Skip to Main Content

New Jersey History Day - Local History Resources: Dictionaries and Encyclopedias

A guide for students researching New Jersey and Paterson area topics for New Jersey History Day projects

Dictionaries and Encyclopedias

New Jersey History Encyclopedias

Dictionary of New Jersey History / Chad Leinaweaver, Douglas Bess, Caryn Hannan, and Jennifer L. Herman. - Murrieta, CA: U.S. History Publishers, 2006. - with an introduction and history by Chad Leinaweaver.; Douglas Bess, executive editor ; Caryn Hannan, researcher, writer, editor ; Jennifer L. Herman, researcher, writer, editor.; Includes bibliographical references (p. 663-672) and index. - Call Number: F132 .D43 2006

Encyclopedia of New Jersey / Maxine N. Lurie, and Marc Mappen. - New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press, 2004. - edited by Maxine N. Lurie and Marc Mappen ; maps by Michael Siegel.; Includes bibliographical references. - Call Number: F132 .E52 2004

General American History Encyclopedias

Cold War Culture: Media and the Arts, 1945-1990 / Richard Alan Schwartz. - New York: Facts on File, 1998. - Includes bibliographical references (p. 365-367) and index. - Call Number: REF E169.12.S39
One volume reference covers the major forms of cultural expression during the Cold War era, with an emphasis on the popular arts and literature. Entries range from a single paragraph to a page. Cross-references are included, plus a three-page bibliography at the end.


Dictionary of American History / Stanley I. Kutler. - 3rd ed. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2003. - Stanley I. Kutler, editor in chief.; 10 v. : ill., maps ; 29 cm. - Includes bibliographical references and index. - Call Number: REF E174.D52
4,434 entries in ten volumes emphasize social, cultural, and demographic topics, while striving for diversity and inclusiveness. Also covers political, military, and economic developments in American history. Includes over 1,200 photographs and 252 maps, and the text is liberally supplemented with hundreds of cross-references. Volume 10 contains a massive index and "Guide to Research and Learning," which allows the Dictionary to be used as an American history textbook supplement and teaching tool. [Choice]


The Dictionary of Urbanism / Robert Cowan ; illustrated by Lucinda Rogers. - Tisbury, Wiltshire: Streetwise Press, 2005. - xx, 468 p. : ill., ports. ; 25 cm. - Includes bibliographical references (p. 459-467). - Call Number: REF HT108.5.C69


Encyclopedia of African American History: 1896 to the Present: From the Age of Segregation to the Twenty-First Century / ed. by Paul Finkelman - New York : Oxford University Press, 2009. - 5 vols. - Includes bibliographical references and index. - Call Number: REF E185.E5453
'This five-volume set provides a comprehensive examination from the "Age of Segregation" through the 2008 presidential election. With over 1,250 signed entries and 450 illustrations, the set conveys the story of African American history with a focus on topics such as politics, literature, law, art, and cultural figures. Entries are arranged alphabetically with cross-references and a selective bibliography at the end of each article. The set also features a listing of entries for all volumes, roster, thematic outline, chronology, and comprehensive index.' [Choice]


Encyclopedia of American Cultural and Intellectual History / Mary Kupiec Cayton, and Peter W. Williams. - New York: Scribner, 2001. - Mary Kupiec Cayton, Peter W. Williams, editors.; 3 volumes) ill. ; 28 cm; Includes bibliographical references and index. - Call Number: REF E169.1.E624
Three-volume work contains lengthy essays (chronological and topical) and longer-than-average bibliographies. Consult the index for essays covering specific topics under more general themes.


Encyclopedia of American Social History / Mary Kupiec Cayton, Elliott J. Gorn, and Peter W. Williams. - New York: Scribner ; Toronto; New York: Maxwell Macmillan Canada; Maxwell Macmillan International, 1993. - 019: 27791051; Mary Kupiec Cayton, Elliott J. Gorn, Peter W. Williams, editors.; 3 v; Includes bibliographical references and index. - Call Number: REF HN57.E58
This three-volume set features 14 thematic sections and 180 essays covering a wide range of topics in social history, including periods of social change; methods and context; the construction of social identity; processes of social change; ethnic and racial subcultures; regionalism and regional subcultures; space and place; patterns of everyday life; work and labor; popular culture and recreation; family history; social problems, social control, and social protest; science, medicine and technology; and education and literacy.


