Newton Gresham Library Sam Houston State University
U. S. History
(Reference Guide # 21)
United States history covers more than simply dates and events. It is the study of the history, culture, and identity of the United States from the earliest times of settlement to the present. Research of U.S. History covers a broad range of topics in the Humanities and Social Sciences and draws upon many different resources. This guide is intended to serve as a gateway to pertinent information about United States History. All sources listed below may be found in the reference area on the second floor of the library, through the library’s online databases, or via the Internet. Please ask the Reference Desk if you need assistance.
SEARCHING FOR BOOKS
The library contains many encyclopedias, dictionaries, bibliographies, and specialized resources relating to U.S. History. A select list of these resources is below. To search for other books and materials, use SamCat, the library’s online catalog. To access SamCat: On the NGL homepage http://library.shsu.edu, select Search the Catalog at the top left. Enter your search term, fill in any optional search information as desired (such as language or resource type), then click the Search button. When it is noted that a book is also available electronically, you can access the electronic content by searching for the title in SamCat and clicking the item’s blue “URL” button. Reference books which are available in both electronic and in print formats may be more current electronically.
Encyclopedias and Dictionaries
The resources listed below introduce the user to the key terms, subjects, events, and individuals and groups relating to the study of United States History. American Heritage Encyclopedia of American History / edited by John Mack Faragher. E174 .A535 1998, Reference. Concise explanations to over 3000 topics, subjects, events, and people of U.S. History. Dictionary of American History, 3rd ed. / edited by Stanley I. Kutler. E174 .D52 2003, Reference. Also available electronically through library catalog. Ten-volume set organized alphabetically by subject. Gives a more in-depth look than other encyclopedias or dictionaries. Dictionary of American History from 1763 to the Present / Peter Thompson. E174 .T47 2000, Reference. Ideal for a brief introduction to topics in U.S. History.
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Encyclopedia of American Facts and Dates, 10th ed. / Gorton Carruth. E174.5 .C3 1997, Reference. Use the index to look up significant dates in U.S. History. Reader’s Companion to American History / edited by Eric Foner. E174 .R43 1991, Reference. Also available electronically through library catalog. Arranged by subject; addresses various events, topics, people and groups as well as larger themes in U.S. History.
Bibliographies
The resources below provide citations to further readings collected from books and journals. Handbook for Research in American History, 2nd rev. ed. / Francis Paul Prucha. E178 .P68 1994, Reference. Introduces users to various types of information resources in U.S. History. Reader’s Guide to American History / edited by Peter J. Parish. E178 .R43 1997, Reference. Series of essays, organized by subject, that describe and evaluate significant books published on various U.S. History topics. United States History: A Bibliography of the New Writings on American History / compiled by Louise A. Merriam. E178 .M47 1995, Reference. Organized by time period, and sub-divided by subject, provides citations to major books and journal articles primarily from 1970s-1990s. United States History: A Selective Guide to Information Sources / Ron Blazek and Anna H. Perrault. E178 .B52 1994, Reference. Also available electronically through library catalog with call number Z1236. Part I provides annotated citations for general resources. Part II recommends topical resources on political, diplomatic, military, cultural, economic, and regional history.
Miscellaneous
The following resources are specialized encyclopedias, dictionaries, and guidebooks on specific areas of United States History. Political, Governmental and Legal History 100 Key Documents in American Democracy / edited by Peter B. Levy. E173 .A15 1994, Reference. Full-text of primary source documents from colonial times through the 20th century.
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Documents of American Constitutional and Legal History, 3rd ed. / edited by Melvin I. Urofsky. KF350 .D633 2008, Reference. Two-volume set of significant constitutional and legal documents from colonial times to present. Includes brief background of each document. Encyclopedia of American Political History / edited by Paul Finkelman. E183. E48 2001, Reference. Contains 240 short articles, arranged alphabetically, on various topics of U.S. politics. The Presidents: A Reference History, 3rd ed. / edited by Henry F. Graff. E176 .P918 2002, Reference. Biographies, political careers, and White House events of presidents from Washington to G.W. Bush. Includes bibliography for further reading. Economic History Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. Economic History / edited by Thomas Carson. HC102 .G35 1999, Reference. Also available electronically through library catalog. Two-volume set, arranged chronologically, contains over 1000 brief articles on topics in U.S. economic history. Military History Encyclopedia of the American Civil War / edited by David S. Heidler. E468 .E53 2000, Reference. Five-volume set containing over 1600 entries on major subjects, every battle, and significant individuals. Encyclopedia of American Military History / edited by Spencer C. Tucker. E181 .E63 2003, Reference. Three-volume set covers people, events, and subjects in American military history, including related photos, art, and maps. Each volume includes a volume index and an alphabetical list of contents for all three volumes. Encyclopedia of the American Revolution: Library of Military History, 2nd ed. / edited by Harold E. Selesky. E208 .E63 2006, Reference. Also available electronically through library catalog. Two-volume set covers the lesser-known battles as well as the famous from 1763-1783, including participant biographies, weapons, strategy, popular legends, and more.
