Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies:
A Research Guide

The Human Sexuality Collection and Olin Reference

Research Strategy Encyclopedias, Dictionaries, Almanacs Periodical Indexes Cornell's Library Catalog Other Catalogs and Bibliographies Web Portal/Aggregator Sites Atlases Biographical Sources Statistical Sources Directories Primary Sources

RESEARCH STRATEGY

Research help is available online. See Research Strategy and Process in the Library Gateway. For further help with primary source research, see the Sexuality Research Guide.

This Webliography includes only entries for resources dedicated to the topic or those with substantial sections on feminism, gender, or sexuality studies. Many broader resources are available and valuable. Some resources could have been (and sometimes are) included in more than one category, so look beyond categories. See your favorite reference librarian for research assistance and advice.

ENCYCLOPEDIAS, DICTIONARIES, AND ALMANACS

Andermahr, Sonya. Concise Glossary of Feminist Theories. New York: Arnold, 1977.

(Olin Reference HQ 1115 .A543 1997)

"The main aim of the glossary is to identify the concepts that have structured feminist theory in the period of the second wave, from about 1968, indicating their provenance in travelling theory from this time.... The glossary aims to trace the variety of ways in which these concepts have been transformed as they were critiqued and appropriated." [Introduction] Liberally cross-referenced. Extensive bibliography of works cited.

Dictionary of Feminist Theologies. Ed. Letty M. Russell and J. Shannon Clarkson. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996.

(Olin Reference BT 83.55 .D53x 1996)

"The Dictionary covers standard topics of Christian theological studies, as well as topics of other religions that are important for the continuing feminist dialogue among many different religious, cultural, and racial groups [e.g., see Islam]. There are also entries on topics of particular interest to those engaged in feminist studies. There are no entries on persons...." [Preface] The Bibliography of Works Cited is comprehensive for English-language publications on feminist theologies in the U.S. context.

Encyclopedia of Feminist Literary Theories. Ed. Elizabeth Kowaleski-Wallace. New York: Garland, 1997.

(Olin Reference PN 98 .W64 E53x 1997)

"The mission of this encyclopedia is to map out the vast intellectual territory that has arisen mostly since the 1970s, due to the efforts of feminist literary scholars and critics in the United States and Great Britain." [Preface] Definitions of important terms, summaries of critical ideas, and essays on theoretical movements and ideas in feminist literary scholarship and thought.

Encyclopedia of Feminist Theories. Ed. Lorraine Code. New York: Routledge, 2000.

(Olin Reference HQ 1190 .E63x 2000)

Succinct entries on major individuals, theories, developments, and terms in feminist history and thought. Bibliographies.

Encyclopedia of Homosexuality. 2 volumes. New York: Garland, 1990.

(Olin Reference and Uris Reference HQ 76.25 .E56)

Information about all aspects of male and female homosexuality, both current and historic. Signed articles end in bibliographies. Includes many biographical entries and an index.

Encyclopedia of Women and Gender: Sex Similarities and Differences and the Impact of Society on Gender. Ed. Judith Worell. 2 volumes. San Diego: Academic Press, 2001.

(Uris Reference HQ 1115 .E539x 2001)

A timely and thorough review of gender issues and research. Articles are written by prominent scholars and arranged by topic (e.g., Affirmative Action, Power, Social Identity). Includes bibliographies.

Encyclopedia of Women and Islamic Cultures. Ed. Suad Joseph. 3 volumes to date; in progress. Leiden: Brill, 2003- .

(Olin Reference HQ 1170 .E53 2003 + )

Volume 1 (2003): Methodologies, paradigms and sources; volume 2 (2005): Family, law and politics; volume 3 (2006): Family, body, sexuality and health. A long-term, interdisciplinary project to bring together " upwards of 1,000 scholars to write critical essays on women, Muslim and non-Muslim, and Islamic cultures in every region where there have been significant Muslim populations." [Introduction]

Gay Histories and Cultures: An Encyclopedia. Ed. George E. Haggerty. New York: Garland, 2000.

(Olin Reference HQ 75.13 .G37 2000)

Volume 2 of The Encyclopedia of Lesbian and Gay Histories and Cultures. Like the companion volume, an exceptionally useful and thorough review of the topic. Biographical entries included.

glbtq: An Encyclopedia of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Culture. Ed. Claude J. Summers. Chicago: glbtq, Inc., 2003.

[http://www.glbtq.com/; viewed 13 March 2003]

Full Text

An extensive collection of signed articles on the arts and literature. Biographical and topical entries. Articles include bibliographies.

Greenspan, Kate. The Timetables of Women's History: A Chronology of the Most Important People and Events in Women's History. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1994.

(Olin Reference HQ 1121 .G74x 1994)

Presents "the achievements of women in cultures all over the world, from ancient times to present." Information and events are listed in the familiar columnar format in chronological order in the following categories: General/Context, Daily Life/Customs/Practices, Humanities/Fine Arts, Occupations, Performing Arts/Entertainment/Sports, Religion/Philosophy, Science/Technology/Discovery, and Statecraft/Military.

The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Women's Issues Worldwide. Lynn Walter, editor-in-chief. 6 volumes. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2003.

(Olin Ref HQ 1726 .G74x 2003 +)

"[A]uthoritative, comprehensive, and current data on ... women's issues in more than 130 countries...." [Foreword] Essays cover education, employment and the economy, family and sexuality, health, politics and law, religion and spirituality, and violence. Volumes cover Asia & Oceania, Central and South America, Europe, North America & the Caribbean, the Middle East & Noth Africa, and Sub-Saharan Africa. Useful resource guides for each country list books, journal articles, and Web sites.

Handbook of American Women's History. Ed. Anglea Howard Zophy. 2nd ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2000.

