How to Be a Borderlands Detective
By Rachel Murphree
Doing research is like being a detective. You follow clues from one source
to another, gathering information on the person or topic you think you may
like to research.
Main Sources:
I'll show you the main sources in the order that I suggest searching them, and then walk you through searching them using the topic " Major Jefferson Van Horne".- To find out if another Borderlands article has already been written on your topic: Also see our potential topics to see if we've already found clues on a topic that interests you! To see examples of regional historical research, see our Books on Southwestern Studies.
- Handbook of Texas Online
- Local Library Catalogs: EPCC Online Catalog (be sure to click "find in UTEP" button also) El Paso Public Library Catalog & NMSU Library Catalog (especially if you are researching a New Mexico topic)
- Books on Reserve
- Password (journal of local historical society) more info below
- Google Books search full text of books, see previews of pertinent pages, and what libraries own the books.
- UTEP Library's Special Collections Department more info
- UTEP's Institute of Oral History more info
- Local and National Newspapers
- Library of Congress Memory Project
So, now, our example: Major Jefferson Van Horne -- Who is he?
Handbook of Texas Online :
You'll find he was the first commander of Fort Bliss in 1849 http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/VV/fva8.htmlOnline Catalog for Books:
Use keyword search. We have the book Tribute to Major Jefferson Van Horne (also at the public library) While here, click on the "find at UTEP" button at the top and you'll see letters he wrote back to his superiors, on microfilm at UTEP: http://129.108.99.98/record=b1752341Also check the El Paso Public Library Catalog & NMSU Library Catalog (especially if you are researching a New Mexico topic)
Books on Reserve:
These are the standards that you should check first, but there might be more; search the indexes in the back of the books. See all of the books on reserve under Ms. Vise's name. Most of them are for the Borderlands classes.City at the Pass pages 27-28, photo
El Paso Chronicles page 32, 35
El Paso a Borderlands History pgs 106, 107, 109, 110, 116, 126, 136
Historic El Paso: An Illustrated History page 61
Pass of the North page 125, 127, 131, 136, 137
Border : the U.S.-Mexico line page 33
Password (Journal of El Paso Historical Society):
The first number (in bold or in roman numerals), is the volume, the second number is the page(s). Password is located to the left of the Reference Desk. The index is searchable online ."A Letter from Major Jefferson Van Horne," by Richard K. McMaster, art., : xiii, 8-10su
"Major Jefferson Van Horne," by Richard K. McMaster, art., : xii, 35-42
"Hall of Honor: Tribute to Major Jefferson Van Horne", by Evan Haywood Antone: 43, 119
"Van Horne, Major Jefferson (1802-1859)": 43, 108, photo 118, 119-120
"Van Horne, Major Jefferson": xxiii, 143; xxvii, 52-56, 104, 105; xxx, 59; xxxi, 161; xxxiii, 113; and the route of his military train, San Antonio to El Paso, xxxvii, 56-66 passim
Google Books:
Search the *full text* of books to find ones that interest you and learn what library has them. Major Van Horne is mentioned in these two books, and you can see *previews* of the pertinent pages at the Google book site.Mexican War Veterans- A Complete Roster of the Regular and Volunteer Troops ... - Page 19
The River Has Never Divided Us: A Border History of La Junta de Los Rios
California Historical Society Quarterly - Page 130
UTEP Library's Special Collections and Institute of Oral History:
The Special Collections Department of the UTEP Library has a wealth of local history: papers, photographs, manuscripts, maps, etc. Detailed descriptions of the collections that have been processed are online and searchable. Put your term in the "search our site" box. This is very important to do, even if you have searched the UTEP Library's catalog above, because this search engine accesses more terms.The Institute of Oral History has over 1000 interviews, representing over 1600 hours of tape recorded interviews and more than 20,000 pages of transcript. These materials cover a wide range of subjects, spanning social, economic, political, cultural and artistic concerns. Copies of the oral history tapes, transcripts, indexes, and summaries are housed in the Special Collections Department, University Library, UTEP. The public is invited to read transcripts and listen to tape recordings there. The subject terms are broad, so if you don't initially find your topic, consider using broader terms in your search . Open the results in a new window to see them all.
Local and National Newspapers:
Begin with local papers first. You'll find the microfilms at the UTEP Library and the Main/Downtown public library branch. If you determine your event had national importance, check the index for the New York Times (1851-2003) [ Off-campus access ]El Paso Times under various names runs from 1881-
El Paso Herald or El Paso Herald Post under various names runs from 1881-1997
The Lone Star ran 1881-1886
La Patria (Spanish newspaper) ran from 1919-1925
Other Mexican-American newspapers exist on microfilm at the NMSU Library in Las Cruces. Usually there are only several issues of a paper, and the papers are from the beginning of the 20th century. Search for the subject: El Paso Tex Newspapers or El Paso County Tex Newspapers. Some of these are:
El azote, La buena prensa, El Ciudadano , El clarín del Norte, El defensor, La democracia, El día, Los dos Américas, El hispano-americano, El independiente , La justicia, El latino-americano, El monitor, Las noticias, El observador fronterizo, El paso del norte , El Progresista, Renacimiento, Sancho Panza, El Valle del bravo, El zurriago.
Other short lived English language papers from El Paso are at the NMSU Library.They are:
Commercial review, The Evening Telegram , El Paso weekly tribune , Evening Tribune , Homer Union news (on the petroleum industry), Monday mercury, The Pass City independent, The southwesterner (from the 1960s), Ysleta independent.
Library of Congress American Memory Project:
American Memory is a multimedia web site of digitized historical documents, photographs, sound recordings, moving pictures, books, pamphlets, maps, and other resources from the Library of Congress’s vast holdings.You may get lucky and find information here! it's worth a try. There wasn't anything on Jefferson Van Horne, but there's lots of other information. For an idea, type in "el paso"
Final Tips
Don't forget also to follow any references (footnotes, bibliographies, etc.)
that you find in any of these publications. These are sources that those
authors used, and when you hunt them down, you may find even MORE
information on your topic that you can use. As always, if you need help, ask a librarian at the Reference Desk or email Rachel Murphree (murphree@elp.rr.com) or Helen Bell (helencarmenbell@gmail.com).
Detective guide written by Rachel Murphree