Research Tools

African American Biographies
The largest electronic collection of biographical information on African Americans spanning 1790-1950. In addition to biographic profiles it includes accounts of life as a slave, religious leader in the American South, reformer or business person in 19th century America.
This resource is made available to you as part of BadgerLink, which is a project of the Department of Public Instruction’s Division for Libraries, Technology, and Community Learning for the citizens of Wisconsin.  Funding is provided through the Public Service Commission Universal Service Fund.

Biography Collection Complete
Offers a comprehensive collection of full-text biographies supporting history, science, the arts, music, literature, multicultural studies, gender studies, business, government and politics, sports, entertainment and many other areas.
This resource is paid for by Winnefox Library System with funding from Wisconsin library system aids.

MasterFILE Premier
Designed specifically for public libraries, this multidisciplinary database provides full text for more than 1,700 general reference publications with full text information dating as far back as 1975. Covering virtually every subject area of general interest, MasterFILE Premier also includes nearly 500 full text reference books, 84,774 biographies, 100,554 primary source documents, and an image collection of 202,164 photos, maps and flags. Updated daily.
This resource is made available to you as part of BadgerLink, which is a project of the Department of Public Instruction’s Division for Libraries, Technology, and Community Learning for the citizens of Wisconsin.  Funding is provided through the Public Service Commission Universal Service Fund.

Student Research Center
Designed especially for youth in grades 6-12, Student Research Center makes it easy for students to search by keyword or by topic to find the most useful search results.
Help available for this resource: online tutorial, usage tips: or sign up for training
This resource is made available to you as part of BadgerLink, which is a project of the Department of Public Instruction’s Division for Libraries, Technology, and Community Learning for the citizens of Wisconsin.  Funding is provided through the Public Service Commission Universal Service Fund.

Recommended Websites

A&E Biography
Over 20,000 biographies of historical figures. The on-line version of the Arts and Entertainment Channel television show.

American President: An Online Reference Resource
Comprehensive collection of material about the Presidents of the United States and the history of the presidency. This web site features essays about the President's life before, during, and after each presidential term. It additionally provides information about the First Lady and cabinet officials of each administration.

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
Biographical information on members of the U.S. Congress from 1774 to the present.

Dead or Alive?
Tracks whether famous people are still alive or not. Over 7700 famous and semi-famous people from a wide range of backgrounds are listed.

Find a Grave
Information about "Where everybody who was anybody is buried..." Includes photos. It's searchable by name, location, birth dates and death dates, and "claim to fame."

Infoplease's Biography Almanac
Over 30,000 profiles, searchable by name, occupation, ethnicity, historical period, and more.

Internet Public Library's POTUS: Presidents of the United States
Find background information, election results, cabinet members, notable events, and some points of interest on each of the presidents. Links to biographies, historical documents, audio and video files, and other presidential sites are also included.

National Inventors Hall of Fame
This site provides biographical sketches of the great inventors of America. Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, and Eli Whitney are among the many included in this source. The site also includes information about the Hall of Fame programs and activities as well as its museum in Ohio.

Political Graveyard
Comprehensive source of U.S. Political biographies.

s9's Biographical Dictionary
More than 33,000 notable men and women who have shaped our world from ancient times to the present day can be searched by birth years, death years, positions held, professions, literary and artistic works, achievements, and other keywords.

Time 100: The Century's Most Influential People
TIME magazine's top 100 most influential people of the 20th century.

White House Historical Association's First Ladies of the United States
A White House Historical Association site with pictures and biographies of the U.S. First Ladies, from Martha Washington to Laura Bush.

White House Historical Association's Presidents of the United States
A White House Historical Association site with pictures and biographies of the U.S. Presidents, from George Washington to George W. Bush.

Who2
Who2 provides information such as birth and death dates, famous works and notorious trivia, about authors, stars, mythical gods, and cartoon dogs to kings, queens, and famous frauds.

Wikipedia's List of people from Wisconsin
Wikipedia's list of prominent people from the state of Wisconsin.

Wisconsin Local History & Biography Articles
Find thousands of historical newspaper articles on Wisconsin people and communities.

Related Catalog Searches

- Autobiography
- Biography
Please note: If searching for a particular person's biography in our catalog, it is usually best to search the person's name. For example: "Reagan Ronald".

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