Background Information
Use the background sources here, as well as other sources you might encounter, to gather information about your topic and consider what you still need to know before you start researching. You can use this information in searching for primary sources.
- Dates - Places - Names of persons involved - Names of organizations, government agencies, etc. - Names of particular laws or events
Background sources can also help you understand the larger historical context, so that you can determine what primary sources might be most useful or how a particular primary source fits into what was happening at that time.
Subject Encyclopedias
SUBJECT ENCYCLOPEDIAS
Subject encyclopedias are a good starting point for researching a topic. The library provides access to hundreds of print and online encyclopedias. The articles in a subject encyclopedia are usually written by a scholar or expert in the field. Using subject encyclopedias at the beginning of your research can help you to define key terms to use in searching the library catalog and databases. Often these resources will include a list of references (books, journal articles, or primary sources) that you can use to identify other sources on your topic.
Reference Sources
SELECTED RESOURCES
- Gale eBooks This link opens in a new windowSearch across hundreds of subject encyclopedias and other reference works. A great place to find background information on almost any research topic. Includes a topic finder for help with narrowing or broadening your research topic. Coverage: varies
- Cambridge Histories This link opens in a new windowTopically focused collections of essays that seek to provide comprehensive analysis of major events, peoples, and ideas in world history.
- Credo Reference This link opens in a new windowSearch across hundreds of subject encyclopedias and other referece works. A great place to find background information on almost any research topic. Includes subject trees, pro/con resources, links to scholarly articles and more.
The Cambridge History of the Native Peoples of the Americas: North America, Part 1Call Number: ONLINEISBN: 9780521344401Publication Date: 1996
The Cambridge History of the Native Peoples of the Americas: North America, Part 2Call Number: ONLINEISBN: 9780521573931Publication Date: 1996
The New Cambridge History of American Foreign Relations: Dimensions of the Early American Empire, 1754-1865 by Call Number: ONLINEISBN: 9781107536227Publication Date: 2013
Encyclopedia of United States Indian Policy and LawCall Number: ONLINEISBN: 9781933116983Publication Date: 2008
History & Social Science Librarian
