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How do I locate biographies in the Library?

There are several Library databases you can use to locate biographies on famous or noteworthy persons. We recommend locating biographies using the Credo Reference database. Credo Reference is also accessible from the Databases page under Research Resources. On the Credo Reference homepage, type a name into the basic search box and click the magnifying glass icon to execute your search. 

Your results screen may display a number of different entries. You will see a Topic Page entry listed first in your results list if there happens to be a topic page on your person. 

Credo Reference results screen with Topic Pages highlighted.

A topic page entry provides an overview of the topic in addition to related images, articles, books, news, and videos. Your results list will also include Reference Entries. Reference entries may include entries from encyclopedias, dictionaries, or handbooks. 

If you are looking for biographies on business executives, you can try a search in Mergent Online, located on the Databases page under Research Resources. To conduct a biography search in Mergent Online, click on the Executive Search tab and conduct a search using your set criteria.

Mergent Online screenshot with Executive Search selected.

Mergent Online Executive Search result.

Lastly, we recommend trying a search in the Ebook Central database for biographies. Ebook Central is also located in A-Z Databases. Type a name into the simple search box and click the Search button. Your search results may contain full-text biographies.

Ebook Central search results screen for John Dewey.

 

If you are unable to locate a biography on your person using the Library’s databases, you may want to try a search using an internet search engine like Google. Type the name of your person and consider adding the keyword “biography” to your search string as well. 
 

Google search box with keywords liz lyon biography.
Alternatively, if your person is associated with a particular institution or university, you may want to navigate to that institution’s website and look for a staff/faculty directory.

Screenshot of an organizational website with biographical information.




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