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.

Frederick B. Artz Summer Research Grants

The Oberlin College Archives established the Frederick B. Artz Summer Research Grants Program in 1990.

This research program, which is made possible by a grant from the Oberlin Historical and Improvement Organization, is intended to encourage and facilitate the publication of scholarly, humanistic studies based on archival and special collections sources at Oberlin College, with special emphasis on the history of the institution, Oberlin Community, and liberal arts education. Studies of a local nature involving the resources of both archival and special collections departments are especially encouraged.

See the list of past recipients of the award and their research topics.

Researchers will be selected on the quality and significance of their research proposal, its relationship to the holdings of the Oberlin College Archives and Oberlin College Library, and on the potential for publication.

The Special Collections Department

In addition to the records of the Oberlin College Archives, researchers will also be able to make use of the College Library's Special Collections Department, which houses works of a rare, valuable, or fragile nature. Among the more important collections are the following: antislavery books and pamphlets (over 2,500 items); Oberliniana (printed materials relating to Oberlin College and town or written by Oberlin graduates, faculty, or staff); pamphlets on women; Ohio Congregational Church records; history of printing (from incunables to modern fine press editions); Violin Society of America/Goodkind collection (over 2,500 books, journals, and ephemera about the making and playing of stringed instruments and their makers and players); and nineteenth-century travel and exploration.

Responsibilities

Award winners are required to make use of the collections at Oberlin during the summer (June 1 - August 30), at which time they must spend no less than three days conducting research in Oberlin. At the end of the research visit, a brief written report on how the funds were used and on individual publication plans is required.

Eligibility

Frederick B. Artz Summer Research Grant Awards at Oberlin College are open to graduate students, academic scholars, and qualified independent researchers. Applicants need not have an academic affiliation. The College Archives and Special Collections Departments welcome applicants from persons outside the United States.

Stipends

The maximum amount for an award is $1000.00. Reimbursements to award recipients are made based on the following categories: up to $600 for lodging and meals; up to $400 for transportation (automobile expense calculated by current per mileage rate offered by Oberlin College); and up to $100 for photocopies and digital scans. The Artz Application Review Committee determines the amount of each award (up to $1000.00) and specifies the dollar amount for each category.

Application Procedure

Applicants must submit a letter of interest and a completed application form by January 15th of the year in which support is requested. Announcements of Research Grant Awards will be mailed no later than April 1 of that grant year.

Download Application (PDF)

Download Application (Word document)

For more information about the Frederick B. Artz Summer Research Grant Program, please contact us.

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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.

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