Getting Started
Begin your research by brainstorming keywords - the words and phrases you’ll use to search for books, articles, websites, government documents, and other resources. These may include names of people and places or historical concepts like eras and movements. A librarian can suggest “subject headings” to find the most relevant resources.
Example Keywords & Catalog Subject Headings
Books/Print Resources at DPL
Special Collections and Archives Resources
The Special Collections and Archives at the Central Library focus on Colorado and the West, including the Tenth Mountain Division, Conservation history, and the history of Denver, and feature many primary source materials.
The Special Collections and Archives at the Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library focus on African American history and culture in Colorado and the West, and also feature many primary source collections.
Items from these two locations do not check out and are available to see during the hours we are open. Our Special Collections staff are available to assist by phone and email and can provide scans of collection items for your project. To determine which of these two locations is best for your project, email history@denverlibrary.org and include "National History Day" in your subject line. You may also call 720-865-1821 (Central) or 720-865-2401 (Blair-Caldwell).
Database/Online Resources
Library databases are online collections of information, organized for research. Databases contain articles, eBooks, images, maps, primary sources and more. If you don’t have a library card, register online for immediate access to these resources. The following recommended databases are available on our Research and Teen Social Studies pages.
Explora High School (Ebsco)
Look up topic overviews, magazine and academic journal articles, facts and primary sources for research papers, class projects or homework. Get information from trustworthy sources that you can cite in your papers. Designed with students and educators in mind.
Academic Search Premier (Ebsco)
Full-text articles on popular culture, computer sciences, engineering, physics, arts, business and more. Includes Consumer Reports. Video Tutorial
U.S. History (Gale)
Provides a complete overview of our nation’s past that covers the most-studied events, decades, conflicts, wars, political and cultural movements, and people from reference sources, full-text magazines, academic journals, news articles, primary source documents, images, videos, audio files and links to vetted web sites.
Prospector: Materials from Other Colorado and Wyoming Libraries
As a Denver Public Library customer, you can also borrow materials from other libraries in Colorado and Wyoming. Use Prospector to request materials that DPL does not own.
Internet Sources
Before using information you find on the internet for assignments and research, it is important to establish that the information comes from a reliable and appropriate source. The following websites, from government, academic and nonprofit organizations, have been evaluated for authority, accuracy, content and currency.
eGrove provides free online access to the intellectual output of researchers at the University of Mississippi, and promotes its dissemination in an archive. This may include, but is not limited to open educational resources, open access journals, theses and dissertations, university archives, data sets, images, conferences and symposia, scholarly papers and articles. eGrove contains materials selected by participating departments, schools, centers, and institutes at the University of Mississippi (UM) and is administered by UM Libraries.
Through WAMS, we seek to make the history taught in our classrooms more representative, accurate, and engaging. When more students see themselves reflected in the social studies curriculum, they recognize their own agency. When students see a broader range of experiences represented in the narrative of the American past, they learn to value diversity and appreciate difference. Both strengthen our democracy.
WAMS has been designed for maximum flexibility to support social studies curricula in diverse schools. Learn “How To Use WAMS” in your classroom.
The Library preserves and provides access to a rich, diverse and enduring source of knowledge to inform, inspire and engage you in your intellectual and creative endeavors. Whether you are new to the Library of Congress or an experienced researcher, we have a world-class staff ready to assist you online and in person.
For over 200 years we have been helping people and organizations develop the skills and knowledge they need to succeed. We develop digital education, learning, assessment, and certification solutions to help universities, businesses, and individuals move between education and employment and achieve their ambitions. By partnering with learned societies, we support researchers to communicate discoveries that make a difference. Our online scientific, technical, medical, and scholarly journals, books, and other digital content build on a 200-year heritage of quality publishing.
Civil rights lawyers Morris Dees and Joseph Levin Jr. founded the SPLC in 1971 to ensure that the promise of the civil rights movement became a reality for all. Since then, we’ve won numerous landmark legal victories on behalf of the exploited, the powerless and the forgotten.
