Databases

• Academic Search Complete (approximately 1880s to date). Provides abstracts of articles (summaries), and full-text articles from more than 10,000 books, scholarly journals, magazines, newspapers, and reference works on a wide variety of topics.
• America:  History and Life (1964 to date). Covers United States and Canadian history from earliest times to the present. Includes abstracts of articles (summaries), and full-text articles.
• Art Abstracts (1984 to date). Indexes some 450 magazines and journals in the arts. See also Art Index Retrospective.
• Art Index Retrospective (1929 to 1984). Cumulates the citations to volumes 1 to 32 (1929 to 1984) of the printed Art Index. Art Abstracts extends coverage from 1984 to the present.
• Arts & Humanities Search (1980 to date). Indexes more than 1,300 of the world's leading arts and humanities journals.
• Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals (1934 to date). Indexes more than 700 American and international periodicals in architecture and design.
• Digital Sanborn Maps - Virginia (late 19th to mid-20th centuries). Provides access to 678 full-image maps of 132 Virginia cities and towns.
• Fredericksburg Research Sources. Developed by the Historic Preservation Department at the University of Mary Washington. Enables users to search such area resources as 19th-century Fredericksburg directories, historic district codes, 18th- and 19th-century newspaper indexes, and local Mutual Assurance Policies and Censuses of Manufacturing Lists.
• Historical Abstracts (1954 to date). Covers all aspects of history (excluding the United States and Canada) from 1450 to the present. Includes abstracts of articles (summaries), and full-text articles.
• Humanities Abstracts (1983 to date). Indexes a broad range of some 500 magazine and journal publications.
• Humanities & Social Sciences Index Retrospective: 1907-1984. Indexes nearly 1,200 periodicals.
• Periodicals Index Online (formerly PCI) (1665 to 1995). Provides author, title, and keyword access to the table-of-contents pages of more than 2,700 worldwide periodicals.
• Social Sciences Abstracts (1971 to date). Interdisciplinary database covering more than 400 English-language social science journals.

Databases in related disciplines

• American Periodicals Series Online (1741 to 1900). Provides digitized images of more than 1,000 American magazines, journals, and newspapers.
• ARTstor. A collection of some 300,000 images that documents numerous artistic traditions and cultures from around the world.
• The Civil War: A Newspaper Perspective (1860 to 1865). Provides the full text of "major articles" from more than 2,500 issues of the New York Herald, the Charleston Mercury, and the Richmond Enquirer from November 1, 1860, to April 15, 1865.
• HarpWeek: The Civil War Era and Reconstruction (1857-1877). Provides full-text access to 21 years of Harper's Weekly, a leading 19th-century illustrated newspaper.
• Humanities International Complete (coverage varies; approximately 1985 to date). Provides the full text of hundreds of magazines, journals, books, and other published sources from around the world.
• MasterFile Premier (coverage varies by publication). Furnishes full-text coverage of thousands of reference books, biographies, and primary source documents. Also contains an image collection.
• ProQuest Historical Newspapers (coverage varies). Provides full-text and full-image articles for the New York Times (1851 to within the last several years) and the Washington Post (1877 to 1991). Users can search the newspapers separately or together.

For a complete listing of databases provided by UMW Libraries, please see Databases A-Z.

selected reference books in simpson library

• Architecture and Ornament
• Ceramics
• Coins and Currency
• Clothing and Textiles
• Ephemera
• Furniture
• Historic Landmarks
• Historic Preservation
• Museums
• Preservation Law

architecturE AND ORNAMENT

• American Architecture REFB NA 705 .H36 1998
• American House Designs REFB NA 7207 .C85 1994
• Architecture: A Bibliographic Guide to Basic Reference Works, Histories, and Handbooks REFB NA 2520 .E375x
• Architecture and Ornament REFB NA 2840 .M36 1998
• Dictionary of Architecture and Construction REFB NA 31 .H32 2006
• Encyclopedia of Architectural Terminology REFB NA 31 .G53
• Encyclopedia of Architecture REFB NA 31 .E59 1988
• Encyclopedia of 20th-Century Architecture REFB NA 680 .E495 2004
• An Illustrated Dictionary of Ornament REFB NK 1165 .S72 1975
• Illustrated Dictionary of Historic Architecture REFB NA 31 .H56 1983
• An Illustrated Glossary of Early Southern Architecture and Landscape REFB NA 727 .I44 1994
• What Style Is It?: A Guide to American Architecture REFB NA 705 .P6 1996

