Resources by Topic

Whether you are researching a topic, want to learn a new skill, or are exploring your family history, our digital resources and databases can help. Use your library card for free access to these online resources.

Note: Your PIN is set to the last four digits of your phone number by default. If you need to reset your PIN, contact us.

Articles & Newspapers

Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers
Library card number required. Full-text daily and weekly Wisconsin newspapers from 2005 to 90 days ago, plus newspapers from the 1800s and 1900s, all in searchable PDF format. See a full title list here. Provided by Badgerlink.

Green Bay Press Gazette
Library card number required. Access full-page scans of the Green Bay Press Gazette from 1915 to the present (two-week delay) using ProQuest Historical Newspapers: Wisconsin Collection. Images are searchable in full text and downloadable in PDF format. Earlier Green Bay newspapers are also available. The Central Library has microfilm for the Green Bay Press Gazette from June 29, 1915 through 2023.

Green Bay Press Gazette Index:
1962-1983: Card index located in the Local History & Genealogy Department at the Central Library.
July 1985-December 1996: Print index in the microfilm area at the Central Library (these are news indices, not vital record indices).
1997-2003: Search the Green Bay Press-Gazette index in the library’s online catalog.
1999-Currrent: Complete full-text content of the Green Bay Press-Gazette available via U.S. Newsstream (no delay).

MasterFILE Complete
Library card number required. Popular full-text magazines, reference books and other sources from the world’s leading publishers. Covers topics including business, health, education, fitness, sports and leisure, personal finance, general science, multicultural issues, DIY and fashion. Provided by BadgerLink.

Newspaper Source Plus
Library card number required. Full text coverage of today’s major newspapers. Provided by BadgerLink.

Newspapers.com Library Edition – World Collection
Library card number required. Historical newspapers archive from the 1700s – 2000s containing thousands of well-known regional, state, and small local newspapers in the United States and other countries. Provided by BadgerLink.

Newswires
Library card number required. Near real-time access to top world-wide news. Includes news from the Associated Press, United Press International, PR Newsire, Xinhua, CNN Wire and Business Wire. Provided by BadgerLink.

PressReader
Library card number required. Access over 7,000 digital newspapers and magazines from around the world as soon as they are published.

Getting started with PressReader

Proquest Historical Newspapers: Wisconsin Collection
Library card number required. Access regional history through local news. Featuring papers from Wisconsin communities including Green Bay, Appleton, Oshkosh, Manitowoc, Sheboygan and more. Each title includes the complete paper, cover-to-cover, with full-page images in easily downloadable PDF format. See full title list here.

U.S. Newsstream
Library card number required. Current and archival to 1980s U.S. news featuring key national and regional sources including The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, Newsday, and Chicago Tribune as well as over 80 Gannett titles. Provided by BadgerLink.

Arts, Crafts & Home Improvement

CreativeBug
Library card number required. View video tutorials on a wide variety of arts and crafts, including knitting, paper art, cake decorating and more. Unlimited access to thousands of classes and patterns for all skill levels so you may learn a craft at your own pace.

Quick Start Guide

Hobbies and Crafts Source
Library card number required. Magazines, recipes and videos with “how-to” instructions and creative do-it-yourself ideas. Provided by BadgerLink.

Home Improvement Source
Library card number required. Magazines & reference books on home improvement and repair project topics. Provided by BadgerLink.

Books & Reading Recommendations

Boundless Digital Lucky Day Books
Library card number required. High-demand titles and bestselling authors with no waitlists! If a title is available, it’s yours to borrow! Download eBooks and digital audiobooks. Getting started with Boundless

Hoopla
Library card number required. Instantly stream or download eBooks, audiobooks, comics, songs, movies and television shows. Getting started with Hoopla  

NoveList
Library card number required. Find your next read with this fiction recommendation resource featuring read-alikes, discussion guides, reading lists, and more. Provided by BadgerLink.

