Women's Studies

Biographical Research

To find out whether NYPL has a biography of a particular woman, perform a subject search in CATNYP under her name:

Stein Gertrude Biography

In addition to full-scale individual biographies, numerous additional sources give biographical information specifically on women.  Listed here are indexes to biographical material as well as a few of the more useful sources. For more information on general biographical sources, consult NYPL Research Guide Biographical Resources.

Biographical Indexes | Other Biographical Sources

Biographical Indexes

Adamson, Lynda G., Notable women in American history: a guide to recommended  biographies and autobiographies,  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1999),  JFE 99-14642.

———, Notable women in world history: a guide to recommended  biographies and autobiographies,  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1998),  *RS-SNE 98-3363.

Herman, Kali,  Women in particular: an index to American women,  (Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press, 1984),  *R-SNE 85-1057.  Entries include brief biographical facts and references to additional material.

Ireland, Norma Olin,  Index to women of the world from ancient to modern times,  (Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1970),  *RB-SNE. Includes references to material on 13,000 women.  A supplementary volume [1988] is in *RB-SNE 90-12947.

Other Biographical Sources

American women writers: a critical reference guide from colonial times to the present, 4 vols., (New York: Ungar, 1979- ), *R-SNE 79-5023. A one-volume abridged edition of this is available in *R-SNE 88-9101.

Bailey, Martha J.,  American women in science: 1950 to the present: a biographical dictionary,  (Denver, CO: ABC-CLIO, 1998), *R-SIBL Q141 .B254,  1994 edition in *R-SNE 94-10279.

Banks, Olive,  The biographical dictionary of British feminists,  2 vols., (Brighton, Sussex: Wheatsheaf Books, 1985-90), *R-SNE 85-3058.  Vol. 1: 1800-1930; vol. 2: 1900-1945.

Biographical dictionary of Chinese women: the Qing Period, 1644 –1911,  edited by Lily Xiao Hong Lee and A.D. Stefanowska,  (Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe, 1998),  *R-SNE 99-1820.

A biographical dictionary of women economists,  edited by Robert W. Dimand,  (Northampton, MA: Edward Elgar, 2000),  JFE 01-452 and *R-SIBL HB76 .B535.

The biographical dictionary of women in science : pioneering lives from ancient times to the mid-20th century,  edited by Marilyn Ogilvie and Joy Harvey,  (New York: Routledge, 2000),  JFF 01-388.

Chambers biographical dictionary of women,  edited by Melanie Parry,  (Edinburgh: Chambers, 1996),  *R-SNE 96-16428.

Chatelaine presents who's who of Canadian women,  8th edition, (Toronto, Ont., Canada: Who's Who Publications,  1998- ),  *R-SNE 98-557.

Chinese women through Chinese eyes,  edited by Li Yu-ning.  (Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 1992),  *OVY 92-5907.  A collection of essays originally published in Chinese.

Dictionary of British and American women writers, 1660-1800,  (Totowa, NJ: Rowman & Allanheld, 1985),  *R-SNE 86-258.

Dictionary of women artists,  edited by Delia Gaze,  2 vols.,  (London; Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, 1997), MAN 98-9045.

Extraordinary women of the Medieval and Renaissance world: a biographical dictionary,  edited by Carole Levin,  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2000),  JFE 00-16731.

Foerstel, Karen,  Biographical dictionary of congressional women,  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1999),  *R-AB 99-12260.

French women writers: a bio-bibliographical source book,  edited by Eva Martin Sartori and Dorothy W. Zimmerman,  (New York: Greenwood Press, 1991),  JFE 92-1300.

Golemba, Beverly E.,  Lesser-known women: a biographical dictionary, (Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 1992),  *R-SNE 92-15456.  International list of women from 1600 to present.

Haines, Catherine,  International women in science: a biographical dictionary to 1950,  (Oxford: ABC-Clio, 2001), *R-SNO 02-2012.

Hardy, Gayle J.,  American women civil rights activists: biobibliographies of 68 leaders, 1825-1992,  (Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 1993),  *R-SNE 93-11094 and Sc E 94-287.

Hawkes, Nena,  Celebrating women coaches: a biographical dictionary,  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2000),  JFE 00-17074.

International who’s who of women,  (London: Europa Publications Limited, 1992- ),  *R-SNE 93-1593.  Biographical reference guide to “eminent and distinguished women in the world today”.

Italian women writers: a bio-bibliographical sourcebook,  edited by Rinaldina Russell,  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1994),  JFE 94-14295.  Studies of 51 Italian women writers from the 14th century to the present.  Includes extensive bibliographic references and index.

Jewish American women writers: a bio-bibliographical and critical sourcebook,  edited by Ann R. Shapiro, (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1994),  *PAP 95-284.

Kanner, Barbara,  Women in context: two hundred years of British women  autobiographers, a reference guide and reader,  (New York: G.K. Hall, 1997).  *R-SNE 98-3393.

Lightman, Marjorie,  Biographical dictionary of ancient Greek and Roman women: notable women from Sappho to Helena,  (New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2000),  *R-SNE 00-2931.

Listen up: voices from the next feminist generation,  edited by Barbara Findlen, (Seattle, WA: Seal Press, 1995),  JFE 95-8376.  Anthology of biographical essays on young American feminists.

