Free Online Databases

	Academic OneFile (Gale) contains 8,000 academic journals, the majority in full-text, available in HTML and PDF formats. In addition it contains hundreds of podcasts and transcripts from NPR, CNN, and the CBC, as well as full-text New York Times content from 1985.
	Academic OneFile Select (Gale). From arts and the humanities to social sciences, science and technology, this database meets research needs across all academic disciplines. Access scholarly journals, magazines and newspapers - with full text and images!
	Agriculture Collection (Gale OneFile). Articles on farming, horticulture, and agriculture-related fields.
	American Ancestors. IN LIBRARY USE ONLY. The website of the New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS) provides access to more than 1.4 billion records spanning twenty-two countries covering the United States, the British Isles, continental Europe, and beyond, including one of the most extensive online collections of early American genealogical records, the largest searchable collection of published genealogical research journals and magazines, and the largest collection of U.S Catholic records online. Access to this database is limited to Franklin residents.
	Ancestry Library. IN LIBRARY USE ONLY. Thousands of family history databases, including vital records, census records, ship passenger lists, military records and lots more! Access to this database is limited to Franklin residents.
	ArchiveGrid. ArchiveGrid includes over 7 million records describing archival materials, bringing together information about historical documents, personal papers, family histories, and more. With over 1,400 archival institutions represented, ArchiveGrid helps researchers looking for primary source materials held in archives, libraries, museums and historical societies.
	Biography (Gale in Context) is an engaging online experience for those seeking contextual information on the world's most influential people. The new solution merges Gale's authoritative reference content (including Lives & Perspectives) with periodicals and multimedia organized into a user-friendly portal experience while also allowing users to search for people based on name, occupation, nationality, ethnicity, birth/death dates and places, or gender as well as keyword and full text.
	Booklist Reader Booklist Reader is a magazine that features diverse readers' advisory recommendations for readers and listeners of all ages!
	The Boston Globe - Each issue is indexed thoroughly, so there is access to not only top news stories but also the information contained on the various sections of the paper. The indexing covers not only complete bibliographic information but also companies, people, products, etc. Full text access 1980-current.
	Boston Public Library. Find more e-resources at the Boston Public Library using your free BPL e-card. Apply for one today !
	Brittanica Learning Zone Grade Level PreK-5. Play, discover, create—these are the cornerstones of learning for young children. Now, Britannica gives teachers an online solution designed specifically for the needs of ages 4 to 7. Learning Zone is a classroom-tested, interactive learning environment that gives early learners enjoyable, engaging, and developmentally appropriate activities to help grow their minds, their spirits, and their intellectual horizons.
	Brittanica Moderna. Spanish-language resource. Created with older students in mind, Moderna contains 47,000 articles, 8,000 images, maps, audiovisual materials, and a complete dictionary and atlas. In addition, it includes the Merriam-Webster Spanish-English Dictionary and the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language (RAE) dictionary. Creado pensando en los estudiantes mayores, Moderna contiene 47.000 artículos, 8.000 imágenes, mapas, materiales audiovisuales y un completo diccionario y atlas. Además, incluye el Diccionario Merriam-Webster Español-Inglés y el diccionario de la Real Academia de la Lengua Española (RAE).
	Brittanica School Edition Elementary, Middle and High School levels, plus read-aloud al all levels and translation for over 50 languages. Britannica Online School Edition gives teachers and students instant access to four complete encyclopedias and other resources that ensure consistency with classroom topics and age-appropriate language. This unique reference and learning suite also offers high-quality online learning materials that have been developed by teachers and curriculum experts. Designed for all levels of learning from elementary school through high school, Britannica Online School Edition offers students an easy-to-use gateway to the vast resources of Encyclopædia Britannica.
	Spanish Reference Center delivers two products in one—a reference collection for ages 6-12 and another for the high school and college ages. Separate home pages for each level allow schools and libraries to tailor the product to their users' needs, making it the only online Spanish-language database that offers age-appropriate content for everyone.
	Business (Gale). Articles on accounting, marketing and management, and related fields.
