Databases by Topic

ATOZDATABASES
Detailed information on 30 million businesses and executives and 2 million new businesses. Includes data on over 200 million residents as well as new movers/homeowners. Special features include a background and criminal history search. Information provided on U. S. healthcare professionals. Includes a jobs database and email marketing. Paid for by MeL.

BUSINESS EBOOKS COLLECTION
A key resource for academic and business school libraries. You may access the full text of these eBooks from your computer, or download titles to most popular portable devices. Paid for by MeL.

DEMOGRAPHICS NOW
Research demographic and statistical information for any U.S. geographic location. Paid for by MeL.

LEGAL INFORMATION SOURCE
Copies of actual legal forms and documents continuously updated to reflect current state laws. Paid for by MeL.

REFERENCE SOLUTIONS (Formerly Reference USA)
Quickly locate information on publicly and privately-owned companies in the U.S. & Canada. Paid for by NDL.

SMALL BUSINESS SOURCE
Sample business plans, forms, and guides for starting and running your own business. Paid for by MeL.

WEBSITES

• Business in the State of Michigan – Resources and guides for starting and running a business in Michigan.
• Michigan Economic Development Corporation – The State of Michigan provides numerous resources, from capital funding and business mentoring to locating incubators and lab space.
• Northville Chamber of Commerce – Business and community development information.
• SCORE Detroit – Free, confidential, business advice from expert advisors committed to helping you succeed.
• Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Michigan – Counseling, training, and research for new ventures, existing small businesses and advanced technology companies. Download a [PDF] Guide to Starting and Operating a Business in Michigan.
• Small Business USA – U.S. government business topics and small business guides.
• U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission – The SEC has information on filings/forms, litigation, regulatory actions, investor information, news, and public statements.  There is also a “Fast Answers for Key Topics” search function.
• U.S. Small Business Administration – The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) provides a variety of educational and support resources for starting and managing a small business.

FREE PODCASTS

Available through apps like Podcasts app (iPhone, iPad), Stitcher app, Google Play Music app.

• Marketplace - Latest news and insight about the impact of current events on our economy.
• The Pitch - Real entrepreneurs pitch to real investors — for real money.
• The Tim Ferriss Show - Often regarded as the top business podcast, host Tim Ferriss interviews world-class performers across industries to extract the tactics and routines listeners can use in their daily lives.

FREE APPS

Available through the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store.

Slack – Create different communication channels, send group messages, and even break off into one-off meetings within a slack channel.

Inigo – A networking app that allows you to create and share a virtual business card by tapping your smartphone with someone else’s.

MailChimp – Helps you easily boost your subscriber list, send out messages, automate your email campaigns, and create beautiful newsletters.

OPPOSING VIEWPOINTS
Access viewpoint articles, statistics, primary documents, authoritative reference works, and full-text magazine and newspaper articles. Paid for by MeL.

REFERENCE SHELF
For many of today’s most controversial topics, this collection provides articles exploring the issue in depth. Each topic has a companion print title available for checkout. Paid for by NDL.

WEBSITES

• ProCon.org – Maintained by a nonprofit, nonpartisan group with the mission of promoting critical thinking and an informed citizenry, this site covers over 50 of today’s most talked about issues, in a mainly pro and con format.

To check current information

• FactCheck.org – This nonpartisan project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics by serving as a “consumer advocate” for voters.
• Snopes – Founded by David Mikkelson in 1995 as an expression of his interest in researching urban legends, this website is widely regarded by professionals and laypeople alike as one of the Web’s essential resources for checking the truth of information being circulated.

LEARNING EXPRESS: ADULT CORE SKILLS
Improve your basic skills in reading, writing, speaking, and grammar, as well as basic math. Also includes GED and U.S. Citizenship practice tests.  For refresher courses on more advanced material try the College Center, also a part of Learning Express Library. Paid for by MeL.

LEARNING EXPRESS: CAREER CENTER
Prepare for a career with occupational and entrance test prep.  Practice Nursing and Allied Health entrance exams, civil service exams, and military tests such as the ASVAB.  Ranges from Cosmetology and CDL to Homeland Security and Real Estate.  Help develop your career path with practical information on many different jobs. Paid for by MeL.

LINKEDIN LEARNING
LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com) Online learning resource with over 16,000 video courses taught by industry experts in software, creative, and business skills, with new courses added weekly. Courses are available in multiple languages, and patrons can obtain certificates of completion. Access is free to NDL patrons with just a library card and PIN. For mobile app users our library ID is "northvillelibrary". Paid for by NDL.

