HIST 302: Growing Up and Raising Children in American Consumer Society

Reference Books are good places to find out what happened when, look up a statistic, or get a brief overview of historical people, places, and events. They provide overviews of historical topics, refer you to key articles and books, and supply important names, dates, and terms.

Biographies

The Encyclopedia of American Social History.  Call # HN57.E58 1993, Social Sciences Reference, 2nd Floor Paterno

The Family in America: An Encyclopedia.  Call # HQ536.H36 2001, Social Sciences Reference, 2nd Floor Paterno

Online Reference Shelf.  See especially the Gale Virtual Reference Library which includes, Encyclopedia of Recreation and Leisure in America, The Encyclopedia of American History, St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture, and The Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood in History and Society

Statistical Sources

Two separate databases. Each provides public opinion surveys

• Gallup Brian
• IPoll 

For more data sources (Statistics), see:

• Advertising Guide
• Statistics Guide

Finding Books

To find BOOKS (and other materials) at Penn State use the library's catalog, The CAT

Use WorldCat to search for materials in libraries worldwide. Use the "Request via ILL" link to have items delivered to you.

E-Books page

Book Reviews

Searching for Scholarly Articles on Your Topic

To find articles on your topic search the databases listed below. If the article is not online, search The CAT to see if the library owns the journal, and where is located.

• America: History & Life (Articles published since 1954 in history journals)
• ABI/Inform Complete (Articles in business and marketing journals)
• Communication and Mass Media Complete (Film, television, advertising,etc.)
  
• HAPI (Hispanic American Periodicals Index)
• International Index to Black Periodicals Full Text
  
• PsycINFO (use to find articles written in Psychology Journals)
• Sociological Abstracts (use to find articles on Sociology Journals)
• Women's Studies International (for articles in Women's Studies sources)

Now that you have read what others have written, it is time to research some relevant historical documents. It is likely that you will have some leads from the books and articles you have consulted, but you will also want to discover some sources on your own. Below are some types of historical collections available in the University Libraries.

United States Government Publications

The U.S. Government issues thousands of reports on legal, social, and political issues. Most are in the Social Sciences Library, 2^nd Floor, Paterno. Some government documents appear in The CAT, others require specialized access tools.

Congressional Debates appear in the Congressional Record, 1874-Present. Print volumes can be found in the Social Sciences Library, 2^nd Floor Paterno. Debates since 1986 are online in Lexis-Nexis Congressional (see below).

Lexis Nexis Congressional. An index to many Congressional documents including hearings and reports. Also the full-text of the U.S. Serial Set (executive branch documents). Most Congressional publications are in the Social Sciences Library, 2^nd floor Paterno.

Executive Branch Documents (reports from the Justice Dept., Labor Dept., etc.) are often listed in The CAT. Search by topic, or agency or by the President as AUTHOR. Many early documents are in the Serial Set (see Lexis Nexis Congressional above). Also see the American Presidency Project and the Declassified Documents Reference System.

Court Decisions and Laws are online via Lexis Nexis Academic

Contemporary News and Magazine Articles

Magazine and news articles published shortly after an event can provide a snapshot of contemporary opinion.

Early 20th Century New Sources

• American Periodicals Series, 1741-1900+ (1,000+ magazines up to around 1930)
• America's Historical Newspapers, 1690-1922
• British Periodicals (17th to early 20th Century)
• New York Times Historical, Digital Archive, 1851-
• Times of London, 1785-1985 (for a British perspective)

Recent 20th Century News Sources.  Dates of coverage vary, but typically go back only to the 1980s.

• Ethnic Newswatch (includes news sources aimed at ethnic Americans)
• Lexis Nexis Academic Universe (full-text news sources, some back to the 1980's)
• New York Times Historical, Digital Archive, 1851-
• Newspaper Photos (digital images from the Associated Press archive)
• Proquest (various news and magazines sources from the 1980's to present)
• Television News Archives (includes news video back to 1968)
• Times of London, 1785-1985 (if a British perspective is desired)

The library has many newspapers and magazines in print or on microfilm. Use an INDEX to find articles in these sources.

Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature, Arts & Hums. Index Tables, 2^nd Floor Pattee.  An index to articles in over 200 American magazines. Goes back to 1890.

Alternative Press Index. Call # HN1 .A48, Social Sciences Reference, 2^nd Floor Paterno.  An index to articles published in liberal magazines. Published since 1969.

Business Periodicals Index. Call # HF5001.B97, Business Library, 3^rd Floor Paterno.  An index to articles published in business magazines. Goes back to 1958.

Looking for ADVERTISEMENTS? Try our Advertising Guide, You can also browse paper copies of many "mainstream" American magazines on Level B of the Pattee Stacks.

Eric Novotny
History Librarian
Arts & Humanities Library
W321 Pattee Library
Penn State University
814-865-1014
ecn1@psu.edu

Services for History Researchers