	Central Register & Goods and Services Bulletin IN LIBRARY USE ONLY (see Reference Librarian for password) The Central Register is the weekly source for information about state, county and municipal contracts being put out to bid for the design, construction and reconstruction of public facilities in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Access to this database is limited to Franklin residents. The Goods and Services Bulletin is a weekly publication containing solicitations for the procurement of commodities and services (which, generally, are unrelated to construction of public facilities).
	Commonwealth Catalog. Search Commonwealth Catalog for books, DVDs and more statewide.
	Communications & Mass Media (Gale OneFile). Articles on advertising and public relations, linguistics, and related fields.
	ConsumerLab.com IN LIBRARY ACCESS - HOME ACCESS Provides comprehensive information about vitamin, herbal and other supplements, and nutritional products. Includes ConsumerLab.com's independent product evaluations, test results for ConsumerLab.com selected products and Approved Products from ConsumerLab.com’s Quality Certification Program, product recalls, and safety warnings. A science-based encyclopedia of natural products is also provided, including a drug-interaction database
	Consumer Reports is published by Consumers Union, an independent, nonprofit testing and information organization. Since 1936, CU's mission has been to test products, inform the public and protect consumers. It is a comprehensive source for unbiased advice about products and services, personal finance, health and nutrition, and other consumer concerns. Access to this database is limited to Franklin residents.
	Creativebug. Franklin Public Library and Creativebug present Creativebug online video classes! Creativebug.com has more than 1,000 award-winning art & craft video classes taught by recognized design experts and artists. Access to this database is limited to Franklin residents.
	Criminal Justice (Gale OneFile). The Criminal Justice Collection database focuses on all aspects of the criminal justice field. Publications include: American Criminal Law Review; Corrections Today; Criminal Justice; Criminal Justice Ethics; Forensic Examiner; Psychology Today; and more.
	Culinary Arts (Gale OneFile). The Culinary Arts Collection includes 150 of the major cooking and nutrition magazines from 1980 to present. Coverage includes thousands of searchable recipes, restaurant reviews, and industry information.
	Digital Commonwealth. Explore historical collections from libraries, museums, and archives across Massachusetts
	Diversity Studies (Gale OneFile). Articles that explore cultural differences, influences in society, and more.
	Driving-test.org. Access free Massachusetts RMV car, motorcycle, and commercial driver’s license practice tests and handbooks. Includes the Massachusetts Driver's Handbook (in English & Spanish).
	Economics and Theory Collection (Gale OneFile). Articles on economics, interviews with CEOs, and more.
	Elephind. Search historic newspapers from all over the world.
	Environmental Studies (Gale in Context). From climate change to automobile emissions, today’s environmental issues determine the destiny of tomorrow’s world. Gale In Context: Environmental Studies provides users with comprehensive information, empowering learners to critically analyze and understand important topics that affect people around the world. Explore topics and events within Earth systems, global change, pollution, populations, and more.
	Environmental Studies and Policy (Gale OneFile). Providing robust coverage of the field of environmental issues and policy, this collection, which includes nearly 200 journals, provides instant access to the multiple viewpoints of this volatile field of study, including perspectives from the scientific community, governmental policy makers, as well as corporate interests.
	FamilySearch • Free Family Trees and Genealogy Archives. FamilySearch.org is one of the most popular genealogical resources in the world. The site is sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and is free and available to the public. Search billions of digital images and indexes of records from all over the world. These records include government and church records for births, marriages, and deaths; censuses; probate records, land records, draft cards; etc. Millions of new records are published on a weekly basis. Franklin Public Library is a Familysearch.org Affiliate Library. When using Familtysearch.org from the library's computers, you will have access to 400,000,000 additional images, not available to you when using Familysearch.org at home.
	Fine Arts & Music (Gale OneFile). Articles on art history, music, drama, filmmaking and related fields.
	Fold3 Library Edition by Ancestry provides convenient access to a growing collection of US military records, including the stories, photos, and personal documents of the men and women who served. It contains millions of records from world-class archives, many of which are exclusively available on Fold3. Access to this database is limited to Franklin residents.
	Franklin Sentinel. Digitized directly from our microfilm collection. The collection is searchable, but some of the images are very faded. If the search feature does not find your query, and if you know the approximate date of the event, it may be worth while to look through the pages. This link will also allow you to search the Franklin Vital Records (1778-2014) and the Franklin Register (1873-1877).
