Research Guides: HIST 158B: Social History of the Confederate States of America: Home

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Librarian for History

she/her/hers

Contact:

lhibbler@brandeis.edu

781-736-4656

Subjects: African and African American Studies, Asian Studies and Asian American and Pacific Islander Studies, History

Tips for Searching for Digitized Primary Sources

If you are using a database with an Advanced Search form, try using the Advanced Search features to refine your search.

Since these databases cover many decades, it can be helpful to limit your search to a specific date range.

Think about what terms that might have been used to describe your topic during the time period. For example: the name of a specific person or organization or even a term that wouldn't be used today.

Some databases allow you to limit your search to sources related to a specific geographic area. Try doing this when researching a specific region.

These databases often sort results in chronological order. In some cases, it might be helpful to sort by relevance/best matches first.

In addition to searching, try browsing these collections to learn about sources that you wouldn't have necessarily thought of searching for.

These databases often display isolated sources, removed from any context. Explore available newspaper descriptions & other info to gather contextual information. For example, a search in the Library of Congress Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers may lead to articles published in the Semi-Weekly Standard during the Civil War. The newspaper was published in Raleigh, NC, but you need to click on the newspaper description to find details about the newspaper's stance during the war. The publisher was a reluctant supporter of secession and wrote articles about "Federal gains across the South and the inadequacies of the Confederate government."

Searching the Catalog

Try exploring the Library Catalog for books related to your topic. If Brandeis does not have a book you need, you can use WorldCat to search for books from other libraries and then request these books through Interlibrary Loan.

Search tip: Start with a Keyword search and identify some relevant books. Then look at the subject headings for those books. You can follow the subject heading links in the catalog to find similar books, or you can use the terms in the subject headings to identify other keywords to try. For primary source materials, the subject headings will often include terms such as personal narratives, memoirs, or correspondence.

Examples of Subject Heading related to this class:

United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal narratives, Confederate

Key Databases with Primary Source Materials

Slavery & Anti-slavery
Digitized primary sources for the study of the history of slavery. Sources include manuscripts, books, pamphlets, newspapers. You will need a Boston Public Library eCard to access this database.

Accessible Archives This link opens in a new window
A collection of databases containing primary newspaper records, including Godey's Ladys Book 1830-1880, The Pennsylvania Gazette 1728-1800, "The Civil War: A Newspaper Perspective," and "African American Newspapers: The 19th Century."
American Civil War: Letters and Diaries This link opens in a new window
First-person accounts from the Civil War.
American History, 1493-1945 This link opens in a new window
Collection of digitized primary source materials covering American history from 1493 to 1945. Includes documents letters, diaries and documents of Civil War participants, as well as Civil War newspapers and documents about the home front and women and families during the War
Ancestry Library This link opens in a new window
Full text of 1790-1930 US census records, UK and Ireland census collection, immigration collection, military records, and birth, marriage and death records.
American Periodicals (1740-1940) This link opens in a new window
Provides full-text access to many historically-significant periodicals published between 1740 and 1940. Includes general and special interest magazines, including periodicals published in the Confederacy, such as the Southern Literary Messenger and Southern Planter.
Nineteenth Century U.S. Newspapers This link opens in a new window
A collection of digital facsimile images from numerous newspapers encompassing the entire 19th century from a range of urban and rural regions throughout the United States; features full-page layout as well as single articles, and includes advertisements and illustrations.Search tip: To limit your search to newspapers in the Confederacy, use the Limit results by box and use the place of publication options.
America's Historical Newspapers, 1690-1876 This link opens in a new window
Includes hundreds of historic newspapers. Search tip: To limit your search to newspapers in the Confederacy, select the places of publication tab and select the states of the confederacy.
Eight Centuries This link opens in a new window
A vast scholarly database for finding published material from the 12th century through 1930.

Confederate Newspapers: A Collection from Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Virginia and Alabama (from Archives Unbound)
Newspapers published in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Virginia, and Alabama ranging from 1861-1865. These newspapers "recorded the real and true history of public opinion during the war. In their columns is to be found the only really correct and indicative ’map of busy life, its fluctuations and its vast concerns’ in the South, during her days of darkness and of trial." This is part of the Archives Unbound database; from the homepage, navigate to Browse Collections and then select Confederate Newspapers. You will need a Boston Public Library eCard to access this database.
Documenting the American South
Collection of books, diaries, posters, artifacts, letters, oral history interviews, songs, and other texts, images, and audio files related to the history of the South and to Southern culture and literature

North American Women's Letters and Diaries This link opens in a new window
Includes the immediate experiences of 1,325 women and 150,000 pages of diaries and letters. The collection also includes biographies and an extensive annotated bibliography of the sources in the database.
American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection This link opens in a new window
With content from the American Antiquarian Society (AAS), this database includes American periodicals published between 1684 and 1912. Covers advertising, health, women's issues, science, the history of slavery, industry and professions, religious issues, culture and the arts, and more.
Slavery in America and the World: History, Culture & Law (HeinOnline) This link opens in a new window
This collection brings together significant 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.

Even more

More recommended resources are listed on the guides for American History and African and African American Studies