Research Resources

There are many information resources available online. These are recommended.

CIA World Fact Book

One of the most comprehensive data collections about the countries of the world. Access the CIA World Fact Book here.

Daily Leader Historical Newspaper Archive

An electronic database of the Pontiac Daily Leader's editions. Access the Daily Leader Historical Archive here.

David Rumsey Historical Map Collection

A wonderful collection historic maps. The maps may be downloaded. Access the David Rumsey Historical Map Collection here.

Google Books

Google Books is a service provided by Google Inc. You may search their catalog and many books may be downloaded or read online. You must sign up for a free account. Be sure to set the search parameters to "Free." This will limit your results to only free books. Access Google Books here

Google Scholar

Within Google Scholar you may conduct searches by keyword, author and article title. There is also an advanced search with more options. Access Google Scholar here

Illinois Legal Aid Online

Helping Illinois Residents solve their legal problems. Access Illinois Legal Aid Online here

Illinois State Archives

Various online databases compiled by the State of Illinois. Access the Illinois State Archives here.

Info Please

Info Please is a collection of reference works available for use free of charge. There is an atlas, dictionary, thesaurus, and an encyclopedia. Access Info Please here

JSTOR

JSTOR is a digital library founded in 1995. Originally containing digitized back issues of academic journals, it now also includes books and primary sources, and current issues of journals. It provides full text searches of almost 2,000 journals. More than 8,000 institutions in more than 160 countries have access to JSTOR; most access is by subscription, but some older public domain content is freely available to anyone.

Access JSTOR here.

Library of Congress

The Library of Congress is the nation's first established cultural institution and the largest library in the world. The LOC collection includes books, manuscripts, photographs, recording, and maps. Many items are available for viewing online. Access the Library of Congress here.

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary

In 1996, Merriam-Webster launched its first website, which provided free access to an online dictionary and thesaurus. Access the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary here.

Online Books Page

The Online Books Page is hosted by Penn State University and offers millions of free, online books. Access Online Books Page here.

Project Gutenberg

Project Gutenberg offers over 50,000 free ebooks. Download or read them online. Access Project Gutenberg here.

WorldCat

WorldCat is an electronic, searchable catalog that consolidates the collections of 72,000 libraries in 170 countries and territories. It is an excellent resource for finding books not in our local library or within the libraries in our system. Access WorldCat here