(Uris Reference HQ 1410 .H36x 2000)

"New edition of a reference that presents articles on events, ideas, and key people (from historical icons to modern-day achievers) that have shaped the history of women in the U.S. Drawing on the research and expertise of about 300 contributors, about 1,000 alphabetically-arranged entries cover the wide spectrum of fields in which women have made a critical difference, i.e. civil rights, arts, athletics, education, science, industry, and others." [Reference & Research Book News]

Humm, Maggie. Dictionary of Feminist Theory. Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 1995.

(Olin Reference HQ 1115 .H86 1995)

A valuable resource yet somewhat limited in scope to academic. Focuses on the written word rather than grassroots movements or the arts. Also includes a bibliography which will be very useful for researchers.

The International Encyclopedia of Sexuality. Ed. Robert T. Francoeur. 4 volumes. New York: Continuum, 1997-2002.

(Olin Reference HQ 21 .I68x 1997)

An extensive source of information on comparative issues in sexuality. The country-by-country entries cover standard topics including "Homoerotic, Homosexual, and Ambisexual Behaviors" and "Cross-Gendered Persons" (sometimes entitled "Gender Conflicted Persons").

Jewish Women in America: An Historical Encyclopedia. Ed. Paula E. Hyman and Deborah Dash Moore. 2 volumes. New York: Routledge, 1997.

(Uris Reference DS 115.2 .J49x 1997; ILR Kheel Center DS 115.2 .J59 1997)

"Studies of Jewish women in America gain a necessary reference with the publication of these two volumes ... mainly composed of biographical entries of figures both living and dead (800 in all) and 110 topical entries.... The kinds of women found in the encyclopedia are mainly drawn from national politics, popular letters, music, and film.... In penetrating [topical] entries such as "Advertising and Consumer Culture" (by Andrew R. Heinze), "Leisure and Recreation" (by Jenna Weissman Joselit), and "Peace Movement" (by Sherry Gorelick), users gain an accessible set of interpretations to place the biographical entries in historical and sociological contexts." [ARBA 1999--Simon J. Bronner]

Lesbian Histories and Cultures: An Encyclopedia. Ed. Bonnie Zimmerman. New York: Garland, 2000.

(Olin Reference HQ 75.13 .L37 2000)

Volume 1 of The Encyclopedia of Lesbian and Gay Histories and Cultures. Like the companion volume, an exceptionally useful and thorough review of the topic. Biographical entries included.

lgbt: Encyclopedia of Lesbian, Gay, and Transgender History in America. Ed. Marc Stein. 3 volumes. New York: Scribner, 2004.

(Olin Reference HQ 76.3 .U5 E53x 2004) [Table of contents]

An up-to-date encyclopedia of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender history. "[T]he entries... offer a bracing, engaging, provocative tour of U.S. history and culture from multiple, overlapping, sometimes conflicting, but always informative perspectives." [Historical Introduction].

Men and Masculinities: A Social, Cultural, and Historical Encyclopedia. Edited by Michael Kimmel and Amy Aronson. 2 volumes. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2004.

(Olin Reference HQ 1090.3 .M436x 2004 +)

An encyclopedia on the study of masculinity from the gender studies perspective. Indiviudal entries on the longer side with citations to titles for further reading with each entry.

Olsen, Kirsten. Chronology of Women's History. Westport: Greenwood, 1994.

(Olin Reference HQ 1121 .O49x 1994 +)

Landmarks in women's history from 20,000 B.C. to 1993. Most chapters are divided into ten categories: General Status and Daily Life; Government, the Military, and the Law; Literature and the Visual Arts; Performing Arts and Entertainment; Athletics and Exploration; Activism; Business and Industry; Science and Medicine; Education and Scholarship; and Religion.

Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women. Ed. Cheris Kramarae and Dale Spender. 4 volumes. New York: Routledge, 2000.

(Olin Reference HQ 1115 .R69x 2000)

Topic entries, no entries on individual women. "We also agreed not to have overall entries on specific counties, but rather to cover certain topic areas region by region." [Introduction] Great range of topics. Thorough and substantial bibliographies.

The St. James Press Gay & Lesbian Almanac. Ed. Neil Schlager. Detroit: St. James, 1998.

(Olin Reference HQ 76.5 .U5 S75x 1998)

"[P]rovides a broad, multifaceted overview of lesbian and gay history, culture, and communities in the United States." [Foreword] Extensive bibliography.

Women's Studies Encyclopedia. Ed. Helen Tierney. Revised edition. 3 volumes. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1999.

(Olin Reference HQ 1115 .W875 1999)

"The entries ... are meant to convey information to an educated audience without expertise in the subject under discussion.... The focus, as in the first edition, is on the American experience." [Introduction] Signed articles with brief bibliographies.

Youth, Education, and Sexualities: An Encyclopedia. Ed. James T. Sears. 2 volumes. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 2005.

(Olin Reference LC 192.6 .Y68 2005)

This encyclopedia "queers the singular understanding of sexuality as heterosexual by detailing lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBTQ) sexualities as it relates to youth and education." [Preface] The 242 topical, signed entries are of medium length and include bibliographies of web sites, court cases, books, and articles for further research and information. Volume 2 includes a general bibliography of print and electronic resources and a detailed index.

PERIODICAL INDEXES

Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender Index. [was Medieval Feminist Index]

Indexes

An index to journal articles, book reviews, and essays in books about women, sexuality, and gender during the Middle Ages. Books written by a single author are not indexed. The time period covered is 450 C.E. to 1500 C.E. and the geographic area is Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East. Subject coverage for gender and sexuality means that articles on masculinity and male homosexuality are included.

Gender Studies in Agriculture.

Indexes

This database contains the bibliographic description of articles from 240 agricultural and social science journals and chapters from books present at the libraries at Wageningen Agricultural University. In some cases an abstract has been added. The articles are on the position of women in rural and agricultural societies. Most concern the Netherlands, Western European countries or developing countries.

GenderWatch.

