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Resources for Latin Americanists and Caribbeanists at the University of Michigan
Libraries at the University of Michigan
The University of Michigan Library has an excellent web page for Latin American studies, with links to a huge array of Web resources and a guide to "hard-copy" resources at U-M libraries:
http://www.lib.umich.edu/grad/guide/guide.php?id=61
MIRLYN, the Library's online catalog, provides direct access to the catalogs of 17 different libraries and to 37 periodical and information indexes. The Library's Search Tools page is also very handy (note that some resources are available only to UM students, faculty, and staff because of licensing restrictions), and has links to e-journals and databases. The Journal Storage (JSTOR) project provides full-text access to key journals in economics and history. The Handbook of Latin American Studies (HLAS) and the Hispanic American Periodicals Index (HAPI) are both available online through MIRLYN. Library staff are available for individual and group research consultations, and for classes such as a two-hour workshop on Internet resources for Latin Americanists, offered several times throughout the academic year. An assortment of innovative technologies, including imaging, Geographical Information Systems (GIS), and multimedia systems, are available at the library's Knowledge Navigation Center (KNC).
The University Libraries, with over 7 million print volumes and nearly 8 million microform, map and multimedia units, together comprise one of the largest research collections in the country. Click here for a list of University system libraries and major independent libraries affiliated with the University of Michigan. The Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library is a rich, open-stack library that houses more than 39,000 print titles on Latin America in English and more than 26,000 titles in Spanish, Portuguese, and other languages, apart from extensive holdings in Latin American literature. It currently houses a total of 80,455 titles in Spanish and 10,402 in Portuguese, with 2,400 new Latin American titles added each year. Particular strengths lie in bibliography, colonial history, anthropology, and social movements. Holdings in Latin American & Caribbean Studies also include subscriptions to numerous print journals, newspapers and a growing number of electronic resources including indexes and full text journals.
The University's Digital Library Production Service (DLPS) houses one of the most active and respected programs in the nation for the electronic conversion of important research materials. Major ongoing projects with significant content related to Latin America include the Museum Educational Site Licensing Project, the electronic Human Relations Area Files (eHRAF), and the Making of America project (MOA). DLPS also handles smaller projects with specific local impact, such as the conversion of materials for instructional use, at faculty request.
The Documents Center holds historical censuses from every country in Latin America on microfilm and several electronic indexes; it has developed a variety of Web-based resources for government, international and statistical information, and provides user support for data set selection and extraction.
The Map Library, on the 8th Floor south of the Graduate Library, houses a large collection of military and topographical maps and related books, and supports Geographical Information Systems (GIS) for a wide range of digital spatial data sets.
The Population Studies Center, Institute for Social Research, and Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research data archives (housed at the University) each hold important data sets based on research in Latin America.
The Kresge Business Library collection includes the widely used Economist Intelligence Unit Country Profiles. Through the Kresge Library, UM faculty, students, and staff have access to Latin American country data on the on-line ISI Emerging Markets Databases.
The Law Library, with one of the five best Latin American law collections in the country, collects extensively in legal and constitutional history; it is particularly strong for Mexico, Bolivia, Guatemala, and Panama. Check with the front desk for permission to use their collection.
The Gerald Ford Presidential Library supports research on U.S. relations with Latin America. The Map Library has a large collection of military and topographical maps and supports GIS for many digital spatial data sets.
The Public Health Library holds public health materials relating to Latin America, including materials from the World Health Organization.
Finally, the William Clements Library, a renowned collection of research materials on the colonial history of the Americas, is rich in rare printed books from the early colonial Americas and is a repository of valuable manuscript collections. These include 51 Caribbean, 10 Central American, 18 South American collections, and 28 Mexican collections ranging from early Nahuatl religious plays to the Porfirio Diaz papers (dealing mainly with the events of 1867). Brief descriptions of these collections are available on their online catalogue.
For more information about Latin American & Caribbean collections, please contact Nerea A. LLamas, the Latin American Studies Librarian, at nllamas@umich.edu or (734) 615-6361.