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The Encyclopedia of the American Revolutionary War / edited by Gregory FremontBarnes and Richard Alan Ryerson. E208 .E64 2006, Reference. Five-volume set containing more than 1,000 entries on individuals, battles, and other significant events and subjects. Volume 5 presents relevant primary source documents. The Oxford Companion to American Military History / edited by John Whiteclay Chambers II. E181 .O94 1999, Reference. Over 1000 brief entries on wars, events, people, and topics in U.S. military history. Social, Cultural, and Ethnic History Encyclopedia of American Cultural & Intellectual History / Mary Kupiec Cayton. E169 .E624 2001, Reference. Four-volume set, organized chronologically and subdivided by subject. Entries cover a wide range of topics from fine arts to slavery to feminism. Encyclopedia of American Social History / edited by Mary Kupiec Cayton. HN57 .E58 1993, Reference. Three-volume set organized by theme. Contains lengthy articles and a bibliography. Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America / edited by Judy Galens. E184 .A1 G14 1995, Reference. Provides an overview, history, and traditions of over 100 ethnic groups in the U.S., organized alphabetically by ethnic group. An additional two-volume set from 1999 provides supporting primary source documents (E184 .A1 G15 1999, Reference). Handbook of American Women’s History, 2nd ed. / edited by Angela M. Howard. HQ1410 .H36 2000, Reference. Over 900 entries focusing on significant women, subjects, events, and concepts. Each entry has information for further reading. The World Book of America's multicultural heritage / [edited by ?] E178 .W8995 2003, Reference. Two-volume set traces the history of America through its diverse people, from the first immigrants who crossed the Bering Strait from Asia, to 21st century immigrant groups. Arranged in chronological chapters. Heavily illustrated. Texas History Encyclopedia of Texas, 6th ed. F384 .E52 2001, Reference. Two-volume set provides state data, from simple facts like the state flower to lengthier chapters on geography, weather, archaeology, history, government, and pictorials scenes.
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The New Handbook of Texas / edited by Ron Tyler. F384 .N48 1996, Reference. Six-volume set providing brief entries on the events, people, cities, and towns that have shaped Texas history. The American West The American West / Schweikart, Larry. Available electronically through library catalog with call number F591 .S38 2003 EB. Encyclopedia of over 500 entries on the people, events, and concepts of the American West from prehistory through the present. Also includes maps, drawings, and photos. Biographical Information American National Biography / edited by John A. Garraty. E176 .A43 1999, Reference. Also available as database American National Biography, including more recent years (see below to access). Twenty-four volume set featuring biographies of prominent American individuals. Includes references and information for further reading. Encyclopedia of American Biography, 2nd ed. / edited by John A. Garraty. CT213 .G37 1996, Reference. Concise, one-volume encyclopedia featuring brief biographies of only the most significant individuals in U.S. History.
SEARCHING FOR ARTICLES
A variety of articles are available in the field of United States History. Articles include popular and general-interest items from history-related magazines such as American Heritage and American History, as well as scholarly, peer-reviewed journals such as The American Historical Review and Journal of American History. Articles may be found in print, on microfilm and microfiche, or through the library’s online databases.
Print Indexes
Provides access to citations from journals, magazines, and newspapers. Particularly helpful in obtaining citations to articles prior to the 1980s. Combined Retrospective Index Set to Journals in History, 1838-1974. D1 .C19, Reference. Citations to over 150,000 articles from 200 historical journals published between 18381974. Ideal for historical research.
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New York Times Index. AI21 .N44, Reference Index. Provides citations to articles from the New York Times from 1851-2003. The full text of articles from the New York Times, 1851-2004, are available in the database New York Times (see below to access). The Times Index. AI21 .T46, Reference Index. For a British perspective on U.S. events, provides citations from The Times (of London) newspaper from 1785, 1790-1850, and 1906-present. The full text of articles from the Times of London, 1785-1985, are available in the database The Times of London Digital Archive (see below to access).