WEBSITES

WEBSITES

• Basic ESL – Basic ESL improves an individual’s listening, speaking, reading and writing skills through a simple to follow, and instructional proven curriculum. Students learn English quickly and effectively on relevant topics including: family, home, school and many other topics. In each lesson students learn key vocabulary and how to use that vocabulary in conversation.
• Duolingo  – Free online lessons in a self-paced game format.
• Easy World of English  – An attractive, user-friendly website including grammar, pronunciation, reading and listening practice and an interactive picture dictionary.
• Live Lingua – Internet’s largest collection of free public domain language learning materials. Thousands of free e-books, audio recordings and videos in over 130 different languages.
• Open Culture – One stop shop to find the best free online resources to learn any of 48 different foreign languages online.
• Perfect Pronunciation Exercises – Practice sounds, syllable stress, and sentence intonation with the exercises on the Merriam-Webster Learner’s Dictionary website.

FREE APPS – Available through the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store

Duolingo – Same as the website but in a handy mobile format for on the go lessons.

Mango Languages – Sign in using your library card and you can take the languages lessons with you on your mobile devices!

Memrise – Another fun way to learn languages, similar to Duolingo.

FREE PODCASTS

Available through apps like Podcasts app (iPhone, iPad), Stitcher app, Google Play Music app.

• ESLPOD – A podcast for those wanting to learn or improve their English – great for any ESL or EFL learner.
• “Coffee Break” Series: – Each lesson is short and geared toward conversational learning. Available in Spanish, French, Italian, German and Chinese.
• “News in Slow” Series: – Learn a new language using current events. Available in French, Spanish, Italian and German.

Genealogy and Local History Resources: Databases and selected websites.

Historic Free Press: Search and view issues of The Detroit Free Press from 1831 - 1999.

Local History Indexes: Search more than 90 printed sources for information.

Northville High School Palladiums: Northville High School yearbooks from 1921-2012.

Voices & Faces of Northville: Hear and see community residents share their stories and memories of our hometown.

Register to Vote/Request an Absentee Ballot

• Michigan Voter Information Center
• Are you already registered?
• Register in person at your local SOS office or local clerk's office
• Register by Mail
• Can’t make it to the polls on Election Day? Fill out this form. Mail it to your clerk's office by 5pm on Friday before Election Day or return it to the clerk in person by 8pm on Election Day.

Government Sites

Campaign Finance Disclosures

Federal Election Commission - Official United States Government website that tracks campaign finance and donations.
Michigan Campaign Finance – Searchable database for campaign contributions and spending in the state of Michigan.

Fact Checking

Annenberg Political Fact Check - Designed to help voters by “monitoring the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews, and news releases.” Updated even when it is not election season. Includes information on special interest groups behind television ads.

Center for Public Integrity - A well-documented investigative journalism organization and winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 2014 & 2017.

Politifact - A fact-checking website founded by editors of Time Magazine and in conjunction with Congressional Quarterly.

General Resources

BallotReady – A nonpartisan site that allows you to build your ballot by diving into every candidate and referendum on your ballot including candidate’s backgrounds, stances on issues, and experience.

BestColleges.com Student Voting Guide – A nonpartisan guide designed for college students. Includes a bipartisan key issues guide and voter registration information for each state.

Bridge Magazine - a nonprofit, nonpartisan news publication by the Center for Michigan that provides passionate and rooted Michigan readers with honest, fact-driven journalism on the state’s diverse people, politics, and economy.

Citizens Research Council of Michigan - provides factual, unbiased, independent information on significant issues concerning state and local government organization and finance.

League of Women Voters – A nonpartisan organization that encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues and influences public policy through education and advocacy.

ProCon.org – Pros and Cons of Current Issues – Feeling overwhelmed by all the issues being debated during the 2020 Presidential Election? Start here! ProCon.org is a nonprofit nonpartisan public charity that use professional researchers and rigorous editorial standards.

Project Vote Smart – A nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates for public office.

TurboVote – A tool that makes voting easy by sending text or email messages verifying voter registration status, reminders about important election deadlines, and polling place location. Developed by the nonpartisan group Democracy Works.

Vote411.org – One-stop shop for everything to be an informed voter, from checking registration to candidate information.

Political Parties

DEMOCRATIC PARTY – National | Michigan
GREEN PARTY – National | Michigan
LIBERTARIAN PARTY – National | Michigan
REPUBLICAN PARTY – National | Michigan

This page is compiled and maintained by librarians at the Northville District Library. Links to political parties and/or campaign websites are for informational purposes only and do not in any way constitute an endorsement.

ALT HEALTHWATCH
Provides information on complementary, holistic, and integrated approaches to healthcare and wellness. Paid for by MeL.

CONSUMER HEALTH COMPLETE
Supports the health and wellness information needs of patients. Covers mainstream medicine as well as complementary and holistic medicine. Paid for by MeL.

HEALTH SOURCE - CONSUMER EDITION
Subjects include fitness, nutrition, diabetes, aging, women’s health, children’s health, and more. Information comes from magazines, books, Clinical Reference System reports, and pamphlets. Paid for by MeL.

