Subject Guides     

Biographies Guide     

Text in BROWN indicates that the item is located in Hoover Library.

• For short biographies, see the list below as well as Encyclopedias and News Sources.
• For longer biographies, check our Catalog for books.

Biography Indexes

• Biography and Genealogy Master Index (BGMI). 2nd edition. 1975 to present.
  • (Call number: R 920 B615)
    
  • An index to publications with biographical information, both current and retrospective. Indexes only reference books containing multiple biographies; it does not index periodicals or books about only one individual. More than 12 million biographical sketches in total are indexed, emphasis on Americans.
• Biography Index. 1946 to present.
  • (Call number: Index 016.92 B615)
    
  • No cumulative index. Must check each volume. Mainly Americans.

General Collections of Biographies

• Academic Universe (LexisNexis)
  • Interviews, profiles, and obituaries.
  • Full text of U.S. and international newspapers, magazines, newsletters and journals; wire service reports; transcripts of television & radio news broadcasts; reviews, entertainment & sports news; Chronicle of Higher Education and student newspapers; foreign language news; and more.
  • Includes full text of the Baltimore Sun (1994 through current); New York Times (June 1980 through current; abstract from 1969 to May 1980); and Washington Post (1997 through current).
  • Note: This database provides text only, i.e. no images, charts, tables, etc.
• Biographical Dictionary
  • Very short bios.
• Biography.com: Search
  • Over 25,000 short biographies. Good for entertainers and media personalities.
• Current Biography. 1940-present.
  • (Call number: R 920 C976)
    
  • Biographies of prominent people the world over.

African-American Biographies

• History Universe: African American Studies (LexisNexis) Provided by the Maryland Digital Library.
  • Primary and secondary materials covering the colonial era to the present day, including major federal legislation, U.S. Supreme Court decisions, colonial legislation, colonial court cases, autobiographies, manuscript materials, scholarly articles, photographs, speeches, and government documents.
  • To access this database off campus, go to Maryland Digital Library, then click the "MdUSA" button, and login.

American Biographies
Dewey call numbers for biographical books on Americans: 920.073

• American National Biography (ANB). 24 volumes. 1999.
  • (Call number: R 920.073 A512)
    
  • Intended as successor to the DAB. Subjects must have died prior to 1996. An "American" also includes those who achieve fame and influence during their residence in the U.S. Includes a short bibliography.
• Biographical Directory of the United States Congress 1774 - Present
  • Brief professional/political biographies of Representatives, Senators, Delegates, Vice Presidents, Resident Commissioners, etc.
• Dictionary of American Biography (DAB) and Supplements. 1928-1996.
  • (Call number: R 920.07 M257)
    
  • Standard reference work. Includes a short bibliography.
• FBI's Freedom of Information Act Reading Room
  • Case files, mostly of famous people, from the Federal Bureau of Investigation released under the Freedom of Information Act.  Documents in PDF format. Files can be fairly large.
• Founding Fathers: Delegates to the Constitutional Convention (NARA)
  • Short biographies of the 55 delegates to the Constitutional Convention.
• Historical Biographical Series at the Maryland State Archives
  • African Americans, Artistis, Maryland Government Officials, Soldiers and Sailors, and Women in Maryland. Searchable.
• National Women's Hall of Fame
  • Honors extraordinary American women.
• POTUS: Presidents of the United States (Internet Public Library)
  • Includes links to biographies, speeches and writings, election results, odd facts and presidency highlights. Excellent site.
• U.S. Supreme Court Justices (Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School)
  • Brief biographies of all judges on the Supreme Court. Very little personal information.

British Biographies

Dewey call numbers for biographical books on British subjects: 920.042

• Dictionary of National Biography (DNB) and Supplements. 1885-1993.
  • (Call number: R 920 D554n)
    
  • British biographies. For subjects who died after 1900, look them up in the volume covering the decade in which they died.

