While books provide the broad foundation for your research, scholarly articles offer precision and focus. Integrating journal articles is essential for developing a sharp, well-supported historical argument.
Access Cutting-Edge Research: New discoveries and groundbreaking arguments in history almost always appear in articles first. They give you a snapshot of the most current scholarship in the field.
Deep Dive into Specific Topics: An article will zoom in on a single event, person, or question, providing a level of detail that a broader book might not. Need to know about the role of women spies in the Civil War? There's probably an article for that.
See the Scholarly Debate in Action: Articles are often in direct conversation with each other. They allow you to see historians debating specific points and evidence, which can help you find your own place in the conversation.
How to Find Them
While you can find articles in Discovery Search System, going directly to a history database gives you more powerful search tools. Start with the Best Bets listed below.
Use Focused Keywords: Combine specific terms using AND to narrow your search (e.g., suffrage AND "Alice Paul" AND parades).
Filter Your Results: You can limit your search to "peer-reviewed" or "scholarly" journals to if needed, or explore other filters like years published, languages, and more.
Don't start by reading a 25-page article from start to finish like a book. Save time by reading strategically:
Start with the Abstract: This short summary at the beginning tells you the article's main argument and findings. You'll know immediately if it's relevant to your work.
Read the Introduction and Conclusion: These sections lay out the author's thesis (the argument) and summarize the evidence and conclusions. This is where the most important information lives.
Skim the Body Paragraphs: Read the first sentence of each paragraph to get a sense of the article's structure and the main points of evidence.
Read for What You Need: Once you understand the argument, dive into the sections that are most relevant to your own project to find specific quotes and evidence. OR, if it's a very relevant article to your research, do read the whole thing carefully.
Use articles to:
Support a specific point with focused evidence.
Introduce a counter-argument that you can then engage with.
Provide a detailed case study that illustrates a larger theme in your project.
Sometimes you'll find the perfect article, but our library doesn't have a direct subscription and you hit a paywall. Don't worry! We can get it for you through Interlibrary Loan (ILL).
If you're in Discovery Search System or a database, you might see a link that says "Request through Interlibrary Loan":
Click the link and log in with your XNumber. The form will usually be pre-filled with the article's information.
Submit the request.
We will request a digital copy from another library and email it directly to you as a PDF, usually within 3-5 business days, completely free.
You can also manually place interlibrary loan requests in your interlibrary loan account dashboard.