Connelly Library

Reference books, such as dictionaries, encyclopedia, and handbooks exist to give you a good starting place for research.  They can be found on the first floor of the library, just beyond the circular computer carrels.  Since the Reference collection is fairly compact, it lends itself to browsing in a way that the larger circulating collection does not. Note:  All the books listed here are found in the Reference Department

ABC-CLIO e-Book collection is a growing collection of reference books on many different subjects. All the titles can also be found in the catalog. You can search across titles or browse the collection. 

A great collection of searchable e-reference books. 
Relevant subject areas include  Religion, Philosophy, Social Sciences, History, Art, and more! New titles are regularly added.

Credo Reference enables users to find authoritative answers fast. It features content from hundreds of reference books in a broad range of subjects. Check out the "Mind Map" feature to explore topics in depth.

Oxford Reference Online brings together language and subject reference works from one of the world's biggest and most trusted reference publishers into a single cross-searchable resource. Try searching for topic pages such as "Pacifism."

Search American National Biography for portraits of more than 17,400 men & women — from all eras and walks of life — whose lives have shaped the nation. 

 In addition to articles from Encyclopaedia Britannica and Britannica Concise Encyclopedia, the Reference Center contains Britannica Online's collection of multimedia, Web links, magazine and journal articles from both EBSCO and ProQuest, and Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary and Thesaurus. Pop-up dictionary definitions have audio pronunciations. Research Tools include World Data Analyst (country maps and profiles); a collection of more than 4,000 quotations; and Gateway to the Classics, containing 225 selections of "the great ideas and writing of the Western World" as well as a time line and a Year in Review browse. Country comparison (for any two countries); 200 full-length videos; the Britannica Blog (interviews with academics and discussions about history, politics, technology, and popular culture). Among the daily features are a biography and news from the New York Times and BBC News.