Ceramics

• An Illustrated Dictionary of Ceramics  REFB NK 3770 .S38
• Encyclopedia of Marks, 1780-1980 REFB NK 4007 .K69 1999

Coins and Currency

• Coins and Currency: An Historical Encyclopedia REFB CJ 59 .S66 2003

CLOTHING AND TEXTILES

• Encyclopedia of Clothing and Fashion REFB GT 507 .E53 2005
• Fairchild’s Dictionary of Textiles REFB TS 1309 .F34 1996
• The Guide to Historic Costume REFB TT 503 .B33 1995
• Warp & Weft REFB TS 1309 .B87 1981

Ephemera

• Encyclopedia of Ephemera REFB NC 1280 .R52 2000

Furniture

• Furniture: World Styles from Classical to Contemporary REFB NK 2235 .M54 2005

Historic Landmarks

• Landmark Yellow Pages REFB E 159 .L28 1993
• National Register of Historic Places from 1966-1994  REFB E 159 .N343 1994

Historic Preservation

• America Preserved: A Checklist of Historic Buildings, Structures, and Sites REFB E 159 .A37 1994
• Dictionary of Building Preservation REFB NA 31 .D55 1996
• A Guide to Historic Preservation Periodicals REFB E 159 .N373 1988
• Historic Preservation  REFB E 159 .R35
• Historic Preservation Yearbook REFB KF 4310 .H57
• Illustrated Dictionary of Architectural Preservation REFB NA 105 .B87 2003
• National Register of Historic Places REFB E 159 .N343
• The Official Museum Directory REFB AM 10 .A2 O4
• Preservation Yellow Pages REFB E 159 .P73

Museums

• Directory of Historic House Museums in the United States REFB E 159 .W29 1999
• Directory of Unique Museums REFB AM 11 .T78 1985
• Museums of the World REFB AM 1 .M76 1997
• The Official Museum Directory REFB AM 10 .A2 O4 2006

Preservation Law

• Major Acts of Congress REFB KF 154 .M35 2004
• Preservation Law Reporter REFB KF 4310 .A15 P73

Websites

• Virtual Libraries
• Dictionaries, Glossaries, and Guides
• Bibliographies
• Databases
• Online Periodicals
• Papers and Documents
• Organizations
• News

Virtual libraries

Virtual libraries contain annotated collections of high-quality Internet resources that librarians or other information specialists have carefully selected. Users can usually browse by subject or search.

• American Memory from the Library of Congress: Architecture, Landscape. The Library of Congress's American Memory Project features collections of digitized primary sources and cultural documents. "Architecture, Landscape" is comprised of 9 collections of invaluable research material.
• Librarians' Internet Index. See especially the Arts and Humanities category. Note that when you click on a heading, the subdivisions on the left help you to browse the hundreds of various resources. In addition, you can use the drop-down menu to narrow and focus your search. The many sections of "Arts and Humanities" include:
  • Antiques
  • Archaeology
  • Architecture
  • Museums
• The Internet Public Library. See especially the Arts & Humanities categories. The many sections of "Arts & Humanities" include:
  • Fine Arts, which includes:
    • Architecture
  • History of Arts & Humanities
  • Museum Studies

Dictionaries, glossaries, and Guides

• Architectural Styles. Photographs and text illustrate architectural styles.
• Glossary of Selected Index Terms. Compiled by the National Trust for Historic Preservation Library, located on the campus of the University of Maryland.
• PreservationDirectory.com. A comprehensive directory designed to “foster the preservation of historic buildings, historic downtowns and neighborhoods, cultural resources, and to promote heritage tourism by facilitating communication among historic preservation professionals and the general public.”

