THE AFRICAN AND AFRICAN AMERICAN EXPERIENCE
Library and Internet Resources
A Guide for AFS 200


Prepared by Karen Kimber, Social Sciences and Humanities Team Leader
January 2008

Finding Background Information - Encyclopedias

• Reference Universe - Find information in encyclopedias and other reference books, online or in Dunbar Library.

• The African American Encyclopedia. 10 vols. Ref E185 .A253 2001
• Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience. 2nd ed. 5 vols. Ref DT14.A37435 2005
• Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History [electronic book] 2nd ed. (2006)
• Encyclopedia of African-American Politics, by Robert C. Smith. Ref E185.S58155 2003
• Encyclopedia of African-American Society [electronic book] (2005)
  Print vol. also available: Ref E185.E546 2005
• Encyclopedia of Black Studies [electronic book] (2005)
  Print vol. also available: Ref E185 .E554 2005
• The Greenwood Encyclopedia of African American Civil Rights : From Emancipation to the Twenty-first Century. 2 vols. Ref E185.61 .E54 2003
• Organizing Black America: An Encyclopedia of African American Associations. Ref E 185.5.O74 2001
• Reference Library of Black America. 5 vols. Ref E185.R44 2000

Finding Background Information - Biographical Sources

• African American Lives. Ref E185.96 .A446 2004
• African-American Political Leaders, by Charles W. Carey, Jr. Ref E185.96 .C18 2004
• African-American Social Leaders and Activists, by Jack Rummel. Ref E185.96. R88 2003
• African-American Writers, by Philip Bader. Ref PS153.N5 B214 2004
• African Americans in Science, Math, and Invention, by Ray Spangenburg and Kit Moser. Ref Q141 .S6285 2003
• Black Women in America. 2nd ed. 3 vols. Ref E185.86 .B542 2005
• Distinguished African American Political and Governmental Leaders, by James Haskins. Ref E185.61.H359 1999
• Encyclopedia of African American Women Writers. 2 vols. Ref PS153.N5 E49 2007
• Writing African American Women: An Encyclopedia of Literature by and about Women of Color. 2 vols. Ref PS153.N5 W756 2006

Finding Background Information - History

• The Timetables of African-American History: A Chronology of the Most Important People and Events in African-Aamerican History, by Sharon Harley. Ref E185.H295 1995
• The African American Years [electronic book], by Gabriel Burns Stepto. (2003)
• The Harvard Guide to African-American History. Ref E185 .H326 2001 (also CD-ROM version)
• The Routledge Atlas of African American History, by Jonathan Earle. Ref E185 .E125 2000

Finding Books in the University Libraries ... and Beyond

You can search for keywords, that is, words found anywhere in the description of a book. Often the the table of contents is included in the search, so you can find, for example, a book with a chapter about a particular person. Use an asterisk (*) to find alternate endings of a word (up to 5 letters)

• Each book is also assigned standardized subject headings. When you find a record for a book that interests you, you can find similar books by clicking on any highlighted subject listed in the book's record.

• To do a focused search for a biography about a person, do a subject search, with the last name first. Example: Hamer, Fannie Lou

If books you need are not available in the WSU Libraries, click on OhioLINK Central on your search results page to connect to the OhioLINK network, and request books there.

Finding Videos and Audio Recordings in the Library Catalog

Enter keywords and change the dropdown box to Media to find DVDs, audio CDs, and streaming (online) videos.

• TIP: A general search may be most productive. Example: African American* (Note: Use * to find singular and plural forms of a word.)

• BIG TIP: Go to the STAC on the 2nd floor of Dunbar Library for help with the technical aspects of using a video or audio clip in a presentation

Finding Articles

*Find It! means that you can click to find information on an article's availability online or in print at the WSU libraries or OhioLINK.

• Journal of African American History

Websites

• Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
• The Library of Congress: American Memory - African American History

Citing Your Sources

• Citation Styles Handbook: MLA - from the University of Illinois
• MLA Style: Sample Bibliographic Entries (6th edition) - a very brief guide to MLA style from Bridgewater State College
• Mini-Manual for Using MLA Style in Research Papers - a more detailed guide from the WSU Writing Center
• MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. 6th ed. Dunbar Info Desk and Ref Bookcase 2