Electronic Databases
The following electronic databases index journal articles about U.S. History. Some databases provide only a citation and abstract of a journal article, while other databases will provide the full-text of journal articles. To access these and many other databases: On the NGL homepage http://library.shsu.edu, select Databases & Indexes at the top left. To access a specific database, select the first letter of its name from the Alphabetical List of Databases. Scroll down the list of databases, and click on a database’s name to open it. To see a list of databases recommended for an area of study, select Databases by Subject, then select a subject area (example: History) from the list. Scroll down the list of databases, and click on a database’s name to open it. Academic Search Complete General database covering nearly all subjects, including history. Contains some full-text (1990s-present) to over 1000 journals, magazines, and newspapers, as well as citations and abstracts (1980s-present) to nearly 3000 more. America: History and Life The premier database for research into U.S. History. Provides citations and abstracts to over 2000 history-related journals (1964-present). Includes limited links to full-text. JSTOR Provides access to full-text articles from back issues of scholarly journals (generally 1-5 years behind current issues), including over 70 history-related journals and many other related subject areas. Project Muse Full-text articles (1990s-present) from over 100 scholarly journals, including many from history and American studies. Wilson OmniFile Full-Text, Mega Edition (Wilson Web) A combination of several databases, including some full-text articles. Search both Wilson Humanities Full-Text and Wilson Social Sciences Full-Text for history (1980s-present).
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Selected Journals
The following is a small sampling of journals related to U.S. History to which the library currently subscribes. For more, consult the online catalog or ask at the Reference Desk. Print Journals
The American Historical Review The Historian History Today Journal of American History Journal of American Studies Journal of Women’s History Magazine of History Reviews in American History E171 .A57 D1 .H22 D1 .H818 E171 .J86 E11 .J6 HQ1101 .J68 D16.3 .M33 E171 .R49 1895-current 1950, 1956, 1961-current 1951-present 1914-current 1967-current 1992-current 1991-current 1973-current
Electronic Journals The NGL has access to over 35,000 journals in electronic format. The journal list below is a small sample only and not comprehensive. To access Electronic Journals: On the NGL homepage http://library.shsu.edu, select Find a Journal Title at the top left. On the Journals and Periodicals web page, select Electronic Journals. The Electronic Journals search function allows you to search for titles or subjects of journals, not articles within journals. Searching within a specific journal may or may not be available once you have selected a specific journal title, depending on the individual electronic journal and how it is acquired by the NGL. Once you locate a journal title, click on one of the database names listed for that journal. Then browse or search the journal in that database. Below is a sample of electronic journal titles available through the NGL:
American History Civil War History Diplomatic History History History Today Journal of Modern History The History Teacher Journal of American History Journal of American Ethnic History Journal of Contemporary History Journal of Southern History
SEARCHING FOR INTERNET RESOURCES
There are many web sites relevant to the study of United States History, particularly from history-related organizations and universities. The web sites listed below are only an example and not meant to be an exhaustive list. At the time of this writing, all of the web sites are currently active; however, due to the transitory nature of the Internet, this may not be the case at any future date. Additionally, information from the Internet needs to be evaluated critically, with attention to origin, author, motive, bias, and age.
URL http://www.historians.org/ http://memory.loc.gov/ http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/index.php http://www.besthistorysites.net/USHistory.shtml http://www.learner.org/biographyofamerica/ Organization/Description of Web Site American Historical Association American Memory American Presidency Project Best of History Web Sites: U.S. History A Biography of America
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http://www.loc.gov/chroniclingamerica/ http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu http://www.gilderlehrman.org http://www.opal-online.org/progschrono.htm http://www.historynow.org http://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/moagrp/ http://www.ncss.org/ http://www.oah.org/ http://www.si.edu/history_and_culture/american/
Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers Digital History Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History History & Genealogy Program Archive from OPAL History Now Making of America National Council for the Social Studies Organization of American Historians Smithsonian Institution: American History & Culture
OTHER RESOURCES
Government Documents The Government Documents department, located on the first floor of the library, contains documents from the U.S. federal government and Texas state government that may prove valuable to U.S. History researchers. Items of interest include statistics, presidential papers, congressional debates, and censuses. Special Collections The Thomason Room, located on the fourth floor of the library, houses specialized collections containing rare and unique materials on a variety of subjects. Among these are collections dealing with the U.S. Civil War, as well as Texas and local history. Regular semester hours for the Thomason Room are Monday-Friday from 1:00pm – 5:00pm.
revised EED 10/2007
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