Historical research is often informed by reference materials from many disciplines. Reference online and in print brings together some of the library's many reference works while providing tips on how to locate others.  The types of works profiled in this guide include dictionaries, encyclopedias, thesauri, grammar and usage guides, biographical sources, sources for quick facts, directories and bibliographies, across the disciplines.  

Reference resources come in several formats.  Online resources will be shown by title in NUsearch.  Print resources are also listed in NUsearch, by title.  Print resources which do not circulate are available in the main library periodical room.  For more information, send us an IM, email or call us.

The library's reference sources are listed in NUsearch. You may search by title, keyword, or subject heading.

To use the subject search, you must use a valid subject heading. The Library of Congress provides a list of "official" subject headings.   To search the Library of Congress subject headings, in the search box type in your subject, then choose LC subject headings from the drop down menu, and hit enter. A list of "official" subject headings will appear.