Full Text/Indexes

1970-

GenderWatch is a full text database of publications that focus on the impact of gender across a broad spectrum of subject areas. The database provides in-depth coverage of the subjects that are uniquely central to women's lives, including family, childbrith, birth control, daycare, domestic abuse, work and the workplace, sexual harassment, aging, aging parents, body image, eating disorders and social and societal roles.

Ridinger, Robert B. Marks. An Index to The Advocate, The National Gay Newsmagazine, 1967-1982. Los Angeles: Liberation Publications, 1987.

(Kroch Library Rare & Manuscripts, Human Sexuality HQ 76.8 .U5 A24 Index+; Rare Reference + HQ 76.8 .U5 A24 Index; Olin Reference Film 5416 index [shelved in microform guides section])

The Advocate is available in the Human Sexuality collection and on microfilm in the Olin Library microform stacks, Lower Level.

International Women's Periodicals.

Full Text/Indexes

Covers a variety of topics on the history of women. Historical women's periodicals provide an important resource to scholars interested in the lives of women, the role of women in society and, in particular, the development of the public lives of women as the push for women's rights--woman suffrage, fair pay, better working conditions, for example--grew in the United States and England. This Web site provides access to the full text of some of the most significant and least-widely held women's periodicals produced from the middle of the nineteenth century through the 1920s.

Potter, Clare. The Lesbian Periodicals Index. Compiled and edited by Clare Potter. Tallahassee: Naiad Press, 1986.

Indexes/(Olin Reference and Rare Reference HQ 75.6 .U5 P86)

Clare Potter previously worked at Cornell University and dedicated her Lesbian Periodicals Index to the "Ithaca women's community, 1973-1975 -- when sisterhood was in flower."

Locating articles in feminist, lesbian, and gay periodicals from the 1960s-80s is notoriously difficult due to the lack of indexing created for most of these titles.  Clare Potter's index helps tremendously with lesbian topics by providing author and subject access to articles in 42 specifically lesbian periodicals.  The coverage is primarily 1968-1982, but it also includes references to the earliest U.S. lesbian periodical, Vice Versa, 1947-1948.  Still, the titles that received Potter's careful indexing "constitute only a small part of the periodical literature that is available."

Other reference sources that help provide access to the feminist, lesbian, and gay press include Alternative Press Index (printed index, 1969- , Olin Library AI 3 .A25 +, last 10 volumes in Reference; online, 1991- , AltPressIndex) and Alternative Press Watch (online: Alt-Press Watch).  These focus on journals covering cultural, economic, political, and social change, and they cover key feminist, gender, and sexuality titles including off our backs, Sinister Wisdom, Lesbian Contradiction, and The Advocate, but neglect others including Gay Community News, The Body Politic, Lesbian Connection, and the Gay Activist.

Small, regional, and political periodicals contain valuable content for people researching the history of feminism, gender and sexuality concepts, and the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender movements.  While the lack of indexing makes finding relevant articles more difficult, at least Cornell's Human Sexuality Collection holds many of these important titles, so research with them is possible.

For more recent years, (mid 1990s on?), online indexing has greatly expanded access and coverage of such periodical articles.

Women's Resources International.

Indexes

1972-

An interdisciplinary database combined from Women Studies Abstracts (1984-present), Women's Studies Database (1972-present), New Books on Women and Feminism (1987-present), Women of Color and Southern Women (1975-present), The History of Women and Science, Health, and Technology: A Bibliographic Guide to the Professions and Disciplines (1970-1995), Women's Health and Development: An Annotated Bibliography (1995), Women, Race, and Ethnicity: A Bibliography (1970- 1990), WAVE: Women's Audiovisuals in English: A Guide to Nonprint Resources in Women's Studies (1985-1990). NISC will add new databases as they become available.

CORNELL'S LIBRARY CATALOG

The Cornell University Library Catalog includes the holdings of all the libraries on the Ithaca campus and the Geneva Experiment Station. The catalog contains records for all books, newspapers, journals, magazines, serials, government documents, manuscripts, archival materials, maps, musical scores, computer files, sound recordings, and visual materials.

Connect to the Cornell University Library Catalog

While the study of gender and sexuality is constantly evolving, the standardized Library of Congress system of subject headings often lags behind what might be the most current or obvious subject term.

You need to be flexible in how you go about searching for relevant secondary sources on sexuality. Keep in mind a wide range of possible search terms in the course of your search. Examine carefully what specific subject headings come up in both older and newer books on your topic.

Keyword searches allow you to search for terms in contemporary usage. If a particular term appears in the title or other parts of the library record, the keyword search will find the item. However, keyword searches will also miss many books on the same subject--all those that don't happen to have your keyword in their title or other fields.

A good strategy for a comprehensive search is to use keyword searching to find some books on your particular subject; then look at their records to see what standard subject headings were applied to the item; and follow up with a subject search on those terms. The advantage of subject searching is a more comprehensive search result due to the fact that librarians work hard to determine the main topics and then to assign the correct standardized terms to each item they catalog.

John DeSantis has provided a list of some of the Library of Congress subject headings for looking up books related to gay and lesbian studies.

OTHER CATALOGS AND BIBLIOGRAPHIES

August, Eugene R. The New Men's Studies: A Selected and Annotated Interdisciplinary Bibliography. 2nd ed. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 1994.

(Olin Stacks and Uris Stacks Z 7164 .M49 A84x 1994)

More than a thousand entries that cover such subjects as men's awareness, health, and rights; heterosexuality; homosexuality; minority males; patriarchy; fathers; socialization of males; sports; the arts; humor; war and peace; and victims and victimizers. An extensive list of books from the controversial mythopoetic wing of men's studies covers such works as Robert Bly's Iron John. Each entry is fully annotated and describes the book's content and (where appropriate) its political stance.

