A History of the 1960s

This guide is to help you find information for your 9th grade history of the 1960's seminar. Beginning with the reference section, the guide takes you through the process of using library catalogs and periodical indexes to find books, articles and other materials, and provides a list of recommended media, primary sources, and websites, covering a range of topics relevant to the 1960s. If you need help finding materials, ask your teacher or a librarian.

Reference. Reference is a great place to start your research. Use an encyclopedia, dictionary, or handbook for background information; look for names, dates, places, and events to help focus your research.

Print
Bradley, D. & Fishkin, S. (Eds.) (1998). Encyclopedia of civil rights in America. Armonk, NY: Sharpe Reference.
Ø The historical range of this three-volume set goes beyond the 1960s, but there are entries on individuals, court cases, and events central to the civil rights movements of the sixties. There are over 300 black and white photographs and 683 articles. Items are alphabetical for easy access and an extensive index helps locate all topics.

Hamilton, N. (1997). ABC-CLIO companion to the 1960s counterculture in America. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.
Ø An encyclopedic overview of the people, groups and events that challenged the cultural and social norms of mainstream America. Entries are listed alphabetically for quick and easy access.

Kutler, S.I. (Ed.) (1996). Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
Ø This encyclopedia uses essays and short topical articles, to examine such topics as the background of American military intervention, the military history of the war, the impact of the war on the Vietnamese people, the anti-war movement, and the role of the American media. The essays, presenting different political perspectives, provide a good starting point for critical discussion of the social, political and military aspects of the period.

Layman, R. (Ed.) (1994). American decades 1960-1969. Detroit, MI: Gale Research.
Ø Volume Seven of this multi-volume set chronicles the Sixties, considering the decade from thirteen perspectives (business, arts, music, sports, medicine). Nicely laid out and easy to use, information is presented in each section through essays, people profiles, publication lists, tables, and interesting sidebars. There is an extensive bibliography at the end.

Olson, J.S. (Ed.) (1999). Historical dictionary of the 1960s. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Ø This dictionary is good for brief explanations of the military, social, cultural, religious and diplomatic events that shaped the decade and for finding short biographies of prominent individuals. A reference list at the end of the dictionary provides a list of titles for further study.

Singleton, C. (Ed). (1999). The sixties in America. Pasadena, CA: Salem Press.
Ø Through essays and topical entries, along with hundreds of photographs and tables, this three-volume set provides in-depth coverage of major events of the decade and the radical changes that took place in art, science and technology, business, government and gender issues. Organized alphabetically, with an annotated bibliography, fourteen appendices and an extensive index, it is easy to use and highly informative.

On -Line
Biography resource center. Gale Group, a Thomson Company.
Ø This reference database has biographical information on over 320,000 individuals. While its historical coverage goes well beyond the 1960s, it includes narrative entries, graphics and links to journal articles on important cultural, social and political figures from the Sixties. Access through the Seattle Public Library, where the databases are listed alphabetically.

Discovering collection. Gale Group, a Thomson Company
Ø Use Discovering Collection to find essays, in-depth articles, biographies, timelines and primary source documents covering U.S. and world history. You can do a basic search by keyword or limit your search by subject or document type (biography, event overview, primary document). Access through Nova's On-Line Information Resources.

Library Catalogs. To find books, videos/DVDs, and CDs, search the on-line catalog at Seattle Public Library, the University of Washington or Seattle Central Community College. You need to be a student at UW and SCCC to check out books but you can use books in their libraries. Search by book title, by author, or by keyword(s), using your own terms related to your topic.

The Seattle Public Library uses the Dewey Decimal System to organize their collection. For books and other items on the general topic of the 1960s look in the 973.92s.

The University of Washington and Seattle Community Colleges use the Library of Congress classification system. Books about the 1960s can be found in E: General History and HN: Social History. You can also do a subject search on these Library of Congress subject headings:

Civil Rights Movement
Feminism
Nineteen Sixties
Popular Culture - United States - History - 20th Century
United States - History - 1961-1969
Vietnamese Conflict - 1961-1975

Periodical Databases. Use indexes to find articles from journals, magazines and newspapers. Articles from scholarly journals are an important source for current analysis of historical events and issues.

Expanded Academic Index. Gale Group, a Thomson Company.
Ø Expanded Academic Index is an index for over 3,000 periodicals in all subject areas. Search for articles, many full text, in scholarly journals and popular magazines, ranging from the Journal of American Culture to Film Commentary to Vogue. Coverage is from 1980 to the present. Access through the Seattle Public Library.

NY Times Historical Backfile. ProQuest Information and Learning Company.
Ø This database contains issues of the New York Times dating back to 1851. Every issue is digitized from cover to cover providing access news stories, editorials, photos, advertisements and reviews. This is a good resource for primary source material. Access through the Seattle Public Library.

ProQuest Direct. ProQuest Information and Learning Company.
Ø ProQuest provides access to thousands of current periodicals and newspapers, with many full text articles. Use keywords for simple and advance searches or search within a specific periodical title. For historical essays and analysis, limit your searches to scholarly journals. Access this database through the Nova On-Line Resources webpage or Seattle Public Library.

Media. Documentaries, feature length films, television programs, and radio are rich sources of historical evidence. There are many excellent titles available. Search the library catalog for more; the list below just skims the surface.

