General Research
Research a wide range of topics for free with your Library card. Find information about consumer goods, genealogy and a variety of research topics.
General Research Resources
-
Offers a world of academic research at your fingertips, with more than 17,000 scholarly journals, podcasts and transcripts.
-
Find newspapers from across the United States and around the world from more than 11,000 news sources, including over 140 from Washington State.
-
Explore early American history to support school assignments, genealogical and local history research, and more. Features more than 1,000 historical newspapers from all 50 states. This database includes early American newspapers previously available in America's Genealogy Bank.
-
Interested in genealogy? We partnered with Ancestry.com to help you search billions of historical documents, photos, oral histories and more, from the 1500s to the present.
-
Find article citations from 1929 -1984 from nearly 600 publications of art literature covering fine, decorative, and commercial art.
-
Want to learn about another country? Get in-depth information about 175 countries, including history, culture, customs, food, religion, travel information, maps and much more.
-
Get in-depth biographical information about the world’s most influential people from all time periods.
-
The experience and impact of African Americans as recorded by the news media, including over 400 current and historical Black publications from the 1700s to today.
-
The Encyclopedia Britannica online, plus a dictionary, thesaurus, world atlas, the full text of current magazine and journal articles, live feeds from a variety of news sources and much more.
-
Provides articles, news and product reviews from more than 600 publications that cover the computer, telecommunications, and electronics industries.
-
Use product reviews, ratings and comparisons from Consumer Reports magazine to make better buying decisions and save money.
-
Choose the best quality health, wellness and nutritional products, based on test results published by an independent laboratory.
-
Get ratings, reviews and advice to help you choose the best retail stores, service companies and healthcare providers in the Puget Sound region.
-
Get an inside look at the daily life, history, culture and customs of the world's people. Includes information on more than 200 countries, every U.S. state and all 13 Canadian provinces and territories.
-
Look up individuals and businesses in this extensive database covering U.S. and Canada. For business planning, use this database to identify competitors, prospects, suppliers, and partners by business type and geography. Also available via app.
-
Practice driving tests for cars, motorcycles, and the Commercial Driver's License (CDL). Online access to the Washington Driver's Handbook.
-
Need to research a topic? Here’s an easy-to-use source for searching magazines, newspapers, journals and audio content.
-
Explore these searchable and printable genealogy resources, including local and family histories, research guides and the complete U.S. Federal Census, 1790-1940. Powered by Ancestry.
-
Explore LGBTQ history, culture, health, and political, social and legal issues in the United States and around the world. The searchable database includes approximately 1.5 million pages of information.
-
Doing a research project for school or work? Start with this vast archive of more than 90,000 reference and information resources that spans centuries.
-
Provides detailed statistics that describe social and economic conditions in the United States.
-
Log in with a Library card to get free online tutoring from live tutors for K-12 students, as well as adult learners and job seekers.