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AMERICAN HISTORY  

This guide is primarily concerned with an overview of American history. It includes "gateways," "primary sources" (historical documents of many kinds), and pages concerned with conducting historical research and citing sources.

It also links to topical pages (largely from academia) for exploration, political history, women's history, business/economic history, ethnic/immigration history, military history, "the West". This page is highly selective in its approach to topic-specific sites. Lack of inclusion of other worthy sites does not reflect on the validity or importance of such sites, since there are thousands of noteworthy sites from government sources, academia and professional associations/organizations.

Academic Info: U.S. History Gateway: American History

• Compiled and maintained by Mike Madin
• Directory of links to hundreds of sites in the following categories: "General Resources," "Period Gateways," "Diversity Gateways," "Topical Resources"
• "General Resources" links the following sub-categories: "Digital Library," general links/indexes, government publications, U.S. presidents, "Reference Desk"
• "Period Gateways" links to era-specific sites from colonial times through the present
• "Diversity Gateways" links to historical resources for specific groups: African-Americans, Arab-Americans, Asian-Americans, Latino/Hispanic-Americans, Native-Americans, gay/lesbian-Americans
• "Topical Resources" includes art, literature, the "American West", state/local history, "Supreme Court Resources"
• Excellent annotations accompany each link
• Outstanding; gives a solid grounding in basic (and some specialized) American history sites; one of the best places for beginning research


AMDOCS: Documents for the Study of American History

• Compiled by Lynn Nelson, professor emeritus, Department of History, University of Kansas
• Part of CARRIE, University of Kansas' "full-text electronic library"
• Links to several hundred documents pertaining to American history, from 1492 through 2004
• Offers a wide range of document types, including charters, letters, maps, declarations, state constitutions, speeches (includes inaugural addresses), court decisions, treaties, proclamations, newspaper editorials
• Only access is browsing by date; not searchable
• Not annotated
• Excellent; includes sites not readily available from similar sites; inclusion of browsing by topic would have been beneficial; nevertheless, this remains a very useful site


American Colonist's Library: A Treasury of Primary Documents

• Maintained by Rick Gardiner
• "An invaluable collection of historical works which contributed to the formation of American politics, culture, and ideals"
• With over 700 links, this site provides a cornucopia of "primary sources" from the classical era and European influences from the colonial era through the foundation of America as an independent country
• Resources are browsable chronologically and include letters, legal pronouncements, charters, "acts of parliament," religious/philosophical treatises, military documents and many letters/documents authored by the "founding fathers"
• Annotations accompany many links
• Documents are almost exclusively from the "public domain"
• Outstanding; one of the most comprehensive pages for pre-colonial times through the 1790's; be prepared to browse, however, since there is no topical index to this page


American Cultural History: The Twentieth Century

• Designed and maintained by Peggy Whitley (with contributions from other library staff), Kingwood College Library (KCL)
• Arranged chronologically by decade; each decade's resources include a statistical overview ("Facts") and a narrative essay which examines the decade's achievements and occurrences in art/architecture, books/literature, fashion/fads, events/people, music, theater/film/movies
• Numerous links to these topics are interspersed throughout the narrative; also provides suggested reading
• Searchable
• Outstanding; this is one of the best sites for a general overview of the century's cultural and social developments; essays are clearly written and it's easy to navigate
• The KCL has recently mounted a companion page, "American Cultural History: The Nineteenth Century", which is equally informative, intriguing and amusing


American History

• Maintained by the Multnomah County Library Homework Center
• Links to over 300 sites for 33 categories of American history, including "gateways," history by time period, social history, historical documents, state information
• Short annotations accompany links
• Excellent; although the intended audience is secondary school students, teachers, and educators, this should be of interest to anyone interested in American history; section on "Expansion & the West" is especially useful


American Journeys (AJ)

