The guide is organized by subject and includes the full range of sources: vintage publications of the time, books, pamphlets, periodical titles, theses, dissertations, and archival sources held by federal and state organizations, as well as those in public and private hands, including historical societies and museums. Throughout, this bibliography tracks the primary sources that tell each of these stories-and many others besides-during this tense period in American history. Each entry lists the author, title, place of publication, publisher, date of publication, and page count as well as descriptive information concerning illustrations, plates, ports, maps, diagrams, and plans. The armed forces section carries additional information on rosters, awards, citations, and killed and wounded in action lists.

User's guide --Information sources -- General references -- Diplomatic aspects -- Economic aspects -- Home front & social aspects -- State histories -- Population groups -- Biographies -- U.S. government agencies -- American non-governmental organizations -- American schools, colleges, and universities -- Specific military operations -- Army (Air service listed separately) -- Army units and organizations -- General aviation -- Army Air Service units and organizations -- Coast Guard -- Marine Corps -- Marine Corps units and organizations -- Navy -- Naval ships and organization histories -- American volunteers in foreign service.