Academic Database Favorites

by Kevthetonk

I'm not sure this is the best place to ask this question, But I thought perhaps more experienced eyes could share their favorite places to gather sources for historical research. primary and secondary sources.

When trying to find good information, I think it would be helpful for me to know where to look.

apologies if this question is misplaced.

[deleted]

This is an excellent question! I'm a historian and special collections librarian working in academia, and these are the tips I give to my students and the independent researchers I work with:

  1. Before you find out where to look, try to get a clear grasp of what you're looking for. Do you have a geographical area in mind or specific date range? Are you interested in a specific perspective (theological, feminist, etc)? Are you interested in English only sources or other languages? Also keep in mind that some sources can cross over between primary and secondary, especially newspapers.
  2. Digital sources: I love using databases such as JSTOR. Some databases focus only on a specific subject, such as Artstor for art or ATLA for religious sources. Do you have an institutional affiliation? If you're a student you can access digital databases and get full text sources. The National Archives (archives.gov) also has thousands of digitized materials available for free. Depending on what you're researching, many historical societies also have a digitized collection of primary sources. Google Scholar can also give you full text sources but I find that databases are a safer bet.
  3. Physical sources: This is a great excuse to visit me, your friendly neighborhood librarian. For special collections such as where I work, you would need to make an appointment and request the specific sources you need. The librarian will bring it into the reading room for you and you can examine the objects (with washed hands and pencils, no pens). Your public library may also have their own special collections related to local history and/or genealogy. Special collections are an excellent way to examine primary sources.

In addition to these tips, I greatly encourage you to visit your library either in person or online to get personalized guidance on where to find sources. If you're researching for an academic paper or publication, remember to always make sure your sources pertain to your thesis statement. It can be very easy to get bogged down in material but if you keep your thesis statement in mind it can be much less overwhelming.