History: Suggested Resources for Beginning Historical Research
All Call numbers and Special locations are in Davis Library, Reference Department unless otherwise noted.Research guides help conceptualize a research project, plan it wisely, identify basic resources, and provide initial bibliography.
A Student's Guide to History. Jules R.Benjamin,
Boston, MA : Bedford/St. Martin's, c2001
D16.3 .B4 2001
A guide to researching a topic using historical resources,
and writing the research paper. Includes a chapter on
"Basic Reference Sources for History Study and Research".
Teaching Bibliographic Skills in History : a Sourcebook
for Historians and Librarians, edited by Charles A.
D'Aniello. Westport, Conn. : Greenwood Press, 1993.
Z675.H5 T4 1993
Writing, Teaching, and Researching History in the
Electronic age: Historians and Computers, Dennis A.
Trinkle, editor, Armonk, N.Y. : M.E. Sharpe, c1998.
Davis : D16 .W95 1998
To search for research guides in the library's catalogs,
use the following subject headings as examples:
history--study and teaching--united
states.
history--research.
history--bibliography.
history--methodology.
Tools such as encyclopedias, dictionaries, handbooks, atlases, and chronologies provide basic, contextual information and they can help you choose or refine a topic. Also, many provide bibliographies.
A. Encyclopedias and Dictionaries
Dictionary of American History, rev. ed. Louise B. Ketz, ed. Scribners, 1976. 8 vols./index.E174 .D53 1976
Encyclopedic entries on people, places, events, themes. Bibliography.
(Also in UL)
The Cambridge History of Latin America. Leslie
Bethell, ed. Cambridge Univ. Press, 1984 -.
F1410 .C1834 1984
Multi-volume work; provides overview essays,
bibliographies, etc.
(Also in Davis.)
Dictionary of the Middle Ages. Joseph R. Strayer,
ed. Scribner's, 1982-89. 13 vols.
D114 .D5 1982
Encyclopedic entries on people, places, events, themes.
Bibliography.
(Also in Art.)
Encyclopedia of African American Culture and
History. Jack Salzman, David Lionel Smith, Cornel West,
eds. New York: Macmillan Library Reference, 1996.
E185 .E54 1996. With supplement, 2001. (Also in UL.)
Encyclopedia of Africa South of the Sahara. John
Middleton, ed. in chief. New York: C. Scribner's Sons,
1997.
DT351 .E53 1997. 4 vols. (Also in UL.)
Encyclopedia of the Renaissance. Paul F. Grendler,
Editor in chief. New York: Scribner's published in
association with the Renaissance Society of America,
1999.
CB361 .E52 1999
The Oxford Classical Dictionary. Simon Hornblower
and Antony Spawforth, Editors. Oxford; New York: Oxford
University Press, 1996.
RefDesk DE5 .O9 1996
To search for encyclopedias and dictionaries in the
library's catalogs, use the following subject headings as
examples:
indians of north america--encyclopedias
country--history--dictionaries
You can also use the subheadings dictionaries and
encyclopedias
in keyword searching, e.g.:
women and (encyclopedias or dictionaries)
B. Atlases
Atlases are useful in historical research for visualizing
the interaction of peoples, events, places, and trends.
Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World.
Richard J.A. Talbert,Editor. Princeton, N.J. : Princeton
University Press, c2000.
Reference Atlas Case G1033 .B3 2000
The History Atlas of Europe, Ian Barnes and Robert
Hudson, New York : Macmillan, c1998.
UL--G1797.21.S1 B3 1998
Historical Atlas of the United States, Washington,
D.C. : National Geographic Society, c1988.
G1201.S1 N3 1988
Mapping America's Past : a Historical Atlas. Mark C.
Carnes. H. Holt, 1996.
G1201 .S1 C3
(also in Maps.)
Typical subject headings in the library's catalogs for finding maps:
country--history--maps
country--historical geography--maps
C.
Chronologies
These sources help the researcher grasp the chronological
relationship among different series of events.
D11 .M39 1999. 4 vols. (Also in UL.)
The Timetables of History, new 3rd rev. ed. Bernard
Grun. Simon & Schuster, 1991.
D11 .G78 1991
(earlier eds. in Davis, UL)
Subject headings for chronologies include:
chronology, historical--charts, diagrams,
etc.
country--history--chronology
Secondary sources are books, articles, reports, etc. written after an event, usually by a non-participant, which describe, interpret, and/or analyze the event.
