Introduction
Welcome to the History Research Guide for the Harvard Kennedy School!
This guide provides an overview of resources for historical research for HKS students and faculty who may not be engaged in in-depth archival work but would like to undertake policy research from a historically informed perspective. It does not aspire to be exhaustive, and it focuses primarily on twentieth-century and contemporary history. For a much more detailed guide, check the History Guide provided by the FAS Libraries.
For questions about research on historical topics, please do not hesitate to contact one of your HKS librarians.
Research Databases
- America: History and Life (Harvard Login)Covers historical scholarship on the United States and Canada from prehistoric times to the present.
Note: For world history, use AHL's companion database, Historical Abstracts. - Historical Abstracts (Harvard Login)Covers scholarship on world history (except the U.S. and Canada) since 1450. Also includes abstracting and indexing for major non-English, non-American history journals.
Note: For U.S. and Canadian history, use HA's companion database, America: History & Life.
Encyclopedias etc.: U.S. History
- Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History (Harvard Login)Provides detailed synopses of major research problems and themes in American history, with extensive bibliographies.
- Oxford Encyclopedias of American History (Harvard Login)Several encyclopedias on special topics in U.S. history are available from Oxford University Press, each providing in-depth entries on major events, phenomena, and people. Individual encyclopedias cover political and legal history, military and diplomatic history; business, labor, and economic history; cultural and intellectual history; and social history.
- Oxford Handbook of American Political History (Harvard Login)Recent (2020) handbook with both chronological and thematic chapters on American political developments from the colonial era to the present.
- Princeton Encyclopedia of American Political History (Harvard Login)Provides thorough overview articles of major events, themes, and people in U.S. politics from the revolutionary era to the present.
- Encyclopedia of U.S. Political History (Harvard Login)Surveys political events, movements, and leaders in American history, from the sixteenth century to the present.
- The Oxford Handbook of American Economic History (Harvard Login)Comprehensive overview of U.S. economic history, covering not only business and economics but also political, social, and technological aspects.
Volume 1 (Harvard Login) | Volume 2 (Harvard Login)
For overviews of the history of minority groups in the U.S., try
- Oxford African American Studies Center (Harvard Login)
- Encyclopedia of African American History (Harvard Login): vol. 1 (1619-1895) | vol. 2 (1896-present [2009])
- Oxford Handbook of Asian American History (Harvard Login)
- Oxford Encyclopedia of Latinos and Latinas in the United States (Harvard Login)
- Encyclopedia of Native American History (Harvard Login)
- Oxford Handbook of American Indian History (Harvard Login)
Encyclopedias etc.: World History
- Berkshire Encyclopedia of World History (Harvard Login)Provides a broad overview of a wide variety of themes in world history, notably with a holistic perspective that de-emphasizes national borders or narrow historical eras.
- Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern World (Harvard Login)Provides articles on major historical developments as well as political, social, and cultural movements and events from the mid-eighteenth century to the present.
- Cambridge Histories Online (Harvard Login)Offers comprehensive overviews, written by experts, of the history of all the world's major regions, as well as major historical events and phenomena, from ancient times to the present.
- Oxford Reference: History (Harvard Login)Provides access to numerous specialized encyclopedias, handbooks, and dictionaries on various historical topics, eras, and geographies; e.g., the Oxford Encyclopedia of Women in World History, the Oxford Companion to Military History, the Oxford Encyclopedia of Economic History, or the Oxford International Encyclopedia of Legal History.
- History Compass (Harvard Login)Provides up-to-date, peer-reviewed overviews of specific topics in historical scholarship; all eras and all geographies are covered.
- Oxford Handbooks: History (Harvard Login)Contains essays surveying major themes and debates in U.S. and world history scholarship.
Another good starting point are the concise topical overviews in the Very Short Introductions series (Harvard Login) from Oxford University Press, which contain titles on various topics in general history, legal history, the history of medicine, the history of science and technology, and politics.
Biographical Resources
- Biography and Genealogy Master Index (Harvard Login)Extensive biographical reference database covering more than 5 million historical and contemporary people from all walks of life.
- World Biographical Information System Online (Harvard Login)Provides bibliographic references for more than 6 million people from ancient times to the present, including politicians, artists, business leaders, etc., drawing on a broad array of biographical reference works.
(Note that some entries may be in languages other than English.) - American National Biography Online (Harvard Login)Provides biographical sketches of Americans—from politicians to business leaders, from artists and writers to professional athletes—who influenced American history in important ways.
For more national biographical resources, try searching HOLLIS for biography databases.