Canadian Biographies

• Memorable Canadians (National Library of Canada)

Biographies of Marylanders

• Historical and Biographical Series at the Maryland State Archives
  • Biographies of Maryland African Americans, artists, government officials, medical practitioners, teachers, soldiers, sailors, and women in Maryland.

Nobel Laureates

• Nobel e-Museum
  • Official Web site of the Nobel Foundation. Includes biographies of laureates in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, peace, and economics. Searchable.
• Nobel Prize Internet Archives
  • Links to biographies of Nobel laureates in literature, physics, chemistry, peace, economics, and physiology and medicine.
• Nobel Laureates in Economic Sciences: A Biographical Dictionary. Ed. Bernard S. Katz. New York: Garland, 1989.
  • (Call number: R 330.0922 N744)
• Nobel Peace Prize and the Laureates: An Illustrated Biographical History, 1901-1987. Irwin Abrams. Boston: G.K. Hall and Co., 1988.
  • (Call number: R 327.1720922 A161)

Politicians and Statesmen's Biographies

• Biographical Directory of the United States Congress 1774 - Present
  • Brief professional/political biographies of Representatives, Senators, Delegates, Vice Presidents, Resident Commissioners, etc.
• Biographical Register of the Confederate Congress. Ezra J. Warner and W. Buck Yearns. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1975.
  • (Call number: R 328.75 W281)
• Founding Fathers: Delegates to the Constitutional Convention (NARA)
  • Short biographies of the 55 delegates to the Constitutional Convention.
• Political Graveyard
  • Tells where dead politicians are buried.
• POTUS: Presidents of the United States (Internet Public Library)
  • Includes links to biographies, speeches and writings, election results, odd facts and presidency highlights. Excellent site.

Scientists' Biographies
Dewey call numbers for biographical books on Scientists: 925

• 4000 Years of Women in Science: Biographies (University of Alabama)
  • Very short bios.
• Dictionary of Scientific Biography and Supplements. Multivolumes. 1970-1990.
  • (Call number: R 925 D554)
    
  • Biographies of scientists in the traditional fields of mathematics, astronomy, physics, chemistry, biology, and the earth sciences.
• Eric's Treasure Trove of Scientific Biography (Eric W. Weisstein)
  • Short biographies. Include references. Searchable.
• Nobel e-Museum
  • Official Web site of the Nobel Foundation. Includes biographies of laureates in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, peace, and economics. Searchable.
• Nobel Prize Internet Archives
  • Links to biographies of Nobel laureates.
• Notable Twentieth-Century Scientists. 4 volumes. New York: Gale Research, 1995.
  • (Call number: R 925 N899)
    
  • Biographies of scientists active in the 20th century in the natural, physical and applied sciences, and in computer science, ecology, engineering, and environmental science.
• SACNAS Biography Project (Society for Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science)
  • Brief autobiographies by Chicano/Latino and Native American scientists. Intended for K-12 programs.

Women Biographies

• 4000 Years of Women in Science: Biographies (University of Alabama)
  • Very short bios.
• Biography Collections: Women (Lives, the Biography Resource)
  • Links to online collections of women biographies.
• National Women's Hall of Fame
  • Honors extraordinary American women.
• See Subject Guide on Women's Studies for more biographies of women.

Writers' Biographies
Dewey call numbers for biographical books on Writers: 928

• Biographies of authors of Children's Literature.
• Contemporary Authors Series.
  • (Call number: R 928.1 C761)
    
  • A biographical-bibliographical guide to current writers in fiction, general nonfictin, poetry, journalism, drama, motion pictures, television and other fields, and their works. Includes the Autobiography Series.
• Dictionary of Literary Biography and Yearbook.
  • (Call number: R 928.1 D554)
    
  • A biographical-bibliographical guide to writers of literature. Ranges from brief entries to major treatments (up to 15,000 words). Cumulative index in latest yearbook.
• Directory of American Poets and Fiction Writers (Poets & Writers)
  • Search the online version which has over half the number of writers from the print edition.
• See also Subject Guide on Literature.