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HIST 150: History Through Objects: The Atlantic World (Spring 2025)

Directions

There are Seven searches your team has to complete.

After you finish each, call over the librarian. If your answer is correct, I'll show you the next question. First team to win gets a prize!

1. Find a Book!

Using the Library Catalog, find a book that studies pianos in Williamsburg in the colonial period

HINTS

  • Use Boolean (AND, Quotation Marks, etc)
  • use *
  • Limit to books and ebooks

2. Find an Academic Article!

Using our HISTORY database for articles, America: History & Life, find me an article about silversmiths in colonial virginia.

Hints

  • use boolean
  • be sure it's an article, not a book review

3. Find a Historical Statistic!

Using our Historical Statistics resources, tell me:

How much did one gallon of cyder cost in Fairfax County, Va, in 1750?

 

HINT:

  • Look under the Historical Statistics tab in the "Reference Sources" section of this guide.
  • Alcohol will be listed in the "Selected price" section of historical data books.

4. Find a Librarian!

Who is the Digital Humanities librarian, and what are her office hours on Friday 28 of March?

Hint

  • start on the main library page!

5. Find an Encyclopedia entry!

Using one of our biography resources on the Reference Sources tab of this guide, tell me Thomas Jefferson's "Wealth at Death" value.

Hints:

  • It is clearly listed in one of the biography databases listed on the "Reference Sources" tab.

6. Find a Colonial Williamsburg Publication

Finally, please find me a report published by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation about printers/printing in Williamsburg in the 18th century.

Hints

  • Use the main catalog
  • Use boolean
  • Try different combinations of search terms
  • keep the search simple! There won't be that many books about printing so don't put in too many keywords
  • CW has to be the creator/author
  • There is only 1 book in the collection that meets my criteria.

7. Find an ILL account!

Create an ILL account! Call me over when everyone at the table has one.

NOTE please do NOT sign up as a faculty member -- this awards no extra privileges, it just confuses the folk downstairs.
For dept, put your major. If you are undeclared, you can guess, it doesn't really matter.