Preparing to Write a Research Paper

Before beginning work on writing a research paper, be sure to consider the issues that you must address in the course of selecting a topic, identifying sources, taking notes, writing drafts of the paper, and revising the final paper before turning it into your instructor as discussed at Reading, Writing, and Researching for History: A Guide for College Students (P. Rael, Bowdoin College).

• First, consider what is involved in writng
  Writing a Research Paper (Purdue University)
  as well as thinking about Historical Research and Writing (Hanover College).

• Second, you should consider appropriate Research Strategies and examine the RIO: Research Instruction Online guides (University of Arizona Library), then consult the Library Guide to Historical Research (TTU Library) for some relevant bibliographies to help you identify sources. Then examine in more detail the steps for doing A+ Research and Writing for High School and College Students
  (Internet Public Library).

• Third,Consider how useful the World Wide Web is as discussed in
  A Student's Guide to Research with the WWW (C. Branham, St. Louis University) and Internet Tutorials (University of Albany Libraries).

• Fourth, if you use the Internet for part of your research, educate yourself about
  Especially for Researchers (Library of Congress) and Finding Information on the Internet. (University of California, Berkeley Library). Examine the Bibliography on Evaluating Internet Resources (Virginia Tech) and review Using Primary Sources on the Web developedby the Reference and User Services Association, History Section of the American Library Association.
  

  Be sure to think about the intellectual process involved in the Evaluation of Information Sources (World-Wide Web Virtual Library) and concult gateway sources for online library catalogs, such as WorldCat: 1.3 billion items in more than 10,000 libraries worldwide.

  Consult appropriate subject and special topics bibliographies both in the library and those available online, such as the very useful History Bibliographies Guide (S. Blaschke).

• If you need to order books or article(s) via Interlibrary Loan from the TTU Library, you can do so either online or by obtaining the request forms at the library.

• Finally, be sure to use the University of Chicago Style of documentation described in both A Student's Guide to History by Jules R. Benjamin (Bedford/St. Martin's) with specific examples cited in Research in History (Bedford/St. Martin's).

Using the Library for Historical Research

• Jacques Barzun and Henry F. Graff. The Modern Researcher, sixth edition. Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth, 2004. For a suggested model for writing book reviews, see pages 188-189. ISBN # 0-15-505529-1.
• Jacques Barzun and Henry F. Graff. The Modern Researcher, fifth edition. Forth Worth: Harcourt Brace, 1992. For a suggested model for writing book reviews, see pages 221-222.

• David Beasley. How to Use a Research Library. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988. #0-19-504246-8.

• Thomas Mann. A Guide to Library Research Methods. New York: Oxford University Press, 1987, 1990. #0-19-504943-8.

• Mona McCormick. The New York Times Guide to Reference Materials , revised edition. New York: Dorset Press, 1985. #0-88029-228-8.

• Mary Beth Norton and Pamela Gerardi, eds. The American Historical Association's Guide to Historical Literature, third edition. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995. 2 vols. ISBN #0-19-505727-9.

• Frank Freidel, ed. Harvard Guide to American History. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1974. 2 vols.

• Francis Paul Prucha. Handbook for Research in American History: Guide to Bibliographies and Other Reference Works. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1987. #0-8032-3682-4 (cloth) and #0-8032-8719-4 (paper) and second edition, revised 1994 4 cloth $25.00 or #0-8032-3701-58731-3 paper $9.95.

• Ask a Librarian: An Online Reference Service from the American Memory, Library of Congress

• National Cemetery Administration (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs)

• Obtaining Military Records & Medals (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs)

• Access to Military Service and Pension Records (U.S. National Archives)

• Order Forms for Military Service and Family History Records (U.S. National Archives)

• Derek H. Aldcroft and Richard Rodger. Bibliography of European Economic and Social History, second edition. New York: St. Martin's Press/Manchester University Press, 1993. #0-7190-3492-2.

Citing Research Material in History Papers

• University of Chicago Press. The Chicago Manual of Style: The Essential Guide for Writers, Editors, and Publishers, 15th edition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003. #0-226-10403-6. Considered the definitive reference work on how to cite research materials in history in footnotes, endnotes, and bibliographies.

• Kate L. Turabian. A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, sixth edition, revised by John Grossman and Alice Bennett. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996. #0-226-81627-3. $12.95 (paper) A shorter, more affordable version of The Chicago Manual of Style which history students can purchase and use to prepare formal citations for research papers. This work is commonly referred to simply as "Turabian." The University of Wisconsin, Madison's Writing Center has an excellent selection of Chicago Style examples of how to cite books, articles, and primary sources.

• Citation of Electronic Documents includes guides on how to cite materials from Internet sources found on ftp, gopher, and web sites.

Last updated on August 11, 2006

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