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For Trevecca Students

Before you start research
 Organizing your research
Primary and Secondary Sources  
Starting your research 
General citation guides
Research Guides
APA, MLA , Chicago Style guides
Research Tools
 Academic Honesty
Database comparison
 Copyright

Before you start your research
  • How to go about research using The Research Process four step guide. 
  • Waggoner Library video tutorials  
  • How to evaluate websites- making good choices for your research
  • Printing and Photocopying
    Waggoner Library has several printing/copying options.  All computers are networked to printers.  Most require Trevecca network login for access.  In addition there are two digital copiers (main floor and ground floor) that require a student ID code for access. Printing costs vary.
  • Waggoner Library resources can be accessed off campus.
  • Research Guides - these subject-specific guides to resources at Waggoner Library will guide your research to print, electronic, and internet based resources.
What are primary and secondary sources?

For a better understanding of the distinction between primary and secondary sources view this YouTube video sponsored by the Univ. of California, San Diego, Social Sciences & Humanities Library entitled What is a Primary Source?

Primary sources are original documents. Sources that would be considered primary are:

Diaries, letters, eyewitness accounts, legislative bills, laboratory studies,  field research reports, autobiographies, census documents, video, photographs.

Secondary sources are reports on events, not first hand.
 
   
Connecting databases to Primary Sources

Primary Sources  can be found in the following Waggoner Library databases:

African-American History Online - browse by primary source,  topic and by time period—from eight historical periods relevant specifically to African-American history.
American History in Video - video collection on historical events, and their presentation over time, through commercial and governmental newsreels, archival footage, public affairs footage, and important documentaries.
CDRI: Free Resources for the Study of Religion - Provides access to digital images of woodcuts, photographs, slides, papyri, coins, maps, postcards, manuscripts, sermons, shape-note tune books, plus other forms of Christian art, architecture and iconography.
Custom Newspapers - more then 650 newspapers, both national and international.
Global Issues in Context - today’s world issues from a global perspective including video.
HeritageQuest - includes all of the images, and extensive indexing, from the 1790 - 1930 U.S. federal censuses. It offers more than 20,000 book titles, including nearly 8,000 family histories and over 12,000 local histories. Additionally, there are more than 250 primary-source documents such as tax lists, city directories, probate records, and more.
Lexis Nexis - more than 5,600 news, business, legal, medical and reference publications.
Southern Life - articles on topics that relate directly to Southern living, both past and present, including people, places, historical events and more.
Tennessee Newspaper Collection -includes Chattanooga Times-Free Press; Knoxville News Sentinel and Memphis, the Commercial Appeal.
WorldCat - 35 million records describing items owned by U.S. libraries and libraries around the world.

Internet Sites include:

American Memory Project is a collection of photographs and images about American life house digitally at the LOC.
the Avalon Project at Yale contains documents relevant to the fields of law, history, economics, politics, diplomacy, and government and is international in scope.
Cybrary of the Holocaust includes survivor accounts, diaries, video and other documents about the Holocaust.
National Archives provides access to all types of historical documents relating to U.S. history.
Project Bartleby is a collection of books that are public domain.
Thomas Legislative where you can find full text bills and other legislative documents
U.S. Census provides census data
Starting your research

Research begins from the library homepage
Research Tools
  • Database Comparison Chart - Not sure which database to use to find articles for your topic? Use this comparison chart to find out more about databases frequently used by Waggoner students.
  • Interlibrary Loan through Athena allows you to search other area libraries and request materials identified through Waggoner Library at no cost to current Trevecca students and faculty.
  • Technology in the Library- campus is wireless; scanners, poster printers, digital still and video cameras, tripods, video editing software are all available for current Trevecca students and faculty use on the ground floor of the library in the Instructional Resources Center. There is a workstation on the main floor that will assist students with visual or hearing needs.
  • Waggoner Library Circulation Policies- How long can you check out a book? Can you renew online? Who can access online database? and other circulation policies.
  • The Office of Academic Support and Instructional Services (OASIS) provides writing and paper organizational assistance.
  • For research assistance from a librarian – Ask a librarian
Organizing Your Research
  • How to cite your resources for a paper using Citation Style Guidelines
General citation style guides
Specific citation style guides
  • Academic Honesty and Plagiarism
- Trevecca's Academic Honesty Policy can be viewed from the Student Handbook, page 29, accessible on the I.C.E. page under the Campus Life tab
- Do you know what plagiarism is? Take the Plagairism Quiz courtesy of Empire State University, SUNY.
- How to Recognize Plagiarism (a tutorial) from Indiana University Bloomington  
- Plagiarism Self Test from Engineering Communication Center @ University of Toronto  
Contact Us
Waggoner Library Staff - to contact a specific librarian
Ask a Librarian- to ask questions about research or your library account
Catalog Search

Contact us