• "Funded by the U.S. Institute of Museum & Library Services and by private donors, American Journeys is a collaborative project of the Wisconsin Historical Society and National History Day"
• "Contains more than 18,000 pages of eyewitness accounts of North American exploration, from the sagas of Vikings in Canada in AD1000 to the diaries of mountain men in the Rockies 800 years later"
• There are currently 181 documents available; these are primarily letters, narratives, maps, "histories"
• Each document is accompanied by author data (if available), source, pagination/illustration statement, "citable URL"
• "Classic works about the U.S. that are already available for free elsewhere on the Web were usually omitted"
• "About" discusses criteria/methodology for document selection, information on images, indexing, rights/reproduction permission, staff information
• Browsable chronologically or by topic; searchable by keyword
• Outstanding; includes many primary source documents not available elsewhere; a wonderful contribution to the field


"American Memory" Project (AMP)

• Initiated in 1994, the AMP has been developed and maintained by the Library of Congress as the "flagship" of the National Digital Library Program
• "Provides free and open access through the Internet to written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music that document the American experience"
• Currently contains 125 collections on a wide variety of American historical resources, including primary source material on famous individuals, culture (music, literature), momentous events (Civil War, Pearl Harbor), population-specific resources (African-Americans, Native-Americans, women's history/suffrage), religion, business topics, "regional" topics
• "List of all collections" is a browsable directory of collections by title
• May also be browsed by topic, time period (1400-present), place and format (maps, manuscripts, photos/prints, films, books, sound recordings)
• Each collection includes a short, introductory essay which discusses the content of the collection and includes "Understanding the Collection," a guide to utilizing the collection's resources to best advantage; also identifies format(s)
• Format content varies from collection to collection; some may be strictly focused on particular resources (photos, sheet music) while others contain multi-format resources
• Outstanding; this constantly growing collection is one of the best sites for a wide variety of cultural and historical images pertaining to American history from earliest times to the present


American Political History On-Line

• Developed and maintained by Richard Jensen, retired professor of history, University of Illinois-Chicago
• Directory of links to several hundred sites for American political history, from pre-colonial times to the present
• Links to "gateways," guides, sites by time period, presidential resources, numerous topics (labor, populism, immigration, women's rights/suffrage, etc.)
• Relies heavily on academic research and primary sources (debates, "primary documents," newspaper archives, speeches, party platforms)
• Sites deemed of special importance by Jensen are noted as "recommended"
• Annotations accompany most links
• "Updated every few weeks"
• Links to additional "Jensen's Online Guides," including "Scholars' Guide to WWW," "Guide to Political Research Online," topical guides on military history, the Civil War, Vietnam War, Thomas Jefferson, railroad history
• Outstanding; a cornucopia of resources on political life in America; like all of Jensen's guides, this is well-organized and immensely useful for researchers


American Social History Project/Center for Media and Learning

• Sponsored by the City University of New York's Graduate Center
• "Aims to revitalize interest in history by challenging the traditional ways that people learn about the past"
• "Produces print, visual and multimedia materials about the working men and women whose actions and beliefs shaped U.S. history"
• Presents the "Who Built America?" documentary series
• Includes information on the Project's initiatives, projects, publications and resources
• Excellent resource for examining American history from the viewpoint of the "ordinary American"


American Women's History: A Research Guide

• Compiled and maintained by Ken Middleton, Middle Tennessee State University Library
• Organized to allow users to browse resources via a subject index, state index, primary sources index, secondary source index
• "2100+ citations to print and Internet sources; 1200+ links to Internet sources"
• "Updated frequently [at least monthly] since 1998"
• "Subject Index to Research Sources" links to sites for 79 topics, including population-specific resources (African-American women, Asian-American women, etc.), occupational resources (architects, diplomats, scientists, etc.), momentous events (Civil War, World Wars I & II)
• Each subject may include the following resources: bibliography, biography, encyclopedia, historical overview, archives, digital collections; comprehensiveness of these resources varies by subject
• "State Index to Research Resources" consists of access to resources by state; most state resources are archives, state historical associations, books
• "Resource Tools: Finding Primary Sources" links to archival/manuscript collections, museums/historic sites, newspapers/periodicals, "other guides"
• "Resource Tools: Finding Secondary Sources" links to library catalogs, e-book collections, periodical indexes/databases, theses/dissertations
• Outstanding; one of the best – if not the best – sites of its kind currently available; subject breadth/arrangement and inclusion of copious primary sources makes this site mandatory for anyone researching the historical role of women in America


