A-Z Databases

Find the best library databases for your research.

59 Databases Found for:Primary Sources

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A

Search 270 historical newspapers published for African American communities between 1827-1998. 

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Created in partnership with the Wisconsin Historical Society, the Kansas State Historical Society, and the Library of Congress, African American Newspapers chronicles a century and a half of the African American experience.

Search 170+ periodicals written by and about African Americans. Published from 1825-1995, the publications include academic and political journals, magazines, institutional newsletters, organizations' bulletins, annual reports, and other genres. 

America's Historical Newspapers
Provided by UW-Madison
Provided by UW-Madison
Alternate Name(s):Early American Newspapers

Primary source newspapers published from 1728 to the late 1990s. Includes thousands of titles from all 50 states.
 

The most comprehensive collection of American periodicals published between 1684 and 1912.

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You can search each series separately as well as together: Series 1 (1684-1820), Series 2 (1821-1837), Series 3 (1838-1852), Series 4 (1853-1865), and Series 5 (1866-1912).

Funding provided by the Russell Moratz Estate.

  • No password required

Historic high-quality public televison and radio programs from the 1940's to the early 21st century, including both regional and local programs.

B

BadgerLink
Provided by Badgerlink
Provided by Badgerlink

Available to all Wisconsin residents, a directory of educational, children's, and government sites, online newspapers and magazines, and a variety of databases.

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BadgerLink is a program supported and funded through the Department of Public Instruction - Division of Libraries, Technology, and Community Learning. Its goal is to provide increased access to information for Wisconsin residents in cooperation with the state's library community.

Black Drama
Provided by UW-Madison
Provided by UW-Madison

Approximately 1,200 rare and hard-to-find plays written from 1850-present by playwrights from North America, English-speaking Africa, the Caribbean, and other African Diaspora countries.

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A collection of primary source documents related to critical people and events in African American history.

Provided by UW-Madison

Letters and diaries detail the personal experiences of 1,000+ British and Irish women writing from 1500-1900, all age groups and life stages, all ethnicities, and many geographical regions.

Provided by UW-Madison

British historical newspapers published from 1800-1913. Includes modern specially-commissioned essays and contextual materials to help non-specialist users with perspective & analysis. 

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It can also be searched using the Gale Primary Sources and Newsvault databases.

C

Full page and article images with searchable full text from 1849 to 24 years ago. 

Some content withheld due to copyright.

D

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Offers free and open access to the rich cultural legacy of the Middle East and North Africa by bringing together collections from a wide range of cultural heritage institutions.

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Images, texts, videos, and sounds from across the United States.

E

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More than 3,000 books, pamphlets, and other sources documenting Canadian history from the first European contact to the late 19th century.

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The collection is particularly strong in literature, women's history, native studies, travel and exploration, and the history of French Canada.

Provided by UW-Madison

Primary sources that document the relationships among peoples and the environment in North America from 1534 to 1850.

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The collection focuses on personal accounts and provides unique perspectives from all of the protagonists, including traders, slaves, missionaries, explorers, soldiers, native peoples, and officials, both men and women.

Early English Books Online
Provided by UW-Madison
Provided by UW-Madison
Alternate Name(s):EEBO

Digital page images of virtually every work printed from 1473-1700 in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and British North America, and works in English printed elsewhere.

Provided by UW-Madison

Digital images of over 180,000 titles including books, pamphlets, essays, broadsides, and more in the fields of history, literature, religion, law, fine arts, and science.

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These collections can also be searched using Gale Primary Sources.

Primary sources telling the story of the rise and fall of empires over five centuries; from Columbus, Captain Cook, and others, right through to de-colonisation and modern debates over American Imperialism.

Analysis of the physical, social, and economic aspects of environmental issues. Includes academic journals, news, case studies, legislation, conference proceedings, primary source documents, statistics, and rich multimedia.

G

Search across a variety of Gale databases including Academic OneFile, Business Collection, Opposing Viewpoints in Context, and various InfoTrac collections.

A tool that searches across many of Gale's databases containing British and American historical newspapers and other periodicals. 
 

Scholarly journals, magazines, newspapers, newsletters, regional publications, books and NGO, government, and special reports that focus on how gender affects a broad array of subject areas.

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Its archival material, dating back to 1970 in some cases, is a repository of historical perspectives on the evolution of the women's movement, men's studies, the transgendered community and the changes in gender roles over the years.

Gerritsen Collection
Provided by UW-Madison
Provided by UW-Madison

Large primary source collection for the study of women's history, with over 4,000 books, pamphlets, and periodicals spanning four centuries and 15 languages.

Full text primary source documents, letters, photographs, cartoons, and government sources, along with video interviews and twenty-five critical documentary essays, covering America from 1865-1900.

Scholarly articles, federal legislative histories, relevant congressional hearings, CRS Reports, Supreme Court briefs, and more.

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Also contains a balanced selection of external resources to further research this subject.

H

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Citations for scanned books, journals, government publications, and other library materials. Full text for public domain and open access materials.

HeritageQuest Online
Provided by Badgerlink
Provided by Badgerlink

A comprehensive database of American genealogical sources including unique primary sources, local and family histories, and finding aids.

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If you are having problems accessing this database, you will need to use it on a campus wired connection or use your public library card to gain access.

History Commons
Provided by UW-Madison
Provided by UW-Madison
Alternate Name(s):Accessible Archives

Primary source material from 18th & 19th century magazines and books, including eyewitness accounts of historical events, descriptions of everyday life, editorial observations, advertisements, and genealogical records.