	Gale Interactive: Science. Going beyond textbooks and traditional science curriculum, Gale Interactive: Science is a highly visual online learning tool that takes visual-spatial learning to the next level by bringing the lab to the classroom. High-value, rich-media digital content selected from authoritative classroom resources—like Gale In Context: Science and Gale OneFile—is paired with interactive 3D models to deliver a virtual laboratory simulation experience for students in middle school and high school grades. Students can entertain their curiosity and inspire grade improvement through an experience that allows zooming in, rotating, or pulling models apart to explore and experiment with complex scientific topics.
	Gardening and Horticulture (Gale OneFile). A collection of more than 80 journals focused on key issues in gardening, landscaping, and other areas of horticulture, with the addition of over 20 subject specific reference sources from Delmar, this collection provides information for gardening enthusiasts and professionals alike.
	Gender Studies (Gale OneFile). Articles on gender studies, family/marital issues, health, and more.
	General OneFile (Gale) is a one-stop source for news and periodical articles, including most of the content across all Thomson/Gale databases. OneFile contains over 5,000 full-text periodical titles, and more than 9,200 titles in all, on a wide range of topics.
	Global Issues (Gale in Context) offers international viewpoints on a broad spectrum of global issues, topics, and current events. Featured are hundreds of continuously updated issue and country portals that bring together a variety of specially selected, highly relevant sources for analysis of social, political, military, economic, environmental, health, and cultural issues. Each of these gateway pages includes an overview, unique "perspectives" articles written by local experts, reference, periodical, primary source and statistical information. Rich multimedia - including podcasts, video, and interactive graphs - enhance each portal. Use Browse Issues and Topics, Country Finder, Basic Search or Advanced Search to explore the database.
	Google Scholar: Google Scholar is a freely accessible web search engine that indexes the full text or metadata of scholarly literature across an array of publishing formats and disciplines.
	Health and Wellness (Gale). Health-focused magazines, reference, video, and more.
	Health and Medicine (Gale OneFile). Use this database to find articles on: Fitness, Pregnancy, Medicine, Nutrition, Diseases, Public Health, Occupational Health & Safety, Alcohol and Drug Abuse, HMOs, Prescription Drugs, etc. The material contained in this database is intended for informational purposes only.
	HeritageQuest is a digital resource that combines searchable images of U.S. federal genealogical census records with digitized books containing family and local histories from around the country. It includes 25,000 family and local history books, U.S. census records, and PERSI, an index of over 1.6 million genealogy and local history articles.
	High School Edition (Gale OneFile). Periodicals and reference book content supporting high school student research.
	Home Improvement Collection (Gale OneFile). Articles on architectural techniques, zoning requirements, tools, and more.
	hoopla. Borrow thousands of movies, television, music, and audiobook titles for free with your library card. Always available, no waiting lists. Enjoy on your PC, tablet, or phone. Access to this database is limited to Franklin residents. Watch video tutorials on using hoopla here.
	Hospitality and Tourism (Gale OneFile). With current and relevant content from over 500 industry journals, this collection provides well-rounded coverage of both the historical and current state of affairs in the hospitality and tourism field, while also allowing for focused study of specialized aspects of the industry – including cultural aspects of travel, leisure activities, economic aspects of tourism, and more.
	Information Science (Gale OneFile). Articles on the information and library science profession and related topics.
	Insurance & Liability (Gale OneFile). Articles on mortgages, labor relations, legal issues, and more.
	Internet Archive. The Internet Archive is a non-profit library of millions of free books, movies, software, music, websites, and more.
	Kanopy is an on-demand movie streaming video service with access to thousands of documentary, foreign, silent, and independent films. Stream over 30,000 films from hundreds of popular producers such as The Criterion Collection, The Great Courses, and PBS, as well as thousands of independent filmmakers. Stream Kanopy on your computer or download the app on your phone, tablet or Roku device. Access to this database is limited to Franklin residents.
	Khan Academy Khan Academy offers practice exercises, instructional videos, and a personalized learning dashboard that empower learners to study at their own pace in and outside of the classroom. Tackling math, science, computing, history, art history, economics, and more, including K-14 and test preparation (SAT, Praxis, LSAT) content. Focusing on skill mastery to help learners establish strong foundations, so there's no limit to what they can learn next!
