Subject Guide
Using PowerPoint
Catalog Subject Headings
Use some of the following subject headings in the online catalog.
- Cookery, British
- Cookery, English
- Home Economics (then limit by publication date)
- Home Economics England 19th century
- Country or Region (ie. England) -- description and travel
- Country or Region -- guide books
- Indoor Games
- Amusements -- country
- Great Britain -- social life and customs -- 19th century
- Leisure -- Great Britain -- history
- Funeral Rites and Ceremonies -- by country
- Death-- social aspects
- Children -- Great Britain
- Women--history--England-- 19th century
- Working class -- Great Britain
Biography
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Oxford Dictionary of National BiographyContains biographies of people who shaped the history of the British Isles and beyond, from the earliest times to people who died during or before the year 2005.
Journal Articles
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America: History and LifeAbstracts journal articles, book reviews, media reviews, and dissertations on all aspects of American and Canadian history. Sources in AHL are almost all in English and include state and local history journals as well as major history journals.
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Historical AbstractsWorld history (excluding the United States and Canada-see America: History and Life), from 1450 C.E. to the present. This index also includes major European-language journals.
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MLA International BibliographyAn index to scholarly articles, books and book chapters, and dissertations published internationally on modern literatures, folklore, and linguistics (including composition and rhetoric) starting with 1926.
What is a primary source?
A primary source provides direct or firsthand evidence about an event, object, person, or work of art. Characteristically, primary sources are contemporary to the events and people described and show minimal or no mediation between the document/artifact and its creator. As to the format, primary source materials can be written and non-written, the latter including sound, picture, and artifact. Examples include:
- personal correspondence and diaries
- speeches and oral histories
- photographs and posters
- newspaper ads and stories
- audio and video recordings
Primary Sources: Online Collections
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Victorian Trade Card CollectionTrade Cards were typically used to advertise products and services including such items as patent medicines, thread, sewing machines, food and beverages, farm equipment and others. Trade cards reached the height of their popularity during the 1880's and 1890's. Heavily United States oriented.
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19 Century IndexC19 indexes a wide range of 19th-century British and American books, periodicals, newspapers and other documents such as British Parliamentary papers. C19 also includes Archives USA, an index to archival repositories and description of their collections. With the exception of journals in the American Periodicals series, C19 does not provide links to full-text articles.
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National Archives (Great Britain)Browse through the various collections available through the British National Archives.
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Literature Criticism OnlineOnline compilation of Gale Literary Criticism Series. Provides access to criticism (excerpts or full-text) published from an author's own time to the present as well as biographical information and some historical context.
Primary Sources: Newspapers and Magazines
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Times Digital Archive, 1785-1985Complete digital edition of The Times (London) including all articles, advertisements and illustrations, and photos.
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New York Times Historical (M. U. only)Full text of the complete run of the New York Times. Coverage: 1851- three years ago. (Our current subscription is in Lexis-Nexis, which covers June 1, 1980 - current. 1969- May 31, 1980 are abstracts.)
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Wellesly Index to PeriodicalsIndex to articles on politics, religion, women's writings, ecnoomics, art science archaeology and philosphy published in the 19th century. Also available online through the database 19C and in print.
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Scottsman ArchiveMajor Scottish newspaper 1817-1915. Index only. Full text by subscription.
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Guardian and Sunday ObserverIndex only. 1791-1990. Full text by subscription
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British Newspaper ArchiveSelect dial up or broadband access. For Manchester Guaridan, News of the World, Daily News, and Weekly Dispatch. Mid 19th - early 20th century.
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British Newspapers1800-1900. Full text and searchable.
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Nineteenth Century Serials IndexThe Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (ncse) is a free, online edition of six nineteenth-century periodicals and newspapers.
* Monthly Repository (1806-1837) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833)
* Northern Star (1838-1852)
* Leader (1850-1860)
* English Woman’s Journal (1858-1864)
* Tomahawk (1867-1870)
* Publishers’ Circular (1880-1890) -
Google News Archive SearchSearches a number of sources, including historical newspaper archives digitized by Google through their News Archive Partner Program and online archival materials that have been crawled. COVERAGE IS SPOTTY.
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American Periodical Series OnlineDigitized images of the pages of American magazines and journals published between 1741 and 1900.
Background Life and Culture
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Daily Life OnlineTexts explore the daily life of cultures and countries and cover history and current topics. Also included are primary documents, images, maps, vetted weblinks, Tours through Time features, Spanning the Globe features, and thousands of folk and fairy tales.
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Dictionary of Victorian LondonSite created and maintained by current Victorian mystery writer. Fairly detailed entries.
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The Victorian literature handbook / edited by Alexandra Warwick and Martin WillisKing Library | PR461 .V54 2008
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A companion to the Victorian novelKing Reference | PR871 .C643 2002. Blackwell Companions to Literature. Good overview, contextualizing novels in history. Broad topics include: Novelists and the Stage, Gender Politics and Women's Rights, Children's fiction..etc.
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A companion to Victorian literature & cultureKing Library | PR461 .C597 199. Similar to the volume above
Websites
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Victorian WebConcentrates on British literature, history, and culture during the age of Victoria. Similarly, it includes comparative materials from countries outside the United Kingdom. For example, the sections on the use of iron in architecture, railroad stations, sculpture, and painting as well as Aesthetes, Decadents, and Symbolists have examples from both European and colonial nations.
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Internet Library of Early JournalsAccess to the British Journals, Notes and Queries, The Builder, and Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine for the 1840s-1860s.
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Voice of the Shuttle: VictorianaLarge collection of links to other websites with primary and secondary information.
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Victoria and Albert MuseumMajor museum with collections on all eras of history/art. Good source of visuals. See especially: Theater and Performance, History Period and Styles
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British LibraryOnline collections include:photographs from the 19th century, historical texts, and more.
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The VictoriansFrom the National Archives/ public record office.
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The NinesNINES is a scholarly organization devoted to forging links between the material archive of the nineteenth century and the digital research environment of the twenty-first.
Music
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Smithsonian Global SoundRecordings from Smithsonian, Folkways, and affiliated labels in folk, blues, jazz, country, children's and spoken word from a wide range of world locations
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Naxos Music LibraryIncludes Naxos and affiliated labels in classical, jazz, world, folk, and pop/rock music. Search for the word Victorian or for particular songs or artists.