Guides: Primary Sources (U.S. History): Primary Source Collections Online

Miscellaneous

Purpose

This is a selected bibliography of primary source collections pertaining to general U.S. history and topics of special interest in U.S. history available online. Please note, the library is not responsible for the content on these sources and it is the student's responsibility to properly cite from the proper location. There may also be secondary sources included in these collections and it is up to the student to evaluate if the item qualifies as a primary or secondary source.

100 Milestone Documents
A selection of 100 significant documents pertaining to American history - from the Lee Resolution of 1776 to the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
American Journeys: Eyewitness Accounts of Early American Exploration and Settlement
Primary source accounts of travelers and explorers of North America from the Vikings in Canada to 19th century mountain men.
Avalon Project
Transcriptions of documents from world and U.S. history, spanning from ancient documents to the 21st century.
Chronicling America
From the Library of Congress, searchable database of thousands of newspapers from the U.S. dating from 1836-1922.
Digital History (U of Houston)
Transcriptions of significant primary source documents pertaining to American history. From pre-colonial America to the 21st century.
Digital Public Library of America
Speeches, remarks, press briefings and more from the White House.
Earliest Voices
Listen to early vocal recordings of William Jennings Bryan, Eugene Debs, Thomas Edison, Samuel Gompers, William McKinley, William Taft, and Booker T. Washington
Historical Society of Pennsylvania: Primary Sources
Primary source sets organized by topics are available under the link "Unit Plans." Unit plans also contain secondary information and units of study for K-12 classrooms.
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress holds a massive digital collection of primary and secondary sources for many topics of U.S. and world history.
The Library of Congress Celebrates the Songs of America
Listen to and explore music of America through interactive maps. Songs can be explored by state (songs written about that state or by a composer linked to that state) and songs of the Civil War.
Making of America
Digital collection of primary sources from Cornell University which tells the story of American history, particularly on the topics of education, psychology, sociology, religion, and science and technology.
National Archives
Search the National Archives and Records Administration catalog for a plethora of primary and secondary sources that pertain to the history of the U.S.
National Archives: America's Historical Documents
From the National Archives, digitized images of significant documents pertaining to U.S. history from the Articles of Confederation, the check written to purchase Alaska, Edison's light bulb patent and more.
Presidential Speech Archive: Miller Center
Transcripts of presidential speeches from Washington to Obama.
The White House: Speeches and Remarks
Speeches, remarks, press briefings and more from the White House.