BIBLIOGRAPHIES

• Barn Resources. A listing of "contractors, web sites, organizations, publications, videos, and other resources related to rural architecture."
• Bibliographies for Anthropological Research. Dozens of online bibliographies cover various aspects of "historical archaeology."
• Bibliography for the Care of Museum, Library, and Archival Collections. Cites works related to artifacts, electronic / digital media, furniture, library and archival materials, natural history, paintings and photographs, textiles, prints and drawings, exhibitions, disaster preparedness, and other topics. Compiled by the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas in Austin.
• Digital Librarian:  Architecture and Historic Preservation. An extensive list of annotated links to topics related to architecture and historic preservation.
• Ephemera Bibliography. Includes works relating to almanacs, calendars, greeting cards, commercial catalogs, magazines, photographs, postcards, paper dolls, crate labels, sheet music, and many other types of ephemera. Compiled by the Ephemera Society of America.
• Grants for Nonprofits:  Historic Preservation. Maintained by Michigan State University Libraries, this annotated listing is a "compilation of web pages and books of potential interest to nonprofit organizations seeking funding opportunities related to historic preservation."
• Guide to Researching the History of a House. One of the Internet Public Library's "Pathfinders."
• Historic Preservation Resources. Bibliographies compiled by the Vermont Heritage Network cover six areas of preservation: architecture, conservation, history of the historic preservation movement, preservation philosophy, preservation planning, and preservation reference materials (dictionaries and encyclopedias).
• Plaster Architecture Project. Attempts to improve the "knowledge and the safeguard of the techniques and manufactured articles made of plaster, mortar, and artificial stone." The site's headings are: Census, Essay, Glossary, Bibliography, and Forum.
• Preservation Bibliography. A brief listing of works related to preservation of books and paper, photographs, and audio visual materials. Compiled by the Library of Congress.
• Preserving Historic Neighborhood Schools (National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities). Offers a "resource list of links, books, and journal articles on the preservation of historic schools, providing financial and administrative preservation tools, and presenting school preservation case studies."
• Textile Preservation. Compiled by a member of the Illini Country Stitchers Guild.

DATABASES

• Art and Architecture Thesaurus Online. A project of the Getty Research Institute, this controlled vocabulary database comprises more than 130,000 words, phrases, and related information that researchers in art and art history can use as "preferred" or "authority" terms to describe fine art, architecture, archival items, and material culture dating from antiquity to the present. 
• National Park Service. Provides information on the National Park system and much related material on natural resources, legislation, and publications. Databases and indexes that can be accessed include:
  • Historic American Buildings Survey and Historic American Engineering Record (HABS/HAER)
  • National Archeological Database
  • National Register Information System, the official database of the National Register of Historic Places.
• PreserveNet. From Cornell University, “PreserveNet is designed to provide preservationists with a comprehensive database of regularly updated internet resources and current professional opportunities."
• Thesaurus of Geographic Names. This controlled vocabulary database, a project of the Getty Research Institute, comprises more than 1,000,000 names of continents, nations, cities, historical places, mountains, rivers, and other geographic areas that are significant to researchers in art, art history, and architecture.

Online Periodicals

• Architronic. A journal that explores the "new ranges of architectural communication available through digital media" contains articles relevant to preservation issues.
• Common Ground. This magazine, produced by the National Park Service, "offers an in-depth look at the nationwide effort to preserve our heritage in all its forms."
• CRM: The Journal of Heritage Stewardship. A publication of the National Park Service that showcases articles on cultural resource management. It replaced CRM, published from 1978 to 2002.
• e-PRESERVATIONScience. An electronic journal dedicated to "scientific research for the preservation of cultural heritage."
• Heritage News. A monthly electronic newsletter published by the National Park Service that delivers timely information on topics of "interest to the national heritage community."
• ICCROM Newsletter. The newsletter of the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property.
• Online Conservation / Preservation Serials. A listing with links to various online serials dedicated to aspects of preservation. Maintained by Stanford University's Conservation OnLine site.
• Preservation Frontline—Preservation Advocate News. The online advocacy publication of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
• Preservation Online. The online supplement to the magazine Preservation, published by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. 

