Looking for background information on your topic? Start with the Reference Section of the Library (Level C). Start at the Library Catalog and search for your topic. To find reference (or overview) books on your topic, select "Reference" as book location.

Print reference works and indexes are primarly found in the "D," "Ref D," and "900" sections of the library - but it's easier to find these in the catalog!  Some useful reference materials may include:
Ref CB5 .D52 - Dictionary of the history of ideas
Ref D5 .M55 2007 - Evidence Explained. Citing History Sources from Artifacts to Cyberspace
Ref D13 .H75 2000 - Fifty key thinkers on history
Ref D13 .M86 2000 - The Routledge companion to historical studies
Ref D13 .R49 1986 - Dictionary of concepts in history
Ref D14 .E53 1999 - Encyclopedia of historians and historical writing
Ref D14 .G74 1989  - Great historians from antiquity to 1800 : an international dictionary
Ref D14 .G75 1991 - Great historians of the modern age : an international dictionary
Ref D16.2 .P715 2007 - The Information Literate Historian
Ref D1625 .M32 2002 - Historical research : a guide
Ref PE1625 .O87  Oxford English Dictionary

Drew also subscribes to a number of electronic reference materials, including:

Oxford Reference Online

Oxford English Dictionary

Chicago Manual of Style

Credo Reference

New Dictionary of the History of Ideas