Includes:
There are too many reference sources on the Internet for all to be listed on our pages. Below, we've listed some web sites we've found especially useful. They are arranged by type of reference work, or by subject.
ALMANACS
BIOGRAPHIES
In the First Person: An Index to Letters, Diaries, Oral Histories, and Other Personal Narratives
National Academy of Science: Biographical Memoirs
Biographical Memoirs are brief biographies of deceased National Academy of Sciences members, written by those who knew them or their work. These biographies provide a personal and scholarly view of the lives and work of America's most distinguished scientists and a biographical history of science in the United States.
BOOKS, JOURNALS, and PUBLISHING
Bartleby.com
"Great books online"
DPLA: The Digital Public Library of America
DPLA strives to contain the full breadth of human expression, from the written word, to works of art and culture, to records of America’s heritage, to the efforts and data of science. It aims to expand the realm of openly available materials, and make those riches more easily discovered and more widely usable and used.
New York Times Books on the Web
Contains more than 50,000 book reviews, author interviews, and book news articles that appeared in the newspaper and the New York Times Book Review since 1980. Free registration is required.
BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC INFORMATION
American FactFinder
Economic and population statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau
Beige Book
Summary of Commentary on Current Economic Conditions by Federal Reserve District
Bureau of Economic Analysis and its publication, the Survey of Current Business
Business Research
Produced by Justia, Virtual Chase
County Business Patterns
The County Business Patterns database provides county, state, and national level business data from 1977 to the most recent year available.
Economic Census Data, U.S. Census Bureau
The Economic Census profiles American business every 5 years, from the national to the local level
Economic Indicators
Available from April 1995 forward, this monthly compilation is prepared for the Joint Economic Committee by the Council of Economic Advisors and provides economic information on prices, wages, production, business activity, purchasing power, credit, money and Federal finance.
Electronic Data Gathering Analysis and Retrieval (EDGAR)
Provides 10-K, 20-F, proxy statements, some annual reports, and other financial statements of public companies filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
FedBizOpps.gov
FedBizOpps.gov (Federal Business Opportunities) is the single government point-of-entry for Federal government procurement opportunities over $25,000. Government buyers are able to publicize their business opportunities by posting information directly to FedBizOpps.
Survey of Income and Program Participation, U.S. Census Bureau
Thomasnet.com, the Thomas Register on the Internet
A database of 170,000 U.S. and Canadian companies classified under more than 72,000 product and service headings.
CAREERS
O*Net Online
O*NET Online provides hundreds of occupation-specific entries for job seekers, employment professionals, and those interested in exploring different career tracks. It is created for the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment & Training Administration.
Occupational Outlook Handbook
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
USAJOBS
Search for a job with the U.S. Federal Government
CITATION and STYLE MANUALS
Introduction to Basic Legal Citation
By Peter W. Martin (Cornell Law School)
Research and Documentation Online
Research and Documentation in the Electronic Age, 5th ed., by Diana Hacker and Barbara Fister
CONSUMER INFORMATION
E-how
This site provides instructions on how to do (just about) anything.
Epinions.com
"Unbiased reviews by real people."
Recalls.gov
Produced by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
COPYRIGHT and PATENTS
U.S. Copyright Office Fair Use Index
The Fair Use Index tracks a variety of judicial decisions to help both lawyers and non-lawyers better understand the types of uses courts have previously determined to be fair—or not fair.
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
DICTIONARIES and THESAURI
ENCYCLOPEDIAS
ENGLISH LANGUAGE
Common Errors in English Usage
By Paul Brians
The Elements of Style
By William Strunk, Jr.
Quick and Dirty Tips, from "Grammar Girl" Mignon Fogarty
GOVERNMENT
The Avalon Project at the Yale Law School
Major U.S. and international documents in law, history and diplomacy, from ancient times to the present
Core Documents of American Democracy
Provided by the Government Publishing Office
USA.gov
The U.S. Government's official web portal
The Plum Book
United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions, 2016 Edition
HEALTH INFORMATION
Global Health Observatory
A portal to online health data and analysis provided by the World Health Organization
Healthfinder
Sponsored by the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Health News Review.org
Health News Review provides objective reviews of media stories covering therapeutic claims.
Native Health Database
The Native Health Database contains bibliographic information and abstracts of health-related articles, reports, surveys, and other resource documents pertaining to the health and health care of American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Canadian First Nations.
Oncolink
Cancer information sponsored by the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania.
Travelers' Health
Sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this site assists travelers and their health-care providers in deciding the vaccines, medications, and other measures necessary to prevent illness and injury during international travel.
WomensHealth.gov
Sponsored by the National Women's Health Information Center (NWHIC), Office on Women's Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
INTERNATIONAL
embassy.org
The Electronic Embassy provides information on each of the embassies in Washington D.C., with links to Web-based resources where available.
World News From Reuters, UPI, and the Associated Press
Worldwide NGO Directory
Provided by the World Association of Non-Governmental Organizations (WANGO)
MAILING INFORMATION
ZIP Code Lookup
United States Postal Service
MAPS and GAZETTEERS
Atlas Obscura
A collaborative project that looks for the most unusual, hidden, secret, or otherwise amazing places in the world.
Color Landform Atlas of the United States
Color relief maps
David Rumsey Map Collection
An extensive digitized gallery of maps, globes, atlases, charts, school geographies, and material in other formats. The site focuses on "cartography of the Americas from the 18th and 19th centuries," but has offerings from all over the world.
Geographic Names Server
Information about names of geographic features in the United States and Antarctica.
GEONet Names Server
Information about foreign geographic feature names.
Map History / History of Cartography
Old maps, early maps - non-current maps in general - are the subject of this site.
MapQuest
Maps, driving directions, live traffic reports, directories, and travel guide.
National Map Small-Scale Collection
Provided by the U.S. Geological Survey, replaces the National Atlas
Social Explorer
Visually explore demographic data, create and share maps, presentations, and tables
U.S. Gazetteer Files
U.S. Census Bureau
SPEECHES
American Rhetoric
Includes the Online Speech Bank, a database of and index to 5000+ full text, audio and video versions of public speeches, sermons, legal proceedings, lectures, debates, interviews, and other recorded media events.
Inaugural Addresses of the Presidents of the United States
From George Washington to Donald J. Trump
STANDARDS
STATISTICS
CensusScope
CensusScope is an easy-to-use tool for investigating U.S. demographic trends, brought to you by the Social Science Data Analysis Network at the University of Michigan.
Data and Statistics about the United States
Contains links to Federal agencies that produce statistical information.
Guide to State Statistical Abstracts
U.S. Census Bureau
International Database
Population statistics, U.S. Census Bureau
Population Reference Bureau Data Finder
This database contains data on 137 population, health, and environment variables for more than 220 countries, 28 world regions and sub-regions, and the world as a whole. Not all countries have data on all variables.
UNdata: A World of Information
UNdata pools major UN databases and those of several international organizations into a single entry point for easy access.
WEATHER
Updated October 2021