PAPERS AND DOCUMENTs

• Architectural History and Historic Preservation Division (Smithsonian Institution). The AHHP is dedicated to the preservation of the Smithsonian Institution's buildings. Its website includes links to the Smithsonian Preservation Quarterly and other documents related to historic preservation.
• Conservation at the Getty: PDF Publications. Copies of various publications from the Getty Museum and Conservation Institute.
• Development of Humidity Recommendations in Museums and Moisture Control in Buildings. A copy of an article by J.P. Brown and William B. Rose that originally appeared in 1996 in the APT Bulletin.
• Economics and Historic Preservation:  A Guide and Review of the Literature. This paper by Randall Mason, part of the Brookings Institution Metropolitan Policy Program, "reviews the current findings [2005] on the value of historic preservation and the methods used to assess that value, making the case for needed improvement if the economics of preservation is to more objectively and rigorously quantify the effects of historic preservation."
• Federal Historic Preservation Case Law, 1966-2000. A report detailing federal historic preservation case law.
• Historic Preservation (Surface Transport Board). The website for the federal agency that deals with overland transport issues (railroads, trucking, some pipelines), and how they relate to preservation. Includes links to historic preservation legislation, regulations, documents, archeological resources, cultural resources management, tribal consultation, and much more.
• National Register of Historic Places: Bulletins and Brochures. A series of publications that provide guidance in evaluating, documenting, and nominating historically significant sites to the National Register.

Organizations

• The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation. An organization that "promotes the preservation, enhancement, and productive use of our Nation's historic resources, and advises the President and Congress on national historic preservation policy."
• The American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Work. An organization of "conservation professionals dedicated to preserving the art and historic artifacts of our cultural heritage for future generations."
• The Association for Gravestone Studies. The “preservation” link on this site includes a bibliography of works dedicated to the preservation of gravestones.
• The Association for Preservation Technology. A "cross-disciplinary, membership organization dedicated to promoting the best technology for conserving historic structures and their settings."
• The Center for Historic Preservation. Covering all of Tennessee's 95 counties, the Tennessee-based Center is a "research and public service institute committed to the heritage development--the identification, research, preservation, interpretation, and promotion--of our historic environment."
• The Civil War Preservation Trust. A non-profit organization dedicated to preservation issues of Civil War battlefields.  The “newsroom” link covers current issues related to battlefield preservation.
• The Getty. The various programs of the J. Paul Getty trust focus on all aspects of the visual arts. Its Conservation Institute "serves the conservation community through scientific research, education, and training, model field projects, and the dissemination of information."
• Historic Preservation (American Institute of Architects). Includes articles related to various aspects of preservation.
• Historic Preservation Overview (U.S. General Services Administration). The historic preservation program of the U.S. General Services Administration "provides technical and strategic expertise to promote the viability, reuse, and integrity of historic buildings GSA owns, leases, and has the opportunity to acquire."
• International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property. An international organization founded in 1959 to "promote the conservation of all types of cultural heritage, both movable and immovable."
• National Park Service. Provides information on the National Park system and much related material on natural resources, legislation, and publications. The invaluable Links to the Past connects the user to sites on museum collections, national historic landmarks, maritime history, the Civil War, archaeology, battlefield preservation, tours, American Indians, and grants assistance. The National Center for Preservation Technology and Training "advances the application of science and technology to historic preservation." Databases and indexes that can be accessed include:
  • Historic American Buildings Survey and Historic American Engineering Record (HABS/HAER)
  • National Archeological Database
  • National Register Information System, the official database of the National Register of Historic Places.
• National Trust for Historic Preservation. A guide to the National Trust and its services. This private non-profit organization is "dedicated to saving historic places and revitalizing America's communities."
• US/ICOMOS. The U.S. National Committee of the International Council on Monuments and Sites "fosters heritage conservation and historic preservation at the national and international levels."
• Virginia Preservation Network. An organization formed "to protect and promote Virginia's historic places and serve as the statewide network for preservation advocacy and information."

News

• PreserveNet
  Furnishes links to conferences, directories of educational programs, employment and scholarship opportunities, products and services, and various other types of Internet resources of interest to preservationists.

Doing Historic Preservation Research in Simpson Library

Browse the following call number areas in the Stacks or the Reference Collection:

• Architecture History, NA
• Fashion Design and History, GT
• Clothing Manufacture, TT 490-695
• Decorative Arts, NK
• Textiles, TS