This guide compiles resources relevant for your History Seminar. Don't hesitate to reach out to a librarian if you need additional support!
These databases are provided by the Henry Whittemore Library at Framingham State University. The databases listed below are best for finding secondary sources. If an article is not available in full-text through the Henry Whittemore Library, you can request it through interlibrary loan. Interlibrary loan for articles can take 5 - 7 days. See the Additional Resources tab for more information about interlibrary loan.
Tip: Historical Abstracts covers world history, exclusive of materials about the United States and Canada. American History & Life covers the United States and Canada. You can search both databases simultaneously by clicking the "Choose Databases" link above the search box in either database. A list of all the EBSCO databases will be displayed and you can select which database you would like to search simultaneously from there.
The Boston Public Library offers many more resources for finding primary and secondary sources! To obtain an eCard follow the directions in the link below. The Boston Public Library eCard is available to anyone who lives, works, or studies in Massachusetts.
The Boston Public Library offers resources for finding both primary and secondary sources.
The Henry Whittemore Library belongs to a regional network of public and academic libraries called the Minuteman Library Network. You can easily request books through the Minuteman catalog to be set to the Henry Whittemore Library. This can take between 5 days - 3 weeks or longer, depending on if the book is already checked-out by another patron and how many requests the book already has.
WorldCat is a resources that allows you to search library catalogs worldwide. Materials found through WorldCat may be requested through interlibrary loan (see Additional Resources tab for interlibrary loan instructions). Requesting books through interlibrary loan can take up to 2 weeks or longer, so plan accordingly. Always double check to see if a book is available through the Minuteman Catalog before requesting through interlibrary loan.
Many universities and government institutions are actively digitalizing historic materials, but it can be difficult to know where to look. Filtering through a regular Google search can be daunting when faced with results from across the globe. You can use a special strategy when searching Google to find materials from institutions digitizing materials! This strategy also works well for finding background information on a topic, as many cultural institutions write blog posts or introductions to historic events.
What it does: The site command brings you search results from the site or domain you search. Using this command you can search only within .edu or .gov domains. You can also use it to search the Library of Congress's site, loc.gov.
Examples: site:edu or site:loc.gov
Notes: Be careful if searching for site:.edu. Not all websites that end in .edu are universities or other educational institutions, the domain can be used by anyone.
fugitive slave act site:loc.gov --> This search will find anything about the fugitive slave act on the Library of Congress website
Anthony Burns site:edu or site:gov --> This search will find anything about Anthony Burns on websites with the .edu or .gov domain
