Kean University Library

Library Resources for African American History

Reference Collection

The library has specialized encyclopedias covering a variety of subject areas. Reference books may be useful for gathering historical information, biographical information, and definitions on specific topics. Reference books do not circulate. A sample of reference book titles are listed below, along with corresponding Call Numbers:

The African American Encyclopedia REF E 185 .A253 2001

African American Desk Reference (Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, The New

York Public Library) REF E185 .A2528 1999

The African-American Atlas: Black History and Culture REF E 185 .A79 1998

Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History REF E 185 .E54 1996

Reference Library of Black America REF E 185 .R45 1999

Encyclopedia of African American Religions REF BR 563 .N4 E53 1993

The Encyclopedia of Civil Rights in America REF E 185.61 .E544 1998

Black Women in America: An Historical Encyclopedia REF E 185.86 .B542 1993

African-American Orators: A Bio-Critical Sourcebook REF E 185.96 .A447 1996

A Biographical History of African-American Artists, A-Z REF N 6538 .N5 M3 2001

Voices of Multicultural America: Notable Speeches Delivered by African, Asian, Hispanic, and

Native Americans, 1790-1995 REF PS 663 .M55 V64 1996

New Jersey’s Underground Railroad Heritage: “Steal Away, Steal Away” REF E 450 .S74 2002

Main Collection


Books that circulate are shelved in the Main Collection on the second and third floors of the Nancy Thompson Library. Search in the Kean Catalog to find circulating books on your topics. To search the Kean Catalog:

· Go to the Kean University Library Homepage, http://library.kean.edu.

· Click Kean Catalog.

· Enter keywords for your topic in the search box underneath Find This:

· Click Submit.

· Scan the Search Results list for relevant book titles, and make note of the Call Numbers.

Research Databases

The library provides online periodical index databases in which the researcher may search by topic to locate citations, abstracts, and sometimes full-text articles published in newspapers, magazines, and scholarly journals. Listed below are several databases that will provide access to articles relating to African American History:

America: History and Life
America: History and Life is a database that provides access to bibliographic citations and abstracts (and sometimes full text) for articles focusing on the history of the United States and Canada from prehistory to the present. To access America: History and Life:

· Go to the Kean University Library Homepage, http://library.kean.edu.

· Click Databases.

· Click VALE.

· Click Databases.

· Click America: History and Life.

· Click Click here to access your subscription.

· Click America: History and Life.

· Enter search terms relating to the research topic in the box next to Keyword:

For example: african american and church and activ*

Project MUSE (available on campus only)

Project MUSE is a database that features articles from some 250 highly regarded scholarly journals in such academic disciplines as history, cultural studies, and gender studies. To access Project MUSE:

· Go to http://muse.jhu.edu/

· Click Search.

· Enter search terms relating to the research topic in the search box.

Historical New York Times

The Historical New York Times database provides access to full-text articles from the New York Times dating back to 1851. To access Historical New York Times:

· Go to the Kean University Library Homepage, http://library.kean.edu.

· Click Databases.

· Click VALE.

· Click Databases.

· Click ABI Inform – Business – ProQuest.

· Look for the pull-down menu in the box next to the word “Database,” and scroll down and select

Historical New York Times.

Academic Search Premier

Academic Search Premier is a scholarly, multidisciplinary database containing full text for nearly 4,600 scholarly publications, including more than 3,500 peer-reviewed publications. To access Academic Search Premier:

· Go to the Kean University Library Homepage, http://library.kean.edu/.

· Click Databases.

· Click EBSCOhost.

· Click EBSCOhost Web.

· Click Academic Search Premier.

· Select the Peer Reviewed option under the Limit Your Results section to limit your results to articles published in scholarly or refereed journals.

· Enter search terms relating to the research topic. Click Search.

WilsonWeb: OmniFile or Biographies Plus

WilsonWeb is an online platform that provides access to several databases, including OmniFile (a scholarly, multidisciplinary database) and Biographies Plus. To access the WilsonWeb databases:

· Go to the Kean University Library Homepage, http://library.kean.edu/.

· Click Databases.

· Click WilsonWeb.

· Select either OmniFile Full Text Mega or Biographies Plus.

· If you selected OmniFile Full Text Mega, look for the Subject Area section and then scroll down and

choose Humanities.

Periodicals List

When any database does not provide full text for a relevant article, search the library’s Periodicals list to see if the Kean University Library holds the desired publication in print or through another database. To do this:

· Go to the Kean University Library Homepage, http://library.kean.edu.

· Click Periodicals.

· Click Kean’s Periodicals

· Enter the name of the journal in the Quick Search box. Click Go.

If the journal title appears in the results list with a checkmark under the Print Holdings column, this means that the library holds the journal in print format. If the journal title appears in the results list with a checkmark under the Full Text Access column, this means that full-text online articles from that journal are available for the date range indicated through the Database listed immediately below the journal title. If the journal title does not appear on the list, you may request a photocopy of the desired article through Interlibrary Loan.
Copyright © 2004, Kean University Library. Content developed by Ms. Linda Cifelli (input from Ms. Caroline Geck), 9/2004.

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