Biographical Sources on the Internet

General Sources

See Also: Index to Biography Pages
Specialized guides created by Wilson Library reference faculty and staff.

Academy of Achievement
Depicts the achievements of those who have influenced or shaped the 20th century.

Biographical Dictionary 
Biographies of notable men and women who have shaped our world from ancient times to the present day.

Biography.com
This web database includes over 20,000 biographical sketches of the greatest lives,  past and present.

Biography & Genealogy Master Index  (Available from computers in the library only)
Index to biographical dictionaries,  encyclopedias, & other reference sources and retrospective works that cover individuals, both living and deceased, from every field of activity and from all areas of the world.  BGMI indexes only reference works containing multiple biographies; it does not index articles or books about an individual.

Distinguished Women of Past and Present

History Central.com
Features the most important people of the 20th century.

Librarian's Index to the Internet

Nobel Prize Internet Archive

Oxford Reference Online
 Includes full text articles from the Dictionary of National Biography, and the American National Biography, and other works.

Reference Desk.com

Time 100: Choosing the Century's Most Influential People
Published by Time magazine, this site includes profiles of over 60 of the most influential people.   
 

Artists

Grove Dictionary of Art
Full-text of the Dictionary of Art with linked images, including the Bridgeman Art Archive, and links to museums, galleries, etc.

the-artists.org
Concentrates on 20th century and contemporary artists
 

Hollywood

Internet Movie Database
 Biographies and film credits of thousands of actors, directors, writers and others involved in cinema. Film descriptions and reviews as well and lots, lots more.    

Legal

Supreme Court Justices
Part of the OYEZ U.S. Supreme Court multimedia database online, sponsored by Northwestern University.
The information is comprehensive and extensive. An excellent site.

Women's Legal History Biography
 Limited in scope (largely posthumous) the information is accurate and comprehensive. Sponsored by Stanford University.  
 

Literary Biography

African American Women Writers of the 19th Century
A digital collection developed by the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, contains works searchable by author, title, or genre, and includes fiction, poetry, biography, autobiography, and essays.

Contemporary Authors

Online Literary Criticism Collection (Internet Public Library)
Contains links to critical and biographical websites. Browse by author, title, or literary period.  
 

Music

All-Media Guide
Musicians and bands, all genres, solid, extensive write-ups. Complete discographies and writing accomplishments. Good stuff.

Dr. Estrella's Incredibly Abridged Dictionary of Classical Composers
Wow. Need we say more? Links to extensive biographies, sheet music, recordings and more. Extensive list of classical musicians and composers.

PBS Jazz
Close to 100 jazz musicians profiled here.  
 

Politics

Biographical Dictionary of the United States Congress, 1774 to Present
Provides biographical information for all individuals who have served in the United States Congress and the Continental Congress. 

The First Ladies of the United States of America

Political Leaders
Political figures of the world: chronological tables of national leaders since 1945.

Politicians and Rulers Resources
 Also via the Internet Public Library, this features international figures.

POTUS: Presidents of the United States
includes film and audio clips, and transcripts of speeches. Sponsored by the Internet Public Library.

The Presidents of the United States of America
White House site

Project Vote Smart
I'll use any excuse to put this site on a web page directory. This site is particularly useful for current candidates for state and national elections.

Royal Genealogies
Genealogical and historical data for British royalty, past and present.

United States Government
Representatives  // Senate // Supreme Court Justices

World Rulers  Includes past and present leaders of major international organizations; chronological summaries of recent political changes; lists of heads of state and heads of government of all  countries and territories, usually going back to at least 1900.    

Science

Anthropology Biography Web
Created by students at Minnesota State University, the site currently features biographies of people who have influenced anthropology in some way.

Biographies of Biologists
A solid and reliable site, albeit somewhat small with regard to numbers of biologists, still it features extensive, hyperlinked biographies.

4000 Years of Women in Science
 Accessible alphabetically, by time, and by field of study.

Mathematicians
Sponsored by the School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St Andrews, Scotland, this is an incredibly comprehensive site, featuring thorough, hyperlinked biographies. Arranged alphabetically and by time period, there is also a section on woman mathematicians. Great job, math folks.

National Inventors
Sponsored by the National Inventors Hall of Fame, these biographies are short, although they do contain hyperlinks.    

Last update: 5.20.2006
created by Paul Piper & Robyn Adcox 8/03