Research tools

Researching French History at PSU:
Research tools

Finding books:

PSU Library Catalog (Vikat).
Summit: Orbis/Cascade Alliance Union Catalog.
Interlibrary Loan (ILL).

WorldCat. Before ordering a book through ILL, always locate the book you want in WorldCat, and mention the WorldCat accession number in your order. (Also check that you can't get it more easily through Summit.)

Finding journal articles: Journal articles are easier than ever to locate thanks to a variety of licenced databases available through the PSU Library.

On-line periodical guides (click on "PSU LINKS" to find online or print copies of articles):

Full-text databases of scholarly journals:

JSTOR. Generally does not include articles less than five years old. For more recent articles, see Historical Abstracts, Humanities & Social Sciences Index, and Electronic Journals at PSU.
Electronic Journals at PSU.

Finding primary sources:

Sources in French:

Gallica. Full-text database created by France's Bibliothèque nationale. Click on "recherche" and use the search engine.
ARTFL. Full-text database created by University of Chicago. Used primarily to search texts for key words.
Archim. Full-text database created by France's Archives nationales. Manuscript documents on a variety of themes, including French Protestantism (1540-1788), the French Naval Ministry (1703-14), the French Revolution of 1789, French constitutions (1789-present), French atlases (1745-80). (Use ctrl-p to print documents, crtl-s to download.)
French revolutionary newspapers at PSU. My guide to our rich collection in reprint and on microfilm.
Babeuf et le babouvisme: Microfiche DC187.8.B32.1974 (162 fiches plus index). Ninety-nine works by and about Babeuf [also available in Gallica].
Reading old regime French documents. My guide to reading French books and manuscripts, 16th-18th centuries, with practice texts.

Sources in English:

Early English Books Online, 1475-1700. Full-text database of all books printed in England (or anywhere else in English), to 1700.

Early English Books on microfilm, 1475-1700: Includes many works not yet available online. Use the online version as an index.

1475-1640: Microfilm PR1101.U5 (2217 reels).
1641-1700: Microfilm PR1127.U5 (2856 reels).

Eighteenth Century Collections Online. Full-text database of all books printed in Britain, 1701-1800.
Times Digital Archive. Full-text database of Times of London, 1785-1985.
David A. Bell's bibliography. Bibliography of sources for early modern France printed in English translation. No links to online texts, but you can search for the books in Summit or ILL.

James Monroe papers: Microfilm E173.M66.1960 (11 reels plus index). Includes original manuscript papers from Monroe's mission as ambassador to France, 1794-96: reels 1, 2, 11.

Quantitative data:

Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR). Databases contributed by social scientists in a wide variety of fields.

Biographical dictionaries:

Dictionnaire de biographie française, ed. J. Balteau, et al., 19 vols to date (Paris: Letouzey & Ané, 1933-): Reference CT143.D5.
Nouvelle biographie générale depuis les temps les plus reculés jusqu'à 1850-60, ed. Hoefer, et al., 46 vols (Copenhague, Rosenkilde et Bagger, 1963-69) [reprint of 1852-66 edn]: Storage CT143.H5 1963. See my list of volumes.
Biographie universelle ancienne et moderne, ed. Joseph-François Michaud, 45 vols (Paris: A. Thoisnier Desplaces, 1843-65): Available online in Gallica.

French North America (resources for the study of French Louisiana and Canada, 17th-18th centuries):

France in America. U.S. version of website created by the Bibliothèque Nationale & the Library of Congress. Includes a full-text database of primary sources, in both French & English.

La France en Amérique. France's version of the same website.

Canadian National Library and Archives.

Early Canadiana Online. A full-text database of primary sources, in both French & English (requires subscription).
Dictionnary of Canadian Biography online. In both French & English.

America: History & Life. A periodical guide similar to Historical Abstracts. Includes Canada.

Other resources:

Research Survival Online. Site created by our library, with links to research tools. Includes History page:

History: Starting Your Research.

Return to main.

Nouvelle Biographie Générale
List of volumes

Nouvelle biographie générale depuis les temps les plus reculés jusqu'à 1850-60, ed. Hoefer, et al., 46 vols (Copenhague, Rosenkilde et Bagger, 1963-69) [reprint of 1852-66 edn].

Call number: Storage CT143.H5 1963

Individual volumes of the Nouvelle biographie générale may be ordered from STORAGE.

It is helpful to have the breakdown by volume:

VOLUME:	FROM:	TO:

I.	Aa	Alfez
II.	Alfieri	Aragona
III.	Aragonese	Azzubeydi
IV.	Baaden	Beaumanoir

V.	Beaumarchais	Biccius
VI.	Bichat	Boulduc
VII.	Boulen	Bzovius
VIII.	Cabacius	Caselles

IX.	Casenave	Charost
X.	Charpentier	Cochran
XI.	Cochrane	Cortès
XII.	Cortèse	Danrémont

XIII.	Dans	Dewlet
XIV.	Dexbach	Duchesnois
XV.	Duchi	Emmery
XVI.	Emmet	Faes

XVII.	Faesch	Floris
XVIII.	Florus	Fryxell
XIX.	Fuad-Effendi	Geoffrin
XX.	Geoffrin	Goerres

XXI.	Goertz	Grevile
XXII.	Grévin	Gyulay
XXIII.	Haag	Hennequin
XXIV.	Henner	Holophira

XXV.	Holst	Irwin
XXVI.	Isaac	Joséphine
XXVII.	Josépin	Kœgler
XXVIII.	Koehler	La Laure

XXIX.	La Liborlière	Lavoisien
XXX.	Lavoisier	Lettsom
XXXI.	Leu	Louis Napoléon
XXXII.	Louise de Savoie	Maldeghem

XXXIII.	Maldonado	Martial
XXXIV.	Martialis Gargilins	Mérard de Saint-Just
XXXV.	Mérat	Monnier
XXXVI.	Monniotte	Mur

XXXVII.	Murray	Nicolini
XXXVIII.	Nicolle	Ozerof
XXXIX.	Paw	Philopémen
XL.	Philoponus	Préval

XLI.	Prévalaye	Renouard
XLII.	Renoult	Saint-André
XLIII.	Saint-Ange	Simiane
XLIV.	Simler	Testa

XLV.	Teste	Vermond
XLVI.	Verne	Zyll

01 / 2010