Core Lists in Women's Studies. Ed. Megan Adams and Bernice Redfern. Madison, WI: Association of College and Research Libraries. Women's Studies Section.

Catalogs

These core lists of books are intended to assist women's studies librarians and collection development librarians in building women's studies collections. Because the lists include only books currently in print, they also serve as a guide to teaching faculty in selecting available course readings. The focus of the lists is on women in the United States. Each list consists of 20 to 75 titles, and the most important five to ten titles are starred. The lists are updated each January. Titles no longer in print are dropped, and newly published titles added.

The Gay and Lesbian Literary Heritage: A Reader's Companion to the Writers and their Works, from Antiquity to the Present. Ed. Claude J. Summers. Revised ed. New York: Routledge, 2002.

(Uris Stacks PN 56 .H57 G365x 2002)

Goodfriend, Joyce D. The Published Diaries and Letters of American Women: An Annotated Bibliography. Boston: G. K. Hall, 1987. (G. K. Hall women's studies publications).

(Olin Ref Z 7963 .B6 G65 )

Arranged in chronological order by the initial date of composition. Limited to diaries and letters of American women writing in the United States. There at nine titles in CUL in this series (G. K. Hall women's studies publications), seven are women's studies bibliographies published in the 1980s. Searching the series name as a title in the Cornell Library Catalog will pull up the list of the remaining titles.

Huls, Mary Ellen. United States Government Documents on Women, 1800-1990: A Comprehensive Bibliography. 2 volumes. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1993.

(Olin Ref Z 7964 .U49 H85x 1993, also ILR Reference)

Volume one covers social issues; volume two covers labor.

Reader's Guide to Women's Studies. Ed. Eleanor B. Amico. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn, 1998.

(Olin Reference HQ 1180 .R42x 1998)

"An attempt to guide the reader through the mass of published work on wmen and gender to date.... The purpose ... is to provide the reader with discussions of some of the best books on over 500 topics and individuals in women's studies.... Only books available in English are listed." [from Editor's Note].

Ridinger, Robert B. Marks. The Gay and Lesbian Movement: Reference and Resources. New York: G. K. Hall, 1996.

(Olin Stacks HQ 76.5 .R53x 1996)

An annotated bibliography of over 1900 publications on the gay and lesbian social mvoement from 1969 to 1993.

Skipper, Nancy. Selected Reference Sources in Women's Studies. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Library, 1999.

Webliography

The Feminism, Gender, and Sexuality Studies bibliography is based on this earlier Web-based bibliography--Selected Reference Sources in Women's Studies. See this site for additional sources not included in the FGSS Webliography, including older bibliographies, bibliographies of bibliographies, and guides to the literature and for periodical indexes of wider scope.

Smith, Hilda L. Women and the Literature of the Seventeenth Century: An Annotated Bibliography based on Wing's Short-title Catalogue. New York: Greenwood, 1990.

(Olin Reference Z 2002 .S66)

The compilers identified and annotated 637 works by women and an additional 973 titles for and about women from Wing's classic Short-title Catalogue covering 1641-1700. The full text of the works cited in this bibliography are available in Early English Books Online.

WEB PORTAL/AGGREGATOR SITES

Guides to Web Resources

American Women's History: A Research Guide.

Created by Ken Middleton, reference/microforms librarian at Middle Tennessee State University, this site is an excellent resource for researchers, especially graduate students or advanced undergraduates, interested in US women's history. At the site, users will find a large number of citations of print and online reference materials and primary resources. These are grouped into three sections: General Reference and Biographical Sources, Subject Index to Research Sources (currently containing resources in 27 topical areas), and State and Regional History Sources. Middleton supplies full bibliographical information for print sources and a link for those available in electronic form. The site also offers two sections on tools and strategies for finding additional sources and a collection of (unannotated) select bookmarks.

This site has been selected as one of the Best Free Reference Web Sites (2004)

CLAGS: The Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies.

A database of resources for LGTBQ scholars: a calendar of events, calls for papers and submissions, and announcements of fellowship and scholarship opportunities. "CLAGS is committed to fostering and disseminating LGTBQ research and scholarship both in the United States and abroad." Includes an online directory of LGTBQ Studies-a searchable collection of scholars within universities, non-governmental organizations, and other places; their locations; what tracks of study are available nationwide for students and intellectuals wishing to pursue the field of LGTBQ Studies; and more.

Diotima: Materials for the Study of Women & Gender in the Ancient World.

Full Text/Indexes

Diotima serves as an interdisciplinary resource for anyone interested in patterns of gender around the ancient Mediterranean and as a forum for collaboration among instructors who teach courses about women and gender in the ancient world. This site includes course materials, the beginnings of a systematic and searchable bibliography, and links to many on-line resources, including articles, book reviews, databases, and images. Subject coverage within the gender-defined parameters includes Greek and Latin linguistics and literature, and Greek and Roman history, archaeology, mythology and religion.

Jewish Women's Archive.

Full Text

An extensive Web site with access to biographical and archival information, teaching resources, and online tools for and about Jewish women and their history. The Virtual Archive offers information on hundreds of women, women's organizations, and manuscript collections, along with a rich array of primary source material.

The Library Worker's Guide to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Resources.

"Library Q: The Library Worker's Guide to Resources for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Users is specifically developed as an aid to librarians working in the area of LBGT librarianship.... Emulating the organization of a traditional bricks and mortar library, this virtual library contains resources oriented to both public and technical services, including directories, bibliographies, checklists, and other resources compiled by Library Q staff as well as annotated links to a myriad of other resources developed by other library workers, bibliophiles, and knowledgeable people." [Welcome page]

Society of Women Engineers.

The web site of the Society whose mission is to encourage women to achieve full potential in careers as engineers and leaders. Includes information about its organization and publications, links to career services, scholarships, conferences, and student services.

Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering.

