When I give talks on research to various writers' groups around the country, this is the handout I use.  It contains many of my favorite reference books. 

DIGGING FOR TREASURE: RESEARCHING THE HISTORICAL
Barbara Dawson Smith

1. Why research?

    a. Give your book an aura of authenticity

    b. Assume at your own risk

2. Where to begin?

    a. Determine locale and time period

    b. Read both primary and secondary sources

3. Primary Source: written during the time period

    a. Novels

    b. Plays

    c.  Newspapers

    d. Magazines

    e.  Diaries: everyday life, weather, home remedies, etc.

    THE DIARIES OF HANNAH CULLWICK, VICTORIAN MAIDSERVANT edited by Liz Stanley

    LETTERS OF A WOMAN HOMESTEADER by Elinore Pruitt Stewart (1909)

    INCIDENTS IN THE LIFE OF A SLAVE GIRL by Linda Brent

    f. Nature diaries

    THE COUNTRY DIARY OF AN EDWARDIAN LADY by Edith Holden (1906)

    JANET MARSH'S NATURE DIARY (Hampshire, England)

    g. Catalogues

    MONTGOMERY WARD & CO., 1895

    BLOOMINGDALE'S ILLUSTRATED 1886 CATALOG

    h. Encyclopedias

    BURROUGH'S ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF ASTOUNDING FACTS AND USEFUL INFORMATION (1889)

    i. Almanacs

    THE WORLD ALMANAC: COMMEMORATIVE EDITION, 1868

    ENQUIRE WITHIN UPON EVERYTHING (1856)

   j. Children's books

    LONDON TOWN: A TOUR OF VICTORIAN LONDON by Thomas Crane and Ellen Houghton (1883)

4. Secondary Source: a modern-day study of the past

    a. Historical magazines: AMERICAN HISTORY ILLUSTRATED, COLONIAL WILLIAMSBURG, BRITISH HERITAGE, THE REGENCY PLUME ($15/1 yr.: 711 D Street NW, Ardmore, OK 73401)

    b. Cookbooks: home remedies, household hints

    18th c. England: DINNER WITH TOM JONES by Lorna Sass (1977)

    Victorian England: MRS. BEETON: 100 YEARS OF COOKERY & HOUSEHOLD MANAGEMENT by Graham Nown (1986)

    Colonial America: EARLY AMERICAN COOKERY, YE GENTLEWOMAN'S HOUSEWIFERY by Margaret Huntington Hooker (1896)

    Pioneer: THE LITTLE HOUSE COOKBOOK by Barbara M. Walker (1979)

    American: THE AMERICAN HERITAGE COOKBOOK AND ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF AMERICAN EATING & DRINKING (1964)

    c. Paper dolls by Tom Tierney, published by Dover

    d. Fashion books: see attached list

    LADY'S GALLERY Magazine ($23.95/1 yr., POB 1761, Independence, MO 64055)

    e. Timeline books

    HISTORY'S TIMELINE by Jean Cooke, Ann Kramer, Theodore Rowland-Entwistle (1981)

    THE TIMETABLES OF AMERICAN HISTORY ed. by L. Urdang

    f. Nature books

    PLANTS OF THE BRITISH ISLES by Barbara Nicholson (1986)

    NORTH AMERICAN WILDLIFE (Reader's Digest)

    THE COLLINS GUIDE TO THE BIRDS OF BRITAIN AND EUROPE by Heinzel, Fitter, and Parslow (1972)

    g. Biographies

    h. Everyday life books (social histories)

    EVERYDAY THINGS IN AMERICAN LIFE, 1776-1876 by William Chauncy Langdon (1941)

    A HISTORY OF EVERYDAY THINGS IN ENGLAND series by Marjorie & C.H.B. Quennell (1961)

    WHAT JANE AUSTEN ATE AND CHARLES DICKENS KNEW by Daniel Pool (1993)

    FRONTIER LIVING by Edwin Tunis (1961)

    FOXFIRE series, ed. by Eliot Wigginton (1968)

5. Where do I find research books?

    a. Public Library

        i. Find a call # in the subject index and check shelf for other books that cover the same topic

        ii. Houston Public Library Telephone Reference: 713-236-1313

    b. Bibliographies listed in back of reference books

    c. Interlibrary Loan

    d. University, medical, and specialty libraries

    e. Book catalogues

    f. Library book sales

    g. Historical places: plantations, battlegrounds, museums, famous homes

6. How can I research a location if I can't go there?

    a. Travel agency brochures

    b. Magazines: NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, TRAVEL & LEISURE, etc.

    c. TV documentaries

    d. Talk to someone who's traveled there

    e. Chambers of Commerce, Tourist Bureaus

    f.  Books, ie., DOROTHY WADSWORTH'S ILLUSTRATED LAKELAND JOURNALS (diary written in early 1800's)

    g. The internet.

