HIS 4935: Library Research in History
Professor Sanua
Librarian: Ken Frankel
February 12, 2008
 

I. Locating books and other materials in the Library:
 

FAU Library Catalog:
 

The Library Catalog allows you to search for books, government documents, DVDs, electronic books, and other materials in the Library's collection. The catalog will tell you if the library owns a particular periodical (journal or magazine) but does not include the articles found in periodicals. To find these you must use different databases (see below).

The Advanced search screen allows you to combine terms using “and, or, not” as well as limiting a search by location, date, format, or language.

The catalog provides a call number for each item shelved in the Library, and will inform you if it is available or checked out. To find out where a call number is located, use the Library Map, or get a bookmark from one of the service desks, which lists these locations.

 

II. Electronic Journals:

Use this link to determine if the Library provides electronic access to a particular journal title. Click on the letter corresponding to the journal's title or type the title in the box next to "Title begins with." This box may also be used to search keywords in an electronic journal's title. The Citation Linker near the bottom of the page can be used to search for a specific article.

Note: when using the electronic journals from off-campus you must first log in through the Off Campus Connect (EZProxy) link. You will need to enter the 14-digit number from your Owl Card in order to do this.
 

III. Searching for articles in databases:

To search for articles click on Indexes/Databases.  There are both alphabetical and subject listings of databases.

Note: when using these databases from off-campus, first log in through the EZ-Proxy link.
 

America- History and Life
Covers United States and Canadian history from prehistory to the present.

Historical Abstracts
Indexes journals covering the history of the world from 1450 to the present (excluding the United States and Canada, which are covered in a companion database America: History and Life).

Historical New York Times
This database offers full-page-images and article images from the New York times from its first issue in 1851 to three years before the current date.

History Resource Center- U.S.
Contains a vast collection of primary sources, magazine and newspaper articles, and reference works covering U.S. history.

Index to Jewish Periodicals
Provides a comprehensive guide to English-language articles, book reviews, and feature stories in more than 160 journals devoted to Jewish affairs.

JSTOR
An archive of full-text scholarly journals.  Does not include most recent five years, but has complete back files.

ProQuest Dissertations and Theses
Covers every doctoral dissertation completed in the U.S. at accredited institutions for the last 150 years. Includes some master's theses and foreign language dissertations.

Social Sciences Full Text
Covers some 350 core periodicals in the fields of anthropology, economics, geography, law and criminology, political science, social work, sociology, and international relations.

Times Digital Archive
The complete digital edition of The Times (London), using keyword searching and hit-term highlighting to retrieve full facsimile images of either a specific article or a complete page. Cover 1785-1985.

WorldCat
The world's most comprehensive bibliography, with over 48 million bibliographic records representing over 400 languages and covering information from 4,000 years of knowledge.

 

 III. Citing your References:

Chicago Manual of Style:

The Chicago Manual of Style is typically used to format research papers in history. This manual is kept on 1 hour reserve at the Circulation Desk (Z 253 U69 2003).
Many quick reference guides to the Chicago style are available on the Web such as the Chicago Manual of Style Citation Guide from The Ohio State University Libraries.
 

IV.  Interlibrary Loan:

Use the ILLiad service to order materials the Boca Raton Campus library does NOT own. You may order books, articles, videos, etc. Also use this service to have materials at the Jupiter or Port St. Lucie campus libraries delivered to the Boca campus circulation desk. To register for this service, create an account for "first time users" here.

 

V. Getting Research Help:

Reference Chat and Email: "Ask a Librarian" form

Reference Telephone 561-297-3785

Reference Consultations: meet with a librarian to receive individualized help