Provides access to online information resources for women and minorities in science and engineering. Some listings are annotated. Items covered include organizations, information sites, documents, profiles of female scientists, collections of women's and minority Internet resources, feminist science fiction, minority inventors, and resources for women of color.

Women's Studies Database.

Full Text

The University of Maryland women's studies database, begun September 1992, serves those people interested in the women's studies,profession and in general women's issues.

Women's Studies/Women's Issues Resource Sites.

Full Text

Women's Studies/Women's Issues Resource Sites is a selective, alphabetical listing of web sites containing resources and information about women's studies/women's issues with an emphasis on sites of particular use to an academic women's studies program.

WSSlinks: Women and Gender Studies Web Sites.

Full Text

The purpose of WSSLinks is to provide access to a wide range of resources that support Women's Studies.

ATLASES

Gates, Gary J. The Gay and Lesbian Atlas. Washington: Urban Institute Press, 2004.

(Olin Reference HQ 76.3.U5 G355 2004 + )

Based on the 2000 U.S. census, this atlas maps the data, showing where gay men and lesbian women live by county and by census tract, state by state. It also graphs comparative data by race, ethnicity, age, and presence of children in the household. Major cities have their own, larger scale maps. A timely and effective presentation of important information.

Routledge Historical Atlas of Women in America. Ed. Sandra Opdycke. New York: Routledge, 2000.

(Uris Reference HQ 1410 .P68x 2000)

"Proceeds chronologically, beginning with Native American women prior to European contact and ending with women's health and welfare in the 1990s." [Foreword] Innovative use of maps, floor plans, and graphs to represent changes in women's worlds.

Seager, Joni. The State of Women in the World Atlas. London: Penguin, 1997.

(Olin Library Maps HQ 1154 .S43 1997)

Dozens of maps contain comparative data in the family, medicine, literacy, military service, earnings, and much more about the world's women.

Shortridge, Barbara Gimla. Atlas of American Women. New York: Macmillan, 1987.

(Olin Reference HQ 1410 .S55 + ; also ILR Reference)

Based primarily on the 1980 census and many other resources, this atlas provides maps, statistical charts and text on a wide variety of topics, including demographics, labor force, income, crime, health and politics. A bibliography and subject index are provided at the end of the atlas.

BIOGRAPHICAL SOURCES

American Men and Women of Science. New York: Cattell, 1906- .

(Olin Reference Q 141 .C361+; also Mann Reference)

Originally titled American Men of Science, renamed in 1971. Covers U.S. and Canadian women and men in the physical and biological sciences. Divided into 2 parts. Part I covers the physical and biological sciences and Part II, the social and behavioral sciences. Each entry gives full name, date and place of birth, education and degrees, affiliations, areas of specialization, some publications and a current address.

American National Biography. 24 volumes. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999- .

Full Text (Online version continuously updated. Print version: Olin Reference CT 213 .A68x 1999)

Offers portraits of more than 2,600 women (from over 17,000 entries), from all eras and walks of life whose lives have shaped the nation. Online version features thousands of illustrations, hyperlinked cross-references, and links to select web sites. The Women's History Special Collection in the online version (a selected searchable subset of all entries) features 507 biographies.

Banks, Olive. The Biographical Dictionary of British Feminists. 2 volumes. New York: NYU Press, 1985-1990.

(Olin Reference HQ 1123 .B21)

Volume one covers 1800-1930. Volume two covers 1900-1945. Conceived of as a reference work for those interested in the British feminist movement, Banks' dictionary also redresses serious omissions in major reference sources, such as the Dictionary of National Biography. The concise entries on each feminist include a selective bibliography at the end. An index of twenty-two "topics" at the end of volume one identifies women who worked in specific areas such as suffrage, education, trade unions, female sexuality, birth control, or health. Name and subject indexes.

Blain, Virginia, Patricia Clements, and Isobel Grundy. The Feminist Companion to Literature in English: Women Writers from the Middle Ages to the Present. New Haven: Yale UP, 1990.

(Olin Reference PR 111 F32; also Uris Reference)

Alphabetical arrangement of biographical and topical entries relating to women writing in English, from the beginning to 1985. Contains a chronological index of names.

Gay & Lesbian Biography. Ed. Michael J. Tyrkus. Detroit: St. James, 1997.

(Olin Reference HQ 75.2 .G39x 1997)

Biographical entries on 275 gays and lesbians worldwide and from all times periods from Ancient Greece to the 1990s. Includes photographs of the biographee when available and a reference list.

Gay & Lesbian Literature. 2 volumes. Detroit: St. James, 1994-1998.

(Uris Reference PN 56 .H57 G36x 1994)

A bio-bibliographical source for major writers. In the 1994 volume: introduction to gay male literature, Wayne R. Dynes; introduction to lesbian literature, Barbara G. Grier. In the 1998 volume: introduction to gay male literature, Jim Marks ; introduction to lesbian literature, Loralee Macpike.

Herman, Kali. Women in Particular: An Index to American Women. Phoenix: Oryx, 1985.

(Olin Reference CT 3260 .H55+; also Mann Reference)

A personal name index which locates very brief biographical information and references to entries in biographic resources. Identical information is arranged in five sections (Field and Career, Religious Affiliation, Ethnic and Racial Group, Geographic Location, Alphabetical by Name). Sections are arranged chronologically, which allows for determination of age peers but also slows down location of specific entries.

Hine, Darlene Clark, ed. Black Women in America: An Historical Encyclopedia. 2 volumes. Brooklyn: Carlson, 1993.

(Olin Reference E 185.86 .B542x 1993; also Uris Reference, Africana Reference)

This encyclopedia contains over 800 entries, with about two thirds biographical sketches and one third essays on general topics and organizations. The subjects of the biographies are individuals who played a role on the national stage. A 23-page chronology is also included.

International Dictionary of Women's Biography. New York: Continuum, 1982.

