This guide suggests resources and strategies for research on the Korean War (1950-1953),sometimes referred to as the Korean Conflict or the Korean Police Action.

Background Information  |  Facts & Figures  |  Find Articles  |  Find Books  |  Primary Sources  |  People  |  Organizations  |  Web Resources

Background Information

Encyclopedias and other reference works are an excellent place to start a research project or to learn about a particular project. 

Encyclopedia of the Korean War: a Political, Social, and Military History
   (R 951.904203 En197)
Historical Dictionary of the Korean War
   (R 951.9042 H629)
The Korean War: an Encyclopedia
   (R 951.9042 K841)

Use dictionaries, statistical works, atlases, handbooks and similar works to find and check facts on people, or events.

 Great Debates at the United Nations: an Encyclopedia of Fifty Key Issues, 1945-2000
   (R 341.23 G68g)
Korean War
   (R 951.9042 Su64k)
The USAF in Korea: a Chronology, 1950-1953
   (D 301.82/7:K 84/5)

Search indexes, abstracts, and databases to find journal, magazine, and newspaper articles.

To find historical/source materials, use the following print sources:

International Index to Periodicals, 1907-1965
   (located in Indexes/Abstracts area, main floor)
Humanities  Index
   (located in Indexes/Abstracts area, main floor)
New York Times Index, 1851+
   (located in Indexes/Abstracts area, main floor)
Readers Guide to Periodical Literature, 1900
   (located in Indexes/Abstracts area, main floor)

To find recent articles and scholarly/peer-reviewed articles use the following online databases:

Academic Search Premiere  (EBSCOHost)
America: History and Life
Historical Abstracts
JStor
Master File Elite (EBSCOHost)
Proquest Research Library
Wilson Web Omni File

Use the Kent Library Catalog to find books, periodicals, magazines, newspapers, videos, government documents and other materials.

Keyword searches allow you to use your own words as search terms.
Subject heading searches use Library of Congress subject headings. Printed volumes of these headings are located near the Reference Desk on the main floor.

Korean War, 1950-1953
Korean War, 1950-1953, - Search and Rescue Missions
United States Marine Corps - History - Korean War, 1950-1953

Battle at Best
   (940.542 M358b)
Battle Hymn
   (951.9 H463)
Firefight at Yechon: Courage and Racism in the Korean War
   (951.9042 B967f)
The Long Way Round
   (910.4 F852)
Voices from the Korean War: Personal Stories of American, Korean, and Chinese Soldiers
   (951.90428 P44236v)
War Letters: Extraordinary Correspondence from American Wars
   (355. 0092273 W195)

Learn about important people, such as authors, researchers & historical figures related to this topic or field.

American Caesar, Douglas MacArthur, 1880-1964 
   (355.3310924 M118m)
Another Such Victory: President Truman and the Cold War, 1945-1953
   (973.918092 T771of)
Burning the Days 
   (813.54 Sa37bu 1997)
The Riddle of MacArthur: Japan, Korea, and the Far East 
   (923.5 M119g)
To the Yalu: from the Chinese Invasion to MacArthurs Dismissal
   (951.9042 M177t)
Truman and Korea: the Political Culture of the Early Cold War
   (951.9042373 P612t)

Professional organizations and/or societies often provide very useful topic related information.

American Legion
   http://www.armedforces.net
Library Reference Search Society: Military: POW-MIA: Korean
   http://www.koreacoldwar.org
Korean War Educator
   http://www.koreanwar-educator.org
Readers Companion to Military History: Korean War
   http://www.college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/
U.S. Korea 2000 Foundation
   http://www.churchillcounty.org/vso/koreanwar.htm

Documents on the Korean War
   http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/korea/korea.htm
Examining the Korean War
   http://mcel.pacificu.edu/as/students/stanley/home.html
Korean War
   http://www.korean-war.com
Korean War 50^th Anniversary
   http://korea50.army.mil/
Korean War Map
   http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/korea.htm
Korean War Veterans Memorial: National Park Service
   http://www.nps.gov/kowa/
Korean War Project
   http://www.koreanwar.org/