American Studies Subject Guide
* UMBC Affiliates only
Contact YOUR Librarian:
Drew Alfgren
email: alfgren@umbc.edu
phone: 410-455-3608
Article Databases - Arts & Culture
American Cultural History: 19th Century Coverage: 1800-1899
Webpages and links highlighting developnments in American culture in the 19th century arranged by decade. Art, business, economics, literature, social developments, and science and technology are included.
American Cultural History: 20th Century Coverage: 1900-1999
Webpages and links highlighting developments in American culture in the 20th arranged by decade. Art, business, economics, literature, social developments, and science and technology are included.
Art Abstracts (Ebsco) 
Coverage: 1984 - present
Indexes and abstracts international English-language arts publications covering advertising, archaeology, crafts, folk art, graphic arts, design, video, film, architecture and art history.
CAIRSS Music Index Coverage: current
Database of music research literature in music education, music psychology, music therapy, and music medicine. 1,354 different journal titles; 18 of which are indexed cover to cover. Now with a Web interface.
Humanities International Complete (Ebsco) 
Humanities International Index is a comprehensive database covering journals, books and other reference sources in the humanities. The database contains bibliographic records from a multitude of U.S. and international journals, books and reference works.
Music & Performing Arts Online It brings the International Index to Music Periodicals (IIMP) and the International Index to the Performing Arts (IIPA) together in one site, enabling users to search both resources simultaneously. It covers areas such as music, theatre, dance, television, film, and other performing arts
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Article Databases - Business & Economics
Business Source Premier (Ebsco) 
Coverage: 1990 - present
Full-text of nearly 1,400 scholarly business journals covering management, economics, finance, accounting, and international business. Funded by the Maryland Digital Library (MDL).
EconLit (Ebsco) 
Coverage: 1969 - present
Subject indexing and abstracts of journals, books, collective volumes, dissertations, and working papers in Economics.
Home Economics Archive: Research Tradition History (HEARTH) Coverage: 1850-1950
HEARTH is a core electronic collection of books and journals in Home Economics and related disciplines published between 1850 and 1950. The full text of these materials is freely accessible on this site.
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Article Databases - Census Data
America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being Coverage: current
Report presents a statistical overview of the well-being of America's children. Topics include children's economic security, health, behavior and social environment and education. Contains data on demographic measures including child well-being.
County and City Databook Coverage: 1988 - present
From the US Census Bureau. Summary demographic and vital statistics; employment, education, government, housing, production and weather data for states, counties, and all cities of 25,000+. See also C3.134/2. Most current ed. On RDYREF.
Historical US Census Data Coverage: 1790 - 1970
Population, demographics, and economic data for all states and counties, from the United States decennial census, 1790 - 1970.
Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics Coverage: current
Online version of Bureau of Justice Statistics annual publication. Includes data on crime, criminals, victimization, courts, corrections, law enforcement, and more. Print version in 1st floor GovDocs, call# J29.9/6:
Statistical Abstract of the United States (US Census version) Coverage: 1881-present
Basic summary statistics on the social, political, and economic organization of the U.S., various regions, the states, MSAs, and cities of 100,000 or more residents.
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Article Databases - Communications & Mass Media
Alternative Press Index [API] Coverage: 1991 - present
Indexes roughly 380 alternative, radical, and left publications, which report and analyze the practices and theories of cultural, economic, political, and social change.
Communication & Mass Media Complete (CMMC) - Ebsco 
Coverage: varies
Indexes over 700 journals, including National Communication Association journals, as well as major journalism reviews, recent encyclopedias, and handbooks in the area of communications studies. Full-text of over 200 journals.
Gallup Brain [Gallup Poll News Service] Coverage: 1930 - present
Current and historical data from one of the leading public opinion research firms.
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Article Databases - Education
Education Abstracts Coverage: 1983 - present
Indexes/abstracts articles from major education journals. Topics include administration, teaching methods and curriculum, literacy, government funding, and more.
ERIC (EBSCO) 
Coverage: 1966 - present
Indexes Current Journals in Education (CIJE) and Resources in Education (RIE). NOTE: ERIC Documents may be available online through EDRS or available on microfiche in the Library. Funded by the Maryland Digital Library (MDL).
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Article Databases - History & Biography
African American Biographical Database (AABD) Coverage: 1790-1950
Biographical information on thousands of African Americans, assembled from biographical dictionaries and other sources. Initial content was drawn from Chadwyck-Healey's Black Biographical Dictionaries 1790-1950. Provided by the Bell endowment.
America: History & Life 
Coverage: prehistory - present
America: History and Life (AHL) indexes the historical literature on North America and Canda.
American National Biography Online Coverage: c.975-
American National Biography [ANB] offers portraits of more than 17,400 men and women whose lives have shaped the nation. The online edition of the ANB is updated quarterly with additions and revisions.
Biography and Genealogy Master Index Coverage: Full set
Indexes current and retrospective reference works containing multiple biographies. 10 million+ entries.
History Cooperative A joint venture of the American Historical Assn., Org. of American Historians, U. of Illinois Press and Nat'l Academy Press. Includes full-text journals & information on member organizations. No login needed, use Search or go to journals
Making of America (MOA) Coverage: 19th c. books and aricles
Making of America (MOA) is a digital library of primary sources in American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction. Subject areas include education, psychology, American history, sociology, religion, and science and technology.
Maryland History and Culture Bibliography The Maryland History and Culture Bibliography consists of citations to articles, books, and doctoral dissertations about various aspects of Maryland's history and culture, divided into a set of standard subject categories. The citations are gathered from scholarly journals, local and state history-related newsletters and magazines, subject indexes to monographs and journals, publishers' catalogs, and electronic databases, among other sources.
Maryland State Archives The Maryland State Archives is the historical agency for Maryland and serves as the central depository for government records of permanent value. Records date from the founding of the colony in 1634 to the 1990s. Open to the public. Located in Annapolis.
Women and Social Movements in the United States, 1600-2000 Coverage: 1600-2000
Database of books, documents, images, scholarly essays, commentaries and bibliographies of all aspects of American Women's public lives and political activities.
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Article Databases - Science & Technology
Compendex (via Engineering Village 2) Coverage: 1969 - present
Indexes the entire spectrum of engineering, in depth, with abstracts from over 5,000 international journals, conference papers and technical reports. You may set up a profile, save searches, and have search results emailed bi-weekly.
Ecology Abstracts 
Coverage: 1982 - present
Focuses on how organisms of all kinds interact with their environments and with other organisms. Included are relevant papers on evolutionary biology, economics, and systems analysis as they relate to ecosystems or the environment.
NASA History Division NASA History Division serves two key functions: to disseminate aerospace information as widely as possible and help NASA managers benefit from the study of past accomplishment and difficulties. Pages include both documents, photographs and links.
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All Online American Studies Resources