(Olin Stacks CT 3202 .I61)

Compilers Uglow and Hinton have aimed to provide "basic biographical information about outstanding women in a variety of fields." Although the majority of entries come from North America, Europe, and the British Commonwealth, there are significant entries for Eastern and other Third World women. There is a subject index and a bibliography of additional reference sources.

Ireland, Norma. Index to Women of the World from Ancient to Modern Times. Westwood: Faxon, 1970.

>

(Olin Reference Z 7963 .B6 I65; also Mann)

An index to books and some journal articles which contain biographical information about the women listed. Covers all centuries from Biblical times to the present. A valuable introductory chapter (now somewhat archaic in its terminology) discusses the role of women as pioneers and patriots, as well as their role in history, religion, literature, etc.

James, Edward T. Notable American Women 1607-1950. 3 volumes. Cambridge: Harvard UP, 1971. Plus 1980 supplement The Modern Period 1951-1975.

(Olin Reference CT 3260 .N89+; also Uris Reference)

This work is comparable to the Dictionary of American Biography in that it covers deceased persons only (i.e. women who died after 1950 were not included, no matter how famous). Entries are followed by a bibliography of works by and about the biographee. Women included here are those "who have attained distinction in their own right in work that took them before the public." These volumes contain some 1700 entries compared with DAB's 700 women entries, most of whom were wives of notable men. The long introductory essay by Janet Wilson James provides a broad overview of the sociological and historical position of women in America. The 1980 supplement adds some 442 women (all of whom died after 1950) to the set.

Kanner, Barbara Penny. Women in Context; Two Hundred Years of British Women Autobiographers: A Reference Guide and Reader. New York: G. K. Hall, 1997.

(Olin Reference Z 7963 .B6 K35 1997)

"[A]n analytical, critical, and biographical guide to 1,040 published narrative autobiographies by 812 British women of all social classes, born in the British Isles and the extended British Empire from the early eighteenth to the early twentieth centuries....

Its primary purpose is to acquaint scholarly readers from every discipline with a host of lesser-known personal narratives offering fresh historical, literary, or psychological insights." [Preface]

Kersey, Ethel M., ed. Women Philosophers: A Bio-Critical Source Book. New York: Greenwood, 1989.

(Uris Reference B 105 .W6 K41; also Olin)

An alphabetical list of women, born before 1920, who, "...had seriously thought or written in the traditional fields of philosophy, including metaphysics, ethics, aesthetics, and logic." (Preface) Entries include a brief biography, and works by and works about categories. A useful introduction and an appendix by historical period, country, and discipline are included.

Ogilvie, Marilyn B. Women in Science: Antiquity Through the Nineteenth Century. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1986.

(Uris Reference Q 141 .O34)

Primarily a biographical dictionary but includes other information on the subject of women in science. An introductory essay divides the past into five chronological sections, placing the biographical pieces in an historical context. For more information, the author provides a brief, annotated bibliography at the end of the book, which includes citations to reference works, general histories, classical sources, non-classical sources, and more. Includes index.

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. 61 volumes. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004- .

Full Text (Online version continuously updated. Print version: Olin Reference DA 28.D4 O95 2004)

Offers portraits of more than 5700 women (from over 50,000 entries)--people who shaped the history of the British Isles and beyond, from the earliest times to the year 2002. Includes over 10,000 images of the biographies plus a bibliography of the sources used in the preparation of the article; access information for archives (any manuscripts or other materials including sound and film records relating to the biographee); records of any portraits, photographs, or other visual representations; and the person's wealth at death. A monumental work of biography.

Significant Contemporary American Feminists. Ed. Jennifer Scanlon. Westport: Greenwood, 1999.

(Olin Reference HQ 1412 .S56x 1999)

Signed entries on fifty contemporary U.S. feminists. Bibliography of works by and about the subject of each entry.

Stineman, Esther. American Political Women: Contemporary and Historical Profiles. Littleton: Libraries Unlimited, 1980.

(Olin Stacks HQ 1236 .S85w 1980)

Biographical essays with numerous bibliographic citations discuss the careers of about 60 American women who made it big in the political arena either as congresswomen, ambassadors, special presidential assistants, governors, lieutenant governors, mayors or a combination of these. Selected speeches and writings of the biographee are also included. An index at the back of the volume provides access to information available within an essay, and an appendix listing "women currently serving in government in key departmental, agency and White House positions" is also provided. Stineman also provides appendices listing: women of the Congress, 1917-1980, women ambassadors of the U.S. currently serving, and women currently serving as federal judges.

Who's Who in Contemporary Gay and Lesbian History: From World War II to the Present Day. New York: Routledge, 2001.

(Olin Reference HQ 75.2 .W46x 2001)

Signed entries. "We have made an effort, in particular, to bring to the attention of English-speaking readers the biographies of many men and women from other non-English-speaking countries, and to give due attention to those from Australia, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa as well." [Introduction]

Who's Who in Gay and Lesbian History: From Antiquity to World War II. New York: Routledge, 2001.

(Olin Reference HQ 75.2 .W47x 2001)

Signed biographical essays. Companion volume to Who's Who in Contemporary Gay and Lesbian History: From World War II to the Present Day. "This book contains those figures of importance to gay and lesbian history, whether themselves homosexual, heterosexual, bisexual, or none of the above." [Introduction]

Who's Who of American Women. Chicago: Marquis, 1958/1959- .

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(Olin Reference E 663 .W64+)

A biographical dictionary, published biennially since 1958, of notable living American women. The latest edition claims to provide some 20,500 biographical sketches of women with "reference value." This includes such people as prominent government figures, administrators, leaders of philanthropic, educational and scientific societies, high-ranking legal and military officials, etc. Entries are unsigned, brief, and subject to editing by the biographee.

Women in Psychology: A Bio-Bibliographic Sourcebook. Ed. Agnes N. O'Connell and Nancy Felipe Russo. New York: Greenwood Press, 1990.

