Directions:

Location:

Mary Church Terrell Main Library
148 W College St. Oberlin, OH 44074-1545

Parking:

The main visitor lot is the east Service Building lot, and the south row of the Carnegie Building lot for visitors to offices within that building.

Search Tools

Summon

Summon provides access to millions of sources of all types (books, articles, audio, videos, images, etc.) on nearly any subject. Summon searches many, but not all, Oberlin College Libraries resources; comprehensive research should include subject databases. It searches the full text of some, but not all, Oberlin books, including books that Oberlin only owns in print.

If you are looking for a specific book, film, or journal, use OBIS, our catalog. If you are looking for a specific journal article, use the Journal Finder. Summon also includes the collection of the Allen Memorial Art Museum as well as materials from other research centers and open access repositories.

Databases A-Z

The Databases A-Z list provides a complete alphabetical list of searchable databases accessible to you through the Oberlin College Libraries. The databases range from those that cover multiple subject areas, e.g. JSTOR or Web of Science, to more narrow research topics, e.g. SOCIndex.

They contain both citations and full text for ebooks, peer reviewed journals, newspapers, magazines, data sets, images, music, primary documents, and more. You will want to use them for finding credible and scholarly materials required for your college research.

If you are unsure which databases are best for your research topic try using the subject and type filters, consult a subject or course guide, Ask a Librarian, or make a research appointment.

OBIS Catalog

OBIS provides access to print and digital books, databases, audiovisual materials, journals, and course reserves. It is the best place to look up books, recordings, journals, and films by title to determine if you can access an item through Oberlin. To see if Oberlin has access to an individual article, use the journal list. OBIS makes it easier to search by subject heading than Summon does, but it does not index the full-text of any books.

In addition to books available at Oberlin through OBIS, patrons also have access to collections from a number of public, university, and college libraries in the state of Ohio through Oberlin College’s partnership with the OhioLink consortium and SearchOhio.

Journal Finder

The Journal Finder lists in one place every print and electronic journal, magazine, and newspaper available through both paid subscriptions and reputable open access platforms. Use the Journal Finder to see if Oberlin subscribes to these publications, to see if they're available online, or to compare coverage dates across databases or subscription services.

The Journal Finder will not allow you to search by article title to determine if Oberlin owns an item - you must search by publication title (e.g. Nature or The New York Times) and then navigate through the volume and issue and year provided by the citation. If you want to search by article title, search for the article from Summon.

OhioLINK Catalog

A virtual statewide library that displays information for items owned by OhioLINK libraries, a consortium of over 100 college, university, and research libraries in Ohio. Items described include books, journals and periodicals, audiovisual materials, sound recordings, electronic resources, government documents, archives and manuscripts, maps, and music scores.

The catalog provides bibliographic descriptions and indicates where copies are located and whether or not copies are available. The OhioLINK Central Catalog allows for delivery of requested items to a member library of your choice. Terrell Main Library is Oberlin’s pickup location for OhioLINK items. OhioLINK's design allows you to transfer a search from our local library catalog, OBIS, to the OhioLINK combined catalog with the touch of a button. Likewise, a search can just as easily transfer from OhioLINK or OBIS to the public library network Search Ohio.

WorldCat

WorldCat contains more than 43 million records describing books and other items owned by libraries around the world. You can search for popular books, music, CDs, and videos—all of the physical items you're used to getting from libraries. You can also discover digital content, such as downloadable audiobooks. Use InterLibrary Loan to order materials that you locate on WorldCat.

Research Guides

Course Guides

Course Guides are organized collections of resources created for the research and information needs of students in specific courses. Research strategies and library services are also included.

Source Type Guides

Oberlin College librarians have identified the best platforms for finding resources by source type, including newspapers, magazines, dissertations and theses, books, music, primary sources, and more. Some guides also provide search tips and techniques.

Subject Guides

Research guides are the gateway to library collections and resources. Created and maintained by Oberlin College & Conservatory reference and subject librarians, Guides by Subject are organized by their relevant subject areas to provide a detailed list of recommended scholarly sources, including: databases; internet and digital resources; and the libraries’ collections of books, journals, magazines, music, art, DVDs, etc.

Guides also help you develop search strategies, cite sources and manage bibliographic references, and lead to a librarian who can provide further assistance. Subject guides are displayed alphabetically.

Celebrating Our 2022 Graduating Student Employees

May 24, 2022

Keyes D. Metcalf, wood engraving.
Above image: Wood engraving of Keyes D. Metcalf by Eric May

The end of the spring semester is approaching, which sadly means we will soon have to say goodbye to our graduating student employees. The support these hard-working students provide helps us maintain our outstanding services for the Oberlin Community. Today we will be saying thank you to them with our annual Metcalf Reception, named in honor of Keyes D. Metcalf (OC Class of 1911), OCL's very first student employee who worked as an assistant to the College's Librarian, Azariah Smith Root, in both the Spear and Carnegie libraries. Mr. Metcalf's library career continued for eight decades and included positions as the head of the Research Library at New York Public Library, the director of the Harvard University Library, and President of the American Library Association.*

Photo collage of 2022 graduating student employees.
Above image: Photo collage of the Class of 2022 OCL Student Employees

We would like to say a very special thank you to our graduating student employees and wish them all the best as they, like Keyes Metcalf, enter the next phase of their lives and make their mark on the world. To learn more about our grads, stop by the Academic Commons of the Terrell Main Library where you can view a display that highlights their favorite library moments, upcoming plans, and more.

THANK YOU TO
Lucy Baek
Morgan Chan
Corley Friesen-Johnson
Estrella Gomez Hernandez
Jenna Hoover
Janelle Ickes
Dan Kennedy
Ryan Kim
Veronica Mahoney
Megan McLaughlin
Paige Monyak
Ella Moxley
Adam Murphy
Savannah Nine
Abby Parker
Lindsey Pfenninger
Ramie Puangkam
Pearl Puzik
Natasha Radic
Cammy Riemann
Harper Ross
Etta Schaye
Zoe Senese-Grossberg
Zachary Slimak
Yuqing Tao
Yuchen Wang
Owen Welch

Graduating student workers in golden Metcalf stoles and graduation robes, standing on steps to Wilde

Above image: Group photo of students at the 2022 Metcalf Reception

*For more information about Keyes D. Metcalf, please contact archive@oberlin.edu.

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Learn More About Our Libraries

Course Guides ? Course Guides are organized collections of resources created for the research and information needs of students in specific courses. Research strategies and library services are also included.

Source Type Guides ? Oberlin College librarians have identified the best platforms for finding resources by source type, including newspapers, magazines, dissertations and theses, books, music, primary sources, and more. Some guides also provide search tips and techniques.

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Celebrating Our 2022 Graduating Student Employees

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Course Guides

Course Guides are organized collections of resources created for the research and information needs of students in specific courses. Research strategies and library services are also included.

Source Type Guides

Oberlin College librarians have identified the best platforms for finding resources by source type, including newspapers, magazines, dissertations and theses, books, music, primary sources, and more. Some guides also provide search tips and techniques.