Welcome
Welcome! This guide will help you locate resources that will be helpful during your research project. If you need help locating resources, please use the ask a librarian feature.
Locating Print Sources at Milne Library
Milne Search provides sweeping access to books, ebooks, articles, movies, music, and more through a user-driven platform supporting your research interests. You can use Milne Search without signing in. However, to access e-books, you will need to sign in when prompted.
There are two main ways to use Milne Search.
Everything allows you to search simultaneously for books, ebooks, articles, movies, music, and more. You may use keywords, titles, authors, or phrases. Refine your results using the choices on the left. For example, if you want to discover the newest results then select Sort by. Explore Resource Type, also on the left, to get a sense of the various materials available to you.
Library Catalog is commonly used to search the physical collections of the James M. Milne Library, including ebooks, by an author’s name or a book’s title. You may also use keywords to search the library catalog, which contains the table of contents for many records. Subject headings are included in keyword searching and are assigned to all library catalog holdings.
While Everything and Library Catalog are two of the main searching functions in Search & Discover, there are others available for use. Child Collection, Course Reserves, EMC Media, NY State Collection, Reference, Special Collections (SCC), SUNY Catalog, and Young Adult (YA) are all options to choose from. These collections can be searched exclusively by selecting them in the top menu. For example, selecting Child Collection will include results only from that collection.
Locating Print Sources Outside Milne Library
While Milne Library has an extensive collection of resources, you may need to search outside of the library to conduct further research.
To search for items that other libraries own, you need to search either the SUNY Catalog or Worldcat. Worldcat is an online catalog of material held by other libraries and research institutions around the world.
Access to Worldcat is through our databases. Click on the databases link in the side navigation bar on the library's homepage. Click on the "W" in the alphabetical letters and then select WorldCat.
If the item is currently owned by Milne Library, it will indicate that in the full record for the item.
- WorldCat (OCLC FirstSearch Legacy Interface--requires signon from off-campus)WorldCat legacy version using the FirstSearch interface. Comprehensive database of books, journals, and media owned by libraries world-wide. Requires signon from off-campus.
Suggested Websites for Primary Sources
Below you will find a list of suggested websites that may be helpful in locating additional primary sources for your research project.
- Calisphere Welcome to Calisphere: your gateway to California’s remarkable digital collections. Calisphere provides free access to unique and historically important artifacts for research, teaching, and curious exploration. Discover over 750,000 photographs, documents, letters, artwork, diaries, oral histories, films, advertisements, musical recordings, and more. The collections on Calisphere have been digitized and contributed by all ten campuses of the University of California and other important libraries, archives, and museums throughout the state.
- DPLA: Digital Public Library of America DPLA connects people to the riches held within America’s libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural heritage institutions. All of the materials found through DPLA—photographs, books, maps, news footage, oral histories, personal letters, museum objects, artwork, government documents, and so much more—are free and immediately available in digital format. The cultural institutions participating in DPLA represent the richness and diversity of America itself, from the smallest local history museum to our nation’s largest cultural institutions. Our core work includes bringing new collections and partners into DPLA, building our technology, and managing projects that further our mission through curation, education, and community building.
- Library of Congress - American Memory American Memory provides free and open access through the Internet to written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music that document the American experience. It is a digital record of American history and creativity. These materials, from the collections of the Library of Congress and other institutions, chronicle historical events, people, places, and ideas that continue to shape America, serving the public as a resource for education and lifelong learning.
- National Archives The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is the nation's record keeper. Of all documents and materials created in the course of business conducted by the United States Federal government, only 1%-3% are so important for legal or historical reasons that they are kept by us forever.
- National Museum of African American History and Culture The National Museum of African American History and Culture is the only national museum devoted exclusively to the documentation of African American life, history, and culture. It was established by Act of Congress in 2003, following decades of efforts to promote and highlight the contributions of African Americans. To date, the Museum has collected more than 36,000 artifacts and nearly 100,000 individuals have become charter members.
- New York Heritage Digital Collections New York Heritage is a research portal for students, educators, historians, genealogists, and anyone else who is interested in learning more about the people, places and institutions of New York State. The site provides free access to more than 170 distinct digital collections, totalling hundreds of thousands of items.
- New York Public Library's Digital Collections The New York Public Library Digital Collections contains 722,106 items and counting. While that is a small fraction of the Library's overall holdings, it is representative of the diversity of our vast collections—from books to videos, maps to manuscripts, illustrations to photos, and more.
- Alan Lomax Sound Archive Online This material from Alan Lomax’s independent archive, begun in 1946, which has been digitized and preserved by the Association for Cultural Equity, is distinct from the thousands of earlier recordings on acetate and aluminum discs he made from 1933 to 1942 under the auspices of the Library of Congress. This earlier collection — which includes the famous Jelly Roll Morton, Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, and Muddy Waters sessions, as well as Lomax’s prodigious collections made in Haiti and Eastern Kentucky (1937) — is the provenance of the American Folklife Center at the Library. Attempts are being made, however, to digitize some of this rarer material, such as the Haitian recordings, and to make it available in the Sound Recordings catalog. Please check in periodically for updates.
