Practice of History: US and Asia's Cold War

Course Number:

HST 290

Instructor:

Chen, Yixin

Starting Points

Cold War, 1945-1991

3 Volumes. Volumes 1 & 2 profile leaders, Volume 3 contains a chronology, history, concepts, events, organizations, bibliography, archives.

Encyclopedia of the Korean War

3 Volumes. Volume 3 includes primary source documents, maps, chronology, glossary, bibliography and index.

Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War

3 Vollumes. Volume 3 includes primary source documents and index.

Articles & eResources

Those marked as EbscoHost databases can be searched simultaneously by going to the EbscoHost page and selecting the databases you wish to search.

Historical Abstracts

Indexes more than 1,800 academic historical journals in over 40 languages back to 1955. (EbscoHost)

America: History & Life

Companion to Historical Abstracts, this database indexes articles on the history of the US and Canada. (EbscoHost)

JSTOR

Full-text searching of an archive of over 165 history journals. Typically excludes the latest 3-5 years of publication.

Project MUSE

Full-text for over 300 scholarly journals, including over 60 history journals.

Academic Search Complete

A great database for any topic, this database indexes over 5,600 journals, with full-text access for 4,600. (EbscoHost)

Public Affairs Information Services (PAIS)

Indexes journals, books, government documents, reports from 1915-1976.

WorldCat

The cataloged holdings of 9,000 libraries, with a direct link to the UNCW ILLiad Interlibrary Loan service.

CQ Electronic Library

Full text for a variety of Congressional Quarterly publications, including the Congressional Quarterly Almanac, 1945-2009.

Google Scholar

Finds ciations to articles, books and book chapters. Also provides a sense of how many times the publication has been cited. From off-campus, links to full-text will not work, so be sure to use the "Have a citation? Looking for a journal?" link on the library homepage or the library catalog to see if the library provides access to the publication.

Using the Library Catalog

Click here to search the Library Catalog

The library catalog and WorldCat use Library of Congress Subject Headings. The list of authorized subject headings is available online from the Library of Congress Classification/Subject Headings database. However, you can also start with keyword searches to gather some relevant titles, then look at their subject headings to discover the official terms to use.

Search Tips:

Case does not matter. Punctuation marks are not needed.
Keyword searches will likely retrieve something on your subject. This type of search looks in practically all parts of the catalog record, and is the only way to access the data in the Contents Notes field of records. However, if you are not using the terms catalogers use to identify a subject, keyword searches may actually retrieve fewer items than a subject search.
Subject searches use a controlled vocabulary, bring more consistency to searches and organizing records by subtopics. Library of Congress Subject Headings are used in both the local catalog and in WorldCat. Even if Randall Library does not have books listed in the catalog under these headings, you will find them in WorldCat (and perhaps in other databases using LC Subject Headings.)

The Library of Congress Subject Headings for the Korean War include:

Korean War, 1950-1953 (many subdivisions provide specifics)

Narrower terms are:
Chipyong-ni, Battle of, Chipyong-ni, Korea, 1951
Imjin River, Battle of the, Korea, 1951
Inchon Landing, Inchon, Korea, 1950
Kochang Incident, Korea, 1951
Naktong Bulge, Battle of the, 1950
Operation Big Switch, 1953
Operation Little Switch, 1953
Tabu-dong, Battle of, Korea, 1951

These related terms may also yield relevant sources:
Korean Demilitarized Zone (Korea)
Korean reunification question, 1945-

War poetry, Korean
War stories, Korean

Vietnam War, 1961-1975 (many subdivisions provide specifics)

[name of battle or operation]
My Lai Massacre, Vietnam, 1968
Son Thang Incident, Vietnam, 1970
Tonkin Gulf Incidents, 1964
Vietnam -- History -- 1945-1975

Other related headings:

United States -- History --1945-1953 or 1961-1969
United States -- Foreign relations -- 1945-1953 or 1945-1989
United States -- Politics and government -- [various chronological periods since 1945]

Also consider keyword searches on personal names relevant to the Korean or Vietnam War. Typically, names are entered with the last name first, e.g., MacArthur, Douglas. Do both Author and Subject searches to find books by and about the individual.

Books & Library Materials

Encyclopedia of war & American society (ebook)

EBook format.

Cold War America, 1946 to 1990

Conflict in Korea : An Encyclopedia

Historical Dictionary of the Korean War

EBook format.