(Uris Reference BF 109 .A1 W87 1990)

Extensive biographical essays on 36 women who have made major contributions to the filed of psychology with substantial bibliographies of their work. References to biographical sources on an additional 185 women are included in the Appendix.

Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia. Ed. Anne Commire. 17 volumes. Waterford, CT: Yorkin Publications, 1999-2002.

(Olin Reference HQ 1115 .W6x 1999)

Entries on over 10,000 individual women from all historical eras. Extensive genealogical charts and an index.

STATISTICAL SOURCES

Statistical Record of Women Worldwide. Ed. Linda Schmittroth. 2nd ed. Detroit: Gale Research, 1995.

(Olin Reference HQ 1150 .S73x 1995)

This publication brings together statistical data on the lives and status of women throughout the world from a variety of sources -- governmental, non-governmental, U.S., international, published and unpublished. Over 900 tables on a wide variety of general and specific topics are provided. A detailed table of contents and subject and geographic indexes facilitate use. Comparative and historical data are provided when possible. Source of data cited for each table.

Statistical Handbook on Women in America. Ed. Cynthia Taeuber. 2nd ed. Phoenix: Oryx, 1996.

(Olin Reference HQ 1410 .T12x 1996; also Hotel Reference, Law Reference, Mann Reference)

This statistical handbook illustrates in detail changes in American women among different generations. It reports their numbers, characteristics, socio-economic conditions, employment and education status, health aspects, and the possibilities for their future.

Women's Health USA. Rockville, MD: Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau, 2002- .

Full Text

An annual statistical report on the health status of America's women (2002 is the first). Brings together key facts and figures to profile the health of women throughout the nation and provides easy-to-use statistical information. Includes current and historical data.

DIRECTORIES

CLAGS: The Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies.

A database of resources for LGTBQ scholars. Includes an online directory of LGTBQ Studies-- a searchable collection of scholars within universities, non-governmental organizations, and other places; their locations; and what tracks of study are available nationwide for students and intellectuals wishing to pursue the field of LGTBQ Studies.

Stylebook Supplement on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Terminology. Produced by the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association, 2006.

Definitions of LGBT terms and acronyms in both English and Spanish followed by a directory of major LBGT organizations in the United States. Adobe PDF file. Companion to the Associated Press stylebook.

Women's Studies Programs, Departments, & Research Centers.

"[L]inks to nearly 700 women's studies (including "gender studies") programs, departments, and research centers around the world that have web sites. Programs and departments offering graduate degrees or concentrations have this fact noted in an annotation below the link. For a larger list of women's studies programs, including those without web sites, see the journal Women's Studies Quarterly, the September issue of PMLA, or Gerri Gribi's listing of Women's Studies programs in the U.S." [from the Web site]

PRIMARY SOURCES AND SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

Instructors may arrange for staff of Rare and Manuscript Collections or the Kheel Center to meet with their classes. For guidance using primary sources, also see the Sexuality Research Guide.

African-American Women Writers of the 19th Century. New York: New York Public Library, 1999.

Full Text

African American Women Writers of the 19th Century is a digital collection of some fifty-two published works by 19th-century black women writers. A part of the Digital Schomburg, this collection provides access to the thought, perspectives and creative abilities of black women as captured in books and pamphlets published prior to 1920. A full text database of these 19th and early 20th- century titles, this digital library is key-word-searchable. Each individual title as well as the entire database can be searched to determine what these women had to say about "family", "religion", "slavery" or any other subject of interest to the researcher or casual reader. [Introduction]

Early Encounters in North America: Peoples, Cultures, and the Environment.

Full Text

This database, assembled from hundreds of primary sources, documents the relationships among peoples and with the environment in North America from 1534 to 1850. The collection focuses on personal accounts and provides unique perspectives from all of the protagonists, including traders, slaves, missionaries, explorers, soldiers, native peoples, and officials, both men and women. It includes works by American Indians as well as a wide range of Europeans. It captures first impressions, records hundreds of years of observations of flora and fauna, describes encounters with native peoples presents a new literature with words and metaphors created in response to new places, and much more. The database includes prints, drawings, paintings, maps, bibliographies, letters, photographs, and original facsimile pages all searchable by standardized vocabulary.

The Gerritsen Collection Women's History Online, 1543-1945.

Full Text

The Gerritsen Collection was begun by Aletta Jacobs Gerritsen in the late 1800s. The online resource delivers two million page images exactly as they appeared in the original printed works. It includes monographs, periodicals and pamphlets in fifteen languages, and is searchable by keyword and Boolean operators.

HEARTH: Home Economics Archive: Research, Tradition and History. Ithaca, NY: Albert R. Mann Library, Cornell University, 2003- . [http://hearth.library.cornell.edu/]

Full Text

A full text archive projected to include over 1,500 popular and scholarly books, as well as magazine and journal runs, mostly from the 19th and early 20th centuries. Subject areas include applied arts and design; food and nutrition; home economics; housing, furnishings and equipment; hygiene; retail and consumer studies; clothing and textiles; home management; child care and human development; and institutional management. Books were selected by a panel of scholarly reviewers and include works from various libraries, including Cornell's. Freely available over the Internet. The full text of both books and articles will be searchable by author, title, and keyword.

Human Sexuality Collection.

Collection Guide/Full Text

What is in the Collection, an overview of the Human Sexuality Collection from Brenda Marston, the Curator.

Jewish Women's Archive.

Full Text

An extensive Web site with access to biographical and archival information, teaching resources, and online tools for and about Jewish women and their history. The Virtual Archive offers information on hundreds of women, women's organizations, and manuscript collections, along with a rich array of primary source material.

Ladies of Llangollen: Letters and Journals of Lady Eleanor Butler (1739-1829) and Sarah Ponsonby (1755-1831) from the National Library of Wales.