A. Cumulated
Subject Bibliographies
To find printed bibliographies, you can use --
bibliography -- as a subdivision of other subject
headings in the library's catalogs. For example:
United
States--history--1933-1945--bibliography
Austria--history--bibliography
Middle Ages--bibliography--catalogs
You can also use the term in Keyword mode:
(new left or counterculture) and su (bibliography or sources)
American Historical Association's Guide to Historical
Literature. Mary Beth Norton, gen. ed. 3rd ed. Oxford
Univ. Press, 1995.
Z6201 .A55 1995
Major revision, updating of classic reference work. Cites
both primary and secondary material. Earlier 1961 ed.
retained in Reference.
(Also in UL)
Harvard Guide to American History. Frank Freidel,
ed. Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard Univ. Press,
1974.
Z1236 .F77 1974
Dated but useful. Vol. 1 by topic, Vol. 2 by time period.
Guide to the Sources of Medieval History. R.C. van
Caenegem. North-Holland Pub., 1978.
D117 .C2213
Major bibliography for primary and secondary
sources.
(Also in Davis.)
Latin America: A Guide to the Historical Literature.
Charles G. Griffen, ed. Univ. of Texas Press, 1971.
Z1601 .G754
Though dated, still quite useful. Covers primary and
secondary sources.
Bibliographic Index. Holdings, 1- , 1937/42 -. Cites
bibliographies published in journals, books, etc.
Z1002 .B593
B. National and
Historical Bibliographies and Library Catalogs
These help identify books published in particular
countries, at particular times, and libraries at which they
can be located. Some are organized or indexed by subject.
National Union Catalog, pre-1956 Imprints. Library
of Congress and American Library Assn. Mansell,
1968-1981.
Z881 .A1 U518
Useful in identifying titles published before 1956 and
held in the Library of Congress and other American
libraries. By author.
WorldCat.
This is an "online union catalog" of thousands of
libraries, mainly in the United States.
National Library Catalogues Worldwide
Reference houses many national bibliographies and catalogs of famous libraries, e.g., British Library, which help identify books published and/or held in certain countries.
American Bibliography: A Chronological Dictionary of All Books, Pamphlets and Periodical Publications Printed in the United States. . .from. . .1639. . .to. . .1820. Charles Evans, ed. Often simply called "Evans." Chicago, 1903-59.Z1215 .E92
13 vols. plus index. By year, then by author or title. Now available on CD-ROM, under American Imprints. Titles available on Microprint 1-6 and 1-7.
English Short Title Catalogue 1473-1800 on CD-ROM
(ESTC)
E-Ref CD-Rom 10-227
The English Short Title Catalog (ESTC) lists and locates
English and English-language printed materials published
from 1473 to 1800 in Great Britain or its colonies, and
serves as an index to thousands of reels of microfilm
reproducing the works, located partly at Duke and partly at
UNC.
Some examples of subject headings that can help locate resources such as the above:
Bibliography, national--Name of
country--bibliography
Name of country--imprints
Catalogs, union--name of country
C. 1. Subject
Searching in the Library Catalog.
For efficient subject searching in the library's catalogs,
you need to use the proper subject heading. For historical
topics, often the most useful approach is to use the
subheading --history-- after the country name or
subject to isolate one's specific topic. For example:
United States--history--constitutional period,
1789-1809
Middle Ages--history--sources
women--history--
Cuba--history--1959--
Pinehurst NC--history
Slavery--United States--history--19th century
Southern Baptist Convention--history
Jews--California--history
The Keyword mode in the online catalog allows a more flexible subject search and indicates appropriate exact subject headings. For example, the search (unions or labor) and stevens retrieves 17 records which you can examine for particular subject headings such as trade unions--textile workers--north carolina. A search for musicians and orange county retrieves seven records with exact subject headings such as musicians--north carolina-- interviews.
C. 2. Library of Congress ClassificationMost academic libraries use the LC Classification System to determine subject classification in assigning Call Numbers to books and journals. Familiarizing oneself with this system will help when browsing any collection world wide that utilizes the Library of Congress system. Many public libraries and a few academic libraries (including Duke University) still use the Dewey Decimal Classification System for assigning Call Numbers (http://www.lib.duke.edu/libguide/fi_books.htm#dds).
Subject searching for books on a topic is also available through WorldCat.
Historians often advance their research through scholarly journal articles. You can identify these either by browing selected journals, or by using indexes, which are listed in the next section below.
Historical Journals : a Handbook for Writers and
Reviewers ,Dale R. Steiner, Casey R. Phillips,
Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland & Co., c1993.
Z6205 .S73 1993
Historical Periodicals Directory, Eric H. Boehm,
Barbara H. Pope, and Marie S. Ensign, editors, Santa
Barbara, Calif. : ABC-Clio, 1981-1986.
