Biographical Information

Reference

The reference collection is an excellent place to begin looking for biographical information. Our reference books will give you overviews of people's lives, and often have suggested bibliographies for further information. In addition to the sources listed below, also try a general encyclopedia, like the Britannica Online for basic information.

General Biographies:

• Biographies Plus Illustrated.
  
• Current Biography. New York: Wilson, 1940 - 2005.
  Ref CT100 .C8
• Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale Research, 2000. 19 vols.
  Ref CT103 .E56
• Chambers Biographical Dictionary. New York: Larousse Kingfisher Chambers, 1997.
  Ref CT103 .C4 1997
• Cambridge Biographical Encyclopedia. 2nd Ed. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998.
  Ref CT103 .C26 1998
• American National Biography. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. 24 vols.
  Ref CT213.A68 1999
• Dictionary of American Biography. New York: Scribner, 1957-. 11 vols. with supplements.
  Ref E176 .D563
• Dictionary of National Biography. London, Oxford university press 1921-27. 22 vols. with supplements.
  Ref DA28 .D47
• National Cyclopedia of American Biography. Clifton, N.J.: J. T. White, 1893-. 63 vols.
  Ref E176 .N27
• Notable American Women, 1607-1950: A Biographical Dictionary. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1971. 3 vols.
  Ref CT3260 .N57
• Scribner Encyclopedia Of American Lives. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1998-2001. 6 vols with supplements.
  Ref CT213 .S37
• American Characters: Selections from the National Portrait Gallery. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1999.
  Ref CT215 .L49 1999

Directory Information

• Who's Who. London: A. & C. Black, 1849-present. Current year in reference.
  Ref DA28 .W6
• Who's Who in America. Chicago: A.N. Marquis, 1899-present. Last 5 years in reference.
  Ref E176 .W642
• Who's Who in the World. Chicago: Marquis Who's Who. Current year only.
  Ref CT120 .W5
• Who Was Who in America. Chicago: Marquis Who's Who. 18 vols in reference.
  Ref E176 .W64

Biography by Profession

Science:
• Dictionary of Scientific Biography. New York: Scribner [1970-1980]. 16 vols.
  Ref Q141 .D5
• Notable Twentieth Century Scientists. Detroit: Gale Research, 1995. 4 vols. with supplements.
  Ref Q141 .N73
• Biographical Encyclopedia of Scientists. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 1998. 5 vols.
  Ref Q141 .B532
• Concise Dictionary of Scientific Biography. New York: Scribner's, 2000. 2nd ed.
  Ref Q141 .C55 2000


Literature:
• Contemporary Authors and Contemporary Authors New Revision. Detroit: Gale Research Co., 1981-present.
  Ref Z1224 .C6
• Dictionary of Literary Biography. Detroit: Gale Research Co., 1978-present.
  Ref PS21 .D56


Music:
• New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. New York: Macmillan, 2001. 29 vols.
  Ref ML100 .N48
• Baker's Biographical Dictionary of 20th Century Classical Musicians. New York: Schirmer Books, 1997.
  Ref ML105 .S612


Acting/Film/Theater:
• Contemporary Theater, Film and Television. Detroit: Gale Research Co., 1984 - present.
  Ref PN2012 .W51


Explorers:
• Explorers and Discoverers of the World. Detroit: Gale Research, 1993.
  Ref G200 .E88 1993


Athletes:
• Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues. New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers/Richard Gallen, 1994.
  Ref GV865 .A1 R473 1994
• Outstanding Women Athletes. Phoenix: Oryx Press, 1998
  Ref GV697 .A1 W69 1998

Biography by Ethnicity:

Native American:
• Who Was Who in Native American History. New York: Facts on File, 1990.
  Ref E89 .W35


African American:
• African American Encyclopedia. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 1993. 6 vols.
  Ref E185 A253


Hispanic:
• Notable Latino Americans. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1997.
  Ref E184 .S75 M435 1997
• Dictionary of Hispanic Biography. New York: Gale Research, 1996.
  Ref CT1343 .D53 1996


Asian American:
• Notable Asian Americans. New York: Gale Research, 1995.
  Ref E184 .O6 N67 1995


Arab American:
• Arab American Biography. Detroit: U.X.L., 1999.
  Ref E184. A65 H35 1999

Finding Books

To find books about people, search the online catalog. You can search for categories of people by subject. Some useful subject headings are:

Athletes-- biography
Actors-- biography
Women mathematicians-- biography
Stockbrokers-- United States --biography
Television news anchors-- United States-- biography
Holocaust survivors -- biography

You may also search by subject for a person's name. Always use: "last name, first name".

Dickinson, Emily
X, Malcolm

Finding Articles

Use periodical indexes and databases to find biographical information in encyclopedias, magazines, journals and newspapers.

• Biography Index. 1946 - 2001.
  Z5301.B5
  A paper index located on the Index Tables. The Biography Index will lead you to biographical information in full length books, chapters in books, as well as in periodicals.
• Biographies Plus Illustrated.
  Find both encyclopedia articles, journal articles, and books about a particular person.
• Proquest Research Library.
  A general interest database, Proquest may be used to locate articles about or interviews with famous people in magazines and journals.
• Proquest Newspapers.
  For current newsmakers, search for articles in just the top national newspapers in Proquest Newspapers.

Internet Resources

• Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
  Brief reports on all members of Congress from 1774 on.
• Biography.com
  A site created by the A&E network and based on the popular show Biography. The site offers basic info on more than 25,000 famous persons.
• InfoPlease's Biography
  Over 30,000 biographies of historical and contemporary figures. Search by name or by category.
• POTUS: Presidents of the United States
  A biographical dictionary of the men who have served as President of the United States. Internet sites which feature biographical information, speeches, writings, some audio and video clips, election results and notable events.

Last Updated - December, 2005