History Reference Source
Provided by Badgerlink
Provided by Badgerlink
Alternate Name(s):History Reference Complete

Full text for more than 2,500 reference books, encyclopedias, books, and articles from nearly 170 history periodicals. Can also use their browseable interface here .

L

  • No password required
Alternate Name(s):American Memory Project

New platform. Please see American Memory: Remaining Collections for those that have not migrated.

M

MAS Complete
Provided by Badgerlink
Provided by Badgerlink

Designed specifically for high school libraries, this provides full text for hundreds of popular general interest and current events publications, as far back as 1975 for key magazines.

Middle Search Plus
Provided by Badgerlink
Provided by Badgerlink

Full text for many of the most frequently used magazines (and citations for many more) in middle school libraries, plus pamphlets and Essential Documents of American History.

Military & Government Collection
Provided by Badgerlink
Provided by Badgerlink

Current news pertaining to all branches of the military and government, full text for more than 300 journals, and citations and abstracts for more.

N

Full page and individual article images with searchable full text from 1851-5 years ago 

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Some content withheld due to copyright

NewspaperARCHIVE
Provided by UW System
Provided by UW System
Alternate Name(s):Access NewspaperARCHIVE

Full page and individual articles from historic newspapers from Wisconsin. 

Searches across several databases containing historical newspapers from 1600-1980s, including the Times (London) Digital Archive.

Provided by UW-Madison

Primary source collections of the long nineteenth century, mostly focused on Europe and Asia.

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Collections include Asia and the West: Diplomacy and Cultural Exchange, British Politics and Society, British Theatre, Music, and Literature: High and Popular Culture, and European Literature, 1790-1840: The Corvey Collection Archives.

Provided by UW-Madison

Full text pages and individual articles for hundreds of 19th-century U.S. historical newspapers. 

Provided by UW-Madison

Primary sources providing a personal view of what it meant to immigrate to America and Canada between the late 1700s and 1960.

The lived experiences of 1,325 women shared in diaries and letters. The collection also includes biographies and an extensive annotated bibliography of the sources included.

O

Contextual topic overviews and opinions on hundreds of today's hottest social issues. Links to content from magazines, academic journals, news, primary sources, multimedia, and vetted websites.

R

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Wisconsin historical resources from the collections of libraries, archives, museums, and historical societies.

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Primary Source alternative press newspapers, magazines and journals produced during the latter half of the 20th century. Includes 3 main collections with many sub-collections: American Prison Newspapers, Independent Voices, and Student Activism.

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Student run newspaper for the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater documenting campus milestones, social and cultural changes, and the general history of the institution and surrounding community.

S

60 volumes of Romantic Poetry and extensive contemporary critical reviews, as well as modern scholarly analysis.

Provided by UW-Madison

17th- and 18th-century English newspapers and news pamphlets. Mostly from London, some from Ireland, Scotland, and English colonies.

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The 17th and 18th Century Burney Collection Newspapers can also be searched using Gale Primary Sources and NewsVault.

Legal materials on slavery in the U.S. & the English-speaking world: every colonial/state/federal statute on slavery, and state/federal legal cases on slavery.

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Writings and multimedia about the state of Wisconsin and its history and development. Primary and secondary publications, both published and archival.

T

Times (London) Digital Archive
Provided by UW-Madison
Provided by UW-Madison

Over 200 years of the world's "newspaper of record."

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The Times (London) Digital Archive can also be searched using Gale Primary Sources.

Provided by UW-Madison
Alternate Name(s):20th Century Advice Literature

Manuals, textbooks, etiquette guides, self-help books, instructional pamphlets, and how-to books describing American attitudes towards family dynamics, gender roles, sexual relationships, and race relations.

U

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Digital resources (text and multimedia) that support the teaching and research needs of the UW community, uniquely document the university and State of Wisconsin, and provide access to rare or fragile items of broad research value.

Contextual information on hundreds of the most significant people, events, and topics in U.S. History from full-text magazines, academic journals, news articles, primary source documents, images, videos, audio files, and links to vetted websites.

W

Westlaw Campus Research
Funded by UW System
Funded by UW System
Alternate Name(s):WestlawNext

Federal and state court cases, statutes, & regulations; law reviews & journals; legal research encyclopedias; and some international legal resources, company information, and news.

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Includes The Whitewater Register, Whitewater Gazette, and Whitewater Press. Years span 1850 to 1969.

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Part of The Community History Archive of the Irving L. Young Memorial Library (the public library for the city of Whitewater, WI)

Wiley Digital Archives
Funded by UW System
Funded by UW System

Historical primary sources from leading societies, libraries, and archives around the world, our access includes:  the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (RAI), the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS), and the Environmental Science and History (ENV) collection.

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A digital collection of diaries, letters, reminiscences, speeches, and other writings of people who settled and built Wisconsin during the 19th century.

Books, images, documents, scholarly essays, commentaries, and bibliographies, documenting the multiplicity of women's reform activities. Updated quarterly.

Contextual information on hundres of the most significant people, events, and topics in World History from full-text magazines, academic journals, news articles, primary source documents, images, videos, audio files, and links to vetted websites.

Y

  • No password required
Alternate Name(s):Minneiska

The Minneiska documents the students and faculty, activities, and campus organizations from 1909-1991 as the institution grew from the Whitewater Normal School to the University of Wisconsin - Whitewater.

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