Green, R. & Hoffman, D. (Producers). (1991). Making sense of the Sixties. [Television series]. Washington, DC: WETA, Washington Varied Directions.
Ø This six-part, PBS series provides an overview of the political and cultural changes that swept the nation, as experienced by active participants, critics and bystanders. The documentary contains over one hundred interviews from anti-war activists, musicians, former hippies, authors, and parents. Available on VHS at the Seattle Public Library.

Hampton, H. (Producer). (1986) Eyes on the Prize, I, America’s civil rights years 1954-1964. [Television series]. Alexandria, VA: Blackside, Inc.

Hampton, H. (Producer). (1990). Eyes on the Prize, II, America at the racial crossroads 1964-1972. [Television series]Alexandria, VA: Blackside, Inc.
Ø This PBS series documents the Civil Rights Movement from 1954 to 1972. Significant events and issues that shaped the movement are examined, with a focus on the extraordinary actions of ordinary people, from the lynching of Emmett Till, to lunch room sit-ins, to the rise of the Black Panther Party, Malcolm X and black nationalism. Through archival footage and present-day interviews, this transforming period of U.S. history is vividly brought to life. Available on VHS at the Seattle Public Library.

KUOW. 94.9 Public Radio. Seattle, WA. (http://www.kuow.org)
Ø Use keywords to search the archives of Seattle’s public radio station to find interviews, music and informational segments reflecting on the political and social upheaval of the 1960s and their relevance today.

Schneider, B. (Producer). (1974). Hearts and minds . [Motion picture]. United States: Touchstone-Audjeff Production.
Ø Award winning feature length documentary examining the ideologies and attitudes that led to American involvement in Vietnam, told through archival news footage and interviews of key players both for and against the war. Contact your local video store for rental availability.

Websites. There are many excellent websites with information on various aspects of the 1960s. With a website (as with any information source), you want to be certain that the information you are looking at is accurate and reliable. This means careful evaluation and not simply accepting what is there at face value. Websites can also be an excellent resource for locating primary sources. When looking at a primary source document from a website it is important to determine where the document(s) came from. See Evaluating Resources for some tips.

1968 revisited. (http://www.nyu.edu/library/bobst/collections/exhibits/arch/Homepg/Index.html)
Ø A project of the New York University Archives, this website, through narratives and graphics, provides a historical retrospective of the politics and culture of student life at NYU in the 1960s. There is also helpful timeline with links to historical newspaper articles.

American Memory. (http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/index.html)
Ø Search and browse more than 7,000 primary source materials - maps, documents, movies, and photographs - relating to U.S. history and culture. This site is a project of the National Digital Library at the Library of Congress.

Battlefield: Vietnam. (http://www.pbs.org/battlefieldvietnam)
Ø This website is a companion to the PBS American Experience series, “Vietnam: A Television History.” Through a who’s who, a timeline, and first person narratives, it examines the war, its personal, political and economic costs, and its legacy.

Civil rights in Mississippi. A digital archive. McCain Library and Archives, University of Southern Mississippi. http://www.lib.usm.edu/~spcol/crda/index.html)
Ø Fully searchable database of digitized versions of rare, archival material documenting Mississippi’s role in the Civil Rights movement, containing oral histories (some with audio excepts) from local civil rights leaders and activists, manuscripts, letters, diaries and photographs. Sponsored by the University of Southern Mississippi.

Documents from the Women’s Liberation Movement. Duke University. (http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/wlm)
Ø From Duke University, this on-line archival collection documents the Women's Liberation Movement in the United States, with a focus on the radical origins of this movement during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Search the site by subject or keyword and view Links for further research suggestions.

Greensboro Sit-In: Launch of the Civil Rights Movement. (http://www.sitins.com/index.shtml)
Ø Website documenting the sit-in in 1960, by four African-Americans, at a whites-only lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina. This is highly interactive site uses audio interviews with the participants, newspaper articles, and photographs to tell its story. Also includes links to several civil rights websites.

Voices from the Underground: Radical Protest and the Underground Press in the “Sixties.” University of Connecticut Libraries. 2001. (http://www.lib.uconn.edu/online/research/speclib/ASC/exhibits/voices)
Ø Website developed from an exhibit held at Fairfield University in Connecticut during 1999 documenting the rise of alternative media during the 1960s. Includes graphics, with accompanying narrative, from underground newspapers and magazines.

The Whole World Was Watching: An Oral History of 1968. Brown University. (http://www.stg.brown.edu/projects/1968)
Ø Transcripts, audio recordings and edited stories of interviews conducted in 1998 of Rhode Islanders active in the civil rights and anti-war movements during 1968, covering transformative events, such as the Vietnam War, the assassination of Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy, as well as their own personal memories. A joint project between South Kingstown High School and Brown University's Scholarly Technology Group.

Evaluating Resources. Always evaluate information and its source carefully. Websites are particularly challenging. Below are five criteria to apply when evaluating the quality of information sources.

Authority. Who is responsible?	Accuracy. Is this for real?
Objectivity. What is the purpose of the site?	Currency. How timely is this?
Coverage. What's included? Excluded?

Citing Sources. You will need to include a bibliography as part of your research project. Do not wait until you have completed your research to compile your bibliography. As you are working, keep a list of all of the resources you are using. For books, write down the full title, author’s name, publication date, city and company, the chapter, volume and page number, if appropriate. For journal or newspaper articles, keep track of the title and author of the article, journal name, date, the volume, issue and page number, and, if appropriate, the name of the database and date accessed.

Reference	Library Catalogs	Periodical Indexes	Media
Websites	Evaluating Resources	Citing Sources