Rohrbach Library Home: HIS 378 Kelleher: Using library resources

Searching for Primary Resources Using Library Databases

Using the Library Catalog:

When searching in the Library Catalog do a keyword Boolean search and add the word “source” to your search. Example:
“Thomas Jefferson” and sources

Other keywords to try:

sources
diaries
personal narratives
interviews
letters
LAC

Library of American Civilization (LAC):

LAC is a collection of materials on microfiche relating to all aspects of American life. Included in this collection are biographies, fiction, letters, texts of public addresses, humor, songs, essays, guide books and count less other topics regarding life in America from the colonial era to World War I. Search for LAC documents in the library catalog and go to the Information Desk for help finding and viewing microfiche.

Some of the books in LAC can be read online (through Google Books & Project Gutenberg.) Quinnipac University has a nice list of what's available online, archived here, and listed alphabetically by author: http://www.terryballard.org/lac.html

Use KU WorldCat and limit to archival sources

Using Library Databases:

The library has a subject page with all its databases that contain primary source documents.

Best Bet

New York Times, Historical This link opens in a new window This database offers full-text and full-image articles for the New York Times dating back to the 19th century. The collection includes digital reproductions of every page from every issue--cover to cover--in downloadable PDF files. Coverage 1851 to current with 3-year rolling embargo.

Primary Source Databases:

African American Newspapers This link opens in a new window
Historical collection of African American Newspapers. They contain a wealth of information about cultural life and news from 1728 to 1880 from an African American perspective.
American Antiquarian Society Historical Periodicals Collections This link opens in a new window
The five collections from AAS Historical Periodicals include digitized images of the pages of American magazines and journals from the mid-18th century through the late-19th century. These specialized collections cover advertising, health, women's issues, science, the history of slavery, industry and professions, religious issues, culture and the arts, and more. Coverage: 1684 and 1912.
American Broadsides and Ephemera This link opens in a new window
Searchable facsimile images of approximately 15,000 broadsides (1820-1876) and 15,000 pieces of ephemera (1770-1876). Broadsides range from contemporary accounts of the Civil War to taxbills, government proclamations, theater playbills, advertisements, patriotic and popular songs and poems. The ephemera collection includes sailing cards, trade cards, bill heads, menus and invitations, stock certificates, theater and music programs. Coverage 1760 - 1900
AP Images This link opens in a new window
Capturing the greatest moments in history, news, sports, and entertainment as seen by the Associated Press, AP Images is one of the largest collections of historical and contemporary news photographs, containing over 3.5 million images from the 1840s to the present, with thousands more added daily. The collection also includes over 60,000 graphics, containing logos, graphs, maps, and timelines. Excellent resource for primary source photographs. All content from AP Images may be downloaded and used for educational purposes.
County Histories This link opens in a new window
These large county volumes have long formed the cornerstone of local historical and genealogical research. They are encyclopedic in scope and virtually limitless in their research possibilities.
Early American Imprints, Series I: Evans This link opens in a new window
Early American Imprints, Series I. Evans (1639-1800) is based on the American Bibliography by Charles Evans and enhanced by Roger Bristol's Supplement to Evans' American Bibliography. This collection is a foundation set for research involving early American history, literature, philosophy, religion, and more. It is the definitive resource for information about every aspect of life in 17th- and 18th-century America, from agriculture and auctions through foreign affairs, diplomacy, literature, music, religion, the Revolutionary War, temperance, witchcraft, etc.
Early American Newspapers, Series 1,6,7 This link opens in a new window
Early American Newspapers (1690-1922) features cover-to-cover reproductions of hundreds of historic newspapers, providing more than one million pages as fully text-searchable facsimile images. It offers fully searchable digital facsimiles of nearly 2,000 titles from all 50 states.
HarpWeek This link opens in a new window
Electronic access to Harper's Weekly, the illustrated 19th Century Journal of Civilization. It is an important primary resource for examining 19th-century America on a cumulative week-to-week basis. Full-text Coverage from 1857-1912.
HeinOnline This link opens in a new window
HeinOnline’s Government, Politics & Law contains more than 80 million pages of content across 80,000 titles and 195,000 volumes. HeinOnline bridges the gap in history by providing comprehensive coverage from inception of more than 2,300 periodicals. In addition to its vast collection of journals, the database also contains the Congressional Record bound volumes in entirety, complete coverage of the U.S. Reports back to 1754, constitutions for every country in the world, classic books from the 18th & 19th centuries, all United States Treaties, the Federal Register and CFR from inception, and much more!
Historical Statistics of the United States This link opens in a new window
This resource contains a variety of data about the population of the United States as well as the social and economic conditions, with some tables including information from as early as 1790. Tables can be viewed online, downloaded in PDF, or Excel spreadsheets.
Kutztown Patriot This link opens in a new window
Regional newspaper for Kutztown and northern Berks County. The Patriot provides insight into Borough life, the Pennsylvania German culture in the area, and the Keystone State Normal School, the predecessor of Kutztown University. Coverage: 1889-1977
Life Magazine Archive This link opens in a new window
Life Magazine Archive presents an extensive collection of the famed photojournalism magazine, spanning its very first issue in November, 1936 through December, 2000 in a comprehensive cover-to-cover format.
New York Times, Historical This link opens in a new window
This database offers full-text and full-image articles for the New York Times dating back to the 19th century. The collection includes digital reproductions of every page from every issue--cover to cover--in downloadable PDF files. Coverage 1851 to current with 3-year rolling embargo.
Pennsylvania Gazette This link opens in a new window
Published in Philadelphia from 1728 through 1800, The Pennsylvania Gazette is considered The New York Times of the 18th century. It provides the reader with a first hand view of colonial America, the American Revolution and the New Republic, and offers important social, political and cultural perspectives of each of the periods.
Philadelphia Inquirer, Historical This link opens in a new window
The Philadelphia Inquirer, one of the longest surviving daily newspapers in the United States, is known for its coverage of the American Civil War that was popular with readers on both sides; its published works by Charles Dickens and Edgar Allen Poe; and its reporting of breaking news in the city, country, and around the world. Coverage:1829-2009.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Historical This link opens in a new window
Nearly as old as the United States itself, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette performed one of its initial acts of public service by printing the newly adopted Constitution of the United States in 1787. Then a four-page weekly produced on a wooden press, Post-Gazette was the first newspaper to make the dangerous journey by wagon over the mountains from Philadelphia. Coverage: 1786-2008.
Wall Street Journal, Historical This link opens in a new window
A unique full-image archive of The Wall Street Journal with complete coverage from 1889-1987. Includes display and classified ads, editorial and commentary.
Women and Social Movements in the United States This link opens in a new window
Women and Social Movements in the United States brings together books, images, documents, scholarly essays, commentaries, and bibliographies, documenting the multiplicity of women.s activism in public life. Coverage: 1600 to 2000