The SFCC Library offers a variety of sources useful for researching topics in the history of the northwestern United States, and this guide is intended to help you identify them and use them effectively. While we do not subscribe to many history journals in print, the library has several online databases which include history journals, a good collection of book and reference resources, and there are a great many credible, reliable websites that can help as well.
It's always a good idea to start writing projects early, as research takes time. It is possible you will need to use interlibrary loan or request items from cooperating libraries, and if so, please allow extra time for them to arrive.
It is also strongly recommended that you keep a record of where you get information as you go along–nothing is more frustrating than trying to compile a Works Cited list when you can't remember where you got your information!
Most of all, don't hesitate to ask the librarians for help.
Finding Books & VideosThe SFCC Library shares a joint online catalog with SCC at http://ccs.wash-id.net/ The catalog lists books, videos, magazines, journals, and other items held by one or both of the two libraries.
SFCC is a member of the Washington-Idaho Network (WIN) of libraries. Students and faculty can use our online catalog to search for and request items from the libraries at Gonzaga, Whitworth, North Idaho College, the University of Idaho, and other regional libraries. Items will be delivered via courier, usually within 3-4 days, to the SFCC circulation desk, where they may be checked out.
In addition, consider searching catalogs for libraries physically nearby, such as Eastern Washington University and the Spokane city and county public libraries. Links to these are provided at http://library.spokanefalls.edu/LibraryandCatalogs.stm
Reference sources
Reference items are usually distinguished by having an "R" or "REF" before the call number. Reference works are especially good for statistical data, information which must be up-to-date (e.g., addresses and phone numbers), and for quick overviews of a topic such as one finds in an encyclopedia.
Items in a reference collection usually cannot be checked out, but you can make photocopies if you like. You can also browse similar call numbers in the circulating stacks to find books which can be checked out.
The following reference books are in the SFCC library; you might want to look around the same call numbers in other libraries for similar kinds of books.
While the library has and will continue to buy printed reference books, the trend these days is to purchase reference books as online editions. This allows students to access the contents of such books from home at times when the library isn't open.
The following online reference books can be accessed almost any time, wherever you have an internet connection; off-campus users will need to put in their usernames (without the @stu part) and passwords:
The SFCC Library subscribes to a number of commercial databases, some of which offer access to complete newspaper, magazine, and journal articles. Others include online books, primary documents, images, statistical data, and a variety of other things.
The World Wide Web has become increasingly useful for research. Since the Web is a new medium, using it for scholarly work requires caution.
Try to identify stable, reputable sources. Search engines return too many hits more often than too few. This is mostly due to a lack of proper indexing on the Web, and inconsistency among search tools. An excellent site which recommends various search tools for different purposes is
Look for sites that are kept up to date and which have an identifiable author or responsible party. You should be able to locate contact information easily (postal addresses, phone numbers, or at least an email address, ideally to someone more specific than "webmaster"). Individual or hobbyist sites are often entertaining and even authoritative for some subjects, but probably should not be your primary source.
Once you find suitable sources of information, you will need to cite what you use. Please consult our list of citation resources.
Finally, the following World Wide Web sites may offer useful information:
Guides to the "How" of Writing
Sites on Northwest History
Whatever sources you use must be cited and attributed. Electronic and Internet sources are particularly troublesome because they can change and disappear. MLA style, developed by the Modern Language Association, is one format which has been adapted and modernized to include online sources:
MLA-Style Guides to Internet Citation
For authoritative information on MLA style, please consult MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 6th ed., available at 808.027 GIBALDI 2003. There is also a copy at the Reference Desk.
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For comments or questions about this page contact SFCC Reference Desk
URL: http://library.spokanefalls.edu/guides/hist260.stm
Last modified: Monday, April 20, 2009 by GS