	Kids InfoBits targets the research needs of students in Kindergarten through Grade 5. It features a developmentally appropriate and visual graphic interface, a subject-based topic tree search and full-text, age-appropriate, curriculum-related magazine and reference content.
	Libby see: Overdrive
	Literature Resource Center (Gale). Find up-to-date biographical information, overviews, full-text literary criticism and reviews on more than 130,000 writers in all disciplines, from all time periods and from around the world.
	Massachusetts Legal Forms Library (Gale Legal Forms) Thousands of legal forms available with more forms being added daily. Official, Massachusetts Specific, Federal, Business, Personal, Real Estate and General forms covering hundreds of legal subjects and issues. Forms available on Gale Legal Forms include forms drafted by attorneys for a particular legal matter, forms from public records and participating companies and attorneys.
	Massachusetts State Library. The State Library supports the research and information needs of government, libraries, and the public through innovative services and access to a comprehensive repository of state documents and other historical items.
	Massachusetts Trial Court Law Libraries. All 15 Massachusetts Trial Court Libraries are free and open to the public. Library materials may be borrowed with a Trial Court Library Card, free access to Westlaw and Lexis legal databases is available at all locations.
	Middle School (Gale In Context) covers the most-studied topics in literature, science, social studies, and U.S. and world history, as well as the social issues most relevant to this age group. It features: Engaging reference, periodical, and multimedia content Information from trusted sources like Gale, National Geographic, Scholastic and more Alignment to national and state curriculum standards New content written especially for middle schoolers including nearly 300 topic pages and overviews Best of all, Gale’s Research In Context supports students’ workflow with a mobile-responsive design, optimized for any device and screen size, allowing students to search and find information easily on computers, tablets, and smartphones.
	Military and Intelligence (Gale OneFile). Articles on governmental policies, socioeconomic effects of war, and more.
	Morningstar Investment Research Center. Comprehensive and up-to-date financial information on stocks, mutual funds and exchange-traded funds. Use the "Help & Education" tab to access the User's Guide and investor education resources. Access to this database is limited to Franklin residents. Home access available here.
	MyHeritage - Library Edition. MyHeritage Library Edition is one of the largest, most internationally diverse genealogy databases of its kind, with access to billions of historical documents, millions of historical photos and other resources in thousands of databases that span the past five centuries.
	The New York Times. This database includes full-text of the New York Times from January 1, 1985 to the present.
	NYTimes.com. Enjoy free access to NYTimes.com. For both in-library and home access, create an account and log in using that account. Coverage includes 1981 to Current, plus historic coverage 1851-1922. Home Access includes NY Times App and 5 Premium Archive (1923-1980) articles per day. For more information see Minuteman's NY Times FAQ
	News (Gale OneFile). Regional, national, and world newspapers.
	Newspapers.com - Northeast Edition is an extensive online database of 4,000+ historical newspapers from the early 1700s into the 2000s. Distributed by ProQuest into libraries, it contains a diverse blend of well-known regional and local newspapers in the U.S. Home Access
	NoveList is an electronic readers' advisory resource which assists fiction readers in finding new authors and titles. Through its attractive and easy-to-use interface, NoveList allows readers to use a favorite author or title as a template to locate other authors and titles of interest. Readers can also enter words that describe the contents of a book they would like to read, and NoveList retrieves titles that contain these words in the book's subject headings field. In addition, users can browse over 1,200 theme-oriented book lists, 150 award lists and 1,000 fiction related web-sites. NoveList contains materials for all ages including picture books, children's "chapter" books, young adult titles and books for adult readers. The product's database provides enhanced subject access to over 92,000 fiction titles. Updated quarterly, the NoveList database integrates information from a variety of sources.
	Nursing and Allied Health (Gale OneFile). Articles on direct patient care, healthcare administration and more.
	Opposing Viewpoints. Continuously updated information and opinions covering hot issues.
	OverDrive. Borrow ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, and streaming video from our libraries with OverDrive and the Libby App. Watch video tutorials for Libby here.
	PebbleGo by Capstone. Animals and Biographies Modules - PebbleGo is a curricular content hub specifically designed for K-2 students. Packed with informational articles, ready-made activities, and literacy supports for students of all abilities, it boosts engagement and fosters independent learning in core subject areas.