Libby & Wisconsin’s Digital Library
Library card number required. Check out eBooks, digital audiobooks, and magazines that can be downloaded to your computer, e-reader or an Android or Apple device. Getting started with Libby & Wisconsin’s Digital Library

Business, Finance & Investing

Business Source Premier
Full-text journal and peer-reviewed articles covering all disciplines of business, including marketing, management, accounting, finance and economics. Provided by BadgerLink.

Morningstar
Library card number required. Stock market analysis; equity, mutual fund, and ETF research, ratings, and picks; portfolio tools; and option, hedge fund, IRA, 401k, and 529 plan research.

Regional Business News
Library card number required. Full-text access to 108 business magazines and newspapers from the U.S. and Canada. Provided by BadgerLink.

Value Line Investment Survey
Library card number required. See full-page reports, analyst commentaries and Value Line’s trademark rankings of all stocks covered by the print edition.

Cars, Driving & Engine Repair

ChiltonLibrary
Library card number required. OEM repair, maintenance, and service information on most cars, trucks, vans, and SUVs. Provides step-by-step procedures, diagnostic and troubleshooting help, and a video library. Provided by BadgerLink.

Small Engine Repair Source
Library card number required. Detailed, user-friendly repair guides for all manner of small engines. Includes more than 450 full-text reference books with original photos and illustrations covering more than 25 years of engine models. Provided by BadgerLink.

U.S. Department of Energy Fuel Economy Guide
No login required. Find fuel economy information on a specific car or compare vehicles by year to find the most fuel-efficient vehicle that meets your needs.

Wisconsin Driver Education Practice Tests
No login required. Free practice tests for Wisconsin Division of Motor Vehicles written examinations. Includes car, motorcycle and commercial driver license tests.

Also see:
Wisconsin DOT Class D Driver License Practice Test
Wisconsin DOT Commercial Driver License (CDL) Practice Test

Wisconsin Motorist’s Handbook
Check out a copy from the library or download the Handbook from the Department of Transportation.

Consumer Information

Consumer Reports
Library card number required. Access full-text PDFs of the popular magazine. Find expert advice, buying advice, user reviews and much, much more! Provided by BadgerLink.

Recycling Guide
A guide to local recycling resources.

Wisconsin Public Service Rate Book
Access the rates and rules of the Wisconsin Public Service.

Education & Online Learning

Gale Courses
Library card number required. Online courses for professional and personal enrichment. Explore 100+ online courses led by expert instructors. Six-week courses begin every month and can be taken entirely online so you can work around your schedule.

Quick Start Guide

Points of View Reference Source
Library card number required. Resources presenting multiple sides of an issue to help assess and develop persuasive arguments and essays, better understand controversial issues, and develop analytical thinking skills. Provided by BadgerLink.

Encyclopedias, Directories & General Research

AtoZ Databases
Library card number required. A reference and marketing database with 30 million business profiles and over 220 million residents. Ideal for sales leads, mailing lists, market research, employment opportunities, and finding contact information for friends and family.

Badgerlink
Library card number required. From personal interest to educational research, Badgerlink is Wisconsin’s Online Library, providing Wisconsin residents with licensed, trustworthy resources that are not available through normal internet search engines.

Britannica Library
Library card number required. Comprehensive online encyclopedia for students and adults. Provided by BadgerLink.

Funk & Wagnall’s New World Enyclopedia
Library card number required. Comprehensive online encyclopedia for students and adults. Provided by BadgerLink.

Government, Law & Taxes

Federal Depository Library Program Guides
A list of online guides created by the FDLP program covering a range of topics related to the federal government.

Gale LegalForms
Library card number required. Prepare legal forms without all the trial and error. Gale LegalForms offers thousands of authentic, Wisconsin legal forms from wills to business contracts. The forms are fill-in-the-blank, downloadable, and continuously updated to reflect the latest laws.

Quick Start Guide
Full Guide
Finding Documents Video Tutorial
Legal Tools Video Tutorial

Taxpayer Information Guide
A guide featuring federal and state tax return resources.

