This is the time of year when new reference books start arriving at the Newberry Library! One of our most recent acquisitions is the Dictionary of Irish Biography: From the Earliest Times to the Year 2002. This nine volume work contains more than 9,000 signed biographical articles, on individuals who were born in Ireland (such as Jonathan Swift and Oscar Wilde) or individuals who were born outside Ireland, but had notable careers on the Emerald Isle (such as Oliver Cromwell and Constance Markievicz).

The articles all begin with an explanation of the subject’s significance, and then cover the subject’s vital life events and relationships. Each entry concludes with a bibliography on the subject, including primary and secondary source materials.

In addition to this new resource, the reference stacks on the third floor contain many works that would be useful to people researching Irish or Irish-American ancestors.

The Encyclopedia of the Irish in America is a single volume work containing entries by scholars in Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, and the United States. It includes entries on topics that provide context for the Irish-American experience, such as Emigration, the Great Famine, and Ireland, 1798-1998, as well as entries on Irish-American communities in all 50 of the United States.

Researchers interested in the Irish-American community in Chicago will find a wealth of information in this resource. The article on Chicago provides excellent context for those studying Irish-American ancestors in the Windy City, detailing the community’s contributions to education, labor reform, music, politics, publishing, sports, and urban development. The Encyclopedia also contains independent articles on subjects such as the Great Fire in Chicago and Chicago Politics, as well as a biographical sketch of Richard J. Daley.

Are you planning a summer research trip to learn more about an Irish-American family? If so, don’t leave home without consulting Richard Demeter’s Irish America: the Historical Travel Guide. This two-volume set is a guide to U.S. landmarks associated with Ireland or with Irish-American heritage. The books are divided by region, with volume one covering the Northern Atlantic, Washington, D.C., the Great Lakes, and Canada, and volume two detailing sites in the South, the Plains and Mountains, and the West and Southwest.

The sites listed for Chicago include such places as the spot where Cyrus McCormick produced the mechanical grain reaper, the Haymarket Monument at the Chicago Police Training Academy, and the reconstruction of Chicago Stock Exchange Building Trading Room in the Art Institute. The entries discuss the significance of the site, and also offer biographical information on particular individuals, such as the sketch about Louis Sullivan included in the Art Institute entry. The entries are sometimes surprising, and always entertaining and informative.

All of these works are available in the Reference Center on the third floor of the Library. The reference librarian can help you find them in the stacks, and help you with questions about these sources.