Research Guides: HIST 219: Civil War Era: Finding Primary Sources

Recommended Primary Source Collections

Slavery in America and the World: History Culture & Law
Essential legal materials on slavery in the United States and the English-speaking world. This includes every statute passed by every colony and state on slavery, every federal statute dealing with slavery, and all reported state and federal cases on slavery.

Library of Congress Digital Collections
Search for Civil War to explore the vast collection of primary source materials available through the Library of Congress.
Documenting the American South
Primary sources covering Southern history, literature, and culture. From the University of North Carolina.

HarpWeek - Harper's Weekly
Harper's Weekly Digital Archive 1857-1912

Mass Media

New York Times (1851 to 3 years ago)
Historical New York Times with articles in PDF format, including ads, cartoons, photos, maps, graphics, and more.

Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers
Digitized American newspapers, 1789 - 1963. From the Library of Congress.

African American Historical Serials Collection
African American religious life & organizations documented in newspapers and magazines, published 1829 -1922
Archive of periodicals documenting the history of African American religious life and culture between 1829 and 1922. Includes newspapers and magazines, plus reports and annuals from African American religious organizations, churches, and social service agencies.
American Antiquarian Society Historical Periodicals
American periodicals published 1684-1912, covering US history, society, and culture
Specialized collections covering advertising, health, women's issues, science, African American studies, industry, religious issues, culture and the arts
Kalamazoo Gazette Collection (1837-1922, 2005-Present)
Search the local Kalamazoo newspaper.
Kalamazoo Gazette from 2005 through today, including full text, web-only content, and full-color image edition. Also includes historical content from 1837-1922.

Older Popular Magazines (in print)

Library OneSearch

Most of these titles can be found in bound volumes on the 2nd floor. Older editions may be located in storage. Look up titles in OneSearch and login to request particular volumes.

The Atlantic, 1932 -
Atlantic Monthly, 1857-1932
Century (title changes - Century Magazine, Century Illustrated Monthly Magazine) 1882-1930
Christian Century, 1923 -
Current History 1919-
Harper’s Magazine, 1913 -
Harper’s Monthly Magazine, 1900-1913
Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, 1850-1900
Life, 1936 -
The Nation, 1905 -
The National Geographic magazine, 1889- present
The New Republic, 1916-present

Newsweek, 1947-
The New Yorker, 1936 -
Saturday Review, 1929 -
Scribner’s, 1887-1939
Time, 1930 -
US News & World Report, 1948-present