WEBSITES

• Center for Disease Control (CDC) – Health, safety, and security threat information from our nation’s health protection agency.
• Clinical Trials – Private and public funded clinical studies around the world, provided by the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
• Mayo Clinic – Patient care and health information by the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN
• Medline Plus – Health Information for consumers from the National Library of Medicine
• Merck Manual – Information on medical topics, symptoms, drugs, procedures, news and more, written in everyday language.  Consumer version of the professional manual.
• National Institute on Aging – Science-based information on health and aging, and Alzheimers, by the National Institutes of Health (NIH)
• National Institutes of Health (NIH) – Health information from one of the world’s foremost medical research centers
• Nursing Resource Center –  Articles for students and health care workers about diseases, medical conditions, and drugs. Basic nursing theory overviews, including access to sample care plans and more.
• Rehab Help – is a community organization dedicated to empowering people suffering from substance abuse addiction with tools and resources to start their personal journey toward recovery. We create and publishes comprehensive, unbiased, free web-based resources that have been featured and are referenced by many governmental agencies and organizations across the web.
• University of Michigan Health System Care Guides – Patient care information for a variety of medical conditions and treatments, either created or reviewed by UMHS medical professionals

A TO Z WORLD FOOD
Explore food culture and recipes from 174 countries around the world. This resource contains more than 7,000 traditional recipes, along with thousands of ingredients, food culture, and reference articles. Paid for by NDL.

BIOGRAPHY IN CONTEXT
Biography in Context (formerly known as Biography Resource Center) is a comprehensive database of biographical information on more than one million people throughout history, worldwide, and across all disciplines and subject areas. It combines over 600,000 biographies from over 170 sources, with over one million entries from the Complete Marquis Who's Who®. The database also includes full-text articles from nearly 250 periodicals. Search for people based on one or more personal facts such as birth and death years and places, nationality, ethnicity, occupation or gender, or combine criteria to create a highly-targeted custom search path. Paid for by NDL.

FOLD3
Fold3 Library Edition by Ancestry provides convenient access to US military records, including the stories, photos, and personal documents of the men and women who served. This continually-growing collection contains millions of records from world-class archives. With content from the Revolutionary War onward, Fold3 Library Edition is an invaluable research resource for historians, genealogists, researchers, military enthusiasts, veterans, and their families, as well as teachers and battle reenactors. Paid for by NDL.

HERITAGEQUEST ONLINE

Comprehensive treasury of American genealogical sources—rich in unique primary sources, local and family histories, convenient research guides, interactive census maps, and more. With more than 4.4 billion records, it delivers an essential collection of genealogical and historical sources—with coverage dating back to the 1700s—that can help people find their ancestors and discover a place’s past. Paid for by NDL.

HISTORY REFERENCE SOURCE
Documents, photos, maps, film, and video from leading history journals. Also includes biographies of historical figures. Paid for by MeL.

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC VIRTUAL LIBRARY
Contains the digitized archive of National Geographic Magazine from 1888 to present, as well as a wide range of full-text books published by National Geographic. Includes an easy to use module “for Kids”, as well as maps, photos, National Geographic Traveler magazine and more. Great for travelers and students of geography and history. Paid for by NDL.

NEWSPAPERS.COM
Library Edition is an extensive database that provides online access to 4,000+ historical newspapers. Dating from the early 1700s into the 2000s, Newspapers.com Library Edition contains full runs and portions of runs of well-known, regional and state titles to small local newspapers in the United States and other countries. Paid for by NDL.

NORTHVILLE RECORD - Northville Record Digitized Archive
Search and view issues of The Northville Record from its beginning in 1869. Paid for the by the Friends of NDL.

SANBORN MAPS
Digital Sanborn® Maps (1867-1970) delivers detailed property and land-use records that depict the grid of everyday life in Michigan towns and cities across a century of change. The Sanborn Map Company was the primary American publisher of fire insurance maps for nearly 100 years, repeatedly mapping towns and cities as they changed. The maps provide a wealth of information, such as building outline, size and shape, windows and doors, street and sidewalk widths, boundaries, and property numbers. Paid for by NDL.

WEBSITES

• Biography.com (includes a section on History & Culture)
• Biography Online
• History topics from The History Channel
• US History

WALL STREET JOURNAL
Daily business and financial newspaper with high marks for factual reporting focuses upon business and economy but often reports on related topics in politics, arts and world events. Paid for by NDL.

VALUE LINE RESEARCH CENTER
From the highly valued print edition, online access to data and analysis on 3,500 stocks, as well as 1,500 top equity funds, options, and convertibles. Features tools to screen and export data and track model portfolios. Paid for by NDL.

