on recent scholarship. It has the broadest possible geographic scope, including the Spanish borderlands that are now a part of the U.S., Mexico, Central America, South America (including Brazil, often excluded from reference works that are limited to Spanish Latin America), and the Caribbean area.

Encyclopedia of Modern Asia / ed. David Levinson and Karen Christensen.
Ref DS4.L48 2002, 2 vols.
In more than 2,600 articles, this encyclopedia covers the breadth of Asia, largely during the 20th century, from Turkey to Southeast Asia. Omitted are West Asian countries commonly associated with the Middle East (i.e., west of Iraq) and the countries of the former Soviet Union, because of differing regional concerns, adequate coverage in other regional encyclopedias, or cultural relationships that associate them with other regions.

Page updated: April 17, 2007

 

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