LibGuides: Family History & Genealogy: Background & Context: Specialized Resources

Background & Context: Specialized Resources

Specialized reference sources--like dictionaries and subject encyclopedias, provide overviews of topics and descriptions of concepts and ideas. They can also provide definitions, statistics, and other details. You can use this type of source to help narrow your research topic, find data to support your thesis, and identify keywords and main ideas to use as search terms.

The titles on this page are just a small sample of encyclopedias we have online and in the reference and main book collections. Search these online resources or browse the stacks to find more related books and specialized encyclopedias.

Online Reference Collections

Credo Reference
Online reference resources from numerous publishers. This reference resource can be searched by individual title, broad subject headings, cross-references, audio and images. Use its research mapper to search for terms and topics that are interconnected and displayed in (a) visual form. Examples of titles are: Bloomsbury Guide to Art, Bridgeman Art Library Archive, Columbia Encyclopedia, Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary, Harvard Dictionary of Music, and the Concise Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology and Behavioral Science. The complete list of titles is available on the CREDO Reference site.
Oxford Reference
Provides web access to more than 100 major Oxford University Press dictionaries, encyclopedias, and other reference works in the humanities, social sciences, foreign languages, science, technology and medicine, the performing arts, and religion. Works can be searched separately or across the entire databases. Includes over 1.5 million entries.
Gale eBooks
Gale eBooks is a database of encyclopedias, almanacs, and specialized reference sources for multidisciplinary research.

Single-Subject Encyclopedias

Native American Almanac: More Than 50,000 Years of the Cultures and Histories of Indigenous Peoples
Mix of biography, pre-contact and post-contact history, current events, Tribal Nations histories, enlightening insights on environmental and land issues, arts, treaties, languages, education, movements, and more.
The African American Almanac
This almanac is a unique and valuable resource devoted to illustrating and demystifying the moving, difficult, and often lost history of black life in America.
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Latinos and Latinas in the United States
Draws together the diverse historical and contemporary experiences in the United States of Latinos and Latinas from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Central America, South America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
The Asian American Encyclopedia
Explores the experience of Asian immigrants and the communities which they and their descendants have created in the United States, and offers information about the history, language and culture of Asian Americans' diverse countries of origin. Print Reference, Call Number E184.O6 A827 1995
Encyclopedia of Immigration and Migration in the American West
Presents the tapestry of the West and its population during various periods of migration. The two volumes examine the settling of the West and include coverage of movements of American Indians, African Americans, and the often-forgotten role of women in the West's development.
In Motion: The African-American Migration Experience
Presents more than 16,500 pages of texts, 8,300 illustrations, and more than 60 maps organized around thirteen defining migrations that have formed and transformed African America and the nation.
The New Encyclopedia of the American West
A rich source of information about the American West, real and imaginary, old and new, stretching from coast to coast and throughout the country’s history and culture.
Encyclopedia of Women in the American West
Captures the lives of more than 150 women who made their mark from the mid–1800s to the present, contextualizing their experiences and contributions to American society, and includes many women biographied for the first time.
Encyclopedia of the United States in the Nineteenth Century
Covers all aspects of 19th century history: population, politics and government, economy and work, society and culture, religion, social problems and reform, everyday life, and foreign policy.
Encyclopedia of American Immigration
Encyclopedia of American Immigration traces the scope and sweep of U.S. immigration from the earliest colonial settlements to the present, focusing on critical issues as well as the groups of people involved. Every major immigrant group and every era are fully documented and examined through detailed analysis of social, legal, political, economic, and demographic factors. Tisch Book Stacks, Call Number JV6465 .E53 2001
New Americans: A Guide to Immigration Since 1965
Comprehensive articles on immigration from the thirty most significant nations or regions of origin.
Immigration and Asylum from 1900 to Present
A comprehensive examination of the history and current status of immigrants and refugees—their stories, the events that led to their movement, and the place of these movements in contemporary history and politics.

Historical Statistics

Historical Statistics of the US Online
The standard source for the quantitative facts of American history. Topics ranging from migration and health to crime and the Confederate States of America are each placed in historical context by a recognized expert in the field. Permits users to graph individual tables and create customized tables and spreadsheets reflecting their own particular areas of interest.
Social Explorer
Provides easy, visual access to demographic and economic data using maps, reports, and data downloads.
U.S. Census Bureau. Selected Historical Decennial Census Population and Housing Counts
The statistical census