	Peterson's Career Prep. Supports users building resumes, job hunting, or searching for new careers.
	Peterson's Test Prep. This online education tool offers users standardized exam preparation, including practice tests, eBooks, and online courses. Ideal for researching undergraduate and graduate school programs, finding tuition assistance, exploring academic opportunities, and preparing for professional careers.
	Physical Therapy and Sports Medicine (Gale OneFile). This collection includes over 100 titles covering the fields of physical therapy and sports medicine, providing researchers with access to topics discussed in the field, including proven treatment techniques, experimental research theses, and many more.
	Popular Culture Studies (Gale OneFile). Articles on popular culture analysis and more.
	Popular Magazines (Gale OneFile). The most popular and current magazines available from all of the Gale resources.
	Psychology (Gale OneFile). Articles on personality, the human mind, memory, and more.
	PubMed. PubMed comprises more than 34 million citations for biomedical literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and online books. Citations may include links to full text content from PubMed Central and publisher web sites. For articles linked to pay sites, please see the Franklin Library Reference Department to request a free copy of the article.
	Reference Solutions (formerly ReferenceUSA). The premier source of business and residential information for reference and research. Used by entrepreneurs, businesses, students, job-seekers or anyone wanting access to information on tens of millions of businesses and hundreds of millions of consumers in an easy to search format. Access to this database is limited to Franklin residents.
	Religion and Philosophy (Gale OneFile). Articles on world religions, philosophies, and related fields.
	Salem Press History Collection. Includes online access to: The Fifties in America;The Sixties in America;The Seventies in America;The Eighties in America; Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgendered Events;Great Events From History: the 19th and the 20th Century. Access to this database is limited to Franklin residents.
	Science (Gale In Context) provides topic overviews, experiments, biographies, pictures and illustrations, as well as articles from over 200 magazines and academic journals and links to quality web sites. The database covers curriculum-related science topics, and offers teachers an easy-to-use tool to identify content directly correlated to state and national standards.
	Techboomers.com Techboomers.com is a free educational website that teaches older adults and other inexperienced Internet users with basic computer skills about popular and trusted websites and Internet-based applications that can help improve their quality of life. Learn to use popular sites such as Facebook, Instagram, Gmail, Pinterest, YouTube, Reddit, ebay & many, many more!
	Transparent Languages for Libraries. Transparent Language Online for Libraries empowers anyone to learn 110+ languages anytime, anywhere, on any device — with unlimited simultaneous usage. Creating an account will let you save your progress and learned vocab, as well as access the mobile apps!
	U.S. History (Gale In Context) is an engaging online experience for those seeking contextual information on hundreds of the most significant people, events and topics in U.S. History. The new solution merges Gale's authoritative reference content with full-text magazines, academic journals, news articles, primary source documents, images, videos, audio files and links to vetted websites organized into a user-friendly portal experience.
	Vocations and Careers (Gale OneFile). Finding the right career can be a daunting and high stakes task: finding an appropriate institution of learning, job searching, and maintaining a career are all topics covered by this collection, providing current and applicable content for all vocational milestones. Offering content from nearly 400 journals, this collection provides content from general career guides to highly specialized industry journals.
	War and Terrorism (Gale OneFile). Articles on war and its causes, current events, terrorism, and more.
	Wolfram Alpha Computational Knowledge Engine. Answer questions, do math, instantly get facts, calculators, unit conversions, and real-time quantitative data and statistics; create plots and visualizations; and access vast scientific, technical, chemical, medical, health, business, financial, weather, geographic, dictionary, calendar, reference, and general knowledge—and much more
	World History (Gale in Context) is an engaging online experience for those seeking contextual information on hundreds of the most significant people, events and topics in World History. The new solution merges Gale's authoritative reference content with full-text magazines, academic journals, news articles, primary source documents, images, videos, audio files and links to vetted websites organized into a user-friendly portal experience.
	WorldCat is a proven and highly trusted tool that empowers anyone to find the authoritative content they need in every format from worldwide library collections. FirstSearch delivers the precise, full-featured WorldCat searching that library staff and researchers value.

Departments

Boards & Committees

Free Online Databases

Town of Franklin