Major new database now available: Early English Books Online

Would you be interested in seeing an original copy of one of Shakespeare’s plays? Think you’d have to fly to London to do so? No longer! Albertsons Library is proud to announce the addition of digital access to over 110,000 rare and historical British texts published between 1473 and 1700. This collection, known as the database Early English Books Online (EEBO), will greatly enhance the ability of Boise State students and faculty to conduct primary research related to the literature, history, and culture of early England and colonial America.

According to Chadwyk-Healey, the publisher of EEBO, the database contains “virtually every work printed in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and British North America and works in English printed elsewhere from 1473-1700 - from the first book printed in English by William Caxton, through the age of Spenser and Shakespeare and the tumult of the English Civil War.” With such a broad scope of materials, EEBO will enhance research and teaching across a variety of disciplines including literature, history, philosophy, linguistics, theology, music, fine arts, education, mathematics, and science.

Indeed, the library received a substantial number of letters from the campus community in support of the acquisition of EEBO. Faculty noted that databases like EEBO “bring the riches of archives to us” and allow students to “push the limits of their initiative, imagination and industry.” Students called it “essential for access to historical documents” and described how it enables them to “put in context the texts we read for our classes.”

Albertsons Library invites you to access EEBO at any time by going to our website and clicking on “Early English Books Online.” You can even use EEBO from home by logging in with your BroncoWeb ID and password. For more information contact Kim Leeder, Reference Librarian, by calling x6-1621 or by email.