Alexander Hamilton:
A Statesman worth Remembering
A Guide to Sources
[Introduction and Scope] [Subject Headings]
[Search Terms] [Dictionaries and
Encyclopedias/Ready Reference] [Biographical
Sources] [Bibliographical Sources] [Indexes and Abstracts] [Hamilton on the
Web] [Government Documents (and other Electronic
Sources)]
There are today divisions in
American society along economic, political, and ideological lines. These
divisions are, however, not new divisions. They can be traced back through
American history, and found to define events such as the Civil War. Continuing
back in time from the Civil War, the roots of the deepest of these divisions
can be discovered in the very founding of the American republic and its
competing visions and visionaries. The American world following the Revolution
was divided between the Hamiltonians and the Jeffersonians. Alexander Hamilton
is the lesser remembered of these two titans. A study of his life and career,
then, will lead to a better understanding of the issues that have historically divided
American society.
This
pathfinder is intended as a guide for college freshmen and sophomores to the
life and career of Alexander Hamilton, and more generally, as a starting point
for researchers of this subject. The literature in this pathfinder contains
information about
Subject Headings
The
following Library of Congress Subject Headings may be used to search the
library catalog for information relating to Alexander Hamilton. They are also useful
for searching the databases.
Hamilton,
Alexander, 1757-1804
United
States—Politics and government
Statesmen—United
States—Biography
Political
science—United States—History
United
States—History—Constitutional period, 1789-1809
Constitutional
law—United States
Economics—United
States—History
Public
finance—United States—History—1789-1801
Public
administration—United States—History
United
States—Foreign relations—1783—1815
The
main terms for searching the library catalog and the databases are listed here.
Additional
information can be gathered by using, in combination, the main search terms and
any key term from the subject headings. This will also serve to narrow the
focus as shown below.
Hamilton,
Alexander
Alexander
Hamilton
Alexander
Hamilton, Economics
Hamilton,
Alexander, Constitution
Alexander
Hamilton, Public credit [a subcategory of Economics]
Dictionaries and Encyclopedias/ Ready Reference
This
is a good place to start researching as the student or the general researcher
will get a relatively brief overview of the subject. These resources, due in
part to space consideration, generally present the information without bias and
with minimal interpretation. They describe the facts which make the subject one
worthy of study. After discovering the basic facts and general outline of
Hamilton’s life and work, the student or researcher can advance to more
detailed discussions of the subject. To access these resources, enter a title
search of the catalog using the terms listed here, and/or browse the shelves within
the given call numbers. Pay attention also to the bibliographies at the end of
the articles. Some may start to look familiar as the research process is continued.
This may say something about the reliability of these sources.
Dictionary
of American Biography
Dictionary
of American History
Encyclopedia
of American Biography
Encyclopedia
of American History
REF
E174 .C67 2002 through
Biographical Sources
Further
biographical essays, from a little over 200 words to over 3,600 words, can be
found at the database listed here. Access the database through the Hillsborough
Community College link below. Proceeding from the online article databases,
searching by subject, the student or the
researcher
can select "Biography." This will produce the database. Additionally,
by entering the first subject heading above in the OCLC, students and
researchers will get a short list of books and ebooks on the subject. Included
in the mix are two secondary source studies from Oxford University Press.
Choosing subject headings further down the list above will shift the focus and
produce books and ebooks about the founding period, with Hamilton as a player
in that period. The call numbers provided will lead to books about the Revolutionary
and Federalist Eras in general and Hamilton in specific. The history shelves
are arranged chronologically, so the Revolutionary Era books precede the
Federalist Era books.
Hillsborough
Community College. (2001-2009). HCC libraries.
Retrieved April 4, 2009, from http://content.hccfl.edu/library/resources/
Gale
Cengage Learning. (n.d.). Biography
resource center. Retrieved April 16, 2009 from Hillsborough Community
College, HCC Libraries Web site: http://content.hccfl.edu/library/
E195
.F47 2003 through
E334
.M45 2002
Bibliographical Sources
With
Hamilton, students and researchers are fortunate to have the availability of
many primary source documents. The Library of Congress website provides a
selected bibliography of works
by
Hamilton. Two sources are available online from the part of the website listed
here.
Library
of Congress. (January 22, 2009). Alexander
Hamilton resource guide: Bibliography (virtual programs & services). Retrieved
April 4, 2009 from http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/hamilton/bibliography.html
At
Hillsborough Community College, the history databases found to be the most
useful are listed below. Each of them can be accessed through the library’s
website. Proceeding from the online article databases, searching by subject,
the student or the researcher can select "History." This will produce
the databases. Search using the search term strategy as outlined above.
Starting with the second search term will produce articles which will further
the student's or the researcher’s knowledge of the subject in his many facets. From
there, the subject can be narrowed as indicated above by combining terms from
the subject headings. When using JSTOR it is helpful to do an advanced search
using the Boolean AND operator all three times to narrow the search, as this
database will return the most hits.
Hillsborough
Community College. (2001-2009). HCC libraries.
Retrieved April 4, 2009, from
http://content.hccfl.edu/library/resources/
EBSCOHost.
(2009). History reference center.
Retrieved April 15, 2009 from Hillsborough Community College, HCC Libraries Web
site: http://content.hccfl.edu/library/resources
WilsonWeb.
(2009). Humanities full text.
Retrieved April 16, 2009 from Hillsborough Community College, HCC Libraries Web
site: http://content.hccfl.edu/library/
JSTOR.
(2000-2009). JSTOR. Retrieved April
16, 2009 from Hillsborough Community College, HCC Libraries Web site:
http://content.hccfl.edu/library/
Over
the past several years, Hamilton projects have been developed as a way of
reintroducing this founder to Americans, as well as to satisfy an appetite by
the public for materials relating to the nation's founding period. The first
item listed toured the country as an exhibition, and now can be experienced on
the web. This exhibition can be used as the entry point of the research process
since it was produced as an introduction to Hamilton. The second item originally
aired as an installment of the American
Experience television series. The video, along with other features on
Hamilton’s life and era, turn this site into another exhibition. The third
website provides a link to debates and letters.
New-York
Historical Society. (2004). Alexander
Hamilton: The man who made modern America. Retrieved April 20, 2009 from
the World Wide Web: http://www.alexanderhamiltonexhibition.org/
PBS.
(Producer). (2007). Alexander Hamilton
[Motion picture]. In American experience.
Podcast and exhibition retrieved from WGBH: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/hamilton/
Library
of Congress. (November 20, 2008). American
founders online (virtual programs & services). Retrieved April 15, 2009
from http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/founders/
Government Documents (and other Electronic
Sources)
The
Library of Congress has a wealth of primary source documents pertaining to Alexander
Hamilton. At this website, students and researchers can explore some of
Hamilton’s ideas, as expressed by Hamilton, on government in general and on the
Constitution in particular. Notable dates in Hamilton’s life and career are
listed. The LOC website could serve as a one-stop electronic site for the
subject. There are links to exhibits of original documents, and although the
handwritten documents are impossible to read, their places in American history
are summarized.
Library
of Congress. (April 2, 2009). Alexander
Hamilton resource guide: Related resources (virtual programs & services).
Retrieved April 4, 2009 from http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/hamilton/related.html
______________________________________________________________________________
Created by Derrick Dunbar
School of Library and Information Science,
University of South Florida
LIS 6603-731: Basic Information Sources and
Services – Spring 2009