The University Libraries provides access to a wide variety of Sage Reference titles online. Find the collection under Sage (Subject Encylodpedias) in the University Libraries' list of databases. The History section includes the Encyclopedia American Urban History. The Politics & International Relations section includes: Encyclopedia of Homelessness, Encyclopedia of Politics: The Left and the Right, and Encyclopedia of Governance.
Reference sources are good places to look for background information about a topic. Reference sources in Malpass are located on the 2nd floor, near the reference desk, and can be used inside the building but not checked out.
A sample of art reference sources is listed below; more can be found by browsing the shelf or searching in WestCat.
These online sources are free to access; some are very general, and some are very specific, but all give quality overviews of their topics, and may be useful in the course of art history research.
The Art Libraries Society of North American (ARLIS/NA) reguarly reviews online and multimedia resources that may be of use to artists and art historians: Multimedia and Technology Reviews.