Native American women: a biographical dictionary,  2nd edition,  edited by Gretchen Bataille,  (New York: Routledge, 2001),  JGF 01-189.

Notable American women,  4 vols., (Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1971-1980),  *R-SNE (Notable American women).

Notable Black American women,  (Detroit, MI: Gale Research, 1992),  Sc F 92-29 and *R-AB 92-3254.

Notable Hispanic American women,  (Detroit, MI: Gale Research, 1993),  *R-SNE 93-7022.

Notable twentieth-century Latin American women: a biographical dictionary,  edited by Cynthia Margarita Tompkins and David William Foster,  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2001),  JFE 01-1424.

Notable women in mathematics: a biographical dictionary,  edited by Charlene Morrow and Teri Perl,  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1998), *R-SIBL QA28 .N68.

Notable women in the physical sciences: a biographical dictionary,  edited by Benjamin F. Shearer and Barbara S. Shearer,  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1997),  *R-SIBL Q141 .N734.

Ogilvie, Marilyn Bailey,  Women in science: antiquity through the nineteenth century: a biographical dictionary with annotated bibliography,  (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1986),  *R-SNE 89-2116.  Contains introductory essay, biographical accounts, and annotated bibliography.

Oldfield, Sybil,  Collective biography of women in Britain, 1550-1900: a select annotated bibliography,  (London; New York: Mansell, 1999), JFE 00-8539.

Oppedisano, Jeannette M.,  Historical encyclopedia of American women entrepreneurs: 1776 to the present, (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2000),  JFE 01-40.

Robinson, Jane,  Wayward women: a guide to women travelers,  (Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 1990),  JFD 90-6092.  International bibliography of books women have written about their own travel from 1700 on; contains bibliographic material on each traveller, maps, and a geographic index.

Rose, Phyllis,  The Norton book of women’s lives, (New York: W.W. Norton, 1993),  JFE 93-12400.  Anthology of excerpts from 20th century women’s memoirs, journals, and autobiographies.

Salisbury, Joyce E.,  Encyclopedia of women in the ancient world,  (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2001),  JFF 01-3145.

Salmonson, Jessica A.,  The encyclopedia of Amazons: women warriors from antiquity to the modern era,  (New York: Paragon House, 1991),  *R-SNE 91-7505.

Sifters: Native American women's lives,  edited by Theda Perdue,  (Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2001),  JFE 01-6816.

Spanish American women writers: a bio-bibliographical source book,  edited by Diane E. Marting,  (New York: Greenwood Press, 1990),  *R-NPV 90-11196.

Spanish women writers: a bio-bibliographic source book,  edited by Linda Gould Levine,  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1993),  *R-SNE 94-143.

Stanley, Autumn,  Mothers and daughters of invention: notes for a revised history of technology,  (Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1993),  *R-Science T36 .S73 1993 and JFD 94-23996.  History of female inventors.

Sweeney, Patricia E., Biographies of American women: an annotated bibliography,  (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 1990),  *RS-SNE 90-8835.  Examines 1,391 biographies of American women in the English language from 1800 on.

———,  Biographies of British women: an annotated bibliography,  (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 1993),  *RS-SNE 93-11030.  Consists of 2,014 entries covering over 700 British women from 1600 to 1992.

Who’s who of American women,  (Chicago, IL: A.N. Marquis Co., 1958/59- ),  latest edition in Pub.Cat. 81-452,  1st-5th edition 1958/59-1968/69 in M-10 7362, 6th edition 1970/71-  in JFN 81-19.

Women anthropologists: a biographical dictionary,  (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988),  *R-SNE 88-2128.

Women artists of color: a bio-critical sourcebook to 20th century artists in the Americas,  edited by Phoebe Farris, (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1999), Sc E 99-773 and MAN 99-8228.

Women in archaeology,  edited by Cheryl Claassen,  (Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1994),  JFE 94-14481.  Biographies of American women archaeologists, including an extensive bibliography.

Women in chemistry and physics: a biobibliographic sourcebook,  edited by Louise S. Grinstein and others,  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1993),  *R-Science QD21 .W62 1993.

Women educators in the United States, 1820-1993: a bio-bibliographical sourcebook, edited by Maxine Schwart Seller,  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1994),  *R-SNE 94-10203.

Women of mathematics: a biobibliographic sourcebook,  edited by Louise S. Grinstein,  (New York: Greenwood Press, 1987),  *R-Science QA28 .W66 1987.

Women in world history: a biographical encyclopedia,  edited by Anne Commire,  (Waterford, CT: Yorkin Publications, 1999- ),  *R-SNE 99-1076.

Women writers of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland: an annotated bio-bibliographical guide,  edited by Elke Frederiksen,  (New York: Greenwood Press, 1989),  JFE 89-3152.  Covers 185 German, Austrian, and Swiss women writers from the 10th century to the present.

Woolum, Janet,  Outstanding women athletes: who they are and how they influenced sports in America,  (Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press, 1992),  *R-SNE 93-1044.

World who's who of women,  (Cambridge, England: Melrose Press, 1973- ), latest edition in *R-SNE 76-923, previous editions in JFM 76-300.

Zierdt-Warshaw, Linda,  American women in technology: an encyclopedia,  (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2000),  *R-SNE 00-10403.