Library Guides: AFAM 101N: African American Women: Find Background information

Encyclopedias, Dictionaries, and other Reference Works

Use identified keywords to find resources in Encyclopedias, Dictionaries and Other Reference Works online and in print.

Gale Virtual Reference Library (GVRL)
find encyclopedias online including Contemporary Black Biography and the Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History.
A collection of over 2000 reference resources.
Oxford African-American Studies Center
browse the list of biographies or search the Center's collections using your keywords.
The African American Studies Center features the three-volume Encyclopedia of African American History 1619-1895, published by Oxford in 2006; the three-volume Black Women in America, Second Edition, edited by Darlene Clark Hine in 2005, the highly acclaimed five volume Africana: the encyclopedia of the African and African American experience. The Center also includes content from much-anticipated forthcoming print publications including the African American National Biography project (estimated at 8 volumes), edited by Henry Louis Gates, Jr., scheduled for publication in 2008; and the Encyclopedia of African American Art and Architecture, due for publication 2007. In addition to these major reference works, AASC offers other key resources from Oxford's reference program, including the Concise Oxford Companion to African American Literature and selected articles from other reference works.
American National Biography Online
search or browse this database of biographies of famous, and not-so-famous, Americans.
The American National Biography Online offers portraits of more than 17,000 men and women -- from all eras and walks of life -- whose lives have shaped the nation. The online version reproduces the full-text of the original 24 volume set published in 1999, with new and updated entries added regularly. The online edition features thousands of illustrations, hyperlinked cross-references, links to select web sites, and powerful search capabilities.

Black Women in America by Darlene Clark Hine (Editor)
Publication Date: 2005

celebrates the remarkable achievements of black women throughout history, highlights their ongoing contributions in America today, and covers new research on African American women.
American Women Civil Rights Activists : biobibliographies of 68 leaders, 1825-1992 by Gayle J. Hardy
Publication Date: 1983

Ranging from such pioneers as Elizabeth Blackwell, Mary L. Bonney, Kate Barnard, Mariana Bracetti, and Amelia Stone Quinton, to contemporary figures such as Iola M. Pohocsucut Hayden, Rosa Parks, Angela Davis, and Shirley Chisholm, these 68 women have worked passionately for civil rights in the United States.
Women and the Civil Rights Movement, 1954-1965
Publication Date: 2009

Historians have long agreed that women--black and white--were instrumental in shaping the civil rights movement. Until recently, though, such claims have not been supported by easily accessed texts of speeches and addresses. With this first-of-its-kind anthology, Davis W. Houck and David E. Dixon present thirty-nine full-text addresses by women who spoke out while the struggle was at its most intense.
International Encyclopedia of Women's Suffrage by June Hannam (Editor); Katherine Holden (Editor); Mitzi Auchterlonie (Editor)
Publication Date: 2000

This first of its kind, award winning reference book chronicles important leaders and events in women's struggle to obtain the vote worldwide.
The Encyclopedia of Civil Rights in America by David Bradley (Editor); Shelley Fisher Fishkin
Publication Date: 1998

- a comprehensive reference source on the human rights and civil liberties that are legally recognized in the US.
- presents students with lucid, enlightening essays on the fundamental documents, court decisions and laws surrounding civil rights, while examining the aspects of public and private life they serve to protect, and highlighting those individuals who are and have been influential in defining and interpreting civil rights.
The Greenwood Encyclopedia of African American Civil Rights : from emancipation to the twenty-first century
Publication Date: 2003

The African American struggle for freedom and equality is one of the truly heroic elements of American history. Yet even today, African Americans as a whole still don't fully share in the American dream. This encyclopedia explores the struggle's successes and setbacks, from emancipation to the beginning of the 21st century.