Decades: A Research Guide

It is often the daily activities versus the major events in history that go unrecorded. Many of those very fascinating and interesting facts can be found in the many resources below that tell just how life was back in the olden days. Chronologies often place people and events in perspective; however, it is the personal narrative that often tells more of the story. Resources can be found in the library and on the Internet to assist visitors in beginning their research. The terms and phrases listed in the subject headings below can be used to search for more materials in the library's catalog and research databases. If you need further assistance, please ask a librarian.

American Century by Harold Evans, Gail Buckland, and Kevin Baker. New York: Knopf, 1998. ISBN: 0679410708.
Short articles, photos and sidebars give perspective on the most significant personalities and political episodes of the century.

American Chronicles: Year by Year Through the Twentieth Century by Lois G. Gordon and Alan Gordon. New Haven , CT: Yale University Press, 1999. ISBN: 0300075871.
Chapters for each include major events in the news and selections of quotations and ads.

American Decades edited by Vincent Tompkins, et al. 10 vols. Detroit: Gale Research, 1994–2001. ISBN: 0810357224.
Each volume focuses on a particular decade (1900–1909, 1910–1919, etc.) and begins with a month by month chronology of events both within the United States and in the world at large. The remainder of the book is divided into broad categories like business, the arts, law, religion, sports, etc.

The American Years: A Chronology of United States History by Ernie Gross. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons/Macmillan Library Reference, 1999. ISBN: 0684805901.
General chronology beginning with 1776 and ending in the year 1997.

Chronicle of America by Clifton Daniel and John W. Kirshon. New York: Dorling Kindersley, 1997. ISBN: 0789420910.
Year by year compendium of key news stories and major events. This could be used to find events from specific years as well as specific decades. There are many illustrations, and the articles are easy to read.

Day by Day series published by Facts On File . Provides a day by day chronology of each day of a particular decade:

Day by Day: The Eighties by Ellen Meltzer and Marc Aronson. 2 vols. New York: Facts On File, 1995. ISBN: 0816015929.

Day by Day: The Fifties by Jeffrey D. Merritt and Steven L. Goulden. New York: Facts On File, 1979. ISBN: 0871963833.

Day by Day: The Forties by Thomas M. Leonard, Richard D. Burbank, and Steven L. Goulden. New York: Facts On File, 1977. ISBN: 0871963752.

Day by Day: The Seventies by Thomas M. Leonard, Cynthia Crippenk, and Marc Aronson. 2 vols. New York: Facts On File, 1996. ISBN: 081601020X.

Day by Day: The Sixties by Thomas Parker and Douglas Nelson. 2 vols. New York : Facts On File, 1983. ISBN: 0871966484.

DK Visual Timeline of the Twentieth Century edited by Simon Adams. New York: Dorling Kindersley, 1996. ISBN: 0789409976.
Covers major events and discoveries of the 20th century in chronological sequence.

Historic Events for Students: The Great Depression by Richard Clay Hanes and Sharon M. Hanes. 3 vols. Detroit: Gale Group, 2002. ISBN: 0787657018.
Covers all aspects of the era in great detail: economic and political, as well as the New Deal.

Twentieth Century America: A Primary Source Collection from the Associated Press. 10 vols. Danbury, CT : Grolier Educational, 1995. ISBN: 0717274942.
Twentieth-century chronology told by excerpts from Associated Press news stories.

U.S.A. Sixties. 6 vols. Danbury, CT: Grolier Educational, 2001. ISBN: 0717295036.
Encyclopedia about the 1960s. The entries are arranged alphabetically. Illustrated with photos, this work covers all aspects of the 1960s: political and cultural, as well as the arts.

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American Cultural History: The Twentieth Century
http://kclibrary.nhmccd.edu/decades.html
A series of Web guides on the decades of the 20th century. The pages are being prepared by the reference librarians at Kingwood College.

The Decades Project
www.ptsd.wednet.edu/district/resources/bookmarks/cn/centurynews.html
An index of Web sites arranged by decades from 1900–1990.

Infoplease: Year by Year
www.infoplease.com/yearbyyear.html
Lists notable events for each year and decade including U.S. and world history and events in economics, sports, entertainment, and science. Listings also include brief biographies of people who died during the decade.