Avalon Project

• Sponsored by Yale University Law School
• Links to a comprehensive archive of "digital documents relevant to the Fields of Law, History, Economics, Politics, Diplomacy and Government"
• Access to hundreds of full-text documents (treaties, charters, protocols, speeches et al) from ancient times to the present
• May be browsed chronologically or by topic; includes option of retrieving treaties by their common name
• No commentary accompanies the documents
• "Help Desk" available; also includes FAQ feature
• Searchable
• Outstanding; although international in scope, there are a significant number of documents which are directly related to American history; easy-to-navigate


Citing Electronic Information in History Papers

• Developed and maintained by Maurice Crouse, Department of History, Memphis University
• Extensive (28 p.) guide for citing sources utilized in researching/writing history papers; includes research recommendations, "Models and Examples," bibliography
• "Models and Examples" discusses citing methodology for the following resource formats: books/parts of books, journals/magazines/newspapers, abstract review sources, e-mail (personal), electronic conferences/newsgroups/lists, government publications, legal documents
• "You may freely reproduce this document, provided that your reproduce it in its entirety and without and modification"
• Revised July, 2004
• Outstanding; does an excellent job of analyzing methods for conducting historical research; extensive use of "Models and Examples" make this especially useful


Digital History

• "This site is being developed through collaborative partnerships with the University of Houston, Chicago Historical Society, Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, National Park Service, PATH: Project for the Active Teaching of American History, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH)"
• This guide, which offers a variety of resource formats for the study of American history, includes "primary sources," an online textbook and an interactive timeline
• "History Reference Room" links to the following resources: biographies, "book talks," encyclopedia, glossaries, "history profession," images, maps, museums/archives, music, speeches, websites, writing guides
• "Resource Guides by Period" contains 35 guides arranged chronologically, from colonial times to the present; each contains an "historical overview," primary sources, teaching resources, A-V resources
• Updated November 2004
• Outstanding; another great "gateway" site; multimedia resources and "History Reference Room" are especially useful


Early American Digital Archive (EADA)

• "A collection of electronic texts originally written in or about the Americas from 1492 to approximately 1820"
• "Published and supported by the Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities (MITH) at the University of Maryland"
• "Invites scholars from all disciplines to submit their editions of early American texts for publication on this site (see Submit a Text)"
• This "hemispheric approach to the early Americas" currently publishes over 230 texts, with an emphasis on the Spanish influence on the "New World" and the influence of other European nations (England in particular) in the colonial development of North America
• Browsable by author; searchable by document title/subject "… within and across the texts"
• Free-of-charge; texts are from the public domain or are reproduced (with permission) from other sites
• Outstanding; one of the best sites for primary source material for early history of the Americas


EH.Net Encyclopedia

• "EH.Net Encyclopedia of Economic and Business History is designed to provide students and laymen with high quality reference articles in the field"
• Archive consists of over 140 articles, arranged alphabetically by business/economic history topics; over 60% are concerned with American topics
• These topics include the development of specific industries (banking, coal mining, gas), government regulation, government economic incentives, law, labor/management issues, taxation
• Each article consists of a well-written essay by an academic historian; also includes "References" and information on how to cite the article
• Members of the "Advisory Board" and "Consulting Editors" are mostly (but not exclusively) from American colleges and universities
• "You may print or download materials on the site for your personal, non-commercial use, provided you keep intact all copyright and other proprietary notices"
• Searchable
• Outstanding; with its well-written articles and breadth of coverage, this is an excellent resource for anyone interested in this important aspect of American history


