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Subject Guide for Basic Information Resources for History Research

Contents

Online Catalog (The PAC)

Using the PAC, subjects in the Library pertaining to history typically can be found using, first, the name of the country followed by "History" (example: "France - History").


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Historiographies and Historians

Some books deal more with methods and philosophy of conducting historical research and the writing of history. Use the subject heading subdivision "Historiography" (example: "Japan - Historiography").


D 13 B334 1992 Ref The Modern Researcher.
This book assists the history researcher in locating various sources of information and in writing on their findings.
D 13 R49 1986 Ref Dictionary of Concepts in History.
This dictionary explaining historical terminology and principles.
D 14 E53 1999 Ref Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing.
An excellent 2-volume set that explores the works of hundreds of historians from every corner of the globe, past and present.
Z 1601 W66 1966 Ref Histories and Historians of Hispanic America.
The major works of more than 1,000 historians are summarized here.

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Dictionaries and Encyclopedias

These can be single-volume works or multi-volume sets and can provide general or in depth information on your topic. In most cases, to locate them use a subject heading like "Germany - History - Dictionaries", or "Africa - History - Dictionaries", or "History - Military - Dictionaries" (note the subdivision dictionaries is used in each case).


E 174 D52 1976 Ref Dictionary of American History.
This 8-volume has short, signed articles on important persons, events and themes in American history. It is arranged alphabetically and has an index volume.
D 743.5 M37 1985 Ref The Marshall Cavendish Encyclopedia of World War II.
This is an example of one of the numerous historical encyclopedias that focus on an event, era, or theme. Many experts in the field contributed to its creation. There are twelve volumes and thousands of illustrations.
DK 14 M6 Ref The Modern Encyclopedia of Russian and Soviet History.
1976-1987. Supplements, 1988-. This 46-volume set is an ambitious, scholarly attempt to "become the most comprehensive aid to the study of the Russian past ever created in the English Language".
D 114 D5 1982 Ref Dictionary of the Middle Ages.
One of several dictionaries and encyclopedias on the Middle Ages, this 13-volume work has more factual material.

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Indexes and Bibliographies

These sources tell what books, articles and other materials address a given topic. Some are annotated (that is, there are descriptions of each item). Most indexes only list articles found in periodicals, while bibliographies usually list both books and articles. For bibliographies use the "(country or region) - History - Bibliography". Example: "Africa-History - Bibliography" and/or "Africa - Bibliography".


D 299 H5 Ref Historical Abstracts. 1955-.
Primarily indexes periodical articles on European, Latin American, and Asian History. Prior to 1964 it included American history. Subject and author index refer to numbered entries.
E 171 A572 Ref America: History and Life. 1964-.
Produced by the same company which publishes Historical Abstracts, it lists articles on United States and Canadian history.
D 1 C75 Ref Combined Retrospective Index to Journals in History, 1838-1974. 11 vols.
This key-word index includes periodical literature pertaining to all regions of the world in hundreds of history, political science, and sociology journals published in the U.S. between 1838 and 1974.
E 178 W955 Ref Writings on America History. 1902-.
4,000 journals are consulted to produce the list of articles on American history. Prior to 1974 books were included. Broad classified subject arrangement.
D 20 A55 1995 Ref Guide to Historical Literature.1902-.
Sponsored by the American Historical Association, this 2-volume annotated work summarizes many of the best books on Asian, African, Latin America, U.S., and European history.
Z 2043 N6D48 Northern Ireland 1921-1974, A Select Bibliography 1975.
This is an example of a more specialized bibliography found in the book stacks and available for checkout.. It is not always necessary to use "History" in the subject heading sequence.This book was found using simply "Northern Ireland -Bibliography". Like most bibliographies, this one is not found in the reference book collection on the main floor.

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Source Books

These are books containing significant historical documents (primary sources) that are reproduced or reprinted. Use the subject heading: "(name of country) - History - Sources."


DA 26 B38 Ref Basic Documents of English History. 1968.
Documents such as the Magna Carta and the National Insurance Act of 1946 are among the hundreds reprinted here.
E 173 C66 1973 Ref Documents of American History.
This is a collection of important documents relating to American History, 1492-1973.

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Other Helpful Reference Books

In addition to the categories mentioned here, there exists a variety of other types of specialized reference sources that assist the researcher. The important thing is to use the proper subject heading to locate them. To the name of the country and the term "History" you can add such subdivisions as:

  • Statistics
  • Book Reviews
  • Book Reviews
  • Chronology
  • Maps
  • Outlines, syllabi, etc.

For biographical sources and historical atlases simply add the subdivisions "Biography" and "Historical Geography - Maps," respectively, without employing "History" as the term in the subject heading sequence.


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Other Web Resources

These resources can be found mainly on the PAC under the heading "ResearchÇArticle Databases".

Some of the pertinent databases addressing topics in history are America: History and Life for U.S. and Canadian history; Historical Abstracts for European, Latin America and Asian history; ITER for the history of the Middle Ages and Renaissance; L'annee Philologique for ancient history; ArticleFirst (multidisciplinary index to mostly journal articles); Academic Search Premier, ProQuest Research Library, LexisNexis Academic, and PAIS International (particularly useful for current history topics); and Dissertation Abstracts/Digital Dissertations, an invaluable source that summarizes mostly never published masters' theses and doctoral dissertations which can usually be obtained via Interlibrary Loan.


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