Our lawsuits have toppled institutional racism and stamped out remnants of Jim Crow segregation; destroyed some of the nation’s most violent white supremacist groups; and protected the civil rights of children, women, the disabled, immigrants and migrant workers, the LGBTQ community, prisoners, and many others who faced discrimination, abuse or exploitation.
Our Intelligence Project is internationally known for tracking and exposing the activities of hate groups and other domestic extremists.
Learning for Justice provides free resources to caregivers and educators—teachers, administrators, counselors and other practitioners—who work with children from kindergarten through high school. Educators use the materials to supplement the curriculum, to inform their practices, and to create civil and inclusive school communities where children and youth are respected, valued and welcome participants.
DocsTeach is a product of the National Archives education division. Our mission is to engage, educate, and inspire all learners to discover and explore the records of the American people preserved by the National Archives.
The National Archives and Records Administration is the nation's record keeper. We save documents and other materials created in the course of business conducted by the U.S. Federal government that are judged to have continuing value. We hold in trust for the public the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights — but also the records of ordinary citizens — at our locations around the country.
IRs are an excellent vehicle for working papers or copies of published articles and conference papers. Presentations, senior theses, and other works not published elsewhere can also be published in the IR.
Our interdisciplinary research targets four themes: Life Sciences, Pathways to Sustainability, Dynamics of Youth and Institutions for Open Societies. We are a trailblazer in the field of modernising educational concepts. Our student pass rate is high.
Our teaching and research are strongly connected. We work together in tight communities. We believe equality, diversity and inclusion are important.
All this provides us with a solid base from which to work with others around the globe on the societal issues of the future.
The CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas debuted online to the public on May 2, 2006, as a work in progress. At that time, it contained approximately 700 entries and 900 pieces of media; as of 2020, the site offers more than 6,000 entries and more than 9,000 pieces of media. The CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas received the 2009 Diamond Award from the Arkansas Historical Association, and in 2013 the mobile version of the website received an Award of Merit from the American Association for State and Local History. In 2013, the CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas was named a Notable Government Document of 2012 by the Government Documents Round Table of the American Library Association.
Users have come from every continent (including Antarctica) and more than 230 countries (including territories and autonomous provinces). During its first month online, the CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas had about 47,000 visits; the CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas now receives more than 1.6 million visits each year.
Major funding for the establishment of the CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas was provided by the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation. Over the years, the CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas has also received funding from the Department of Arkansas Heritage, the Arkansas General Assembly, the Arkansas Humanities Council, the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, and the National Endowment for the Humanities, as well as donations from individuals, foundations, and organizations. CALS has pledged to keep the CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas in operation in perpetuity.
IRs are an excellent vehicle for working papers or copies of published articles and conference papers. Presentations, senior theses, and other works not published elsewhere can also be published in the IR.
Marshall University faculty and staff, if you would like to have your scholarship or research loaded to Marshall Digital Scholar, please click here.
A story can effect change, influence opinion, and create awareness—and maps are an integral part of storytelling. ArcGIS StoryMaps can give your narrative a stronger sense of place, illustrate spatial relationships, and add visual appeal and credibility to your ideas.
Use our simple map maker to create custom maps to enhance your digital storytelling. Or add text, photos, and videos to your existing ArcGIS web maps and web scenes to create an interactive narrative that's easy to publish and share.
Although the MSU Libraries strive to collect, acquire and develop accessible digital/electronic collections, unfortunately, not all are. The MSU Libraries are able to provide remediated, accessible versions of digital/electronic library documents to library users. Please be in touch to discuss your specific request by contacting us at libraryremediation@lib.msu.edu. For more information about the service, please visit the MSU Libraries’ Remediation page.
The MSU Libraries Web Services team is continually implementing changes to improve in the areas of accessible and universal design.
Contact the Reference Services department for help with your research project
- Phone us, 720-865-1363
- Chat with us online with the Ask Us! Service
- Meet with us in person or online to work one-on-one with a librarian