Ethnic and Immigration History Resources

• Maintained by Clara Hudson, Weinberg Library, University of Scranton
• An annotated directory of Internet, print and database resources available in the Weinberg Library, this guide examines some of the most authoritative resources on ethnic/immigration history
• "Internet Sources" links primarily to "gateways" and "resource centers"
• "Reference Books" include bibliographies, general guides, works on specific ethnic/racial groups; some titles are somewhat dated, but should still be useful for background information; they should be available in many academic libraries or large public libraries
• Databases are restricted to the University of Scranton's academic community; they should be available in many academic libraries or large public libraries
• Excellent resource for background research


General U.S. History

• Created and maintained by Tracey Osborn
• Part of Teacher Oz's Kingdom of History"
• This comprehensive and fascinating directory (arranged by topic) links to hundreds of sites for American history, including "General and Comprehensive Sites," biographical information, primary source documents, speeches, images, oral histories, statistical sites, newspapers, timelines, maps, literature, state information, immigration/diversity resources, social and economic sites, and more
• No annotations or evaluative commentary
• Excellent cross-referencing
• Not searchable
• Updated June 2005
• Links to Osborn's companion sites "Discovery, Exploration, Colonies & Revolution, 19th Century America, 20th & 21st Century America
• Outstanding; as with all of Osborn's web guides, it's excellent, extensive, esoteric and entertaining; links to many sites not readily available in other guides or "gateways"


Historical Text Archives (HTA) 

• Maintained by Don Mabry, retired director of the Institute for the Humanities, Mississippi State University
• "The HTA publishes high-quality articles, books, essays, documents, historical photos, and links, screened for content, for a broad range of historical subjects"
• "HTA Contents; 677 articles, 66 books, and 5750 links"
• While the articles and online books are excellent, the real value of this site is its links to over 5,700 history sites, which include 24 topic- specific categories and national/regional historic sites
• Annotations accompany most links
• Excellent; while this site is international in scope, there is enough resource material on American history to make it worth one's while; easy-to-navigate


History — American and British

• Created by Stan Nash and maintained by Tom Glynn, Rutgers University Library
• Directory of links to American and British history sites
• Links to a variety of resources: "gateways," bibliographies, statistics, biographical information, maps, e-journals, book reviews, curricula/syllabi, archives, professional associations/organizations
• Also links to sites arranged by time period and topic
• Heavily reliant on academic research and primary documents
• Outstanding; one of the best academic sites currently available


History Matters: The U.S. Survey on the Web

• "Developed by American Social History Project/Center for Media & Learning, City University of New York, and the Center for History and New Media, George Mason University"
• "Designed for high school and college teachers of U.S. History Courses. This site serves as a gateway to Web resources and offers useful materials for teaching U.S. history"
• Presents a variety of online resources for teachers including "Many Parts" ("primary documents in text, image and audio emphasizing the experiences of ‘ordinary' Americans"), "Making Sense of Evidence" ("articles and resources that link the past with current ideas and events"), "Reference Desk" ("links to resources on standards, citing and evaluating Web sites, and more")
• WWW.History, "an annotated list of hundreds of Web sites as well as the History Web Review," covers a wide variety of resources chronologically (1620 to the present) and by 22 topics
• Links include excellent analytical annotations; also specifies a site's format(s): text, audio, video
• Outstanding; includes resources not readily found elsewhere; although the intended audience is history instructors, the quality of the material should be of great use to students and other interested parties as well


Internet Resources for Ethnic Studies

• Maintained by Carol A. Rudisell, University of Delaware Library
• Directory of links to the following: "ethnic studies," "general resources," works on specific ethnic/racial groups, academic/professional resources (associations/organizations, academic departments, libraries), "issues" in ethnic studies, mailing/discussion lists
• Excellent annotations accompany most links
• Last updated July, 2004
• Outstanding; although this page is dedicated to a variety of topics pertaining to "ethnic studies", most sites contain components dealing with historical material; great place for an overview of the field and for beginning research


