California History  

This guide is for students enrolled in HIST130 - History of California with Dr.Sparks. Use it as a starting point to connect with books, articles and other resources for your research.

Reference works such as encyclopedias and guide books are a good place to get basic information on your research topic. Print reference books are available in the Reference area adjacent to the Information Commons on the first floor. For example:

• California’s Geographic Names REF  F859,D87 1998
• Dictionary of American History REF E174 .D59 1976
• Dictionary of California Historic Places REF F862.D53 1997
• Encyclopedia of the American West REF  F591 .E485 1996
• Historic Spots in California REF F862.H57 2002
• New Encyclopedia of the American West REF F591.N46
• Reader’s Companion to American History REF E174 .R43 1991 

The library also has electronic reference works available online. For example:

• Credo Reference: an extensive collection of reference materials on a variety of topics
• Gale Virtual Refrence: quick encyclopedic entries