History, Iberian, and Latin American Studies Librarian
Primary Source Databases
Below is a list of some of the main primary source databases for history.
- All Primary Source DatabasesList of all primary source databases available to University of Minnesota students, faculty, and staff.
- American History, 1493-1945Explore primary source documents covering American History from the earliest settlers to the mid-twentieth century. Sources include correspondence, diaries, government documents, business records, books, pamphlets, newspapers, broadsides, photographs, artwork and maps
- History VaultContains historic and archival materials such as digitized letters, papers, photographs, scrapbooks, financial records, diaries, and other primary source materials taken from the University Publications of America (UPA) Collections. Subject areas include NAACP Papers, INS immigration records (1880-1930), Vietnam War and American Foreign Policy (1960-1975), Confidential U.S. State Department Central Files, 1960-1969, Europe and Latin America, Slavery and the Law (1775-1867), Women's Studies Manuscript Collections from the Schlesinger Library: Voting Rights, National Politics, and Reproductive Rights, and more.
- Accessible ArchivesUse this database to find primary source materials in American history. The information is from historical periodicals and books, eyewitness accounts of historical events, descriptions of daily life, editorial observations, commerce as seen through advertisements, and genealogical records.
- Civil Rights and the Black Freedom StruggleContains digitized letters, papers, photographs, scrapbooks, financial records, diaries etc. on the civil rights movement.
- Historical News SourcesGuide to getting articles from The New York Times, and other newspapers
- Historical Statistics of the United StatesUse Historical Statistics of the United States Millenium Edition to find statistics about the United States produced by the United States Census Bureau since 1790 with additions, revisions and analysis by noted social scientists.
- America's Historical NewspapersIncludes Early American Newspapers Series 1 (1690-1876), 3 (1783-1922), 6 (1741-1922), 7 (1773-1922), and 18 (1825-1879). Spanning two centuries and 40 states, these archives of selective content from historical newspapers are primary sources for researching crucial conflicts from the Civil War to World War I, movements ranging from early states rights to women's suffrage, noteworthy citizens, local events, natural disasters; political campaigns; and the evolution of American culture.
- Hathi TrustHathiTrust provides access to millions of books and other materials. Full text searching of most books is available and books in the public domain (generally older books) can be freely viewed and/or downloaded. Books still in copyright have more limited access. Users with print-reading disabilities can apply for special access to digitized works by emailing wilsref@umn.edu.
- Anatomy of Protest in America SeriesSearch newspapers and books for information on people, organizations, movements and more involved in protests in America from 1701 through the 1920s.
- Women and Social Movements in the United States 1600-2000Organized around the history of women in social movements in the U.S. between 1600 and 2000, the website seeks to advance scholarly debates and understanding by making women's history accessible to teachers and students at universities, colleges, and high schools.
Primary Sources in Law
- Catalog of U.S. Government PublicationsProduced by the Government Printing Office (GPO), the Catalog of United States Government publications includes print and electronic Government information products created by Federal agencies from 1976 to the present, updated daily.
- Making of Modern Law: Primary Sources, 1620-1979 This link opens in a new windowA full-text searchable archive of primary source documents from as early as 1620 and up to 1979. Includes constitutional conventions and compilations (reports, journals, proceedings, and debates, and supplementary documents published by the conventions including, manuals, rules of order, and information for the use of delegates); city charters (the texts of enacted and proposed charters and ordinances in American jurisdictions); law dictionaries; early U.S. state codes; and colonial records.
- Making of Modern Law: Trials, 1600-1926Contains the full-text digital images of thousands of books and pamphlets covering Anglo-American trials, from the beginning of the modern period to the early in twentieth century. In addition to works pertaining to English-speaking jurisdictions, English-language titles about trials in other jurisdictions such as France are included. Books encompassing multiple trials are included as well as books about a single trial. Browse feature (by author or title) and full-text search engine provided.
- Native American Tribal Histories, Series 1-4Search the the complete 19th century records on the education, land rights, treaty negotiations and other affairs of Native American tribes as recorded by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA).
- Policy CommonsSearch millions of documents on thousands of topics from the world’s leading policy experts, nonpartisan think tanks, IGOs and NGOs as well as from North American cities. Featured topics include Black Lives Matter, COVID-19, Climate Change, Gender Equity, and reports from the 500 largest cities in North America. UMN access includes both the Global Think Tanks and North American City Reports modules.
- U.S. Congressional Serial Set: Digital EditionA rich source of primary source material on all aspects of American history, including volumes of all the reports, documents, and journals of the US Senate and House of Representatives. Covers the years 1817-1980; see ProQuest Congressional for present day coverage.
Finding Primary Source Materials in Library Catalog
Additional resources can be found by searching the University of Minnesota Libraries' Catalog.
Enter the term "sources" as a subject keyword and the keywords for the country, event or topic (e.g. "United States" "great depression" su="sources")
Finding Primary Sources Using the University Archives
The University of Minnesota Archives is the official home for the University's valuable historical documents, collections, data, photographs, publications, and websites. The Archives collections and staff support the information needs of the entire University community and are open to the public, including in-person and remote researchers.
Last Updated: Aug 28, 2024 1:49 PM
URL: https://libguides.umn.edu/historyreproductiverights