Internet Resources for U.S. History

• Maintained by David L. Langenberg, University of Delaware Library
• Directory of over 230 links to the following American history resources: "Starting Points," "Topics in History" (History by Period, History by Area, Subdisciplines in History, "Popular History")
• Links to chronologies/timelines, "Text, Image, Sound, and Archival Databases," professional associations/organizations, mailing lists/news groups, "Regional Resources"
• Excellent annotations accompany most links
• Last updated May 2005
• Outstanding; a masterful job in presenting many of the best American history sites by topic and professional resource; one of the best academic sites currently available; useful for both the novice as well as the experienced researcher


Making of America (MOA)

• Launched in 1995 as a collaborative venture between the University of Michigan and Cornell University; funding from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation
• "A digital library of primary sources in American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction"
• "Particularly strong in the subject areas of education, psychology, American history, sociology, religion, and science and technology"
• Current scope is primarily from 1850 through 1877
• As of February 2005, MOA contains over 3,500,000 pages and includes over 11,800 books and 50,000 journal articles
• Downloading instructions are included
• Includes "Help" feature
• Outstanding; one of the best resources for primary source material in American history for the middle of the 19th century


Map Collections: 1500 – 2004

• Maintained by the Geography and Map Division, Library of Congress
• Part of the "American Memory" Project (see above)
• Browsable by geographic location, subject, "creator," map title; searchable by keyword
• Links to map sites for the following topics: "general" maps, conservation/environment, discovery/exploration, cities/towns, "cultural landscapes," military battles/campaigns, transportation/communication
• Each topic offers its own browse/search options based on the site's options
• "Working with the Collection" offers advice on utilizing search strategies to the best advantage, ordering reproductions, "map images background information," copyright issues
• "These images were created from maps and atlases and, in general, are restricted to items that are not covered by copyright protection"
• Map enlargement feature
• Last revised February 2004
• Outstanding; one of the most comprehensive (and user-friendly) sites of its kind


Military History

• "Created and maintained by Lance Cummins, Program Analyst Staff, Library Programs Service, GPO"
• Browsable directory of links to military history sites for each service branch; includes "gateways," federal sites (including links to each service branch's home page), "Women in the Military," museums
• Excellent annotations accompany links
• Updated April 2003
• Excellent; while not comprehensive, this site is one of the best for an overview of online resources for American military history


National Archives & Records Administration (NARA)

• "An independent Federal Agency that preserves our nation's history and defines us as a people by overseeing the management of all Federal records"
• Includes "cornerstone documents of our government: enables people to inspect for themselves the record of what government has done"
• Contains ARC (Archival Research Catalog), an internal search engine which facilitates access to NARA's vast collection of documents, images and records; formerly known as NAIL (NARA Archival Information Locator)
• "34 facilities hold about 2.9 million cubic feet of original textual material," which include motion pictures, maps, sound/video recordings, photographs, electronic records
• Also provides access to veterans' records, genealogical data, the Federal Register
• Includes information about NARA's initiatives, projects, publications, calendar of events, additional resources and services
• Searchable
• Outstanding; the offical site for primary historical documents and Federal government records/resources


Our Documents

• "The Our Documents initiative is a cooperative effort among National History Day, The National Archives and Records Administration, and USA Freedom Corps"
• Directory of "100 milestone documents," from the Declaration of Independence (1776) to the Voting Rights Act (1965)
• Each document includes a document image, document transcript and "Document Info," (background material about the origin of the document)
• Includes suggestions for classroom use
• Particularly useful for the late 19th century resources and New Deal legislation
• Available as a book (Oxford University Press)
• Excellent; does not have chronological span of available documents in "AMDOCS," but the inclusion of "Document Info" is an extremely useful feature


