History
Article Indexes
Use the following indexes to find articles in journals, newspapers and magazines. Articles are important in your research as they often contain the most-up-to-date research in a given field and focus on a particular aspect of a topic.
To distinguish between scholarly journals, magazines, and trade publications, check our guide, Distinguishing Scholarly Journals from Other Periodicals.
Key Indexes
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Other Useful Indexes
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Books / E-Books
To find books on your topic, search the library catalogue (QCAT). If you have a specific known item, search by title or author, by selecting the appropriate search option.
To find books on a topic, try a keyword search if you do not know the correct subject heading for a topic. For further information on performing keyword searches, see the page, Using Boolean Operators and also the section, Finding Books.
After you made a start with keyword searching, it is usually best to continue your search using subject headings.
TIP: if you find a record in QCAT for a relevant book, check the subjects assigned to it to find the headings that best match your topic.
You can also try looking up subject headings before beginning your search, using the red Library of Congress Subject Headings volumes at Research desk in Stauffer Library.
Examples of broad subject headings:
- historiography
- historians
- military history
- world history
Also, names of particular historical figures:
- Churchill Winston 1874-1965
- Elizabeth I Queen of England 1533-1603
- Frank Anne 1929-1945
- Lincoln Abraham 1809-1865
- Macdonald John A (John Alexander) 1815-1891
- Napoleon I Emperor of the French 1769-1821
Or, names of organizations:
- Church Missionary Society
- East India Company
Or, particular events (try keyword first to determine the exact Subject Heading):
- France History Revolution 1789-1799
- September 11 Terrorist Attacks 2001
- South African War 1899-1902 (try keyword “boer war” to get correct subject heading)
- World War 1939-1945
For the history of a particular geographical area/country, type the name of the country, followed by history:
- Canada History
- France History
- Ontario History
The headings for the history of countries/places will often be further subdivided, either by time frame:
- Canada History 19th century
- France History Louis XVI 1774 1793
- Ontario history 1791-1841
And / or by sub-topic:
- France History Revolution 1789-1799 Art and the revolution
- United States history Civil war 1861-1865 Campaigns
There are some very broad headings used to cover entire historical epochs, such as:
- History, Ancient
- History, Modern
- Middle Ages
- Reformation
- Renaissance
- Sixteenth Century
And other sub-headings for an overview of the historical period:
- Europe Civilization
- France Social conditions 18th century
- Germany Economic conditions 1918-1945
- Great Britain Colonies India
- Great Britain Politics and government 1603-1714
- Great Britain Social life and customs 17th century
E-Books
The Library subscribes to a number of e-book packages which can be accessed via Databases. Packages that are of interest to history students are:
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Book Reviews
To find book reviews in history, try the following resources: You are connecting from off-campus. You will be prompted to enter your NetID and password before connecting to a Queen's-only database.
Dictionaries and Encyclopedias
Dictionary of Concepts in History
REF D13 .R49 1986
- Identifies and discusses key concepts in contemporary historical analysis.
Dictionary of Eighteenth-Century World History
REF D286 .D53 1994t
- Includes information about people, cultures, and events of the Enlightenment period.
Dictionary of Historic Documents
REF D9 .D525 2003
- Guide to significant documents of the world from ancient times to the present.
Dictionary of Nineteenth-Century World History
REF D356 .D53 1994t
- Includes all aspects of political, diplomatic, military, social and economic history, and provides overviews of the cultural and artistic developments of the period.
Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing
REF D14 .E53 1999
- Guide to influential historians and historical debates.
Encyclopedia of World History
REF D9 .E53 1998t
Oxford Dictionary of the World
REF G103.5 .O94 1995t
Biographies
Check the subject guide, Biographical Resources
Blackwell Dictionary of Historians
REF D14 .B58 1988t
Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing
REF D14 .E53 1999
- Guide to influential historians and historical debate.
Great Historians from Antiquity to 1800: an International Dictionary
REF D14 .G74 1989
Chronologies
- Provides access to many timelines and chronologies.
Chronology of World History
REF D11 .M39 1999
- Time period covered is from prehistory to 1998. Sections are organized by time period and then by the topics of Politics, Science, Arts/Ideas and Society.
Timetables of History
D11 .G78 1982
- Provides a chronology of seven thousand years of significant moments in history, religion, science, and the arts.
Timelines of War
D25.A2 B76 1994
- Chronology of war, revolutions, battles, leaders and weapons from prehistory to 1993.
Atlases / Maps
Oxford Atlas of World History
G1030 .P57 1999b m (SL Maps & Air Photos)
Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection, Historical Map Web Site
- Portal to a variety of cartographical web sites (U. of Texas at Austin).
Rand McNally Historical Atlas of the World
G1030 .H54 1981 maps (SL Maps & Air Photos)
- Focus is on European history.
Times Complete History of the World
G1030 .T54 2007 (SL folio)
Primary Sources
http://library.queensu.ca/research/guide/primary-sourcesWriting History Papers
Writing the History Paper (Dartmouth College)
Preparation of Historical Essays (Queen’s University)