Z6205 .H654
Z6956 .G6 F94
Lists and annotates history journals by field.
E. Journal Indexes and Abstracts
Serial Bibliographies and Abstracts in History.
David P. Henige. Greenwood Press, 1986.
Z6201 .A1 H45/1986
Identifies indexing and abstracting services by subject
area.
America: History and Life.
For secondary, scholarly articles, dissertations, book
reviews.
Historical Abstracts.
For secondary, scholarly articles, dissertations, book
reviews.
International Medieval Bibliography. Print holdings,
1967 -. From 1967-1997
Z6205 .I585
A major index to scholarly journals in this field.
American Bibliography of Slavic and East European
Studies . Print holdings: 1957 - 1989.
Z2483 .A65
Hispanic American Periodicals Index.
Covers more than 400 journals from around the world.
Row 16 has the predecessor title, Index to Latin
American Periodicals, 1961-1970.
PAIS (Public Affairs Information Service)
The PAIS International is a bibliographic index to the
literature of public policy, social policy, and the social
sciences in general. Journalarticles; books; government
documents; statistical compilations; committee reports;
directories; serials; reports of public, intergovernmental,
and private organizations; and most other forms of printed
literature from all over the world are indexed.
PCI(Periodical Contents Index)
L'Année philologique [serial]. 1924/26-
.
Z7016.M35 A5
DCB:Database of Classical Bibliography, 1974-89.
CD-ROM, Electronic Reference
Davis Reference also offers discipline-specific journal indexes for areas such as religion, philosophy, women's studies, black studies, and literature.
F. Book
Reviews
Book reviews are helpful in identifying relevant books and
are often indexed in regularly scholarly indexes such as
America History and Life. Three generic indexes are:
Book Review Index. 1965 - .
Covers scholarly and general interest periodicals,
newspapers, and other specialized journals. By book author,
with title index.
Row 2
Book Review Digest
Indexes about 100 periodicals for reviews of
English-language fiction and nonfiction and provides
excerpts for many reviews. Reviews must appear within 18
months of publication and a book must receive a certain
number of reviews.
1906 to present-
Row 2
Combined Retrospective Index to Book Reviews in
Scholarly Journals, 1886-1974. Evan Ira Farber, Senior
Editor. Arlington : Carrollton Press, 1979-
Reference, Row 2 Z1035.A1 C66
PCI(Periodical Contents Index)
Expanded Academic Index.
This electronic index of about 1000 journals includes book
reviews.
See Also the Davis Library Reference Department, Research Guide, Book Reviews
American National Biography, General Editors, John
A. Garraty, Mark C. Carnes. New York : Oxford University
Press, 1999.
CT213 .A68 1999
Biographical information of persons who died before 1991.
Updates the Dictionary of American Biography.
Biography and Genealogy Master Index.
Indexing of thousands of biographical sources of the
"who's who" variety.
Biography Index
This indexes biographies and biographical sketches in
thousands of periodicals, journals, books, etc.
1946 to present-
Row 1
Dictionary of American Biography. Scribner's,
1928-55,
E176 .D563 10 vols. with index. Supplements through 1980,10
vols.
Is updated by the American National Biography.
The Dictionary of National Biography: From the Earliest
Times to 1900 . Leslie Stephen and Sidney Lee. London:
Oxford University Press, 1921-1922.
DA28 .D47
To find individual biographies in the library's catalogs, use your subject's name as a subject heading:
Mather, Increase
To find collective national biographies, try:
country name--biography--dictionaries.
Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial
Times to 1970, Washington : U.S. Dept. of Commerce,
Bureau of the Census : U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1975.
RefDesk HA202 .B87 1975
Statistical Abstract of the United States,
[Washington] U.S. Dept. of Commerce, Social and Economic
Statistics Administration, Bureau of the Census; for sale
by the Supt. of Docs., U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1st-
1878
RefDesk HA202 .A2
"Statistical Universe is a web-based service that provides indexing and abstracts from three databases: American Statistics Index (ASI), Statistical Reference Index (SRI), and Index to International Statistics (IIS)."
United
States Historicl Census Data Browser
"The data presented here describe the people and the
economy of the US for each state and county from 1790 to
1960."
Digital Dissertations.
ProQuest Digital Dissertations, or Dissertations
Abstracts, indexes U. S. dissertations from 1861 to as
recent as last semester. The full text of dissertations
done at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
from 1997 on are available for free downloading in PDF
format.
Citations for dissertations from 1980 on include
350-word abstracts, while masters' theses from 1988
forward have 150 word abstracts. For both dissertations
and theses, from 1997 on, the citations also provide
24 page previews in PDF format.
