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From: Kenneth Toppell
Question: I am researching
Georgia politics and I am curious if you have any information
on Eugene Talmadge and Thomas E. Watson. Watson died
the year that Talmadge first ran for office, and Talmadge
urged his son to study the speeches of Watson, but I
am looking for anything closer, if possible, even other
references from Talmadge about Watson. I have access
to Rice University libraries here in Texas.
Thanks,
Kenneth Toppell
Answer: Dear
Mr. Toppell:
You're in good shape. The Rice libraries will have everything
you need. If you can, use the database called "America:
History and Life" which indexes abstracts of journal
articles dealing with American history. The online version
of this resource now stretches back to the 1950s, which
should be all that you need. This is a fee-based database,
so you may need the help of a Rice librarian to sneak
into it, but it will be well worth the trouble.
Mary-Jo Kline
From:
Gail Dezendorf
Question: Dear
Ms. Kline,
I've been given an assignment
to write a research paper discussing why the textile
industry was essential to both the development of the
American nation and the Industrial Revolution.
I was very happy to come across the History Now site
during my Internet searching. The article by Thomas
Dublin is a great start. I was wondering if you could
direct me to other public websites that would be good
sources of information.
Thank you so much for our assistance.
Regards,
Geri Dezendorf
Answer: Dear
Ms. Dezendorf:
Thank you for your question. Your topic—the textile
industry’s role in American history and the industrial
revolution—is quite broad, but there are lots
of resources out there for you to choose from. I’m
not sure what level you’re writing this at—are
you a high school or college student? Either way you
can start with some of the resources below and if you
have any more questions, or once you focus your topic
further, you can go from there.
It is almost impossible to write about the history
of the American textile industry without looking at
the history of Lowell, Massachusetts, which is really
the industry’s birthplace. You might start at
the resource page that goes with the Thomas Dublin article
in History Now.
/historynow/12_2006/ask2d.php
Lowell is also home to the American Textile History
Museum, which has a searchable online catalogue of books,
articles and textile collections that touch on many
facets of the industry.
http://www.athm.org/
The University of Massachusetts at Lowell’s Center
for Lowell History maintains a great website dealing
with mill life in Lowell between 1820 and 1880, and
places the city and the industry in a larger context
of American history. The online archive includes pictures
of mills and mill workers, letters from workers, diaries,
newspapers, travel accounts, maps, and even bank records
from that era. The site also has a good bibliography.
http://library.uml.edu/clh/mo.htm
The National Park Service maintains Lowell National
Historic Park, and has a non-circulating library of
over 3000 volumes. I’m not sure where you are
located, but if Lowell is within a convenient traveling
distance, a trip to the park library might be worthwhile.
http://www.nps.gov/lowe
Hope this helps, Geri. Please do write back if you
have any further questions or would like assistance
locating more resources.
Sincerely,
Mary-Jo Kline
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