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Off-Campus Access Citation Help
Judith S. Pinnolis, Humanities Research and Instruction Librarian
October, 2007
This is a guide to library research in the field of American History. It contains a selective list of resources that are helpful for more in-depth research projects. Please consult the reference librarian for additional assistance.
Links appearing on this page are to catalog records in LOUIS (the online catalog of the Brandeis Libraries) including reference tools such as books, electronic indexes and abstracts, full text resources, or governent documents. Internet sites and other research resources are also indicated by highlighted titles which are active links.
Subject encyclopedias can provide a broad overview of the current research on a particular topic and a short bibliography of key resources
Dictionary of American History
Arranged alphabetically. Up-to-date signed articles with bibliographies, photos, paintings, ephermera and maps. Ten volumes.
Main Ref E174. D5 2003
Encyclopedia of American Foreign Policy
Extensive essays with bibliography and index. Includes a timeline in Vol. 1. Covers policy from 1601-2001. Three volumes.
Main Ref E183.7 .E549 2002
Encyclopedia of American History
Chronologically arranged, with each volume representing a different time period. Ten volumes, plus Vol. 11 is an index.
Main Ref E174 .E53 2003
Encyclopedia of American Social History
Signed scholarly articles with references on various aspects of U.S. social history from pre-European contact to the 1990s. Includes index. Three volumes.
Main Ref HN57 .E58 1993
Encyclopedia of the American West
Arranged alphabetically. Four volumes.
Main Ref F591 .E485 1996
Encyclopedia of the North American Colonies
Signed scholarly articles with annotated references. Covers all aspects of North American colonies from 985 to 1867. Includes chronology, maps and index. History and social history covered, such as labor systems, folkways, technology, arts, settlements, government, economy, life courses, and social interactions.
Main Ref E45 .E53 1993
Encyclopedia of U.S. Foreign Relations
A multi-volume encyclopedia of signed and referenced articles on American foreign relations, 1776 to the 1990s. Includes a chronology of U.S. foreign relations, a table of national data, a classified bibliography of reference works and a bibliography.
Main Ref E183.7 .E55 1997
Gale Encyclopedia of United States Economic History
Provides scholarly articles with references on various themes of U.S. economic history from pre-colonial era to end of twentieth century. Includes maps, tables and index. Two volumes.
Main Ref HC102 .G35 1999
The Reader's Companion to American History
Reviews good books on various topics in American history.
Main Ref E175 .R42 1997
Women During the Civil War: An Encyclopedia
Essays on various aspects in the lives of women.
Main Ref E628 .H37 2004
The Library of Congress Civil War Desk Reference
Organized by topics such as "antebellum America" and "war time politics". Extensive guide to Civil War research. Includes definitions of such things as weaponry, battles, and social information such as prisoners and medical care.
Main Ref E468 .L58 2002
America in So Many Words: Words That Have Shaped America
A fascinating guide to the origins of Americanisms.
Main Ref PE2831 .B37 1997
A Companion to the American Revolution
Essays on major events and contexts.
Main Ref E208 .C67 2000
Dictionary of American Diplomatic History
Tried and true companion with places, people and trusty names. Brief descriptions.
Main Ref E 183.7 .F5 [1980]
A Handbook of American Military History
A concise handbook of military events in American history from 1775 to 1994. Arranged chronologically and thematically. Each historical section contains a chronology, brief information on military operations, short biographical notes and a selected reading list. Includes a glossary but no index.
Main Ref E181 .H23 1996
Handbook of American Women's History
Brief, signed and referenced entries on U.S. women's history. Includes index.
Main Ref HQ1410 .H36 1990
Historical Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War
Brief signed entries on the Civil War period. Includes many portraits, maps and photographs.
Main Ref E468 .H57 1986
The Morrow Book of Quotations in American History
A dictionary of quotations relating to American history up to early 1980s. Arranged by author. Includes subject index.
Main Ref PN6084 .U5 C6 1984
The Oxford Companion to American History
Provides useful concise information on U.S. history prior to 1999. Many unique or unusual entries found here.
Main Ref E181 .O94 1999
Dictionary of Concepts in History
Tried and true look at history. Provides definitions with accompanying essays about major themes in history and understanding historiographical ideas. This book takes familiar words, such as "biography," "civilization" or "laws," and introduces the student to these as concepts from the historian's point of view. Essays conclude with "sources for additional information."