The database covers work done at more than a thousand
institutions, primarily in the United States but also
in Canada and Great Britain, and at other European
universities for recent years.
Current Research@University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill
Current Research@University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill provides indexing and some full text access
to dissertations completed here at Chapel Hill and
submitted to the Dissertations Abstracts database.
For dissertations done from 1997 on, both 24 page
previews and free downloading of the full text are available.
Dissertations and Theses in Libraries of UNC-Chapel Hill.
Dissertations in History; an Index to Dissertations
Completed in History Departments of United States and
Canadian Universities, 1873-1960, 1961-June 1970, 1970-June
1980. Warren F. Kuehl, Lexington] Univ. of Kentucky
Press. 1965, 1972, 1985.
Z6201.K8, Z6201.K88, Z6201.K82 1985.
Doctoral Dissertations in History. Washington,
American Historical Association, Institutional Services
Program. 1973/75-1993.
Z6205 .D6
Guide to Theses and Dissertations: An International Bibliography of Bibliographies. Michael M. Reynolds. Phoenix, Az.: Oryx Press, 1985. A classified bibliography of dissertations with divisions for various nationalities and subject disciplines, further subdivided. Z5053 .A1 R49 1985
Primary sources are "firsthand" or "eyewitness" records: letters, diaries, autobiographies, travel accounts, government documents, oral histories, organization records, etc. They are not always easy to identify and locate, but helps are available. Bibliographies often list primary sources, as do monographs and articles. Primary sources are often preserved in microform, and more recently, electronically, both on CD and on the Web. Davis Library has a strong collection of microforms and a growing one of electronic tools.
A.Personal Writings and Records
Individuals leave a wealth of personal writing that often can be richly utilized in historical research. Such writings include diaries and journals, autobiographies, memoirs, and correspondence. Some helpful tools are listed below.
An Annotated Bibliography of Diaries Printed in
English. C. S. Handley. Aldeburgh, Suffolk, England:
Hanover Press, 1997. This incorporates most of the work of
two earlier bibliographies of diaries in English: by
Patricia Havlice, (Ref. Z5301 .H38 1987) and Laura Arksey
(Ref. Z5305.U5 A74 1983).
CT25 .H363 1997
American Autobiography, 1945 - 1980: a Bibliography.
Mary Louise Briscoe, ed. Madison, WI: Univ. of Wisconsin
Press, 1982. This lists autobiographies published by
Americans in the time period indicated.
Z5305 .U5 A47 1982
Archives USA. This online source combines the National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections, the National Inventory of Documentary Sources, and a directory of manuscript repositories. It may also be useful for finding organizational records.
UK National Register of Archives. "The indexes to the NRA contain references to papers of c.150,000 corporate bodies, persons and families relating to British history with a further 100,000 connected records."
You can use subject headings similar to the ones below in
the Library's catalogs to find similar material.
American diaries -- bibliography
Diaries -- country name
Autobiography -- bibliography
Prime Ministers -- Great Britain --
correspondence
Acheson, Dean, 1893 - 1971 -- Archives
The terms papers, memoirs, archives, archival resources,
sources, letters, correspondence are also often useful in a
keyword search in the catalog, e.g.,
(Cold War) and (memoirs or personal narratives)
Organizational correspondence, papers, and archives are included and/or referred to in a variety of sources. For letters or papers, search the Library's catalogs under the organization's name as subject or author:
Subject: North Atlantic Treaty Organization -- SourcesAuthor: World Trade Organization
More generally, the following terms are useful in subject and/or keyword searches for this type of material: letters, papers, memoirs, archives, archival resources, sources, and correspondence.
Interviews with actual participants of historically important events are becoming a significant source of research material, especially for events of the 20th century. Often you can access transcripts of such interviews if not the actual tapes.
Oral History: A Reference Guide and Annotated
Bibliography. Patricia P. Havlice. Jefferson, NC:
MacFarland, 1985.
Z6201 .H 38 1985
Oral History Index: An International Directory of Oral
History Interviews. Westport, CT: Meckler, 1990.
D16.14 .O74 1990
To find information about oral history collections, try subject headings such as:
oral history--bibliography
oral history--indexes
Mitterrand, François, 1916- -- Interviews.
Also try a Keyword search:
Brandt and interviews
Microform Research Collections. Suzanne Cates
Dodson. Meckler, 1984.
RefDesk Z1033 .M5 D64 1984
Provides descriptions, annotations, and other information
about several hundred major microform sets.
Z1033.M5 H48 1984
Guide to Microforms in Print. Author, Title.
