Research Guide for World History
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Databases & Articles
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Reference Sources
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Library Catalog
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Primary Resources
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Web Resources
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ASU Department Links
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Librarians
- Content Updated November 2007.
Databases & Articles (opens in a new window)
Reference Sources
Britannica
Online
Available on & off campus
Includes more than 72,000 encyclopedia articles with photographs, drawings, full
motion video and audio clips, and more than 130,000 reviewed Web sites.
The American Historical Association's guide to historical literature
ASU Reference | Z6201 .A55 1995 1
The third edition of this classic work. It lists books on many various
topics in its two volumes. Organized by topic and area.
Atlas of the classical world
ASU Reference Atlases | DE29
.H463
Atlases organize information geographically, and this atlas of the classic
world is an excellent example.
Chronology of World
History
ASU Reference | D11.M39 1999
A four-volume set which covers; the ancient and medieval world, pre-history-AD
1491, the expanding world, 1492-1775, the changing world 1776-1900, and the
modern world, 1901-1998.
Dictionary of National Biography (60 vols.)
ASU Reference | DA28 .O95 2004
Also available online from the "Databases & Articles" page
Authoritative biographies of 50,000 people who shaped the history of Britain
from the earliest times to the present.
Greenwood Encyclopedia of Daily Life
ASU Reference | GT31 .G74 2004
A six volume work that approaches daily living thematically and chronologically
and has worldwide coverage. Features include primary documents, illustrations,
maps, concept maps, and chronologies.
International Historical
Statistics: Africa, Asia & Oceania, 1750-2000
ASU Reference | HA 4675.M552 2003
Arranged geographically and provides historical statistics for some of
the following categories: population, labour force, agriculture, industry
and education.
International Historical
Statistics: Europe, 1750-1993
ASU Reference | HA1107.M5 1998
Arranged geographically and provides historical statistics for some of
the following categories: population, labour force, agriculture, industry
and education.
Navigating world history : historians create a global past / Patrick Manning
ASU Main Stacks | D21.3
.M285 2003
A librarian compiled this list of reference sources. It is organized by
LC Classification with an index to authors and titles.
Renaissance and Reformation
ASU Reference | CB359 .R455 2007
Six volume, eclectic, well-researched set organized by theme, such as "Architecture,
Painting, and Sculpture," "Daily Life," "Politics and
Economics," or "Wars and Battles."
Sources of information for historical research / Thomas P. Slavens
ASU Reference | Z6201 .S64 1994
A librarian compiled this list of reference sources. It is organized by
subject with an index to authors and titles.
Writing History: a guide for students
ASU Main Stacks | D16.S864 1999
Discusses how to select topics, analyze sources, and build arguments. Practical
guide for beginning historians.
Web Resources
Google Scholar
http://scholar.google.com/
Google Scholar provides a simple way to broadly search for scholarly literature. You
can search across many disciplines for peer-reviewed papers, theses, books,
abstracts, and articles.
Also, google the words "library subject guide world history" for excellent lists of resources organized by librarians.
Internet Public Library: History Guide
http://www.ipl.org/div/subject/browse/hum30.00.00/
Voice of the Shuttle : History Guide
http://www.english.ucsb.edu/faculty/ayliu/research/talks/DCP2002/browse.asp?id=2713
Primary Resources
Start by familiarizing yourself with primary sources:
Primary vs. Secondary Sources
http://www.library.appstate.edu/reference/howTo/primarysecondary.html
A short description and video tutorial about how to differentiate between
primary and secondary sources
Using Primary Sources on the Web
http://www.lib.washington.edu/subject/History/RUSA/
An excellent tutorial put together by librarians about finding, using,
and evaluating primary sources online.
We have a number of databases with digitized, full-text, primary source material: go to Databases for History: Primary
Early English Books Online
Contains scanned images of virtually every work printed in England, Ireland,
Scotland, Wales and British North America and works in English printed elsewhere
from 1473-1700.
Eighteenth Century Collections Online (ECCO)
Every significant English-language and foreign-language title printed in
Great Britain during the eighteenth century, along with thousands of important
works from the Americas. Contains 138,000 titles including books and
directories, Bibles, sheet music and sermons to advertisements.
The Making of the Modern World 1450-1850
The most comprehensive collection in existence for researching the literature
of economics from 1450 – 1850. Contains 61,000 titles.
Evans bibliography (Early American Imprints, Series I: Evans: 1639-1800)
Contains the full text of all known existing books, pamphlets, and broadsides
printed in the United States (or British American colonies prior to Independence)
from 1639 through 1800.
Shaw-Shoemaker bibliography (Early American Imprints, Series II:
Shaw-Shoemaker: 1801-1819)
Contains the full text of a comprehensive set of American books, pamphlets
and broadsides published in the early part of the 19th century.
America's Historical Newspapers, 1690 – 1922 (including Early
American Newspapers, Series 1-3)
Offers fully searchable articles from over 1000 historical American newspapers
during the time period.
American Periodicals Series Online, 1741 – 1900
APS Online spans over 1,500 titles and 7 million pages of content, from
the first American magazines, published in 1741, to the World War II period-200
years of American history as recorded in magazines, journals, and newspapers.
Oral History Online
The collection provides access to over 287,000 pages of full-text to10,000
individuals from all walks of life.
In addition, a catalog search for your topic AND the word "documents" or "primary sources" or similar titles may result in reference works, bibliographies, and other important materials.
Links to reputable sources of primary documents on the Web include:
Avalon Project: Documents in Law, History and Diplomacy
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/avalon.htm
Documents in law, history, and diplomacy
EuroDocs: Western European Primary Historical Documents
http://eudocs.lib.byu.edu
A searchable wiki with documents in European history
Gallica: Digital Library of the National Library of France
http://gallica.bnf.fr
Library catalog: http://wncln.wncln.org/
Use the Library catalog to find books, films, journals
(the name of the journal – not the name of the article), and other materials. To
find books on the history of a country, do a Subject search in the catalog
using the subdivision "History" after the name of the country;
for example, Japan-History. For more comprehensive, broader results,
try a Keyword search with the name of the country and "History," for
example, Japan and History.
Sample subject headings on historical topics include:
Elizabeth
I, Queen Of England, 1533-1603
Europe--civilization
Germany--Foreign
Relations--1888-1918
Renaissance
1450 1600 -- Women -- History
The term "history" can be used as a subdivision (secondary term)
for almost any topic (e.g. women and history). For example:
Africa--History
Economics--History
Women--History
Books on history will be located throughout the library, but the following
areas will focus exclusively on historical research:
C Auxiliary
Sciences of History
D General
and Old World History
E History
of America
F History
of the United States and British, Dutch, French, and Latin America
ASU Department Links
Department of History
http://www.acs.appstate.edu/dept/history/
Includes information on departments and programs, faculty works and student works, and technology resources.
Librarians
You can contact the history librarians directly with questions about a specific research project:
Georgie Donovan
Collection Development Librarian for History
Appalachian State University Library, room 226
donovangl@appstate.edu
828.262.7571
Betsy Williams
Reference and Instruction Librarian for History
Appalachian State University, room 308
willamsem@appstate.edu
828.262.2817