Essential indexes
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Historical Abstracts from EBSCOhostHistorical Abstracts indexes citations, abstracts, and full text from journals, books, and dissertations that cover the history of the world (excluding the United States and Canada) from 1450 to the present, including world history, military history, women's history, history of education, and more. Full text available as HTML and PDF. The database allows limiting results to specific time periods (not just publication dates). You can limit to peer-reviewed sources. 1800s-present.
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America: History & Life from EBSCOhostAmerica: History and Life is an index of literature covering the history and culture of the United States and Canada, from prehistory to the present. The database includes citations and links to journal articles, dissertations, primary documents, and book and media reviews. Some content is available full-text (PDF and HTML). Allows limiting to peer reviewed articles, those with references, and to historical periods (date ranges). 1863-present.
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History of Science, Technology & Medicine from EBSCOhostThe History of Science, Technology, and Medicine database indexes citations and abstracts of journal articles, conference proceedings, books, dissertations, maps, and other materials on the history of science, medicine, and technology. 1600s-present.
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ArchiveGridArchiveGrid provides more than 7 million records "describing archival materials, bringing together information about historical documents, personal papers, family histories, and more," from 1,400 archival institutions mainly from the US but with some international coverage. Finding aids include linked cross-references by subject heading, genre, personal names, groups, and places. Records also provide maps and contact information to make arrangements for examining the collections in person or, occasionally, online.
Find out about people in history
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Biography In Context from GaleGale In Context: Biography provides access to over 600,000 biographies in HTML sourced from reference works, news reports, magazines and academic journals. It provides links to related websites, images, audio, and video clips.
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American National Biography Online American National Biography provides full-text biographical entries on more than 18,700 individuals from all periods of American history, along with over 2,700 illustrations and more than 80,000 hyperlinked cross-references. The resource includes access to The Oxford Companion to United States History, which offers entries on political, diplomatic, and military history as well as social, cultural, and intellectual trends; science, technology, and medicine; the arts; and religion. Additional articles in ANB Online provide historical context through coverage of significant events, social movements, ideologies, natural disasters, and notable sites. Users can access links to related content where available. Please note: Access is limited to one concurrent user; if access is unavailable, wait and try again later.
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Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography is an illustrated collection of more than 57,000 specially written biographies of the men and women from around the world who shaped all aspects of Britain's past. Includes deceased persons only.
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Biography Index Retrospective: 1946-1983 from EBSCOhost Indexes citations of biographical articles and book chapters, interviews and profiles, and obituaries covering over 300,000 people: public figures, writers, artists, sports figures, politicians, religious leaders, scientists, educators, military leaders, teachers, actors, and business people.
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Ancestry Library Edition Ancestry Library Edition provides access to genealogical records from the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and other regions. The resource includes more than 4,000 databases and 1.5 billion names, featuring U.S. federal census images and indexes from 1790 to 1940, historical maps, and collections such as the American Genealogical Biographical Index, Daughters of the American Revolution Lineage, The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England, 1620–1630, Social Security Death Index, WWI Draft Registration Cards, Federal Slave Narratives, and Civil War records. Additional materials include vital records, immigration records, family histories, military records, court documents, directories, photos, and maps.
Background information resources
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Very Short introductionsWritten by experts, Very Short Introductions offers concise and original introductions to a diverse range of subjects, providing a bridge between reference content and higher academic work. Each volume presents an authoritative and engaging assessment of a concept, field, or body of work, drawing out the central ideas, themes, and approaches.
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Oxford Reference OnlineOxford Reference Online is a portal to full-text encyclopedias, dictionaries, and other reference works. The Browse in timeline function can be very useful; click on the subject links to see what resources are available. Searching and browsing will reveal Oxford University Press works that VT does not have access to -- marked with red, closed padlock icons -- select the Unlocked and Free filters in the sidebar to see what is available to you.
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U.S. History in Context from GaleU.S. History in Context provides curated topic pages with academic journal articles, primary sources, reference works, news sources, multimedia, and biographies on people and peoples, events, places, conflicts, the government, movements, and economics.
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World History in Context from GaleWorld History in Context provides curated topic pages with academic journal articles, primary sources, reference works, news sources, multimedia, and biographies on people, countries and cultures, conflicts, organizations, religions, events, periods, and economics.
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SAGE Research Methods OnlineAdvanced reference resource allows users to explore methods concepts to help them design research projects, understand particular methods or identify a new method, conduct their research, and write up their findings. With its focus on methodology rather than disciplines and sophisticated search options, SRMO can be used across the social sciences, health sciences, and more. Incorporates full-text content from over 720 books, dictionaries, encyclopedias, and handbooks, articles, specially commissioned videos, and cases illustrating the application of particular methodologies.
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Special Collections and University Archives: A Basic IntroductionLike most academic libraries, Virginia Tech has a department devoted to acquiring, preserving, and making available rare and unique primary-source materials. This guide provides a detailed overview of the ways special collections and archives, here and elsewhere, are indeed special.
Temporary, trial access only -- use while you can
The University Libraries at Virginia Tech regularly secure short-term, trial access to online resources in order to gauge their appropriateness to our university's teaching and research missions. These trials run in October, February, and sometimes April. Most trials run 30 days.
This box highlights some of these opportunities as they come available. All active trials are listed in a sidebar in the main Databases A-Z directory and as a tab atop this libguide.
Each entry includes a link to a user survey. I and other subject librarians invite you to email us more detailed assessments of trial resources. Responses from the Virginia Tech community are vital to the library's deliberations about whether and when to acquire or enhance databases and the like.
As appropriate I will list all currently active trials and user survey links in a resource trials tab in this and my other libguides. Entries for trials I may include in here as elsewhere in the body of my libguides will go away when the trial period ends.