Types of Internet History Sites
The internet is very dynamic and always changing, so one could say that there are as many categories of web pages as there are web pages. Most useful history web pages, though, fall into one of several broad (and somewhat arbitrary) categories. There are always exceptions, of course, and just because you do not see a particular category that a web page you want to use falls into, does not mean that your web page is not a good source.
Library Catalogs
These types of web sites are the web versions of library card catalogs. Usually there are no full text sources or collections on the pages, but the catalogs will tell you if your local library has a specific source and, if so, how to go about obtaining that source. Some good examples of useful online library catalogs are:
University of Colorado at Boulder Library
Online Archives
These types of sources will have all or parts of their collections digitized and available online. While the number of such sites is still small relative to other types of sites due to the expense involved, the number of online archives is rapidly growing. Some good examples of online archives are:
Oral History Online, Bancroft Library, UC Berkeley
The Library of Congress's American Memory Project
Bibliographies and Indexes
These types of sites may be useful in the preliminary stages of research. They contain lists of books, articles, and other types of resources on specific subjects. Some good examples can be found at:
American Women's History: A Research Guide
Search Engines
These sites provide access to search engines, software that will search vast databases for specific terms or subject headings. (These types of sites are often commercial and may charge a fee for their services. They may also, as most search engines will, list sites that contain material not suitable for children. Colorado History Day and the authors of this web page are not responsible for the content of pages suggested by search engines, nor do these pages necessarily reflect the views and beliefs of Colorado History Day or the authors of this web page.) In addition to the popular Google Search, some examples are:
Meta Sites
These sites bring together links to dozens, sometimes hundreds, of other sites, usually organized around a specific topic.
Specific Subject Sites
These sites contain information on a specific subject in history. The best of these sites are sponsored by institutions such as regional historical societies and universities, and are authored by history professional or knowledgable amateur historians. See the list of links below for examples of these sites.
Commercial Sites
These sites, while oftentimes containing a great deal of valid information that may be of some use to a history day project, are primarily intended to publicize a media event or intended to sell an educational service or product. Colorado History Day does not advocate purchasing materials as most all of what can be purchased is also available for free to the diligent researcher.