What are Primary Sources?
Primary Sources are original sources: they were created by someone who participated in or observed an event. They include diaries, letters, newspapers, government documents, photographs, and other manuscripts.
General Collections
These databases may include a variety of types of primary sources - newspapers, images, government documents, correspondence, etc.
- ProQuest History Vault This link opens in a new window
Primary source material pertaining to the civil rights movement and to U.S. foreign policy during the Vietnam War era. Includes federal records, letters, papers, photographs, scrapbooks, financial records, and diaries is organized in five subject categories.
- Black Studies Center This link opens in a new window
Black Studies Center supports research, teaching, and learning in Black Studies and other disciplines that benefit from a more detailed coverage of the black experience such as history, literature, political science, sociology, philosophy, and religion.
- Documenting the American SouthA collection of primary sources on Southern history, literature and culture from the colonial period through the first decades of the 20th century.
- Sixties: Primary Documents and Personal Narratives This link opens in a new windowThis collection of primary resources documents the history, culture, and politics of the 1960s and early 1970's. Included are diaries, letters, autobiographies and other memoirs, written and oral histories, manifestos, government documents, memorabilia, and scholarly commentary.
- National ArchivesDigitized collections from the National Archives in Washington, D.C.
- Digital Public Library of AmericaContains images and other full-text sources
- HathiTrust Digital Library This link opens in a new window
HathiTrust is a partnership of research institutions committed to digital preservation of the cultural record. The Digital Library provides access to public domain and some in-copyright content from a variety of sources, including Google, the Internet Archive, Microsoft, and in-house partner institution initiatives.
Newspapers
- ProQuest Historical Newspapers This link opens in a new windowThis database offers full-text and full-image articles for newspapers dating back to the 19th century. For most titles, the collection includes digital reproductions of every page from every issue--cover to cover--in downloadable PDF files. Current access includes: The Atlanta Constitution (1868-1984); The Atlanta Daily World (1931-2003); The Baltimore Sun (1837-1991); The Chicago Defender (1909-1975); Chicago Tribune (1849-1993); Chinese Newspapers Collection (1832-1953); The Christian Science Monitor (1908-2003); Hartford Courant (1764-1922); Los Angeles Sentinel (1934-2005); Los Angeles Times (1881-1993); Louisville Courier Journal (1830-1922); New York Amsterdam News (1922-1993); The New York Times (1851-2013); Norfolk Journal and Guide (1916-2003); Pittsburgh Courier (1911-2002); San Francisco Chronicle (1865-1922); The Scotsman (1817-1950); St. Louis Post Dispatch (1874-1922); The Wall Street Journal (1889-1999); and The Washington Post (1877-2000).
- Newspapers.com – World Collection This link opens in a new window
Newspapers.com Library Edition offers full page newspaper images with searchable full-text of newspapers. The collection includes digital reproductions providing access to both full runs and portions of runs of newspapers.
- African American Newspapers, Series 1 This link opens in a new window
This collection includes the full text of historically significant African American newspapers, published in 36 states.
- African American Newspapers: The 19th Century This link opens in a new window
An Accessible Archives' collection offers first-hand reports on 1800s cultural life and history, including major events, biographies, statistics, essays, poetry, prose, and advertisements, covering topics like the Mexican War, business, and religion.
- Early American Newspapers, 1690-1876 This link opens in a new window
Digitized versions of early American Newspapers from The American Antiquarian Society, private collections and The Library of Congress, Brown, Harvard, et al. Based on the microfilm collection of the same name.
- Chronicling America: Historic American NewspapersA range of newspapers published in late 1800s and early 1900s.
- Nation Archive, The This link opens in a new window
The Nation offers a 135-year archive of reporting opinion and criticism. It includes primary source material covering the history of politics, culture, books and the arts - in America and around the world. The Nation Digital Archive is a fully searchable electronic version of the magazine's complete backfile.
- African American Periodicals, 1825-1995 This link opens in a new window
This database provides access to periodicals by and about African Americans. Representing 26 states, the publications offer a range of material, including academic and political journals, commercial magazines, institutional newsletters, organizations’ bulletins, annual reports and other genres.
- African American Historical Serials Collection This link opens in a new windowReports, annuals, magazines, and newspapers from African-American churches and social service agencies. Includes materials from the African Methodist Zion Church, African Methodist Episcopal Church, as well as many Baptist churches, seminaries, hospitals, charities, orphanages, schools, and advocacy groups.
