Library Research Databases

The databases on this page are available to students on the Freeport or HCC West campuses.
Link to the Off Campus Resources Page if you are off campus. You will be prompted for your library barcode number.

 

Magazine and Journal Articles:

  • OCLC FirstSearch:  FirstSearch provides access to a large number of magazine, journal and news databases, a number of which are available in full-text--entire articles are available as results for your search. In some cases, you will notice that only citations and abstracts, or descriptions of the articles are available. Let the library staff know if you need the full-text of an article that is available in citation/abstract format.
  • EBSCO EBSCO includes a number of database selections. You can search multiple databases simultaneously by checking the checkbox next to the database name. You will find databases dedicated to news, health, business, military issues, education, and more. The two best general subject databases are "Academic Search Premier" and "MAS ULTRA." If you are uncertain where to begin, they are a great place to start.

News & More:

  • Lexis•Nexis Academic Universe: Search for business and legal information, foreign and U.S. newspapers, t.v. and radio transcripts, magazines and trade journals, federal and state case law, accounting information, medical news and abstracts, law reviews, state and country profiles, and more.
  • Chicago Tribune & NewsIllinois: Full-text access to the Chicago Tribune and news from Illinois including the State Journal Register, Chicago Sun-Times, Daily Herald, Associated Press articles, Arlington Heights Daily Herald and more. Also availble via NewsIllinois is the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
  • New York Times: Full-text access to the New York Times articles from 1985- yesterday. Access the Historical New York Times below under "historical resources."
  • America's Newspapers: The electronic editions of record for valuable local, regional and national U.S. newspapers all in one easy-to-search database. Each paper provides unique coverage of local and regional news including politics, sports, industries, cultural activities and people in the community. Over 600 newspapers are covered. Search states, regions, or individual papers.

Images:

  • SASKIA: A database of images, searchable by keyword. The collection containts 30,000 digital images of paintings, sculpture and architecture. The images are displayed in both high resolution and thumbnail format.

 

Books & Library Materials:

  • PrairieCat Search PrairieCat, Highland's Online Catalog, for books in paper and a variety of audio formats (tape, CD, MP3). Also look for music CDs, videocassettes, DVDs and more. PrairieCat includes the holdings of the Highland Community College and 130 other libraries in Northern Illinois and Eastern Iowa. As a library cardholder, you can request and renew items online with the barcode on the front of your library card!!!

  • Novelist  Find a good read with Novelist! Novelist allows you to search for fiction books by subject, and contains reviews, annotations and much more. Novelist includes "Read-alikes," book discussion guides, "What we're reading" and much more. If you like to curl up with a good book you'll love Novelist!
  • NetLibrary   Online Books! Select from the library's collection or the "public" collection of online books. This collection is small but growing. Browse as much as you like. Register (from a campus computer) to check out online books from anywhere you have Internet access. We have access to NetLibrary via a grant. Let us know what you think!
    You may also run into books from NetLibrary when you are searching     PrairieCat

Encyclopedias, Dictionaries & Maps:

  • Britannica Online: Search the entire Encyclopedia Britannica here. Search the EB's Internet Guide for recommended web pages on your topic!
  • OED: Oxford English Dictionary: As the most authoritative dictionary of the English language, the Oxford English Dictionary is a unique source of scholarly information on the meaning, history and pronunciation of words both past and present.
  • Illinois Sanborn Maps: Digital Sanborn Maps of most Illinois towns and cities from 1867 - 1970. The maps contain information such as street names; property boundaries; building uses, size and materials; house and block numbers. Extensive information on building uses is given including details on commercial property, who owned it and when. Even individual rooms and the uses to which they are put are recorded on some maps. Maps were created by the Sanborn Map Company, a primary American publisher of fire insurance maps for nearly 100 years. Digital versions of the map can be viewed, magnified, and layered over different years. Maps were created every five to ten years, showing the progress of the nation over time. They are of interest to local historian, genealogists, city planners, environmentalists, geographers, architects and others interested in the history, growth and development of Illinois cities, towns and neighborhoods.

Historical Resources Online

  • HarpWeek: Harper's Weekly is perhaps the most important primary resource for examining nineteenth century America on a cumulative week-to-week basis. HarpWeek's electronic database makes it possible for the user to discover the lively editorials, news stories, illustrations, cartoons, and even advertisements that shaped and reflected public opinion in this era. The HarpWeek database covers the period from 1857-1877.
  • Chicago Tribune Historical Archive: Images and full text of historical local, regional, national, and international issues and events including major wars, prohibition, Chicago gangsters, the Great Depression, inventions, sports, and the arts from the Chicago Tribune Morgue clippings file. Extensive front page coverage.
  • Historical New York Times: Full page and article images with searchable full text back to the first issue in 1851. To search select "Historical New York Times" from the ProQuest search drop box.

Medical Resources

  • Thomson Micromedex & Carenotes: "Micromedex" is wide range of clinical databases including unbiased, referenced information about drugs, toxicology, diseases, acute care, and alternative medicine. "Carenotes" is complete, easy-to-understand information for patients about all aspects of their care, medications and health, in English or Spanish.
  • EBSCO Medical resources include "Healthsource Nursing," a database providing more than 550 scholarly full-text journals in a variety of medical disciplines, and "Healthsource Consumer," information on many health topics including the medical sciences, food sciences and nutrition, childcare, sports medicine and general health. Also try "Academic Search Premier" for additional useful articles in health and medicine. Using the checkboxes to the left of the database titles, you can search all three EBSCO databases simultaneously.