Pathfinder: Immigration in the United States

• Maintained by the Internet Public Library (IPL)
• Links to websites concerned with immigration issues, history, "research organizations," government sites
• Excellent annotations
• Also offers suggestions for conducting research in online library catalogs
• Excellent; not extensive, but links some of the best immigration history/research sites currently available, including the outstanding Ellis Island Immigration Museum; a great place for beginning research on "the basics"


Perry-Castaneda Library Map Collection: Historical Maps of the United States

• Maintained by the University of Texas Libraries, Austin
• Links to maps for the following topics: "Early Inhabitants," "Exploration and Settlement," "Territorial Growth," "Military History," "Later Historical Maps"
• Also links to Texas historical map sites, historical maps of American cities, national historic parks/memorials, military parks/battlefields, "U.S. Historical Maps on Other Web Sites"
• Searchable
• "Materials on this site may be quoted or reproduced for educational purposes without prior permission, provided appropriate credit is given"
• Excellent; while not comprehensive, the choice of map links highlights many of the most representative sites for a cartographic overview of the nation's development; links on "Territorial Growth" are particularly useful


Repositories of Primary Sources

• Maintained by Terry Abraham for the University of Idaho Library
• Links to over 5,500 websites for primary sources (manuscripts, rare books, historical photographs, etc.)
• Concentrates on actual "physical" repositories; virtual collections are not included
• Revised May, 2004
• Although the scope of this page is international, a significant proportion of the links connect to American repositories
• Excellent site for "one-stop-shopping" for primary sources


Resources for Research: Periodicals

• Sponsored by the Research Society for American Periodicals (RSAP); edited by Ellen Garvey
• Links to select American full-text magazines and newspapers (from the 18th century through the 20th century; all material is free-of-charge
• Arranged into 22 categories for social, political and population-specific periodicals (African-American, Native-American, women, children)
• Discussion list available
• Links to professional organizations and periodical publishing associations
• Outstanding resource for primary research on history and popular culture in America during its first two centuries


20th Century American Culture

• Sponsored by the Net's Educational Resource Center (NERC)
• This directory, arranged by decade, links to several hundred American history sites for cultural/social trends, as well as developments in economic history, music and the media
• "Cross Decade Sites," "Center for Cultural Studies"
• Not annotated
• Links to related NERC pages for "General Resources," ancient/world history
• Intended audience is secondary school students, undergraduates
• Excellent; not as structured as Kingwood College Library's pages, but still very useful


Using Primary Resources on the Web

• "Written by the Instruction & Research Services Committee of the Reference and User Service Association History Section in the American Library Association"
• Guide to locating, understanding, evaluating, utilizing and citing primary sources in conducting research in history
• Links to "gateways," " primary sources," history subject directories, print guides, photographs/other "non-text-sources"
• Criteria for evaluating primary source sites include the following: "Who is Responsible for the Website?," "Determining the Origin of the Document," "Is the Content Clearly Explained, Organized, and Accessible?," "Is There a User Fee?"
• Excellent; while not extensive, this site does an admirable job of providing a solid introduction to those not familiar with primary source materials for historical research


U.S. History: Primary and Secondary Sources

• Authored by Paul A. Fritsch, dean/library director, Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio
• Published in the November 2001 issue of College & Research Library News; updated in May 2007
• Well-organized Internet guide, which links to sites for the following: meta sites /directories, "primary sources" sites, topical sites for momentous events (American Revolution, Civil War, New Deal), population-specific sites, sites by time period
• Excellent annotations accompany each link
• Outstanding; while not extensive, this is one of the best short guides to noteworthy links for American history; selection of links (and evaluative commentary on them) is superb; a great place to begin research


Websites discussed on this page are for informational purposes only. Johnson & Wales University Library is not responsible for the accuracy, content or stability of any websites linked to this page.

Compiled by Rick Keogh, 12/04; links last checked 9/07

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