Collection Guide

The guide analyzes the papers of the Ladies of Llangollen held at the National Library of Wales, a vital source to study this important partnership and the literary circle that they created. Known as the Hamwood Papers, formerly in the possession of the Hamilton family of Hamwood, Dunboyne, co Meath, they are extensive. Valuable for anyone writing on Romantic Friendship, the Gothic Pastoral Ideal, 18th Century Literary Circles and the Romantic Movement.

Medieval and Early Modern Women [microfilm]. Marlborough [England]: Adam Matthew Publications, 2000- .

(Olin Library Film 8263; parts 1-2 = reels 1-26)

Microform Collection & Guide

For details, see Microfilm Guide 8263 in the microform guide shelves in Olin Reference.

New Jersey Women's History. New Brunswick: Rutgers University, 2001.

Full Text

"NEW JERSEY WOMEN'S HISTORY is a resource for students, teachers, and all interested people who want to know more about the history of New Jersey women. Because New Jersey women's history is a young field, it is constantly growing and changing. This web site will do the same, so it can keep up with new information and research and update existing information. It is designed by the Women's Project of New Jersey (WPNJ) in collaboration with the Margery Somers Foster Center, Special Collections/Archives, the Scholarly Communications Center at Rutgers University Libraries in New Brunswick, and the New Jersey Historical Society in Newark." [Home page] Includes a bibliography on New Jersey women's history.

National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Records, 1973-2000 [microfilm]. Woodbridge, CT: Primary Source Microfilm, 2001- .

(Olin Library Film 8256; 298 reels)

Microform Collection & Guide

Filmed from the holdings of the Human Sexuality Collection, Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections, Cornell University Library, which owns the original material. "The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force collection consists of correspondence, press clippings, financial and administrative records, subject files, and photographs that, taken together, provide a broad overview of the American movement for lesbian and gay civil rights from 1973 to 2000." (From the Collection Overview, p. xii, of the extensive 343-page guide--Olin film 8256 guide, shelved in Olin Reference--which documents the collection.)

North American Women's Letters and Diaries, Colonial to 1950.

Full Text/Indexes

Full-text database of letters and diaries of women who lived in North America before 1950. The collection includes about 150,000 pages of letters and diaries from Colonial times to 1950, including 7,000 pages of previously unpublished manuscripts. More than 1,500 biographies of the diarists and letter-writers enhance the database. Browsing and searching available for both a rich set of bibliographic fields and subjects and the complete text of these primary sources.

Scottish Women Poets of the Romantic Period.

Full Text

Contains over sixty volumes of lyric poetry by Scottish women written between 1789 and 1832, extensive contemporary critical reviews, as well as material specially written for this database by leading scholars. Includes a critical introduction and a bibliographical essay.

Sex & Sexuality, 1640-1940 [microfilm]: Literary, Medical and Sociological Perspectives. [Marlborough, Wilshire, England]: Adam Matthew Publications, [1998].

(Olin Film 7084; Part 1, reels 1-15)

Microform Collection

Sources from the Bodleian Library, Oxford, and the Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine, London. "This series sets out to provide the raw material for the dialogue already started by Roy Porter and Lesley Hall in The Facts of Life: The Creation of Sexual Knowledge in Britain, 1650-1950. As their subtitle implies, a body of information and advice on sexuality was constructed from the seventeenth century onwards in the form of self-help manuals; moral tracts; medical dissertations; treatises of the specialist sexologists; works of literature; and texts on sexual habits, reproduction, masturbation, prostitution, and sexual pathologies.... Part 1 focuses on 17th, 18th and 19th century texts which are not likely to be available in most libraries." Publishers web site.

Votes for Women: Selections from the National American Woman Suffrage Collection, 1848-1920. Washington: Library of Congress, 1999.

Full Text

"The NAWSA Collection consists of 167 books, pamphlets and other artifacts documenting the suffrage campaign. They are a subset of the Library's larger collection donated by Carrie Chapman Catt, longtime president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association, in November of 1938. The collection includes works from the libraries of other members and officers of the organization including: Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, Lucy Stone, Alice Stone Blackwell, Julia Ward Howe, Elizabeth Smith Miller, Mary A. Livermore." [Home page] A searchable full-text collection, part of the American Memory project. Includes a timeline and a selected bibliography.

Women and Social Movements in the United States 1600-2000. Kathryn Sklar and Thomas Dublin, editors. Scholar’s edition. Alexandria, VA: Alexander Street Press; Binghamton, NY: Center for the Historical Study of Women and Gender at the State University of New York, Binghamton.

Full Text

The Scholar’s Edition includes all features of the Basic Edition that have been published since March 2004. It currently includes 72 document projects with 2,100 documents, 28,000 pages of additional full-text documents, and 1,600 primary authors. It includes as well book, film and website reviews, notes from the archives, and teaching tools. This edition also includes the Women’s Commission reports collection, an archive of the publications and documents of local, state, and federal Commissions on the Status of Women from 1963 to the present. A future release of the Scholar’s Edition will also include the full text of the complete five volumes of Notable American Women: A Biographical Dictionary, available for the first time in electronic form.

Women's Lives and Politics: Microform Collections in the Cornell University Library. Suzy Palmer and Brenda Marston. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Library, 1999.

Collection Guide

The views and activities of leaders of various women's movements, in the United States and internationally, are documented in microfilm collections available in Cornell's libraries. Collections also document women's engagement in the anti-slavery, peace, and labor movements. Additionally, they can provide windows into women's daily lives, friendships and relationships, and identities. Offering a wealth of material for scholarly investigation, these sets reproduce the official records of women's political organizations, contemporary media accounts of feminist activities, as well as the personal papers and diaries of individuals.

For microform sets housed in Olin Library, the microform guides are shelved in the Reference Collection, arranged by their film or fiche guide number. The microfilm reels and microfiche are in the Microforms and Newspapers Section on the Lower Level of Olin Library.