HI 3311: American Labor History

Off campus? Off campus access to resources with proxy.

Background Information

While gathering general information and facts...

Make a list of keywords and add to this list as you find more
Follow up on relevant authors, researchers, experts
Gather statistical information to build scope and impact of problem
Consider all perspectives: historic, economic, social, political, etc.

The free web: search engines and other free web sites such as Wikipedia
Grolier Encyclopedia and Encyclopedia Americana.
Browse the journal Labor History
Browse the reference book Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor edited by Robert Weir and James Hanlan.

Books

Search the Library Catalog for items @ WPI or WorldCat to search beyond our library.

Examples of useful books:

Mintz, Benjamin W. OSHA : history, law, and policy. [GEN KF3570 M56 1984]
Juravich, Tom. The future of work in Massachusetts. [GEN HC107 M4 F88 2007]
Labor Conflict in the United States : An Encyclopedia. [GEN HD5324 L32 1990]

Primary Sources

See the Primary Sources guide for an extensive list of search tools.

Search the following sites for primary source materials related to your topic:

Kheel Center Labor Photos, Cornell University
National Archives Online Photography Exhibit: The Way We Worked
Special Collections in the Library of Congress: Business, Economic, and Labor History
Online exhibits from the Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives at New York University

Find Articles about Your Topic

All databases listed are WPI subscriptions. But check out Google Scholar, a web search of scholarly sources.

America, History & Life and Historical Abstracts: References to articles on historic topics.
Gale Powersearch: Articles on all topics, click refereed/peer reviewed checkbox to limit only to scholarly articles. Contains articles back to the 1980s but good coverage of historical topics.
JSTOR: Complete full text of important scholarly journals in a variety of academic fields. Coverage: Varies by publication but many back to late 1800s.
Project Muse: Search full text of major academic history journals.
New York Times Historical: Search full text 1851-2002.
LEXIS®-NEXIS® Academic: Current full text news, legal, medical, and business information. News coverage ranges from regional coverage (Worcester T & G) to national news.

Filter and Follow Up...

Scan results: use subject headings/descriptors, keywords, phrases found to expand search
Scrutinize article titles, number of pages, and journal title
Browse promising abstract and conclusion sections of long studies
Bibliographies can clue you in on the value of the article as well
Find an interesting author? Search for more articles or for his/her web site
Notice an agency, association or expert mentioned in an article? Follow up!

Search one of the above databases for an article on your topic. Jot down the reference here, in MLA style.
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Example of a work from a library subscription service:: Roberts, Peter. "Anthracite Coal Strike in its Social; Aspects." Economic Journal 13.49 (1903): 20-19.; JSTOR. Gordon Library Worcester; Polytechnic Institute, MA. 12 Sept. 2005; <http://links.jstor.org>.

What journal or magazine is this article from? Is it available in full text? Or just an abstract? If only an abstract is found, find the full text, using the library's Journals, Magazines, & Newspapers list.

Only Finding a Citation? Getting the Full Text

Is the journal online or here in the library? Search our Journals, Magazines, & Newspapers list
Visit another library: Search WorldCat to find one
Request delivery from another library: Interlibrary Loan.

Give Credit! Cite Your Sources

Questions?

Stop by the reference desk or set up a research consultation.

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Last modified: Sep 08, 2009, 16:45 EDT