Databases at Milne Library
Milne Library provides access to many useful databases for your research needs. To access the databases, please click on the "Databases" link in the side navigation bar on the library's homepage.
Below you will find a list of suggested databases. These databases contain a mix of primary and secondary sources.
- America: History & Life with Full Text This link opens in a new windowCovers the history of the United States and Canada from prehistory to the present. Selective indexing of about 1700 journals from 1955 to the present. Offers full-text for about 200 journals.
- American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 1 This link opens in a new windowConsists of over 850,000 pages including the full-text of almost every seventeenth- and eighteenth-century American title published before 1821. Areas covered include Afro-Americana, children's literature, education, eighteenth-century imprints, leisure and hobbies, medicine, religion, the trades, and women's literature.
- American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 2 This link opens in a new windowPresents over 1000 full-text titles dating from 1821 through 1837. Areas covered include agriculture, entertainment, history, literary criticism, and politics.
- American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 3 This link opens in a new windowConsists of over 850,000 pages including the full-text of almost every seventeenth- and eighteenth-century American title published before 1821. Areas covered include Afro-Americana, children's literature, education, eighteenth-century imprints, leisure and hobbies, medicine, religion, the trades, and women's literature.
- American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 4 This link opens in a new windowProvides a diverse record of life leading up to and during the Civil War, from 1853-1865. News from the battlefront can be found in addition to science, literature, medicine, agriculture, women’s fashion, family life, and religion.
- American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 5 This link opens in a new windowConsists of over 850,000 pages including the full-text of almost every seventeenth- and eighteenth-century American title published before 1821. Areas covered include Afro-Americana, children's literature, education, eighteenth-century imprints, leisure and hobbies, medicine, religion, the trades, and women's literature.
- American Slavery: A Composite Autobiography This link opens in a new windowEbook series that includes written transcriptions of interviews with over 2000 former slaves from seventeen states, including those collected by the Federal Writers' Project. Many of the interviews occurred in the 1930s and 1940s.
Can be used for course content: Authoritative primary source materials. - Archives of Sexuality & Gender This link opens in a new window
Search a collection of primary sources for the historical study of sex, sexuality, and gender.
- Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints This link opens in a new window
Search and discover overviews, news, and opinions on hundreds of today's important social issues.
- Gale In Context: U.S. History This link opens in a new window
Search information about hundreds of the most significant people, events, and topics in U.S. history from a variety of sources.
- Google Newspapers Archive This link opens in a new windowProvides free access to scanned archives of newspapers and links to other newspaper archives on the web. It contains more than 2,000 scanned newspapers, including The Afro American (1902-1992), The Pittsburgh Press (1819-1992), and The Village Voice (1955-2004).
- Historical Statistics of the United States: Millennial EditionA compendium of statistics from over 1000 sources. Contains over 37,000 data series. 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. Coverage is from about 1600 to 2000.
- History Commons This link opens in a new window
Search 14 databases covering American History, African American Studies, Women’s History, the Civil War, and Genealogy. History Commons, formerly Accessible Archives, provides vast quantities of primary source materials reflecting broad views across 18th and 19th-century America.
- Humanities SourceIncludes both Humanities Full Text and Humanities International. Contains over 1400 full text journals with citations to over 3,500,000 articles.
- JSTOR This link opens in a new windowFull-text access to over 1400 core scholarly journals and e-books across most subject areas.
Can be used for course content: Titles from many university presses and other academic publishers. - Making of America Journals (Cornell)Digital library of primary sources in American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction. Covers education, psychology, American history, sociology, religion, and science and technology. This site provides access to about 250 monograph volumes and over 100,000 journal articles with 19th-century imprints. Open access.
Can be used for course content: Extensive collections of eBooks and primary source materials. - Gale OneFile: News This link opens in a new window
Seaarch major U.S. and international newspapers online to search articles instantly by title, headline, date, or other fields.
- NYS Historic Newspapers
Search the NYS Historic Newspapers project, which provides free online access to a wide range of newspapers chosen to reflect New York's unique history. Use the Search Tab to search the entire collection, or click on a county to search or browse geographically.
- Gale OneFile: The New York Times
Search the full text of The New York Times (starting in 1985), including the International New York Times and New York Times Upfront.
- New York Times Digital This link opens in a new window
All students and faculty have unlimited access to The New York Times digital platforms, including personalized user experience, live coverage of breaking news, access to NYT articles between 1851-current, access to the International edition and Canadian, Chinese, and Spanish editions, full access to the NYT Learning Network, and access to the InEducation resource that helps faculty bring current events into the classroom. This resource includes access to archival content and replaces Historical New York Times and New York Times Archive.
- Points of View Reference Source This link opens in a new windowContains full-text essays representing multiple sides of about 250 topics; in addition, the database includes political magazines, radio and television news transcripts, primary source documents, and reference books. Designed to provide a series of controversial essays that present multiple sides of a current issue. Essays provide questions and materials for further thought and study and are accompanied by thousands of supporting articles from the world's top political and societal publications.
- Project Muse This link opens in a new windowFull text database of over 100 scholarly journals and books from university presses in fields including literature and criticism, history, the visual and performing arts, cultural studies, political science, gender studies, and economics. Includes books from many university presses and scholarly journals
- Project MUSE - Single Title SubscriptionsOver 100 full text ejournals in several disciplines.
- U. S. Government DocumentsThe U.S Government Printing Office (GPO) provides publishing and dissemination services for the official and authentic government publications to Congress, Federal agencies, Federal depository libraries, and the American public. Open access.
- Victorian Popular CultureDespite the name, Victorian Popular Culture provides access to a wide range of primary source material related to popular entertainment in America and Europe in the period from 1779 to 1930.
- Women and Social Movements in the United States, 1600-2000 (scholar's edition)Contains books, images, documents, scholarly essays, commentaries, and bibliographies documenting women's reform activities and social movements from 1600-2000.
Can be used for course content: Excellent primary source collections. - WorldCat (OCLC FirstSearch Legacy Interface--requires signon from off-campus)WorldCat legacy version using the FirstSearch interface. Comprehensive database of books, journals, and media owned by libraries world-wide. Requires signon from off-campus.
Science Databases at Milne Library
Below you will find a list of Science databases. These are a great place to get started. If you are not having any luck using these resources, then click "browse by discipline" under the database tab on the library homepage. Pick the most relevant subject to your needs and try some of those databases.
- Academic Search Complete This link opens in a new window
Full text for about 8,500 periodicals including over 7,300 peer-reviewed journals across most areas of academic study as well as indexing and abstracts for more than 12,500 magazines and journals. Coverage is from 1887 to the present.
- Environment Complete This link opens in a new windowIndexing for over 2200 journals in agriculture, ecosystem ecology, energy, natural resources, geography, pollution and environmental law. Provides full-text for over 900 journals. Coverage is from 1888 to the present.
- GreenFILE This link opens in a new windowAddresses human impacts on the environment. Offers indexing and abstracts for about 300,000 records. Some full-text. Coverage is from about 1915 to the present.
Can be used for course content: Extensive full-text content. - Nature: international weekly journal of scienceOne of the world's most important scientific journals. Full text coverage is from 2006-present.
Who am I?
Help
Librarians are available to help in several ways:
- Visit the Reference Desk in Milne Library
- Call the Reference Desk at 607-436-2722
- E-mail a question to a librarian and receive a response
- Request a Research Consultation to meet individually (and virtually) with a librarian
- Chat with a Librarian using the Chat Box below
Special Collections Research
To conduct research or to receive assistance with the Special Collections/Archives at Milne Library, please contact Librarian Heather Stalter.
For more information about the Special Collections, check out the Special Collections Guide!
TLTC
Diana Moseman and Chilton Reynolds from the TLTC work with the Cooperstown Graduate Program on a few different projects, including the CGP Community Stories Project.
Video Databases
- Academic Video Online This link opens in a new window
A multidisciplinary collection of streaming video, covering history, anthropology, education, art, diversity studies, business, music, literature, performing arts, psychology, counseling, science, world languages and more.
- Films on Demand This link opens in a new windowContains about 8000 full-length programs and 90,000 streaming video segments in the humanities, social sciences, business, economics, medicine, mathematics, and sciences from producers including Cambridge Educational, BBC, CNBC, National Geographic, TEDTalks, and PBS. For additional videos, see VAST (Academic Videos Online).
Can be used for course content: Streaming video collections. - Kanopy This link opens in a new windowKanopy is an on-demand streaming video platform for public and academic libraries that offers films, TV shows and documentaries.
K-12 Themed Databases
- Britannica School This link opens in a new window
Search Elementary, Middle and High databases, containing articles, images, videos, audio clips, primary sources, maps, research tools, and recommended web sites.
- World Book Online - Kids & Advanced This link opens in a new windowKIDS (grades K+) strengthens teaching skills for future educators. Students in educational programs can incorporate this database into their lesson plans as a way to teach research, integrate technology and meet the common core standards.
ADVANCED (grades 9+) includes encyclopedic and multimedia databases supplemented with online books, primary sources, website links, Back in Time articles, special reports and more, which enable more in-depth and conceptual understanding within the classroom curriculum.
TIMELINES (grades 5+) offers hundreds of pre-generated timelines across eight broad topics, which cover various time periods in history or span the life of historical public figures. Users can also create their own timelines from scratch, adding events, descriptions, and media.