Guide to Microforms in Print. Subject.
Current years only.
Books in Print Stand
Earlier eds. in Davis.
Typically useful subject headings for finding material that has been microformed:
Microforms--catalogs
United States--History, 1933-1945--Sources--Microform
catalogs
E. Government and International Organization Documents
Davis Library has rich, extensive collections of United States government material, American state government resources, and United Nations and other international organization documents. The Library also has extensive collections of documents from certain other governments. For some of these sets, we have good indexing tools; for other, less so. A good approach is to locate a published guide to the official publications of a particular nation and use that to identify materials relevant to one's topic. Two such guides are:
Introduction to United States Government Information
Sources. 6th ed. Joe Morehead. Libraries Unlimited,
1999.
RefDesk Z1223.Z7 M665 1999
Identifies and explains major U. S. government
sources.
(also in SILS, Law.)
Directory of British Official Publications: A Guide,
2nd ed. Stephen Richard. Mansell, 1984.
Row 10 Z2009 .R533 1984
Provides similar help to
understanding British government material.
(also on Row 10)
BA/SS Guide to British Government Publications.
Patricia A. Langelier. Chapel Hill : Business
Administration/Social Sciences Reference, Davis Library,
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, [1989]
RefDesk Z2009 .L36 1989
A typical subject heading to use in the library's catalog to find similar material:
Government publications--country name
Keyword searches can also be fruitful: European Union and publications
The Reference Dept. offers many indexes to government sources, especially U.S. government sources:
The Monthly Catalog of U. S. Government Publications (available in paper, and for 1976 on, electronically.)
Congressional Information Service, offers both print and electronic indexes.
GPO Access, can open up what is a valuable, but often mysterious, collection of materials.
See also the Davis Library Reference Department's Government Information Resources.
V. Selected Primary Research Archives and Resources
Primary sources are "firsthand" or "eyewitness" records, and often are not published, but can be located in manuscript and archive collections. Following is a selected list of guides to manuscript collections and also a selected list of manuscript collections located in the Triangle area.
A Guide to Archives and Manuscripts in the United
States, Philip M. Hamer, ed. New Haven : Yale
University Press, 1961.
CD3022 .A45
Directory of Archives and Manuscript Repositories in the
United States., Phoenix : Oryx Press, 1988.
CD3020 .D49 1988
Manuscripts Department, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
North Carolina Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Rare Book, Manuscript and Special Collections Library, Duke University
North Carolina
Office of Archives and History
Repositories of Primary Sources
"A listing of over 4700 websites describing holdings of
manuscripts, archives, rare books, historical photographs,
and other primary sources for the research scholar."
VI. Additional
Electronic Resources
Increasingly, research related materials, both primary and
secondary sources, are being provided in electronic formats
on the World Wide Web.
History of the World (CD-ROM). Bureau Development,
1992. Access wide variety of original sources, e.g., works
by Aristotle, Plutarch's Lives, Karl Marx's writings. Also
includes secondary works.
E-Ref
CD Sourcebook of U. S. History (CD-ROM). Infobases International, 1992. Provides mainly texts of significant original documents of American history, such as Mayflower Compact, the Declaration of Independence (both draft and final versions), the Federalist Papers, etc. E-Ref
See also the Davis Library Reference Department's, History Titles on CD-ROM
The History Highway 3.0: a Guide to Internet Resources, Dennis A. Trinkle and Scott A. Merriman,Armonk, N.Y. : M.E. Sharpe, c2002.D16.117 .H57 2002
A very new and useful guide to Internet sites relevant to historical research.
Internet Guide for History, John Soares, Belmont, CA
: Wadsworth, c2000.
UL D16.255.C65 S62 2000
C. Electronic
Journals -- History
The library offers many journals in history electronically.
See the E-Journals Resource,
Electronic Journals -- History
D. World Wide Web
Sites
Various text archives are available on the Internet at a
variety of sites. A few sample sites:
Index of Resources for Historians
Organization of American Historians
National Records and Archives Administration
ReadyNetGo: Internet Resources for Archives
Quick Reference -- History Resources
Evaluating the Quality of Information on the Internet
Searching the Internet: Evaluation of Resources
For more Humanities Assistance,
Please contact Robert
Dalton, Collection Management Section and Collection
Development Coordinator
dalton@refstaff.lib.unc.edu
(919) 962-1151
Can't Find What You Are Looking For? How Can We Help You?
E-mail Reference questions to our e-mail reference service
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URL: http://www.lib.unc.edu/reference/hum/history.html
This page was last updated Tuesday, January 10, 2006.