Primary sources
These databases provide full-text primary sources useful for history research. See also the list of historical news sources.
Getting started with academic research | Recommended databases | U.S. history | World history Primary sources
Center for Research Libraries Catalog (CRL)
Center for Research Libraries Catalog (CRL)
Catalog of 5 million newspapers, journals, documents, foreign dissertations, archives and other resources for research, which VT users borrow through ILLiad and, in some cases, access online. See also "topic guides." VT does NOT subscribe to all CRL "e-collections." CRL is a consortium of North American research libraries, including Virginia Tech, for preserving and sharing rare or unusual works.
American Memory from the Library of Congress
American Memory from the Library of Congress
American Memory is a gateway to the Library of Congress’s digitized American historical materials, organized into more than 100 thematic collections. Original formats include manuscripts, prints, photographs, posters, maps, sound recordings, motion pictures, books, pamphlets, and sheet music. Each collection provides explanatory features to make the materials easy to find, use, and understand. Collections may be browsed individually, searched individually (including full-text searching for many written items), or searched across multiple collections. 1400s-present.
In the First Person from Alexander Street Press
In the First Person from Alexander Street Press
An index of letters, diaries, oral histories, memoirs, and autobiographies freely available on the web and Alexander Street Press. The search returns citation information and links to full text, audio, and video whenever available. Some indexed content is copyrighted and not available for free. 1558-1995.
Early English Books Online from Chadwyck-Healey
Early English Books Online from Chadwick
Early English Books Online contains scanned page images (GIF and TIFF) of virtually every work printed in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and British North America and works in English printed elsewhere from 1473-1700. Coverages includes all subject areas with strong coverage in the humanities, performing arts, and education. Each is full-text searchable. Limited to simultaneous users.
Eighteenth Century Collections Online - ECCO from Gale
Eighteenth Century Collections Online - ECCO from Gale
ECCO provides full-text books, pamphlets, essays, broadsides, directories, Bibles, sheet music, sermons and advertisements in HTML and PDF. It delivers every significant English-language and foreign-language title printed in Great Britain during the eighteenth century, along with thousands of important works from the Americas.
Virginia Heritage Database
Virginia Heritage Database
Virginia Heritage indexes finding aids (collection descriptions) to manuscripts and archival materials held by libraries across Virginia. These finding aids may link to digitized versions of these materials, but the majority of these collections have not yet been digitized. 1607-present.
American Journeys
American Journeys
American Journeys indexes the full text of 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. Read the words of explorers, Indians, missionaries, traders and settlers as they lived through the founding moments of American history. Includes more than 150 rare books, original manuscripts, and classic travel narratives. 1000s-1840s
- Bruce Pencek
- College Librarian for Social Sciences & History
- (540) 231-5806 (Lane Hall 311 office -- during regular office hours)
- (540) 231-2140 (Newman Library 3050 office -- for most purposes)
- bpencek@vt.edu
-
3050 Newman Library
311 Lane Hall
Blacksburg, VA 24062-9001
Legend
Resource is restricted to current Virginia Tech students, faculty, and staff. Use Off Campus Sign In if not on the campus network.
Resource is licensed for Virginia Tech alumni access. Use Alumni Library Portal Sign In to access. Freely accessible database, available to anyone without restriction Sponsored by VIVA, the Virtual Library of Virginia.
Mobile interface available, see description for link. Screencast tutorial available, icon linked to list. Contents of this database are in Summon.
Resource provides Get VText links to access full text. Resource provides open access publishing opportunities and open access publications.
Resource provides self archiving opportunities and open access documents.