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Basic Biographical Resources
There is properly no history; only biography.
Ralph W. Emerson
Almost everyone likes to read about other people, whether in People Magazine or a scholarly biography. Reference sources can give information about a person or point you to something that will give such information; they may cover only living persons, people who are dead, or both. What sources you use depends partly on how much information you have about the person. It helps--but is not essential--if you know whether the person is still living or when they lived, their nationality or gender, what they are famous or notable for, or their profession. Check with the Reference Desk staff for further help.
Starting Points: When you don't have much more than a name
Biography and Genealogy Master Index [BGMI]
(Ref. Z5305 U5 B56 1980) - covers over six million entries from books and indexes. Arranged by last name as found in the original source (so one person may be listed in several different ways).Biography Index
(Ref. Z5301 B5) - indexes books, chapters, and articles from magazines and journals; published since 1946. Separate index by profession/occupation.Encyclopedias:
New Encyclopedia Britannica (Ref. AE5 E363 2002), Encyclopedia Americana (Ref. AE5 E333 1993), Academic American Encyclopedia (Ref. AE5 A23 1994), Collier's Encyclopedia (Ref. AE5 C683 1992), World Book Encyclopedia (Ref. AE5 W55 2001). Check the index for the person's name; they may not have an entry all to themselves!Online Catalogs:
The MU Libraries' catalog is available online. Use a "Basic Search" with 'Subject Heading' as the search type for the person's last name to see if we have a full length biography. Try a "Keyword Search" with their occupation and Biography or Directories in 'All Fields'; for example: drama AND biography, businessmen AND biography, scientists AND american AND directories. Although you will need to use interlibrary loan to get the books, you can search almost all libraries in Ohio using OhioLINK (http://www.ohiolink.edu/), or use one of the other catalogs listed at http://www.marshall.edu/library/e-ref/othercatalogs.asp.World Wide Web Sources:
You can use your favorite search engine to look for biographical information, but you may have to dig through lots of irrelevant web pages. (Put the name between quotation marks to help narrow the results.) Good sites include:- Biographical Dictionary (http://www.s9.com/biography/) - over 28,000 "notable men and women who have shaped our world"; very brief entries, searchable by name, birth/death years, etc.
- Distinguished Women of Past and Present (http://www.distinguishedwomen.com/) - outstanding set of links, searchable by field of activity and name.
- Lives, the Biography Resource (http://amillionlives.com/) - excellent portal for biographies and biographical sites, primarily of those who have died.
- People Finder (http://www.biography.com/search/index.jsp) - over 25,000 entries of varying length, on a site developed by the Biography Channel/A&E network.
- Biographies Plus Illstrated (http://ezproxy.marshall.edu:2048/login?url=http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com/hww/jumpstart.jhtml?prod=WBDPIL) - the full text of more then 46,000 biographies and obituaries from over 100 reference volumes published by H. W. Wilson Co., including Current Biography. [Password needed for off-campus use.]
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Broad Coverage Sources: Covering many nationalities, occupations, and time periods
Chambers's Biographical Dictionary
(Ref. CT103 .C4 1969) - over 15,000 alphabetical entries, varying in length; subject index.Current Biography
(Ref. CT100 .C8) - published since 1940, this has several-page biographies of people currently prominent in the news, with citations to other sources; short obituaries given for those previously listed. Index of professions. [Text included in Wilson Biographies]McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Biography
(Ref. CT103 .M27) and 20th Century Supplement (Ref. CT103 .M27 Suppl.) - an older set (1973, supplement 1987), with short articles on over 5,000 people "whose achievements are important to our understanding of social and cultural history". Full index and study guides.New York Times Biographical Service
(Ref. CT 120 .N45) - reprints articles since 1978 in the "New York Times" newspaper. Arranged by date of publication; monthly, semiannual (June), and annual (December) indexes.Personal Name Index to "The New York Times Index," 1851-1974
(Media Ref Z5301 .F28 1976) and Supplement 1975-1999 (Media Ref Z5301 .F8 1976 Suppl. 1975/99) - shows where in the newspaper a person's name appears, covering both articles and obituaries.Webster's Biographical Dictionary
(Ref. CT 103 .W4 1972) - Alphabetical list of about 40,000 persons; entries include pronunciation, birth and death dates and places, and main achievements. Drinko has 1969 and 1972 editions.
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North Americans
American National Biography
(Ref. CT213 .A68 1999) - essays on about 17,500 people who died before 1996 and whose achievement, fame, or influence occurred while residing in what is now the United States, or who directly affected the course of American history. Indexes by state/ nation of birth, occupations, and area of renown.Dictionary of American Biography
(Ref. E176 .D563) - scholarly essays on over 18,000 people who died before 1965. Cumulative index through supplement 7.Dictionary of American Negro Biography
(Ref. E185.96 .D53 1982) - essays on several hundred historically significant African-Americans who died before 1970. Index by occupation/function.National Cyclopedia of American Biography
(Ref. E176 .N28) - essays on nearly 70,000 Americans. Entries are grouped by occupation, industrial developments, important events, or prominent movements rather than alphabetically. Use the Index volume (Ref. E176 .N2816 1984), which includes subject terms and place and corporate names in addition to personal names.Notable American Women
(Ref. CT3260 .N57) - essays on approximately 1,800 historically noteworthy American women who died before 1975; published in two parts (1607-1950 and 1951-1975), each is arranged alphabetically, with indexes by occupation.Notable Black American Women
(Ref. E185.96 .N68 1992) - biographies of 500 representative women, with references. Subject and "area of endeavor" indexes.Who Was Who in America
(Ref. E176 .W64) - historical volume includes notable people who contributed to, or were in some way connected to, the United States; other volumes list people who were in Who's Who before their death. Index volume covers 1607-1989.Who's Who in America
(Ref E663 .W56) - lists living Americans, Canadians, and Mexicans selected for their significant achievement or position of responsibility. Brief entries; recent volumes have geographic location and profession indexes. Indexed by BGMI. Drinko has 1899/1900, 1912/13, and most years since 1920.
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British
Dictionary of National Biography
(Ref. DA28 .D47) - covers distinguished persons from Great Britain, and others who contributed to British history, who died before 1961. Base set and ten-year supplements, arranged alphabetically, with cumulative name index in each supplement.Who Was Who
(Ref. DA28 .W65) - brief entries for persons listed in Who's Who who died between 1897 and 1990. Indexed by BGMI.Who's Who
(Ref. DA28 .W6) - brief entries for living persons of distinction or influence in, or re-lated to, Great Britain and the Commonwealth. Published since 1897, Drinko has scattered vol-umes to 1942, and most volumes between 1943 and 1990. Indexed by BGMI.
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International
Who's Who in the World
(Ref. CT120 .W5) - international equivalent of Who's Who in America. Indexed by BGMI. Drinko has most volumes from 1974/75 to 1998.
NOTE: Check with the Reference staff for help in using any of the sources listed above. The Drinko Reference Collection has hundreds of other sources for biographical information; ask us for assistance (telephone 304-696-2334), see the specialized biographical pathfinders, and check the Research Guides.
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Prepared by Timothy A. Balch, Reference Services Librarian.
Suggestions for improvement welcomed.
Last updated 1/29/04