Encyclopedia of American Social Movements / edited by Immanuel Ness; foreword by Stephen Eric Bronner and Frances Fox Piven. - Armonk, NY: Sharpe Reference, 2004. - 4 v. (xxix, 1557 p.): ill.; 29 cm. - Includes bibliographical references (p. 1503-1557) and indexes. - Call Number: REF HN57.E594
The first major reference work that seeks to examine social movements in all their complexity, power, and significance, this set expands history by giving voice to the struggles of ordinary people. Striving for comprehensiveness, authority, and balance, the section editors examine each movement in its entirety. The set's introduction is particularly useful in defining social movements -their aims, goals, and successes, and their ability to spawn offshoots. Sixteen sections, edited by experts, cover major social movements in American history. Sections begin with an introductions to movements (e.g., Antislavery Movement, Native American Movement) and supply entries that cover each movement's critical themes and key leaders. Excerpts from primary documents (Frederick Douglass's "The Rights of Women") flesh out entries and provide easy access for readers. Entries are arranged by a rough chronology in each section, are written by scholars, and analyze a movement's goals, tactics, membership, and outcomes. Since many movements overlap, entries explore the interrelationship between the groups. Intending to provide a broad, engaging overview of American history, the set is not confined to movements of the Left but includes conservative, progressive, and antivice movements. [Choice]


Encyclopedia of American Urban History / editor, David R. Goldfield. - Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications, 2007. - 910 p. 28 cm. - Includes bibliographical references and index - Call Number: REF HT123.E49
Over 300 scholars contributed to this excellent two-volume reference on urban history. Essay titles include "bar culture," "single-family detached house," "urban humor," and "women and public space." In addition to a thorough index, an alphabetical list of articles provides a quick idea of the topics and scope. A reader's guide, organized by broad topic, helps users access entries that are thematically related, including the persons in biographical entries, and a list of cities by name. Other categories include education, housing, transportation, and race. See also references facilitate access to related articles that lower-level undergraduates may lack the vocabulary to locate. Each article concludes with a brief but usually well-chosen list of further readings and references. This two-volume set presents US urban history in a concise, clear, economical package. [Choice]


Encyclopedia of the City / edited by Roger W. Caves. - New York: Routledge, 2005. - xxx, 564 p. ; 26 cm. - Includes bibliographical references and index. - Call Number: REF HT108.5.E63
This alphabetically arranged one-volume work presents descriptions of features of the urban built environment as well as definitions of urban theories and concepts. It covers a wide variety of urban-themed topics, including city planning, sociology, economics, technology, critical theory and cultural studies, architecture, and political science. Brief biographical articles on prominent urban planners, architects, philosophers, and others list a few of their key works (city plans, books, buildings). North American and European ideas and individuals prevail among the subjects and the contributors. Emphasis is on the contemporary period. [Choice]


Encyclopedia of the McCarthy Era / William K. Klingaman. - New York: Facts on File, 1996. - William K. Klingaman.; Includes bibliographical references (p. 413-414) and index. - REF E743.5.K57


Encyclopedia of the United States in the Twentieth Century / Stanley I. Kutler. - New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1996. - Stanley Kutler, editor in chief ; Robert Dallek, David A. Hollinger, Thomas K. McCraw, associate editors ; Judith Kirkwood, assistant editor.; 9510 pp.; 5 v. : ill., ports. ; 29 cm; Includes bibliographical references and index.;. - Call Number: REF E740.7.E53
Four-volume reference work covers political, social, cultural, and technological developments and trends that occurred in the U.S. during the twentieth century. Organized into six broad topical sections ("The American People"; "Politics"; "Global America"; "Science, Technology, and Medicine"; "The Economy"; and "Culture"), 80 prominent academic historians provide 74 interpretative essays based on current scholarship that analyze major topics and themes of the century. The lengthy essays cover such traditional and emerging subjects as regionalism, gender issues, Congress, limited wars, health and disease, the infrastructure, and sports; they are followed by informative and thorough bibliographical essays. A unique chronology organized in six columns that correspond to the encyclopedia's topical arrangement can be used to compare noteworthy annual accomplishments and events, 1898-1995. [Choice]


Encyclopedia of U.S. Labor and Working-Class History / Eric Arnesen, editor. - New York: Routledge, 2007. - 3 vols. - Includes bibliographical references and index. - Call Number: REF HD8066 .A78
Containing over 650 entries, this three-volume encyclopedia encompasses labor history from the colonial era to the present. Articles focus on states, regions, periods, economic sectors and occupations, race-relations, ethnicity, and religion, concepts and developments in labor economics, environmentalism, globalization, legal history, trade unions, strikes, organizations, individuals, management relations, and government agencies and commissions. Articles cover such issues as immigration and migratory labor, women and labor, labor in every war effort, slavery and the slave-trade, union-resistance by corporations such as Wal-Mart, and the history of cronyism and corruption, and the mafia within elements of labor history. Labor history is also considered in its representation in film, music, literature, and education. Important articles cover the perception of working-class culture, such as the surge in sympathy for the working class following September 11, 2001.


