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Library:

Researching Topics On Philadelphia

Books
Databases
Web sites

Books

The Library has a number of books on the history and culture of Philadelphia. Here's some you might find interesting (though, this is not an exhaustive list):

• R 378.748 FAS Peirce Means Business: A History of Peirce Junior College
• 324.273 LYO Philadelphia Communists 1936-1955
• 362.11 WIL America's First Hospital: Pennsylvania Hospital
• 641.5 SMI The Original Philadelphia Neighborhood Cookbook
• 779.9 HUL Center City Philadelphia: Elements of Style
• 974.8 AND Burning Down the House: MOVE and the Tragedy of Philadelphia
• 974.8 MIL Still Philadelphia: A Photographic History 1890-1940
• 974.8 WIN Philadelphia's Black Elite: Activism, Accommodation, and the Struggle for Autonomy
• B Franklin Franklin of Philadelphia

You can search the e-book databases directly via the "databases" page to find more virtual titles, or use the Library's catalog to find physical books in our Library.

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Databases

(I need help accessing the databases)
The Library subscribes to--that is, pays for--a number of databases that contain articles, books and other information for you to use for your research.

• Philadelphia Inquirer: Provides access to all articles published in the Philadelphia Inquirer since 1984

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Web sites

(I need help choosing quality websites)
Because anyone can publish anything they want on the Web, you need to be cautious about which sites you choose to use. Here are sites we recommend for researching this topic:

• City of Philadelphia
  (http://www.phila.gov)
  One stop shopping for everything you need to know about city services, the mayor's office, city council and other city departments.
• Committee of Seventy
  (http://www.seventy.org)
  "The Committee of Seventy is a not-for-profit, non-partisan political watchdog organization dedicated to advancing good government for the City of Philadelphia." The website provides information about elections and candidates in Philadelphia and the surrounding counties, as well as the results of several studies commissioned by the Committee.
• Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce
  (http://www.philachamber.com)
  The GPCC website provides policy, legislative, economic and other information relevant to Philadelphia business. In addition, you can find out about networking and professional development events, and small business issues.
• Philadelphia Free Library
  (http://www.library.phila.gov)
  Here you will find the catalog for all 55 branches of FLoP, lists of recommended books, and information about electronic resources, special collections and author events.
• Philly.com
  (http://www.philly.com)
  The gateway to the online versions of the Inquirer and Daily News, community events, traffic reports, weather, and yellow pages, as well as job, real estate and auto listings.
• SEPTA (Southeast Pennsylvania Transportation Authority)
  (http://www.septa.org)
  Use this site to find schedules, fairs, trip planners and maps. SEPTA serves Philadelphia and the surrounding counties.

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