- The Southern Courier ArchiveThe Southern Courier was a Montgomery based paper that was founded in the 1960's largely in order to report on the civil rights movement.
Civil Rights Movement Archives/Digital Collections
- Civil Rights Digital LibraryA digital archive from The University of Georgia. Is strong for the history of the movement in Georgia, but isn't limited to just that.
- Freedom Summer Digital CollectionA digital archive focused on the 1964 Freedom Summer.
- Civil Rights History ProjectA large collection from The Library of Congress. Includes a lot of oral histories.
- Civil Rights in Mississippi Digital ArchiveA digital archive from The University of Southern Mississippi. Good for the history of the movement in Mississippi.
Government Documents
- ProQuest Congressional This link opens in a new window
Brings together a vast amount of information published by and about the United States Congress. It provides a seamless link to the full range of legislative and public policy resources, including: Congressional documents and related resources as well as a number of publications such as the Congressional Record, United States Code, Code of Federal Regulations, and the National Journal.
- HeinOnline This link opens in a new window
Hein Online provides access to the full-text of legal periodical articles, Supreme Court opinions, U.S. Attorney General opinions, treaties and international agreements, and the Federal Register. Documents are available as photocopy-equivalent PDF files.
- More Government Document CollectionsA more extensive guide to government documents collections at The UA Libraries.
Presidential Papers
- The American Presidency ProjectA searchable database containing a large collection of presidential papers/documents.
We have many print collections of Presidential Papers in Gorgas Library. Just go to Scout or The Classic Catalog and do an author search (you'll need to use the drop-down menu by the search bar to change to author) for the president you're looking for (for example: "Reagan, Ronald"). This is a good way to find memoirs also!
Oral Histories, Letters & Diaries
- North American Women's Letters and Diaries This link opens in a new window
North American Women's Letters and Diaries offers a large collection of women's diaries and correspondence spanning more than 300 years.
- Southern Oral History Program Interview Databaseprovides detailed information for each oral history interview in the Southern Historical Collection conducted under the auspices of the Southern Oral History Program.
Legal Research
- Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
This database contains US and non-US news sources; legal materials: cases, statutes, law journals and other secondary law resources; and company and financial information on millions of United States and international companies and executives.
- HeinOnline This link opens in a new window
Hein Online provides access to the full-text of legal periodical articles, Supreme Court opinions, U.S. Attorney General opinions, treaties and international agreements, and the Federal Register. Documents are available as photocopy-equivalent PDF files.
- Legal Information InstituteFrom Cornell University Law School. Among other things, the LII is a good place to look up accurate official case information (official titles, etc.). Having accurate case law information can help when searching on sites like Nexis Uni.
Census/Genealogical Records
- Ancestry Library Edition This link opens in a new window
Ancestry Library Edition is a genealogy research tool created for the library market and provides access to a wide range of unique resources for genealogical and historical research. It includes records from the United States Census; vital records, immigration records, family histories, military records, court and legal documents, directories, photos, maps, and more.
- Census of Population and HousingFrom The United States Census Bureau. 1790-2010. Includes "big picture" statistics and trends.
- Fold3 This link opens in a new windowThis genealogical database contains personal records, photographs and historic documents. It also includes collections of census materials, military records from the American Revolution, Civil War, World War II and Vietnam, African American and Native American archives, naturalization records and more.
Images
- From Slavery to Freedom: The African-American Pamphlet Collection, 1822-1909 (Library of Congress)presents 396 pamphlets from the Rare Book and Special Collections Division, published from 1822 through 1909, by African-American authors and others who wrote about slavery, African colonization, Emancipation, Reconstruction, and related topics
- Take StockA collection of over 75,000 images with a strong focus on the Civil Rights Movement.
- Jim Peppler Southern Courier Photograph CollectionA collection of images from a photographer from The Southern Courier, a Montgomery based newspaper that was founded in order to report on the civil rights movement.
Video Resources
- Meet the PressThis database contains streaming video of NBC’s “Meet the Press,” providing most of the show’s footage since it began in 1947.
- Television News Archive"The world's most extensive and complete archive of television news." Streaming video of news clips since 1968.
- 60 MINUTES: 1997–2014The 60 MINUTES: 1997–2014 collection provides access to nearly two decades of CBS News archives, including many episodes not widely seen since their original broadcast. It holds the record for the longest continuously running prime time program in the history of television, and is one of the most respected and influential TV journalism programs in the world.