7. What if I still can't find an answer to my question?

    a. Library in locale

    b. Historical societies

    c. Expert in the field, such as a museum curator

8. How does research make the story come alive?

    a. Use details of everyday life rather than textbook history.

"How are your hands?"

"My hands?" Maggie released one of the reins and glanced at her left palm. Farm work had strengthened her muscles, but the leather from the reins had rubbed her raw. A row of blisters had formed on her tender skin. "What about them?"

"You should be wearin’ gloves, little lady."

"Thanks for the advice." Green as she was, even she had known that. Gloves would have been nice for protection and to ward off the morning frost, but they were a luxury she couldn’t afford.

The old man shrugged as if to say he’d done his best. "By the time we get to Missouri, you’re gonna have calluses to last you a lifetime."    --SWEET ESCAPE by Susan Macias

    b. Set the mood with significant details.

Laura gasped. With an unsteady hand, she held a sharp stiletto made of glass. It was curiously light, cold and delicate to the touch. A deadly weapon that weighed no more than a paint brush. Inside, a pale, cloudy liquid slid to and fro. Poison, she realized, resisting the urge to throw it down and run. --LORD OF THE NIGHT by Susan Wiggs

c. Make a picture for the reader.

Isabel turned the corner of the alleyway and hastened along the side street toward the square. Here, the erratic mist hung deeper and denser than in the mews. Tree branches poked like black, skeletal hands out of the fog. The hollow clopping of hooves echoed from the distance and then faded. How eerie to walk the deserted pavement, to see no carriages or delivery drays rattling along, no servants hurrying on a master’s errand. A sense of utter aloneness made her shiver.

Quickening her steps, Isabel slipped her fingers into her pocket and gripped the handle of the dagger. She kept her gaze on a misty yellow beacon at the far corner of the square. The gas lamps would light her way through the darkness.     --HER SECRET AFFAIR by Barbara Dawson Smith

d. Make history entertaining.

Sarah set down her jar and stepped into the shade of the temple. The cool floor soothed her sore feet. In the center of the room stood a waist-high statue. Rounded at the top, it was shaped like a thick sausage standing on end. A string of withered marigolds lay at the base, someone's now-dusty offering.

She walked to the sculpture and turned to see Damien standing in the doorway, the sunshine outlining his tall form. Moving her hand over the smooth curved top, she commented, "This is an odd piece. Do you know what it represents?"

"A lingam."

She frowned. "A what?"

One corner of his hard mouth quirked upward. "You speak Hindi so well, I'm surprised you've never heard the word."

His smirk annoyed her. "Just tell me what it means."

"A lingam is the male sex organ."

--FIRE ON THE WIND by Barbara Dawson Smith

ASSORTED REFERENCE GEMS

Above Stairs

Armiger. TITLES AND FORMS OF ADDRESS: A GUIDE TO THEIR CORRECT USE.

Davidoff, Leonore. THE BEST CIRCLES: SOCIETY, ETIQUETTE AND THE SEASON. (1973).

Leeson, Francis L. A DIRECTORY OF BRITISH PEERAGES.

Montague-Smith, Patrick. DEBRETT'S CORRECT FORM.

Pullar, Philippa. GILDED BUTTERFLIES: THE RISE AND FALL OF THE LONDON SEASON.

The American West

THE OLD WEST. Time-Life series, divided into topics: The Women, The Townsmen, The Cowboys, The Ranchers, etc.

Mills, Betty J.  CALICO CHRONICLE: TEXAS WOMEN AND THEIR FASHIONS 1830-1910.   Texas Tech Press.

Architecture

Colvin, Howard. CALKE ABBEY, DERBYSHIRE. 

Maroon, Fred. THE ENGLISH COUNTRY HOUSE: A TAPESTRY OF AGES. (1987)

Muthesius, Hermann. THE ENGLISH HOUSE.

Muthesius and Dixon. VICTORIAN ARCHITECTURE.

Parissien, Steven. REGENCY STYLE. (1992)

Sykes, Christopher. PRIVATE PALACES: LIFE IN THE GREAT LONDON HOUSES.

Watkins, Susan. JANE AUSTEN’S TOWN AND COUNTRY STYLE. (1990)

Below Stairs

Dawes, Frank. NOT IN FRONT OF THE SERVANTS. (1973)

Drury, Elizabeth. THE BUTLER'S PANTRY BOOK.

Carriages/Horses

MOSEMANS' ILLUSTRATED CATALOG OF HORSE FURNISHING GOODS. Dover.

Freelove, William Francis. AN ASSEMBLAGE OF 19TH CENTURY HORSES AND CARRIAGES.

Huggett, Frank. CARRIAGES AT EIGHT.

Death/Mourning

Armstrong, Janice and Pike, Martha. A TIME TO MOURN: EXPRESSIONS OF GRIEF IN NINETEENTH CENTURY AMERICA. (1980)

Coffin, Margaret M. DEATH IN EARLY AMERICA. (The history and folklore of customs and superstitions of early medicine, funerals, etc.)

Morley, John. DEATH, HEAVEN AND THE VICTORIANS.

Diaries

Bird, Isabella. A LADY'S LIFE IN THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS. (Englishwoman in Colorado, 1873)

Farish, Hunter Dickinson, ed. JOURNAL AND LETTERS OF PHILIP VICKERS FITHIAN, A PLANTATION TUTOR, 1773-1774

Fraser, Flora, ed. MAUD. (illustrated, Isle of Wight, 1890's)

Hyams, Edward, ed. TAINE'S NOTES ON ENGLAND. (Frenchman in England in 1862)

Lutyens, Mary, ed. LADY LYTTON'S COURT DIARY, 1895-1899. (written by a lady-in-waiting to Queen Victoria)

Plomer, William. KILVERT'S DIARY, 1870-1879. (clergyman in English countryside)

Fashion

Baumgarten, Linda. EIGHTEENTH CENTURY CLOTHING AT WILLIAMSBURG. Colonial Williamsburg Foundation.

Blum, Stella. VICTORIAN FASHIONS & COSTUMES FROM HARPER’S BAZAR: 1857-1898. Dover.

Braun & Schneider. HISTORIC COSTUMES IN PICTURES. Dover. Cunnington, C. Willett. ENGLISH WOMEN’S CLOTHING IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. Dover.

Gernsheim, Alison. VICTORIAN AND EDWARDIAN FASHION: A PHOTOGRAPHIC SURVEY. Dover.

Maeder, Edward. AN ELEGANT ART: FASHION & FANTASY IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

General Reference

Ackerman, Diane. A NATURAL HISTORY OF THE FIVE SENSES. (1990)

Corbeil, Jean-Claude. THE FACTS ON FILE VISUAL DICTIONARY. (1986)

Kent, John. 2000 YEARS OF BRITISH COINS AND MEDALS. (1978)

Muir, Percy. ENGLISH CHILDREN'S BOOKS. (1954) (dates and describes children's books 1600-1900)

THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY DESK REFERENCE. (1989)

Opie, Iona and Tatem, Moira, ed. A DICTIONARY OF SUPERSTITIONS. (1989)

Scarisbrick, Diana. ANCESTRAL JEWELS. (1989). (English jewels, divided by time periods)

Housework

Strasser, Susan. NEVER DONE. (1982). (Housework in America)

Davidson, Caroline. A WOMAN'S WORK IS NEVER DONE. (1982). (Housework in British Isles)

London

Dore, Gustave. THE LONDON OF GUSTAVE DORE. (reprint of 1892 book)

EDWARDIAN LONDON. Village Press. (4 books, reprints of 1903 articles detailing aspects of life in London)

Hayes, John. LONDON: A PICTORIAL HISTORY.

Lejeune and Lewis. THE GENTLEMAN'S CLUBS OF LONDON.

Quennell, Peter, ed. MAYHEW'S LONDON. (first published 1851, depicts street laborers of London in meticulous detail)

Saunders, Ann. THE ART AND ARCHITECTURE OF LONDON: AN ILLUSTRATED GUIDE. (street-by-street descriptions)

Stamp, Gavin. THE CHANGING METROPOLIS. (photos 1839-1879)

St. Aubyn, Fiona, ed. ACKERMANN'S ILLUSTRATED LONDON. (reprint, covers 1808-1810)

Thornbury, Walter or Walford, Edward. OLD LONDON series. (11 books, street-by-street history of old London. First published in 1880's)

Origin of Names

Dunkling, Leslie. THE GUINNESS BOOK OF NAMES.

Origin of Things

Robertson, Patrick. THE BOOK OF FIRSTS. (1982)

Panati, Charles. EXTRAORDINARY ORIGINS OF EVERYDAY THINGS. (1987)

Origin of Words/Catch Phrases

WEBSTER'S NINTH NEW COLLEGIATE DICTIONARY

THE OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY.

Funk, Charles Earle. A HOG ON ICE. (1948)

Funk, Charles Earle. HEAVENS TO BETSY! (1955)

Funk, Charles Earle. HORSEFEATHERS & OTHER CURIOUS WORDS. (1958)

Prisons (England)

Babington, Anthony. THE ENGLISH BASTILLE. (1971)

Griffiths, Arthur. THE CHRONICLES OF NEWGATE. (1987)

Priestly, Philip. VICTORIAN PRISON LIVES, 1830-1914. (1985)

Profanity (history)

Hughs, Geoffrey. SWEARING: A SOCIAL HISTORY OF FOUL LANGUAGE, OATHS, AND PROFANITY IN ENGLISH. (1991)

Rawson, Hugh. WICKED WORDS. (1989)

Spears, Richard A. SLANG AND EUPHEMISM. (1981)

Cromie, Robert. 1811 DICTIONARY OF THE VULGAR TONGUE. (repr. 1971)

Social History

Margetson, Stella. LEISURE & PLEASURE IN THE 19TH CENTURY.

Margetson, Stella. REGENCY LONDON.

Reader, W.J. VICTORIAN ENGLAND.

Tour Guides

Lovett, Richard. LONDON 100 YEARS AGO. (reprint)

VICTORIAN TRAVELLERS GUIDE TO 19TH CENTURY ENGLAND & WALES (reprint of 1864 travel guide to railroad timetables, maps, tours, hotels, etc.)

Harper’s Magazine reprints: THE MIDWEST, THE WEST, THE GREAT NORTH, NEW ENGLAND, A TRAVELER’S COMPANION. Published by Gallery Books, 1991. (Each volume contains reprints of articles about late 19^th century America)

Undergarments

Ewing, Elizabeth. DRESS AND UNDRESS: A HISTORY OF WOMEN’S UNDERWEAR.

Steele, Valerie. FASHION AND EROTICISM: IDEALS OF FEMININE BEAUTY FROM THE VICTORIAN ERA TO THE JAZZ AGE.

Willet, C. and Cunnington, P. THE HISTORY OF UNDERCLOTHES.  Dover.

Underworld

Low, Donald A. THIEVES' KITCHEN: THE REGENCY UNDERWORLD. (1982)

Quennell, Peter, ed. LONDON'S UNDERWORLD BY HENRY MAYHEW. (reprint--first published in 1862)

Partridge, Eric. A DICTIONARY OF THE UNDERWORLD. (1989) (dictionary of underworld cant, or slang)

REQUEST A CATALOG

Edward R Hamilton, Bookseller
Falls Village, CT 06031-5000

The Museums (carriages)
1208 Route 25A
Stony Brook, NY 11790
(516) 751-0066

Dover Publications
31 East 2nd Street
Mineola, NY 11501

Barnes & Noble
126 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10011

Gone West! (American History)
11 North Fourth St.
St. Louis, MO 63102

The Scholar’s Bookshelf (History)
110 Melrich Road
Cranbury, NJ 08512

Colonial Williamsburg
201 Fifth Avenue, Box CH
Williamsburg, VA 23187

To purchase specific research books:  Advance Book Exchange:  http://www.abebooks.com

©Barbara Dawson Smith