Practice of History: U.S. Advertising & Consumer Culture in the Cold War Era

The library catalog and WorldCat use Library of Congress Subject Headings. The list of authorized subject headings is available online from the Library of Congress Classification/Subject Headings database. However, you can also start with keyword searches to gather some relevant titles, then look at their subject headings to discover the official terms to use.

Using these Library of Congress Subject Headings will aid your searches.

Subject Headings

Select Suggested Subject Headings

Advertising -- History -- Bibliography
Advertising -- United States
Advertising -- United States -- History -- 20th century
Advertising -- United States – History -- Sources
Advertising campaigns -- United States -- History
Commercial art -- United States
Consumption (economics) -- United States
Popular culture – United States
Social change -- United States
Social change -- United States – History
Television advertising
Television commercials
United States -- History
United States -- Social History
United States -- Social Life And Customs

• Libraries and database creators try to structure language in a way to make browsable lists.  Subject terms tend to be set up in a hierarchical manner.  To understand this better, try a Keyword search in the Randall Library Catalog for "Advertising History"  Then, do a Subject search on " Advertising --United States -- History "  The hierarchical display of the subject search allows you to browse through results for various aspects and periods of history.
• Subject headings are not "natural language." For example, books on social history commonly use the subheading Social life and customs.
• Keep in mind that the most specific terms will be used as subject headings.
• Just because an item's subject heading does not include "History" as a subdivision does not mean it has no history in it. In particular, look at the publication date. It may be a source contemporary to the period.
• There are several commonly used subject subheadings that indicate an item is a primary source. Look for or search these subheadings:
  • correspondence*
  • diaries*
  • interviews*
  • personal narratives
  • pictorial works
  • songs and music
  • sources
  • speeches, addresses, etc.*
  • treaties

Browsing

After finding some sources through searching the online catalog, be sure to browse the shelves near these times. The call numbers are devised to place materials on the same subject together on the shelf. In the catalog, the call number is presented as a link, so you can even browse the shelves when searching the catalog:

You may also wish to browse the Reference Collection to see what special sources are available. A basic outline of the Library of Congress Classification Scheme is at http://library.uncw.edu/guides/library_of_congress_classification. For more detail, see the outline from the Library of Congress: http://www.loc.gov/catdir/cpso/lcco/lcco.html