Finding Books (Catalogs)
- Family History Books (FamilySearch)A collection of more than 200,000 digitized genealogy and family history publications from the archives of some of the most important family history libraries in the world. The collection includes family histories, county and local histories, genealogy magazines and how-to books, gazetteers, and medieval histories and pedigrees. Search for the title of a book, for surnames, or for topics, such as, "delaware genealogy."
- FamilySearch Catalog (Family History Library catalog)Catalog of genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and digitized publications) made available by FamilySearch. Many items can be loaned to local Family History Centers around the world.
The Place Name search is especially helpful. Search for a city or town to find the categories of records available. Also search places of jurisdiction where records would be created, example: county seats.
Note: some items listed in the catalog are available at the UD Library and elsewhere. Specialized indexing in the Family History Library catalog may make items easier to find. - Delaware Library CatalogA combined catalog of public libraries and other libraries in Delaware, including the print materials in the Delaware Public Archives (DPA).
- DELCAT DiscoveryDELCAT Discovery is the catalog of the University of Delaware Library, including Special Collections. It also searches thousands of library catalogs around the world. The search box is on the Library home page. Also offers Advanced Searching.
Additionally, it searches for journal articles in a few databases.
Finding Books on Social Life and Customs
Search by Keyword
- costume and victorian
Note: In library catalogs, the subject term for historical clothing is “costume”
Search by Subject Keywords (prefix su:)
- United States Social conditions
Search by Series Title
- american decades
- daily life
- day by day
- everyday life
- writer’s guide to everyday
- everyday life in america
Subject keyword retrieves only records that have those words in the subject description.
Use the prefix or go to the Advanced Search screen.
Finding World and National Histories
Family historians will find the most benefit in using brief histories, encyclopedias, and dictionaries.
Useful search phrases
- United States History Dictionaries
- Russia Encyclopedias
- world history encyclopedias
- military history encyclopedias
Finding Local and Family Histories
Find local histories by looking for the city or town name and by searching for the county name and by searching for the state name. Library catalogs list these publications in various ways.
Family histories, descendent lists, and genealogies are among the hardest works to locate. Many of these publications were privately printed and/or few copies were published.
Some of the works have only the name of the family or an individual as the subject term. But many can be located by searching for subject keyword Delaware Genealogy, e.g., su: delaware genealogy
Search by Keyword
- delaware history
- Delaware history local
- Delaware genealogy
- Genealogy delaware
- Swedes Delaware
Search by Subject Keywords (prefix su:)
- [name of the city or town] [name of state] history
- New Castle delaware Buildings structures etc
- Wilmington delaware pictorial works
- delmarva peninsula history
- Sussex County delaware genealogy
- new sweden history
Subject keyword retrieves only records that have those words in the subject description.
Use the prefix su: or go to the Advanced Search screen.
What Did Things Cost?
- What is a dollar worth? (online)Inflation calculator from the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.
Social and Historical Context
Social and historical information relating to the the time and place your ancestors lived adds insight into how people lived and what forces effected their lives. This kind of information may help you find new avenues of research, adds depth to your family research, and will help you when you write your family history.
Knowing the social life and customs of a region or time period:
Understanding the daily lives of the people
Knowing the history of a time period, country, or group of people:
Finding clues to next step for research
Understanding why people relocated
Social life and customs
World and national history
Local history
Family history
Social Life and Customs by Time Periods
This Fabulous Century: Sixty Years of American Life by One volume for every decade 1900-1970 and a prelude volume covering the three decades prior to the 20th century. Good resource for popular culture. Includes illustrations.
Encyclopedia of the United States in the Nineteenth Century by An online reference source.
This Fabulous Century: Sixty Years of American Life
World and National History
Dictionary of American History by 10 volume set. Volume 9 is Archival maps and primary sources.- Companion to the American Revolution byEbook. Part of Credo Reference.
- gendisasters.comgendisasters.com is a genealogy site, compiling information on the historic disasters, events, and tragic accidents our ancestors may have faced.
Your Guide to Cemetery Research by Provides information on cemetery research, covering such topics as locating graves and cemeteries, accessing death records, searching a cemetery, and American burial customs. Includes appendices: “Historical Time Line of Deadly Diseases, Epidemics, and Disasters in America 1516-1981” and "Historical Medical Glossary for Causess of Death."
Local History Reference Resources
County histories are valuable for history of the county, including changes in county boundaries. Many includes include lists and/or biographical sketches of early settlers or prominent residents.
Finding Published Family Histories
- Higginson Book CompanyThis is an example of a publisher that reprints genealogies, local histories, and related items and offers a publishing service for family histories and genealogies.
What Was Happening at the Same Time? (Chronologies)
Chronicle of the WorldWritten in the style of contemporary news reports, Chronicle of the World gives accounts of important events in many parts of the world, from prehistoric times to the 20th century.
To gain perspective on other events occurring in the same time period as your research, consult a chronology, timeline, or "book of days." Here are examples of these types of resources.
Genealogy Resources at the University of Delaware Library
Although not aimed at genealogy and family history, the collections of the University of Delaware Library (Morris Library) include materials useful to genealogists and family historians.
This Genealogy Research Guide is provided as a service for genealogists. It presents topics and resources to assist researchers.
The UD Library does not specialize in genealogy and does not have staff responsible for genealogy. Library staff cannot conduct research.
For questions about library resources and holdings, use the Ask the Library service.
For questions about getting research assistance, see the suggestions on the home page of this guide or on the topic/resources pages.
Clothing and Dress
Finding books on Clothing
In library catalogs,
Search by Keyword
- costume and victorian
Note: In library catalogs, the subject term for historical clothing is “costume”