LibGuides: United States History: A Guide to Library Research: Reference & Multimedia

Biographies, Encyclopedias, & Statistics

American National Biography Online This link opens in a new window
Profiles of more than 18,000 men and women from all eras and walks of American life who have influenced and shaped American history and culture. Includes thousands of illustrations, linked cross-references, and links to select web sites. 1999 ed., updated quarterly.
Historical Statistics of the United States This link opens in a new window
Millennial edition. Downloadable data from earliest times to present.
Oxford African American Studies Center This link opens in a new window
African and African-American history; biography from major reference works.
Proquest Statistical Abstract of the United States This link opens in a new window
Statistics on the population, economy, and life in the United States.
The US Census Bureau published the Statistical Abstract of the United States from 1878-2012. The company ProQuest picked up the series beginning in 2013.
Social Explorer This link opens in a new window
Demographic information about the United States, 1790 to present. Create maps and reports based on decennial censuses of 1940 to 2010 and the American Community Survey.
Includes over 40 billion data elements and 335,000 variables. Includes demographic and economic data, religion, election, and carbon emissions data. To save and share projects, please create a personal account.
World News Digest This link opens in a new window
Facts on File coverage of all major political, social, and economic events since November 1940.
A Read Aloud button is available for text-to-speech for much of the content.

Keyword(s): United States
CDC WONDER This link opens in a new window
Allows you to generate and download detailed statistical data for the United States on numerous topics related to public health.
- Search for and read published documents on public health concerns, including reports, recommendations and guidelines, articles and statistical research data published by CDC, as well as reference materials and bibliographies on health-related topics;
- Query numeric data sets on CDC's computers, via "fill-in-the blank" web pages. Public-use data sets about mortality (deaths), cancer incidence, HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis, vaccinations, natality (births), census data, and many other topics are available for query, and the requested data are readily summarized and analyzed, with dynamically calculated statistics, charts, and maps.
Opinion Magazines on EBSCOhost This link opens in a new window
Articles from three influential American publications: The New Republic and The Nation (left-of-center), and National Review (right-of-center).
Includes these collections:
- The Nation Archive, 1865-present. One of the longest-published American magazines of opinion and criticism, covering politics, culture, books and the arts - in America and around the world - from a liberal/leftist viewpoint.
- National Review Archive, 1955-present. One of the longest-published American magazines of conservative opinion.
- The New Republic Archive, 1914-present. Prominent liberal journal of opinion, covering American politics, foreign policy, and culture.

Films, Audio, & Images

History (Alexander Street text & video) This link opens in a new window
Videos, newsreels, and primary documents on United States history, world history, and women in social movements.
Includes these collections:
- American History in Video
- The Sixties: Primary Documents and Personal Narratives. 1960–1974
- Black Thought and Culture
- North American Indian Thought and Culture
- The March of Time
- World Newsreels Online: 1929–1966
- Women and Social Movements in the United States, 1600-2000
- Women and Social Movements, International
- Women and Social Movements, Modern Empires Since 1820
- Women and Social Movements: Development and the Global South, 1919 - 2019
- World History in Video

C-SPAN
Find video coverage of congressional proceedings since 1987.

Media Studies: 60 Minutes and Meet the Press This link opens in a new window
Episodes of the long-running TV journalism shows "60 Minutes" and "Meet the Press."
Meet the Press is broadcast-television's longest-running program, with interviews, panels and debates from across the political spectrum that were televised 1947 through 2013.

60 Minutes is a highly successful program, with numerous Emmy and Peabody awards, and is the longest continuously-running prime-time program in American television history. Includes episodes from 1997 to 2014. Also includes 175 hours of CBS Sunday Morning. These programs are in high-definition streaming format.
Presidential Recordings Digital Edition This link opens in a new window
This audio collection comprises hours of sound files and transcripts of meetings and telephone conversations for Presidents Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon.