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HIST 4690: Research Seminar (Ashbaugh) Fall 2022

Background Information from Reference Sources

Reference sources such as encyclopedias provide excellent background information on a topic.  The sources are reliable and provide helpful overviews, clarify definitions, and are excellent starting points to get a full picture of the topic you are researching.  In them you will find key concepts, names, and dates, and also lists of other primary and secondary sources to check out for your research.  

Books in the Reference Collection are available on the first floor of the library.  They don’t circulate but can be used in the library, and free photocopies can be requested at the Reference Desk.

Books in both the reference and circulating collections that relate to United States Foreign Relations generally begin with the call numbers:

       E 183.7  - United States: Diplomatic History: Foreign and General Relations, 

       E 183.8  - United States: Diplomatic History: Relations with Individual Countries

         JX          - International Law

         JZ          - International Relations

       D - DX     - World History

Some reference sources are also available full-text online and through library databases.  Below is a selection to begin with.

 

Print Books in the Reference Collection

Reference Books Available in Print and Online

Online Reference Sources Available through Library Databases