Historical dictionary of Vietnam

Korean War, an annotated bibliography

Encyclopedia of Cold War Espionage, Spies, and Secret Operations

Historical Dictionary of the Cold War

Historical Dictionary of the Korean War

Ebook format.

Historical dictionary of Vietnam

Historical Dictionary of the Vietnam War

Korean War : A Historical Dictionary

Korean War filmography : 91 English Language Features Through 2000

Vietnam Experience : A Concise Encyclopedia of American Literature, Songs, and Films

Vietnam War Films

American foreign relations since 1600 : a guide to the literature

Korean War: An Annotated Bibliography

Chronology of the Cold War, 1917-1992

Historical Atlas of the Vietnam war

Videos, DVDs & Music

On the library home page, you can select the "Find Videos" tab to search exclusively for video. You will also find videos in the library catalog as you search for books and other materials. To limit your search to videos in the library catalog, go to the "Advanced Keyword Search" option and use the "Material type" box to select videorecordings. Or, after performing a search, click the "Modify Search" or "Limit/Sort" button and select the material type videorecordings option there. You can also browse the documentary section by the same call number ranges mentioned under Books above.

Journals

Use the various databases and indexes to identify journal articles on your topic. The library has three journal titles dedicated to Cold War history. You may want to browse the contents for topic ideas.

Bulletin - Cold War International History Project

Cold War History

Journal of Cold War Studies

Websites

Some of the websites listed here provide primary sources as well as other background information about the conflicts. Websites that are devoted solely to providing primary sources are listed in the "Primary Sources" category below.

Central Intelligence Agency

Reports on intelligence analysis for the Cold War period can be found here.

Cold War International History Project

Hosted by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, this site provides new information and perspectives on the Cold War.

Southeast Asia Guide

From the University of Wisconsin Madison, this has a guide to print and internet resources by area.

Korean History: A Bibliography

Bibliography on all aspects and periods of Korean History, with a specific category for the Korean War.

Vietnam Center and Archive (Texas Tech University)

Includes oral histories and source documents.

Vietnam War Bibliography

Bibliography compiled by Edwin Moise, Clemson University.

Wars for Viet Nam: 1945 to 1975

Provides an overview and extensive collection of primary documents and links to other Vietnam websites. Developed by Robert Brigham, Vassar College.

U.S. Army Center of Military History: Online Bookshelves

Lists are arranged by conflict.

Department of Defense Korean War Anniversary

U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Korea

U.S. Naval Historical Center: Naval History and Heritage

Primary Sources

See the guide "Finding Primary Resources for Historical Research" for a more complete discussion of the library's resources.

Search the Randall Library catalog and WorldCat (see below for links) for history makers' names as authors. This should retrieve their memoirs, diaries, correspondence and other papers.

As you search subject topics in the catalog and WorldCat, note that the following subdivisions indicate primary source:
Archives*
Caricatures and cartoons
Correspondence*
Diaries*
Interviews
Newspapers [e.g., African Americans -- Newspapers]
Personal narratives (used in relation to specific events only)
Photographs
Pictorial works
Songs and music
Sources
Speeches, addresses, etc.*
Treaties

*Used with individuals' names,classes of persons (e.g., soldiers), and organizations.

Here are some primary source databases, bibliographies and collections to explore.

New York Times Archive

Full text of the NYT from 1851-3 years ago.

Readers' Guide Retrospective

Indexes popular magazines, 1890-1982.

Humanities & Social Sciences Index Retrospective

Indexes scholarly periodicals, 1907-1984.

Indexes journals, books, government documents, reports from 1915-1976.

Those Who Were There: Eyewitness Accounts of the War in Southeast Asia

Vietnam War Diary : The Month by Month Experiences of the U.S. Forces 1964-1975

Foreign Relations of the United States (University of Wisconsin Digital Collections)

Digital National Security Archive - (DNSA)

Public papers of the Presidents of the United States, Harry S. Truman

Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower

Public papers of the Presidents of the United States, John F. Kennedy

Public papers of the Presidents of the United States, Lyndon B. Johnson

Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States, Richard Nixon

Documentary History of the Truman Presidency

Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library: Primary Sources: Korean War

Harry S. Truman Library and Museum: The Korean War and Its Origins, 1945-1953

National Archives: Korean War Records

National Archives: Vietnam War Records

Centuries of Service: Military Chaplains

Randall Library Special Collections website of oral histories, books and other material on military chaplains. Contact Sue for a list of names associated with the Korean War and Vietnam War.