Searching topics

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Searching topics

• HIST 297W Senior Seminar

Working with Subject Headings Understanding
Journals Print, Electronic, Microfilm Searching
Databases
Shelley Roseman
Graphic Source http//www.swarthmore.edu/SocSci/
rbannis1/Progs/index.html
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Research Basics

• Library Homepage http//www.lib.uconn.edu
• HOMER Library Catalog
• Remote Access https//vpn.uconn.edu/
• Searching Strategies Boolean, Keyword, etc.
• Subject Headings
• Interlibrary/Intercampus Express
• Databases for History

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Everyday Terms vs. LC Subject Headings
Subject headings are those words assigned to
books that describe what the book is about. You
can use the Library of Congress Subject Headings
to help choose appropriate words or subject
headings to search in HOMER, and Databases.
The bottom line is that using Subject Headings
save you time.
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Tools for Finding LOC Subject Headings

• Subject headings are listed in a five-volume
• manual called simply Library of Congress
• Subject Headings ("the big red books").
• Web Site to help you access the Library of
  Congress Subject Headings Database developed by
  Mississippi State University.
• See http//fantasia.cs.msstate.edu/lcshdb/index.c
  gi
• The Library of Congress Subject Headings Home
  Page
• http//www.loc.gov/catdir/cpso/lcco/lcco.html
• HOMER and Databases direct you to subject
  headings too.

.
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Finding Subject Heading
If you search for SPANISH AMERICAN WAR under
keyword, you will identify suggested Subject
Headings American-Spanish War,
1898 Spanish-American War, 1898--CampaignsSpanish-
American War, 1898--Campaigns--CubaSpanish-America
n War, 1898--Campaigns--PhilippinesUnited States.
Navy--History--Spanish-American War, 1898
Sometimes you can guess the appropriate subject
headings, but you cant assume that your topic is
searchable by subject by using commonly used
keywords.
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Subject Headings
Source http//www.union.edu/PUBLIC/LIBRARY/resea
rch/guides/his/18.htmLCSH
hint--When you find a relevant book/article
listing, look at the subject list attached to the
record.  You can click on any of those subjects
listed and branch out. 
Topic
Boolean women and voting and rights
Anthony, Susan B. (Susan Brownell), 1820-1906
--Manuscripts--Microform catalogs.Feminists--Uni
ted States--Manuscripts--Microform
catalogs. Feminism--United States--History--19th
century--Sources--Bibliography Manuscripts on
microfilm--Catalogs. Suffragists--United
States--Biography.
Keyword Elizabeth Stanton Cady Subject
Heading suffragettes
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Conclusion LCSH

• Do a keyword search in HOMER, the library
  catalog.
• Find one or more records that appear to be on
  your topic, and look at the full display of one
  or more of them.
• If the record looks relevant, look at the subject
  headings within that record.
• Select the subject heading(s) which BEST
  describes your topic.
• Some guidelines
• If you don't find something with a subject
  keyword search, try a title keyword.  Sometimes
  terms show up in titles before they become
  "official" subject headings.
• If your first try doesn't work, try again using
  different wording.  
• Check your spelling.

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Authors and Subject Headings
For biographical information on an author, you
must perform a subject search. For instance, if
you want resources on Mark Twain, do a subject
search on Twain Mark. You will see all
subjects such as TWAIN, MARK,
1835-1910--CRITICISM AND INTERPRETATION. TWAIN,
MARK, 1835-1910--BIOGRAPHY
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Recommended Databases
America History Life Historical Abstracts Arts
Humanites Citation Index WilsonWeb
InfoTrac JSTOR (select the discipline) Project
Muse
Mussolini's Follies Fascism in Its Imperial and
Racist Phase, 1935-1940 Contemporary European
History v. 13 no. pt2 (May 2004) p. 127-47 from
WilsonWeb
Subject(s)World War, 1939-1945/Italian
propaganda World War, 1939-1945/Italy
Italy/Colonies/Administration Fascism/Italy
Mussolini, Benito, 1883-1945
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Searching for Articles
www.lib.uconn.edu
some UConn Journals indexed in AH Citation
Index AMERICAN HISTORICAL REVIEW ENGLISH
HISTORICAL REVIEW HISTORICAL JOURNAL JOURNAL OF
AMERICAN HISTORY HISTORIAN JOURNAL OF MEDIEVAL
HISTORY JOURNAL OF SOCIAL HISTORYWILLIAM AND
MARY QUARTERLY
From the Library Homepage click All Databases
select History
Some JSTOR full text in The Journal of Economic
History Journal of Interdisciplinary History
The Journal of Modern History Sixteenth Century
Journal
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InfoTrac
Subject Search helps to broaden your topic to
find Related Subjects

• Suffragettes

Suffragists
Subject suffragists Subdivision Biography
Emmeline Pankhurst
Susan B. Anthony
Crystal Eastman (organizer for women's rights,
peace, and civil liberties in the 1910s)
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InfoTrac
Helps to narrow your Topic by clicking on
subdivisions

• Warning about historical topics in InfoTrac
• orientation in InfoTrac is
• multi-disciplinary and not just historical
• subheadings may be unrelated to
• your topic during the time period you are
  searching
• not all articles are peer-reviewed
• many historical articles are book reviews

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Questions?
Shelley.roseman_at_uconn.edu 251-8522