Encyclopedia of Urban America: The Cities and Suburbs / Neil Larry Shumsky, editor. - Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, 1998. - 2 v. (xl, 974 p.) : ill. ; 28 cm. - Includes bibliographical references and index. - Call Number: REF HT123.E5
This two-volume reference is organized around urban topics rather than specific cities. The topics are interdisciplinary, ranging from infrastructure to the arts. Topics are arranged alphabetically, preceded by a list of entries and followed by a 49-page subject and name index. The section "Entries by Subject" at the back lists entries under 16 broad topics such as "Politics & Government" and "People" (i.e., individuals). Articles, written by authorities and signed, include the authors' interpretations in addition to basic information. A bibliography is included with each entry, and a selected topical bibliography at the end brings together references from the text. Illustrations and cross-references add to the set's usefulness. [Choice]


Encyclopedia of Urban Studies /, edited by Ray Hutchison. - Thousand Oaks, Calif.: SAGE Publications, 2010. - 2 v. (xxviii, 1039 p.) : ill., map ; 29 cm. - Includes bibliographical references and index. - Call Number: REF HT108.5.E634
The entries in this two-volume encyclopedia span the disciplines of economics, sociology, anthropology, urban planning, urban design and architecture, geography, and political science. Most entries provide a thoughtful list of further readings, including essential books, articles, and Web sites. A list of entries, a reader's guide, a list of contributors, and an index add to the set's usefulness. Article topics cover both the specific and local (biographies of authors and scholars, articles on key 21st-century cities) and the general and global (important practices, policies, and theories). Articles address the perspectives of both academics and practitioners. [Choice]


Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. Economic History / Thomas Carson, and Mary Bonk. - Detroit: Gale Group, 1999. - Thomas Carson, editor, Mary Bonk, associate editor.; 2 v; Includes bibliographical references and index.; v. 1. A - K -- v. 2. L - Z. - Call Number: REF HC102.G35
Two volumes containing 1,003 entries that paint a fascinating picture of the historical, economic, and social development of the U.S.. Written by a team of nine secondary and collegiate instructors and librarians, the articles provide basic background and enough references to related events or names to whet readers' appetites for further exploration. Entries consist of brief definitions, biographies, and one- to two-page essays on issues such as abolition of slavery, military-industrial complex, and states' rights, and include four to eight citations for further reading. Entries are arranged alphabetically, but the table of contents divides them into ten chronological eras. [Choice]


Historical Dictionary of the 1960s / James Stuart Olson. - Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1999. - edited by James S. Olson ; associate editor, Samuel Freeman.; Includes bibliographical references (p. [507]-526) and index. - Call Number: REF E841.H58
This dictionary offers brief entries on personages, organizations, events, and fictional characters, and on military, political, cultural, religious, diplomatic, and economic topics. Each entry includes at least one reference, and there is a chronology and a select bibliography. [Choice]


Historical Dictionary of the 1970s / James Stuart Olson. - Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1999. - edited by James S. Olson.; Includes bibliographical references (p. [383]-396) and index. - Call Number: REF E839.H57
Concise entries on US politics, society, and culture averaging a half page. Sample entries include Wounded Knee, 1972 Olympic Games, Jonestown's mass suicide, Kent State, Patty Hearst, Kissinger, détente, Vietnam, and the Equal Rights Amendment. Pop culture (M*A*S*H and Eric Clapton) gets plentiful coverage, but other figures and issues, like Olympian Mark Spitz and euthanasia patient Karen Anne Quinlan, are omitted. [Choice]


Subject Guide

Profile Photo
Richard Kearney
he/him/his
chat loading...
Contact:
Electronic Resources Librarian
Reference and Information Services Office, Room 107g
David and Lorraine Cheng Library
William Paterson University
300 Pompton Road
Wayne, NJ 07470
973-720-2165
Website