American History: Reference Resources
A guide to resources for the study of U.S. history.
Selected Reference Titles
- Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United StatesOne of the greatest historical atlases: Charles O. Paullin and John K. Wright's Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United States, first published in 1932. This digital edition reproduces all of the atlas's nearly 700 maps. Many of these beautiful maps are enhanced here in ways impossible in print, animated to show change over time or made clickable to view the underlying data—remarkable maps produced eight decades ago with the functionality of the twenty-first century.
Reference Resources
- African American Studies - Oxford Bibliographies Online This link opens in a new windowBibliographies highlighting scholarship in key disciplines in African American Studies--e.g., culture, politics, religion, economics, etc.--with links to full-text resources where available at Fondren.
- American History - Oxford Research Encyclopedia This link opens in a new windowSearchable encyclopedia with text, audio, and visual media on U.S. history.
- American National Biography Online This link opens in a new windowBiographical treatments for significant American figures. An "American" is loosely defined as someone whose significant actions occurred during his or her residence within what is now the United States or whose life or career directly influenced the course of American history. The only invariant rule is that all subjects must have died prior to 1996. Online version updated quarterly with new articles and illustrations.
- Atlantic History - Oxford Bibliographies Online This link opens in a new windowBibliographies highlighting writing on the history of interactions between nations on different sides of the Atlantic, from the Columbian exchange to the end of the transatlantic slave trade, with links to full-text resources where available at Fondren.
- Dictionary of Literary Biography Complete Online This link opens in a new windowBiographical and critical essays on the lives, works, and careers of literary figures.
- Gale Virtual Reference Library (GVRL) This link opens in a new windowDictionaries and encyclopedias across multiple disciplines, as well as general reference works.
- Latino Studies - Oxford Bibliographies Online This link opens in a new windowInformation about scholarly works about the Hispanic/Latino community in the United States, listed by subject, with links to the full-text work where available, or links to request the work through Fondren's interlibrary loan service.
- Oxford Reference This link opens in a new windowPremium Collection contains over 200 dictionary, language reference, and subject reference works published by Oxford University Press. It is a fully-indexed, cross-searchable database of these books, giving subscribers unprecedented access to a comprehensive information resource. Includes added functionality and more detailed information across a broad subject range from titles in the world-renowned Oxford Companions Series.
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