Main Ref D13 .R49 1986
A Guide to Historical Method
Classic guide about how to conduct research and evaluate evidence.
Main Ref D16 .S47 1980
Sources of Information for Historical Research
Bibliography showing how history is organized in a library. Lots of useful items listed.
Main Ref D20 .S62 1994
The Almanac of American History
An illustrated, well-annotated chronology of U.S. history from 986 to 1982. Includes an index.
Main Ref E174.5 .A45 1983
Great Dates in United States History
A thematic chronology of U.S. history from the "discovery" of the North American continent to 1992. Includes maps and a detailed index.
Main Ref E174.5 .G72 1994
The American Historical Association's Guide to Historical Literature
This large, two-volume guide contains nearly 27,000 bibliographic citations and is divided into 48 sections. Each contains a brief essay, a guide to contents, and an annotated bibliography. The sections are usually organized first by general reference sources, and then by more specific sources for that area of study. Most cited titles were published between 1961 and 1992, although a few more recent ones are also mentioned. Includes a list of journals, and author and subject indexes.
Main Ref Z6201 .A55 1995
American Military History: A Guide to Reference and Information Sources
An annotated guide to American military documents in all media from all historical periods. Includes author/title and subject indexes.
Main Ref E181 .B584 1995
Reader's Guide to American History
Brief, signed historiographical essays on 600 topics, themes, concepts, periods and individuals relating to American history. An excellent entrée to this vast literature. Includes alphabetical and thematic lists of entries, and booklist and general indexes.
Main Ref Z1236 .R43 1997
Sources of Information for Historical Research
One of the most important guides to historical sources, this work is arranged according to Library of Congress call number order. It contains author/title and subject indexes. Sources "for political, social, intellectual and economic history have been included." In selecting sources for this guide, the compiler of this guide has undertaken extensive research and paid special attention to the qualifications of contributors and editors.
Main Ref D20 .S62 1994
United States History: A Selective Guide to Information Sources
An annotated guide to the broad spectrum of sources on all aspects of American history. Includes author/title and subject indexes.
Main Ref Z1236 .B57 1994
A Retrospective Bibliography of American Demographic History from Colonial to 1983 and Bibliography of American Demographic History: The Literature from 1984 to 1994
An extensive thematic bibliography of journal articles and monographs on American demographic history. No annotations. Includes author index. The supplement includes place, ethnicity/national origin and selected topic indexes.
Main Ref HB3505 .G43 1989 and Main Ref HB3505 .G428 1995
United States History: A Bibliography of the New Writings on American History
A selected, annotated bibliography of "writings on United States history from the 1980s and early 1990s in English." Classified by time period and subject. Includes author/editor/compiler and subject indexes.
Main Ref E178 .M58 1995
United States Local Histories in the Library of Congress: A Bibliography
A four-volume listing of American local histories organized by the Library of Congress classification system.
Main Ref + Z1250 .U59 1975
Writings on American History
A bibliography of American historical publications from 1902 to 1989/90.
Indexes & Abstracts Area Z1236 .L331
Finding Book Reviews
This research guide provides information about locating book reviews at Brandeis Libraries.
See also: Reviews in American History (Brandeis users only)
This journal provides current information with extensive reviews of new books in history. "Retrospective essays examining landmark works by major historians are also regularly featured." Searchable online through Project Muse.
Reviews in American History (1973- )
Provides "lengthy reviews of scholarly and non-fiction trade books in American history and related disciplines."
Main Stacks Z1236 .R47
Atlas of American Military History
Main Ref E181 .A87 2003
Atlas of American Politics 1960-2000
Covers presidential elections to political cultures.
Main Ref G1201 .F1 A8 2002
Atlas of Western Expansion
Maps, illustrations and text depict American growth westward. Includes a chronology of U.S. territorial expansion (1750-1917), bibliography and index.
Main Ref + G1201.S1 W44 1995
Discovering American History Through Maps and Views
Colored transparencies of maps and views illustrating themes in American history. Textual commentary included with each map. Very useful for presentations.
Main Ref + G1201.S1 D3 1991
Historical Atlas of the United States
An excellent atlas with numerous full-color maps, documents and illustrations, detailed textual commentary, and a year-by-year chronology. Includes a bibliography and index.
