Secondary Sources
Secondary sources are materials written by historians using primary sources (such as government reports, newspaper articles, memoirs, etc.) Examples of secondary sources include:
- books
- journal articles
- encyclopedia articles
See the boxes below for resources to help you find different types of secondary sources.
TIP: Because historians cite their primary sources, look at the bibliographies in their books and articles to locate sources for your own paper!
Books and More
- Forest History Society DatabaseBooks, articles, and more. NOTE: "Check for Full Text" is not available in this database. You must search the catalog for the title of the journal or book to see if we own it
- Local CatalogMaterials owned or subscribed to by the University of Oklahoma libraries.
- ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global (was Dissertation Abstracts)Citations to dissertations and theses from 1861 to the present day. Over a million full-text dissertations are available for download in PDF format; most full text is for dissertations since 1997. Also includes UK & Ireland content.
NOTE: Many universities have started archiving dissertations locally rather than through this database. Try a search in Worldcat, note the name of the institution where the dissertation was written, and go to that institution's catalog to see if a copy is in a local repository.
Most OU dissertations are full text through summer 2013; after that date, find OU dissertations in SHAREOK. - Worldcat (Firstsearch/OCLC)Books and other materials held by libraries around the world. You may borrow (interlibrary loan) materials through the Worldcat database. Interlibrary loan is free! But give yourself time for a book to come through the mail.
Journal Articles
- America: History and Life (Ebsco)U.S. and Canadian topics, prehistory to the present. References to or full text of journal articles, books, book reviews, dissertations, etc.
- Bibliography of Indigenous Peoples in North America (Ebsco)Formerly Bibliography of Native North Americans (BNNA). Native North American history, life, and culture. References to or full text of journal articles, books, essays, conference papers, dissertations, U.S. government documents.
- Chronicles of Oklahoma1921-2019
To see article titles and summaries after that date see this search in the America: History and Life Database. Recent issues in paper on 4th floor, west at call number F 691 .C55. - Environmental HistoryA scholarly journal. Coverage is 1996-present.
- Environmental History ReviewA scholarly journal; the predecessor to Environmental History. 1990-1995
- Great Plains QuarterlyA scholarly journal. Coverage in various databases from 1981-present.
- GreenFILE (Ebsco)All aspects of human impact to the environment. References to or full text of journal and magazine articles, books, book reviews, and reports.
- JSTORIncludes the full text and complete archives of core scholarly journals in many disciplines, some dating from the 1600s. Current issues may not be available.
- Western Historical QuarterlyA scholarly journal. Coverage is 1970-present.
Encyclopedias
Do NOT use encyclopedias as your only source. DO use encyclopedias as a starting point for background information and sources for further reading.
- Encyclopedia of American Environmental HistoryAn encyclopedia only available in paper in Bizzell Memorial Library's reference collection at call number GE 150 .E53 2011. Edited by Professor Brosnan, this work includes more than 750 articles covering every significant issue, event, law, and figure in U.S. environmental history.
- Encyclopedia of Environment and SocietyOnline. Includes more than 1,000 entries on "key individuals, polices, problems, processes, and theoretical concepts that sit astride what has traditionally been known as 'society' and the 'environment.'” (-introduction)
- Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and CultureFrom the Oklahoma Historical Society.
Additional Information
- In depth guide to finding primary sources at OU.
- In depth guide to finding secondary sources at OU.
- Western History Collections
- Interlibrary Loan
- Government Documents Department
- Learning to do Historical Research: A Primer for Environmental Historians and Others (From William Cronon at Wisconsin.)