COM 101 - Simpson
The library guide for COM 101 taught by Alex Simpson
What's your topic?
Select the broad topic that is most relevant to your research for database recommendations.
Database Recommendations
You can use these databases to find relevant information on the topic of History and Historical Figures. This includes sources that could be relevant to famous or recognized people in history, as well as significant historical events and movements.
How you use a database can vary, but most include the same search features and functions that you would use to search the library catalog. For a refresher on how to search using your keywords, check out the Finding Articles video tutorial in the Libraries' Research 101 guide.
This Basic Database Searching video tutorial from Thomas Cooper Library also provides an example using those same searching skills in a common database.
Recommended Databases
- America: History & Life with Full Text This link opens in a new windowAmerica: History and Life with Full Text includes rigorous curation of open access (OA) journals, which has resulted in a growing collection of 139 global OA journals.
- Historical Newspaper Collection This link opens in a new windowSearch the archives of 5 major US newspapers: The Chicago Tribune (1849-1999), the Los Angeles Times (1881-1991), The New York Times (1851-2010), The Wall Street Journal (1889-1996) and The Washington Post (1877-1997).
- History (Films on Demand) This link opens in a new windowVideos related to American, European, and World history.
- U.S. History In Context This link opens in a new windowPrimary sources, reference works and magazine, journal and newspaper articles related to U.S. history. View Brief Overview Tutorial.
If you have trouble accessing any of these databases, make sure that you're logged into your library account while using this guide. You can locate "My Account" on the top-right corner of this page and select "Account Overview" to prompt a login; your username and password are the same as what you use to log into Canvas.
If that doesn't resolve the issue, you can also try chatting with a librarian which can be found on this page, or email your class librarian for help.
Book Recommendations
What about a book?
At the library, we're always updating our collection of materials, including books! Here are some titles we currently have that cover some of the topics you may be researching as you prepare your speeches.
For a summary of the book, select the information icon 
next to the book title.
You can request a hold on a book for easy pick-up at the library, or browse the book stacks for the call number. This How to Read a Call Number guide from UNLV explains the structure of a call number which is how the books at CSN Libraries are organized.
Fannie Lou Hamer by
This book explores the life of one of Mississippi's greatest civil rights activists, Fannie Lou Hamer. Known for her daring, her brinkmanship and her impassioned speech-making, Hamer rose to prominence in the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, an intrepid group which tried to unseat the predominantly white Democrats of Mississippi during the 1964 Democratic National Convention. She is particularly remembered for her speech before the Credentials Committee, seeking to end all-white representation of her home state. Hamer fought her entire life to expand freedom and basic rights to African Americans in the United States.
Call Number: E185.97.H35 B73 2011ISBN: 9780786460304Publication Date: 2011-03-09
Fifty Modern Thinkers on Education by
Fifty Modern Thinkers on Education looks at fifty of the twentieth century's most significant contributors to the debate on education. Among those included are: * Pierre Bourdieu * Elliot Eisner * Hans J. Eysenck * Michel Focault * Henry Giroux * Jurgen Habermas * Susan Isaacs * A.S. Neill * Herbert Read * Simone Weill. Together with Fifty Major Thinkers on Education this book provides a unique history of educational thinking. Each essay gives key biographical information, an outline of the individual's principal achievements and activities, an assessment of his or her impact and influence and a list of their major writings and suggested further reading.
Call Number: LB17 .F57 2001ISBN: 9780415224086Publication Date: 2001-11-09
Feminism Unfinished by
Eschewing the conventional wisdom that places the origins of the American women's movement in the nostalgic glow of the late 1960s, Feminism Unfinished traces the beginnings of this seminal American social movement to the 1920s, in the process creating an expanded, historical narrative that dramatically rewrites a century of American women's history. Also challenging the contemporary "lean-in," trickle-down feminist philosophy and asserting that women's histories all too often depoliticize politics, labor issues, and divergent economic circumstances, Dorothy Sue Cobble, Linda Gordon, and Astrid Henry demonstrate that the post-Suffrage women's movement focused on exploitation of women in the workplace as well as on inherent sexual rights. The authors carefully revise our "wave" vision of feminism, which previously suggested that there were clear breaks and sharp divisions within these media-driven "waves." Showing how history books have obscured the notable activism by working-class and minority women in the past, Feminism Unfinished provides a much-needed corrective.
Call Number: HQ1421 .C625 2014ISBN: 9780871406767Publication Date: 2014-08-25
McCarthyism and the Communist Threat by
Provides a detailed account of Senator Joseph McCarthy and his anti-Communist "witch hunts" of the 1950s. Also explores the how the McCarthy era shaped the trajectory of American politics and culture for decades to come. Includes a narrative overview, biographical profiles, primary source documents, and other helpful features.
Call Number: E743.5 .H53 2011ISBN: 9780780811843Publication Date: 2011-03-30
Booker T. Washington by
An illuminating historical biography for students and scholars alike, this book gives readers insight into the life and times of Booker T. Washington. Booker T. Washington was an integral figure in mid-19th to early-20th century America who successfully transitioned from a life in slavery and poverty to a position among the Black elite. This book highlights Washington's often overlooked contributions to the African and African American experience, particularly his support of higher education for Black students through fundraising for Fisk and Howard universities, where he served as a trustee. A vocal advocate of vocational and liberal arts alike, Washington eventually founded his own school, the Tuskegee Institute, with a well-rounded curriculum to expand opportunities and encourage free thinking for Black students. While Washington was sometimes viewed as a "great accommodator" by his critics for working alongside wealthy, white elites, he quietly advocated for Black teachers and students as well as for desegregation. This book will offer readers a clearly written, fully realized overview of Booker T. Washington and his legacy.
Call Number: E185.97.W4 C47 2021ISBN: 9781440872488Publication Date: 2021-09-09
Your class librarian for COM 101:
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