MORNINGSTAR LIBRARY EDITION
Combines in one convenient database all the stocks, funds, industry and ETF information needed for in-depth research and smart portfolio construction. Offers tools to help learn about investing, as well as analytical reports by Morningstar experts. Paid for by NDL.

WEBSITES

• Better Investing Guide – This guide’s mission is to empower investors to take control of their finances and investments through the Internet.  It offers stock and fund research, news, commentary, business, and financial glossaries and a key for stock exchange symbols.
• Big Charts – A service of Market Watch, this site provides investment charting and research capabilities. Get stock quotes, news articles and reports on stock movements.
• Bloomberg – Bloomberg presents information on global financial markets, commodities, and news. It also includes investment tools and audio/video reports from financial experts.
• Financial Times – This site offers world-wide business news and analysis as well as blogs, newsletters, currency converter and video commentary by financial experts.

LEARNING EXPRESS LIBRARY > JOBS/CAREERS/TEST PREP
Seven interactive learning centers of academic and licensing/certification exams and more. Paid for by MeL.

REFERENCE SOLUTIONS (Formerly Reference USA)
Formerly known as Reference USA, Data Axle Reference Solutions is the go-to resource for comprehensive data on both businesses and individuals, tailored to the needs of small business owners, marketing professionals, entrepreneurs, researchers, and job seekers. It empowers users to create marketing plans, conduct competitive analysis, secure funding, and locate individuals. This platform offers detailed profiles of over 50 million U.S. businesses, 150 million U.S. residents, 7+ million job postings, internships, historical business data, and healthcare listings, making it an invaluable research tool for job seekers, businesses, and researchers. Paid for by NDL.

SMALL BUSINESS SOURCE
How to start, manage or finance your small business. Sample business plans, how-to guides, articles, and websites. Paid for by MeL.

WEBSITES

• CareerBuilder – Browse jobs and explore careers.
• CareerOneStop – Career, job and training resources from the U.S. Dept. of Labor
• Career Outlook –  Articles on the economy and job related topics from the U.S. Dept. of Labor.
• Glassdoor – Search jobs from over 20,000 job sites, newspapers and company career pages.
• Indeed.com – Job postings, company reviews, and more.
• LinkedIn Jobs – Search for jobs.
• Michigan Works! Association – Valuable resource for Michigan job seekers. Training and events, webcasts, videos, more.
• Occupational Outlook Handbook –  U.S. Dept. of Labor resource for job outlooks and general salary guidelines.
• Pure Michigan Talent Connect – State of MI Workforce Development Agency’s online marketplace for job seekers.
• USAJOBS – U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Search and apply for federal jobs.
• Zippia - Job listings in Northville.
• ZipRecruiter – Search for jobs and send your resume to over 100 job boards.

WEBSITES > JOB SKILLS & TEST PREP

• GCF LearnFree – Free tutorials on resume writing, cover letters, interviewing skills, networking basics, job hunting with social media, Microsoft Office
• TechBoomers – Free site that teaches older adults and others with basic computer skills how to use popular websites and apps like Facebook, LinkedIn, more.
• MI Test for Teacher Certification – Study guides, test dates, and test sites.
• Driver Education – Free driver practice tests specifically for Michigan.  Permits, road signs, motorcycle, commercial driver's license (CDL), fines and limits all available. Links to official Michigan online handbooks for drivers, motorcycles, and CDL.

WEBSITES > Student Loan Information

• U.S. News & World Report  — Best private student loans, how to get a private student loan, student loan consolidation.

LEGAL INFORMATION SOURCE
Search over 12,800 state-specific legal forms by topic including Adoption, Bankruptcy, Name Changes, and more. A majority of the full-text legal reference books provided through NOLO. Paid for by MeL.

LEGAL SOURCE
PA scholarly resource of current issues, studies, and trends of the legal world. For attorneys, educators, business people, law librarians, students, and paralegals. Paid for by MeL.

WEBSITES

• Common Legal Citations and Where to Find Them – Use this chart to identify frequently cited Michigan and federal legal materials and find the resources from which to retrieve them. The websites listed either provide free access to the materials or point to libraries where the source may be found in print.
• Lakeshore Legal Aid wants people to know about the CDC Eviction Moratorium in Michigan:  Protection under the CDC Eviction Moratorium in Michigan

  Lakeshore Legal Aid - Serves low-income people, seniors, and survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault in a holistic manner to address clients’ civil legal issues and improve our communities. Lakeshore provides free direct legal representation in southeast Michigan and the Thumb and client intake, advice, and brief legal services throughout Michigan via our attorney-staffed hotline.

  For Legal Assistance contact Counsel & Advocacy Law Line: 888-783-8190 or michiganlegalhelp.org

• Michigan Legal Help – Michigan Legal Help is for people who are handling their legal problems without a lawyer. It can help you learn about your legal problems and get ready for court.