Law & Legal Resources Guide
A guide covering local, state and federal law and municipal codes, and resources for legal assistance.

Wisconsin Blue Books
No login required. Search the complete text of every Wisconsin Blue Book-the primary reference source about the state, documenting the organization of the state’s three branches of government (legislative, executive, and judicial).

Health & Wellness

Alt HealthWatch
Library card number required. Full-text articles from often peer-reviewed journals covering alternative and holistic approaches to health care and wellness. Provided by BadgerLink.

Consumer Health Complete
Library card number required. Consumer-oriented health resource, from mainstream to holistic medicine, including medication information. Features full-text articles from magazines, journals, reference books and encyclopedias and hundreds of medical images and diagrams. Provided by BadgerLink.

Health Source: Consumer Edition
Library card number required. Full-text consumer health magazines, pamphlets and reference books. Covers many health topics including medical sciences, food science and nutrition, childcare, sports medicine and general health. Provided by BadgerLink.

Medline Plus
No login needed. Reliable and authoritative health information from the National Library of Medicine, the world’s largest medical library, which is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). En Español

Merck Manual
No login needed. Information on medical topics, symptoms, drugs, procedures, news and more, written in everyday language. All of the trusted information that was found in the Merck Manual Home Health Handbook is now available for free on the Merck Manual website.

PubMed
No login required. A free resource supporting the search and retrieval of biomedical and life sciences literature with the aim of improving health–both globally and personally. The PubMed database contains more than 32 million citations and abstracts of biomedical literature.

Jobs & Career

Job Searching & Career Resources Guide
A guide for job searches, resume and cover letter writing, interview skills and career advancement resources.

Language

Rosetta Stone
Library card number required. Learn a brand-new language, further your ESL learning as non-native English speaker, or brush up on a language for business or vacation travel. Includes 50 hours of foundational lessons to build reading, writing, speaking and listening skills for 29 different languages.

Quick Start Guide
Mobile App Guide

Transparent Language
Library card number required
. Build listening, speaking, reading and writing skills in over 100 languages. Includes content for English learners of all levels, including beginner-level courses localized for speakers of over 25 languages.

Quick Start Guide

Local History & Genealogy

For more information about online and print resources, visit our Local History & Genealogy Department.

Ancestry Library
(In-library use only)
Research your family history by searching census, vital, immigration, military records, and more. Available on library computers.

fold3
Library card number required. A premier collection of original military records.

HeritageQuest Online
Library card number required. A comprehensive treasury of American genealogical and historical sources. Includes US Federal Censuses, books, cemetery records, city directories, military records and more. Provided by BadgerLink.

Northeast Wisconsin Historical Materials
No login required. Historical atlases, directories, plat maps and high school yearbooks from Brown, Door, Kewaunee Oconto & Shawano Counties. They are useful to people seeking the origin of street names and to trace neighborhoods that were once farmland or heavily forested lands.

Wisconsin Historical Society Family History Records
No login required. Family history research records from the Wisconsin Historical Society records available on Ancestry. A collection of family history-related government records covering various time periods between 1800 and 1987, including birth, death, and marriage indexes, state censuses, and wills and probate records. Provided by BadgerLink.

Student Resources

Explora for Elementary Schools
Library card number required. Full-text research database covering a variety of subjects for elementary school students. Provided by BadgerLink.

Explora for Middle and High Schools
Library card number required. Subjects for middle and high school students. Provided by BadgerLink.

Literary Reference Center Plus
Library card number required. A collection of literary criticism and reference works. Provided by BadgerLink.

Teaching Books
Library card number required. Original, in-studio movies of authors and illustrators, audio book excerpts, guides to thousands of titles and multimedia resources on children’s and young adult literature. Provided by BadgerLink.

Many of above Topic groupings include resources that may be helpful for student research. Try Articles & Newspapers, Encyclopedias, Directories & General Research and Language.

Also try the complete list of Badgerlink Resources for Elementary, Middle, and High school students for even more homework help and research resources.