1. Introduction
This guide is intended to give students in Harvard's Department of English and American Literature and Language a resource for guidance in library research.
As with any selective list, this one offers a limited set of sources; its aim is to identify and to connect to core resources and to lead to others of interest. This guide builds upon the work of current and former Widener colleagues, but any errors or omissions are my own.
Please do contact us for guidance or assistance with your research, or with any question concerning the libraries and your work.
Two gateways -- the Harvard Libraries Portal and the HCL Web
Harvard Libraries portal
The Harvard Libraries web portal is the gateway to the catalogs of the collections at Harvard:
- HOLLIS, the libraries' catalog
- OASIS, a catalog of archival finding aids
- VIA, a catalog of visual resources.
- It hosts Harvard's access to electronic resources (via E-Research) and digital collections .
- Links to the web sites of individual Harvard University libraries with information on their hours, collections, policies, etc. are also available via the portal.
HCL Web
HCL Web integrates information on the libraries and special collections that constitute Harvard College Library in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. It includes very helpful information on
- hours, study spaces, and services in all of the HCL libraries
- Exhibitions and talks in the libraries
- and a collection of research guides for courses, tools, and subject areas
- frequently used forms, such as Interlibrary Loan
- Requests for purchase
- Requests for Ordered and Ordered-Received materials