UW-Eau Claire People Pages
HIST 288: Prof. Gough
LMED100/110
Introduction to Special Collections
Monograph: A scholarly book by one historian
Synthetic Work: A scholarly book that puts your topic into a larger historical context. If you are writing about the history of Chippewa Valley farmers in the 1930s, your synthetic works might include a book on the Great Depression in the United States and a book on twentieth century American agriculture
Archives: (1) The physical space housing materials (largely unpublished) of enduring historic value (2) The institutional records of enduring historical value retained permanently by the creating institution
Manuscripts: Personal papers (documents created, received or acquired by individuals) or organizational records (documents created, received or acquired by an institution, business, or other corporate body
Public Records: Federal, state, county, and municipal records available for review by the general public. Includes tax rolls, court records, naturalization records, population censuses, vital records, and public meeting minutes
Cubic feet / linear feet: units of measurement employed by archivists to describe the size of an archival collection. One cubic or linear foot is roughly the size of a case of wine
Restricted: either unavailable for use or copyrighted
In Wisconsin:
ArCat (Wisconsin Historical Society Catalog)
Wisconsin manuscripts and public records
To order a collection, fill out this Web form or stop by the archivesArchival Resources in Wisconsin
Digitized finding aids for archival collections at Wisconsin Historical Society, UW - Milwaukee, and other Wisconsin repositories
McIntyre Library Catalog
University records, small regional collectionsThe State of Wisconsin Collection
A digital collection of full text primary and secondary sources dealing with Wisconsin HistoryWisconsin Historical Collections
1,000 articles, memoirs, interviews, and essays on Wisconsin history and archaeology first published 1855-1915Wisconsin Historical Images
Photographs from WHS collectionsWisconsin Local History and Biography Articles
16,000 historical and biographical articles preserved in scrapbooks by WHS staff in the late 19th and 20th centuriesElsewhere:
Repositories of Primary Sources
List of institutions worldwide holding archival and manuscript materialsWorldCat
Perform a keyword or subject search and choose "Archival Materials" tab to limit to manuscripts and archives
Eau Claire Newspapers, 1858 - Present
Microfilm on 2nd Floor, shelved under "Eau Claire" regardless of titleNewspapers in the State Historical Society of Wisconsin
Loc. Hist. Z6952 .W8 N49 1994
Volume I: Wisconsin Newspapers
Volume II: US & Foreign Newspapers
Microfilm may be requested through Interlibrary Loan (ILL)Newspapers in other University of Wisconsin - Madison Libraries
In Madcat do a keyword search for "newspapers" and the name of a city, county, or country. Microfilm may be requested through Interlibrary Loan (ILL)
New York Times
Use Index (Reference AI21.N44) or search www.nytimes.com
Articles published between 1851 and 1922 and from 1987 to the present are available on www.nytimes.com; articles published between 1923 to 1986 may be found in microfilm on 2nd FloorLondon Times
Use London Times Indexes on the lower level of the library to identify articles. Microfilm reels covering 1785-1955 are located in the microfilm area on 2nd floor
Readers Guide to Periodical Literature, 1900-1997
Lower Level, Shelved alphabetically by title in "Storage Indexes"
Articles may be requested through Interlibrary Loan (ILL)Wisconsin Magazine of History Archives (1917-2007)
Full text of WHS's journal
Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1878-2007 -- Gov Pubs C3.134
Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Era - 1970
You may search McIntyre Library Catalog or WorldCat effectively for primary sources, even though library resources are not cataloged as "primary" or "secondary" sources.
Search Strategies
- Search by relevant keyword and limit the date of publication to the time period you are studying
- Library catalogs use the following terms to describe different kinds of primary sources: "personal narratives," "interviews," "diaries," "correspondence," "pamphlets," "archives," and "sources." Add these terms to your topical keyword searches
- If you are studying an organization or business, search for the name of the organization or business as author
American Memory -- Diverse collections from the Smithsonian
Artstor -- Digital images of global art and artifacts
British and Irish Women`s Letters and Diaries -- Full text searchable primary sources
Census Data: Enumeration sheets with information about individuals (Ancestry)
Census Data: Historical statistical summaries (Historical Census Browser)
Early Encounters in North America -- Full text searchable primary sources on Native American / European contacts.
Early English Books Online (PQ) -- A fabulous full text collection of books published in the British Isles, British North America between 1473 and 1700
Eighteenth Century Collections Online -- 138,000 digitized English language books published between 1701 and 1800
Gerritsen Collection - Women`s History Online (PQ) -- 4,700 feminist and anti feminist titles from Europe, the UK, North America, and New Zealand published between 1543 and 1945
The Gilded Age -- A database of primary sources (1865-1902) and scholarly essays about the Gilded Age in American history.
In the First Person -- An index to autobiographical sources; includes some full text
National Archives Archival Research Catalog -- Includes digital images, sample records, and descriptions of record series from the National Archives
North American Women`s Letters and Diaries, Colonial - 1950 - Full text searchable primary sources
State of Wisconsin Collection -- Digitized collections from Wisconsin Historical Society and other Wisconsin archives and manuscripts repositories
Twentieth Century Advice Literature: North American Guides on Race, Gender, Sex, and the Family -- How were Americans told to mind their manners, groom themselves, and interact socially? Find out in this full-text database.
Wisconsin Historical Images -- Selected photographs and illustrations from the Wisconsin Historical Society
Women and Social Movements in the United States, 1600-2000 -- Full text primary documents and teaching materials dealing with American women's history
Search McIntyre Library Catalog and WorldCat.
- Remember to click on "Other Catalogs" in the McIntyre Library catalog to search holdings at other University of Wisconsin libraries. These materials may be requested through Universal Borrowing (UB)
- Materials located in WorldCat may be requested through Interlibrary Loan (ILL)
America: History & Life and Historical Abstracts are the premier databases for the journal literature written by and for professional historians. America: History & Life covers the US and Canada from prehistory - present, while Historical Abstracts covers world history from 1450 - present. AHL indexes back to 1964; HA back to 1954.
Medievalists should search the International Medieval Bibliography - Online.
JSTOR is also a wonderful resource containing full text scholarly history journal articles. It is especially good for accessing the early literature published before American:History & Life and Historical Abstracts began indexing.
REMEMBER!! Monographic literature is the dominant form of scholarly communication in the field of history. You will be more successful in your research efforts if you begin your secondary source searches in the book literature.
A word about book reviews.... You will find book reviews in America: History & Life and the International Medieval Bibliography. If the topic of the book looks relevant, search for the book by title in McIntyre Library Catalog, the UNiversal Borrowing Catalog or WorldCat. The book reviews themselves are usually less helpful than the actual book.