Main Ref G1201 .S1 .H45 2003
Mapping America's Past: A Historical Atlas
Provides a valuable geographical perspective on American social history. Numerous maps, photographs, and illustrations, substantial textual interpretation and a thematic bibliography. Includes an index.
Main Ref G1201.S1 C3 1996
The Official Military Atlas of The Civil War
Lot of detailed maps of battles.
Atlases G1201 .S5 U6 1978
ArchiveGrid
Indexes and provides access to over 700,000 collection records and nearly 30,000 collection finding guides for archival resources.
Articles Describing Archives and Manuscript Collections in the United States
An annotated listing of journal articles (1890s to mid-1990s) describing archives and manuscript collections. Organized by subject and geography. Also covers foreign repositories holding U.S.-related records and U.S. repositories holding foreign records or manuscripts. Includes detailed index.
Main Ref CD3022.A2 D478 1997
Catalog of Manuscripts of the Massachusetts Historical Society andFirst Supplement
Reproduces the card catalog of manuscripts at the MHS (Massachusetts Historical Society). An extensive collection of primary documents on Massachusetts history.
Main Ref Z6621 .M3985 & suppl.1
Guides to Archives and Manuscript Collections in the United States: An Annotated Bibliography
An annotated listing of published guides to manuscript materials held by American archives. Includes index.
Main Ref CD3022.A2 D48 1994
Guide to Federal Records in the National Archives of the United States
A three-volume guide to official record groups held by the National Archives.
Main Ref CD3026 1995
Massachusetts Archives
The state archives holds records created by the government of Massachusetts and its agencies since 1629.
http://www.magnet.state.ma.us/sec/arc/
see also:NARA Archival Information Locator (NAIL)
A searchable database that contains partial information about a wide variety of NARA's holdings (textual documents, photographs, maps and sound recordings) across the USA.
http://www.nara.gov/nara/nail.html
National Archive and Records Administration, Regional Archives, Northeast Region, Guide to Archival Holdings (NARA Boston)
Waltham has a regional depository for the National Archives and Records Administration which is about 10 minutes by car from Brandeis. Located at Frederick C. Murphy Federal Center, 380 Trapelo Road, Waltham, MA 02452-6399. It is a center for research for historical records from Federal agencies and courts in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island. It is also a center for genealogical research. Records date back to 1780s including photos, maps, architectural drawings, federal courts in civil, criminal, admiralty, equity, land-taking and bankruptcy cases. It also has microfilm holdings for population censuses for all States 1790-1930; Revolutionary War military service records, pension and bounty land warrant applications; passenger arrival records for Bost, New York and other East and Gulf Coast ports; extensive Freedmen's Bureau records; selected records on Eastern Cherokee and Five Civilized Tribes; Canadian border entry records, 1895-1954; territorial papers German records from end of WWII; records of US diplomatic missions, Revolutionary and Civil Wars, the Government's administration of Indian affairs and the US Supreme Court. The main website is:
NARA Northeast Region(Boston) .
The National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections (NUCMC)
Major listing of manuscript holdings in archives around the US.
Directory of American Libraries with Genealogy or Local History Collections
A listing of local history collections in the US and Canada. Describes extent of holdings and provides contact information. Includes index of libraries with significant out-of-state collections.
Main Ref + Z675 .G44 F56 1988
Directory of Historical Organizations in the United States and Canada
A publication of the American Association for State and Local History, this directory lists historical agencies in the USA and Canada. Organized geographically. Includes a classified list of organizations and an organization index.
Main Ref E172 .D48 1990
Historic Census Browser http://fisher.lib.virginia.edu/collections/stats/histcensus/
United States Local Histories in the Library of Congress: A Bibliography
A four-volume listing of American local histories organized by the Library of Congress classification system.
Main Ref + Z1250 .U59 1975
Virtual Roots: A Guide to Genealogy and Local History on the World Wide Web
An extensive listing of Web sites and e-mail addresses for archives and libraries in the U.S. and abroad.
Main Ref CS21 .K46 1997
Directory of History Departments and Organizations in the U.S. and Canada
This American Historical Association publication covers nearly 800 history departments in colleges, universities and organizations. Names, addresses, phone, fax and e-mail are included.
Main Ref D16.3 .G83
Directory of Oral History Collections
An annotated listing of oral history collections across the United States. Includes subject and interviewee indexes.
Main Ref Z6208 .O7 S54 1988
