Research & Learn

Search records, books, serials, and other historical records specific to African Americans to trace your genealogy or to do research.

Explore Akron history through local news, events and people with the Akron Beacon Journal Collection. Search current and archived issues back to 1984 with full-color newspaper pages, full-text articles and content only published online.

Search over 3,500 American newspapers, including over 100 from Ohio, including the Cleveland Plain Dealer (1989-current), the Akron Beacon Journal (1984-current), the Columbus Dispatch (1985-current), and dozens of smaller print and online newspapers.  A great resource for local research!

Electronic books of American and English literature: poetry, drama, fiction, and the Bible.

[IN-LIBRARY USE ONLY] Trace your genealogy using historical records. U. S. Census records; military records; court, land and probate records; vital and church records; directories; petitions for naturalization; passenger lists and more. You must be in the library to access this database.

AtoZdatabases includes 30 million business & executive profiles, over 240 million residents with interests, hobbies and lifestyles information, over 7 million real-time job listings, 2 Million new businesses, over 12 million healthcare professionals, over 12 million new movers, 2 million new homeowners, and much more. The databases are ideal for sales leads, mailing lists, market research, employment opportunities, finding friends, relatives and a whole lot of other possibilities.

Access biographical information on more than 335,000 people from throughout history, around the world, and across all disciplines.

Boost your business knowledge by researching company and industry profiles, country and market research reports, and magazine articles.

Fix your car, truck, van, or SUV with these diagnostics, maintenance schedules, wiring diagrams, and step-by-step repair procedures.

Browse medical, health-related and drug reference books. Read articles on health and fitness. Find sources for alternative health information

Concise, reliable, and up-to-date cultural information on countries of the world. Beyond the facts and figures, find an insider's perspective on the history, daily life, and customs. Also covers US states and Canadian provinces.

Historic digital collections from libraries, museums, and archives across Ohio and more. The DPLA portal to photographs, maps, documents, and AV materials from across the country is a great starting place for your local history and genealogy reference.

Search thousands of magazines, academic journals, newspapers, reference books, photos and maps on millions of topics.

Specifically designed with the needs of middle school students in mind. Includes full-text articles from popular, vocational, and trade magazines, full-text newspaper articles, along with images, videos, and primary sources.

A trustworthy environment for students and educators in grades K through 5 to look up facts for class projects or homework.

Grades 9-12: A far better alternative to websites and search engines for students to look up articles and facts for research papers or homework.

A premier collection of historical U.S. military records that brings to life the details of America’s military veterans with stories, photos, and personal documents.

Gale LegalForms offers a wide selection of fill-in state-specific (and multi-state) legal forms for the most common legal procedures. These forms are used by attorneys and law firms. Includes real estate contracts, wills, premarital agreements, bankruptcy, divorce, landlord tenant, and many others.

Search for U.S. obituaries and death notices from 1704 to the present, from more than 6,800 newspapers, magazines, and web sources.  This database also includes the full Social Security Death Index.  Create folders to save information or print or email it.

Search census records, books, serials, and other historical records to trace your genealogy.

Find "how-to" instructions and creative ideas to meet the interests of virtually every hobby enthusiast.

Home Improvement Source features full-text content from leading home improvement magazines, images not found anywhere else online and videos of popular home repair projects.

LinkedIn Learning for Library offers thousands of online courses to learn in-demand skills from real-world industry experts. Take a class to learn a particular skill or follow a Learning Path for an in depth exploration of a field. A LinkedIn account is not required.  When accessing LILL anyway except through the link on this page; for instance from the app, you will be asked to enter "Your Custom Invitation Link," which is www.linkedin.com/learning-login/go/OH0110.

A guide designed by the NEOMED library in conjunction with partners for anyone who is interested in learning more about their own health.  Find online resources, including from local agencies, for personal use and self-education.

NoveList Plus is a great way to find reading recommendations, with book reviews, articles, lists and more.  KFL cardholders can access NoveList from home; enter your library card when prompted for a Patron ID.

NovelistK-8 Plus offers fiction recommendations for Elementary and Middle School students with read-alikes, discussion guides, reading lists, and more. KFL cardholders can access NoveList from home; enter your library card when prompted for a Patron ID.

Reference content in humanities, social sciences, and science.

Containing resources that present multiple sides of an issue, this resource provides the basis from which students can realize and develop persuasive arguments and essays, better understand controversial issues and develop analytical thinking skills.

Search and read Record-Courier articles from 2012 to the most current issue, or browse full-color images of the daily newspaper from 2017 to today’s issue. Download, email, or print articles to keep or share, and set up alerts to receive an email when a name, event, or topic appears in print.

Find large scale street plans produced by the Sanborn Fire Insurance company from 1867 to 1970. Locate and identify buildings and neighborhoods. Study the growth of towns and cities, and the impact of new development.

Contains full text for hundreds of science encyclopedias, reference books, periodicals and other sources.

Offers exclusive full text for many top consumer small business reference books, as well as tools to address many small business topics. Includes business videos, a help and advice section and details on how to create business plans.

An excellent way to get a quick authoritative and accessible overview of a subject.

Whether wandering through the woods or the neighborhood, users can use What Tree Is It? to identify their surrounding trees by leaf or fruit. Learn more by exploring trees by name.

For both budding naturalists and inadvertent encounters, What's That Snake? will help anyone identify an Ohio snake in a few simple steps. Learn more by exploring Snakes by Name, a Snake FAQ, the Glossary, or Further Reading suggestions.

By answering just a few questions, flint artifacts of Ohio can be identified as a blade, drill, point, or scraper and attributed to a likely era and people. Learn more by exploring the Glossary, Artifacts Index, or articles about Ohio's Prehistoric People.

Upper-level Spanish language database intended for high school students through adult learners. – La base de datos de nivel superior en español destinada a estudiantes de secundaria hasta adultos.

The optimal beginner’s Spanish-language reference tool offering all the best elements of World Book Kids; designed to build key language and research skills. – La herramienta de referencia en español óptima para principiantes que ofrece todos los mejores elementos de World Book Kids; diseñado para desarrollar habilidades clave de lenguaje e investigación.

Bienvenue à L'Encyclopédie Découverte, World Book's French language encyclopedia. It features two interfaces: one aimed at grades K through 4 and for older students and adults. – Bienvenue à L'Encyclopédie Découverte, encyclopédie de la langue française du World Book. Il comporte deux interfaces: une destinée à la maternelle à la quatrième année et une pour les élèves plus âgés et les adultes.

Ages 14 and up. A wealth of vetted articles supplemented by thousands of original source documents fosters advanced research and critical thinking skills and prepares students for continued growth!

Ages 3-7. Developed with experts in early childhood education, this re-designed database offers rich resources to help young learners build their vocabulary, comprehension, phonics, and reading fluency.

Ages 10-14. Tailored specifically for students, articles include multimedia and related resources to engage students, biographies, and supplemental tools to support cross-curricular studies.

Explore more than 650 pre-made timelines with over 14,000 individual events, or create your own timelines!

Ages 6-10. This go-to resource is chock-full of fun activities, hands-on science projects, and age-appropriate articles, and offers image-based navigation to help young learners find information quickly and develop necessary digital literacy skills.