LibGuides: Social Studies 8: Research Paper (LaCroix): Primary Sources

Websites (Primary Sources)

Websites with primary sources from American history:

American Journeys
Eyewitness accounts of North American exploration, from 1000 CE to the 19th century.
Avalon Project
Collects "documents in law, history, and diplomacy" primarily from or related to America.
Census Bureau Library
Collections of statistical information from 1790 to the present that provide factual data on populations, demographics, businesses, and more
Digital History
A variety of documents and images from American history, including a large number of personal narratives.
Digital Public Library of America: Primary Source Sets
Collections of documents on various topics, from the Boston Tea Party to the AIDS crisis.
Documents for the Study of American History
A large collection of documents from American history, from medieval times to 2009.
Famous Trials
Essays, transcripts, and other materials related to famous court cases.
FRASER
Digital archive of primary source documents from the United States Federal Reserve
GovInfo
Digital archive of documents from the legislative branch, including bills, committee reports, and much more.
History Matters
Over 1,000 primary documents about the experiences of ordinary Americans throughout U.S. history.
Internet Modern History Sourcebook
A large collection of documents from modern world history.
Library of Congress: Digital Collections
A large and varied collection of materials from American history and culture through the years.
LIFE Magazine Archive
Every issue of LIFE magazine, from 1936-1972, digitized and searchable at Google Books.
The Living Room Candidate
Presidential campaign commercials, 1952-2016.
The Lost Museum Archive
Step into mid-19th-century America with materials on such varied topics as etiquette, religion, and Uncle Tom's Cabin.
National Archives: 100 Milestone Documents
100 important documents from American history, 1776-1965.
National Archives: America's Historical Documents
A sampling of some of the most important documents in American history.
National Humanities Center: America in Class
Several thematically arranged collections of primary sources, from 1492 to the mid-20th century.
Open Library (Internet Archive)
The Open Library is a collection of more than 1.4 million digitized books available online for free.
Oyez
A multimedia archive of Supreme Court cases, from 1789 to the present day.
Teaching American History: Documents
This collection focuses on letters and speeches, along with the texts of certain laws and court cases.
WGBH Open Vault: Special Collections
Video interviews and TV clips from several major events in American history, including the Freedom Riders, the moon landing, the Stonewall Riots, and the Vietnam War.

TIP: Each state has its own official archive (here is Tennessee's archive), so be sure to seek those out when you are looking online for primary sources.

Databases (Primary Sources)

Databases with primary sources from American history:

African-American History (Facts on File/Infobase) This link opens in a new window
Features thousands of cross-referenced entries, covering the entire spectrum of African-American history over the past 500 years. Also includes a selection of primary sources.
American History (Facts on File/Infobase) This link opens in a new window
Spans more than 500 years of political, military, social, and cultural history to cover the American experience. Also includes a selection of primary sources.
American Indian History (Facts on File/Infobase) This link opens in a new window
Offers fast access to more than 600 Native American groups and over 15,000 years of American Indian culture and history. Also includes a selection of primary sources.
Britannica Original Sources This link opens in a new window
Primary source documents in history, literature, science, law, politics, religion, and more.
Gale in Context: High School This link opens in a new window
This collection includes reference content, magazines, academic journals, newspapers, primary sources, and more, on a wide range of topics. Access provided by TEL.
Gale Primary Sources: Women's Studies Archive This link opens in a new window
This primary source collection focuses on the evolution of feminism throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Access provided by TEL.
Salem Press (e-books) This link opens in a new window
Salem History is a robust reference database that is particularly useful for history students. Also contains a selection of primary sources.

Try these e-books:

Defining Documents in American History series
Milestone Documents in African-American History

Slavery in America and the World (HeinOnline) This link opens in a new window
This collection brings together essential legal materials on slavery in the United States and the English-speaking world, including every state and federal statute dealing with slavery, and all reported state and federal cases on slavery.

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Books (Primary Sources)

Lists of library books that contain primary sources from American history: