Notable American Women and the Dictionary of Negro Biography are an alphabetical arrangement of biographical sketches of women and African Americans who contributed in some way to the historic record. Each sketch contains a bibliography of sources to consult for additional information about the subject. The references will lead to scholarly biographies about the subject, which you can choose to consult or pass up. Either way, the information exists to provide basic factual information or provide suggestions of resources for further exploration of the subject. Finally, sources, like Dictionary of Women Artists contain biographical information that is both gender specific and inclusive of one particular profession, in this case, artists.
Many colleges have biographical registers of their alumni.
Sibley's Harvard Graduates comprises eighteen volumes and contains biographical sketches of men who graduated from Harvard from 1654-1780, many of whom shaped the political, social, religious and economic landscape of American life. These volumes are arranged by graduating class, therefore, the indexes are vital for locating a specific biographical sketch. Its strengths are numerous. Each sketch contains a summary of the facts and events of an individual's life and career, citations for additional sources to consult as well as a list of writings by the individual and information about the existence and location of personal papers. The Massachusetts Historical Society.