LibGuides: Revolutionary War and Early Nation Biographies: Getting Started

Where to start...

The strongest researchers spend their energy at the beginning of the research process reading around the topic.

Research topics can often feel daunting if you do not start with a strong foundation of understanding. So take time at the beginning of your research to access sources that are well oraganized with basic background information about your topic - such as an encyclopedia database.

Encyclopedia Databases

Read Around Your Topic

Encylopedia Databases

During the beginning stages of your research, reading around your topic helps you to:

Build a foundation of understanding.
Find a path for your research.
Identify important key terms, events, and people for your research.

Encyclopedia Databases provide thorough background information on a variety of topics and are a strong resource at this stage of research.

Databases

Biography Websites

You may find interesting people to study in one of the websites below.

ABC-CLIO American History List of American Revolution Biographies
This is a list of biographies about the American Revolution in the ABC-CLIO database. Look for biographies of women, Black Americans, native peoples, or from other marginalized communities.
Black Past: 18th Century (1700-1799)
This is a collection of articles about Black history during the 18th century. Look for biographies of people in the United States for this research. In this link are articles about events and people from around the world.
National Women's History Museum Biographies
This is a collection of biographies of women from US History. Search for women associated with the American Revolution or New Nation period.
Biography.com : Influential Native Americans List
This is a collection of biographies of Native Americans. Look for those who are connected with the American Revolution and the New Nation period.
Africans in America PBS: American Revolution
This is an article about the history of the Black Americans during the American Revolution, you can find mention of and links to a number of individuals.
New Jersey State Library: Blacks in the Revolutionary Era
An article about Black Americans during the Revolutionary War. You can find mention of a number of individuals in the text, but there is also a list of prominent Black Americans during this time below the article.
Gilder Lehrman: The Indians’ War of Independence
An article about Native American's during the American Revolution.
6 Foreign-Born Heroes of the American Revolution
A list of immigrants who were key figures of the Revolutionary Era.