Guides: Primary Sources at Baylor University Libraries: Online Primary Resources@Baylor

Document Sources: United States (Colonial - Present)

Links to online document sources which you have access to through Baylor University Libraries' subscriptions.

Adams papers digital edition This link opens in a new window
"The Adams Papers Digital Edition comprises John Adams' complete diaries, selected legal papers, and the ongoing series of family correspondence and state papers. This XML edition presents in a searchable online environment all 30 volumes of The Adams Papers from the founding generation that have so far appeared in print. The contents are fully annotated, feature linked cross-references, and may be accessed by date, series, author, or recipient ... "

Colonial State Papers
Provides users with access to primary source documents centering on North American affairs from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries. It integrates the collection Privy Council and Related Bodies: America and West Indies, Colonial Papers (CO 1) from The National Archives and the Calendar of State Papers, Colonial: North America and the West Indies 1574-1739. The sources can be searched by keyword, title, place of origin, collection, or index terms. The "Calendar of State Papers, Colonial: North America and the West Indies 1574-1739" is a bibliographic resource making available more than 40,000 descriptive records covering CO 1 plus many documents from many other collections relating to the colonial past. Many of these bibliographic records include scans of the original document, full transcriptions, extracts, or summary abstracts. Includes the helpful "Reading Older Documents" for those reading documents in the original handwriting or paleography.
Digital National Security Archive
Provides digital access to 35 collections of declassified government documents from World War II to 2010. This resource's more than 80,000 documents form a collection of government sources unsurpassed in providing primary source information concerning world events, countries, and U.S. policy decisions. In addition to the documents the database includes overviews, bibliographies, chronologies, glossaries, and photographs. The database is searchable by keyword, names and organizations, subjects, titles, parties involved, document type, date, and classification (secret, declassified, restricted, confidential, etc).

Documentary history of the ratification of the Constitution: digital edition This link opens in a new window
Provides access to digitized documents and images regarding the American South from the first colonies in Virginia through the 20th century. Documents are organized into 14 themed collections (Oral Histories of the American South, North American Slave Narratives, Charlotte, etc.) and are compiled by the University Library at the University of North Carolina from its research collections and institutions. Primary sources are key elements of this collection with includes, maps, books, letters, memoirs, and rare books. Several of the collections focus on North Carolina, however, a geographic search shows 44 of the 50 states are represented in the documentation. Collections may be searched by keywords (across all collections) or by use of the author, subject, title, and geographic links provided. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
Documenting the American South This link opens in a new window
Provides access to digitized documents and images regarding the American South from the first colonies in Virginia through the 20th century.

Dolley Madison Digital Edition
Indexes and provides access to the full text of all of Dolley Madison's correspondence. As the wife of President James Madison and as the unofficial hostess on occasion during Jefferson's Presidency, her letters testify to personal, social, and political issues of the times. Primary Source. University of Virginia, Rotunda Collection.
Early American Imprints: Evans (1639 - 1800)
Now part of the database called America's Historical Imprints from Readex. Provides full-text and full-page-image access to books, pamphlets, and broadsides printed in America from 1639-1800. Based on the renowned American Bibliography by Charles Evans (14 vols., 1903-34, 1955-59); and subsequent bibliographic works by Roger Bristol, James Mooney and Clifford Shipton. Upon completion, Evans Digital will consist of over 36,000 works and 2,400,000 images. This database includes more than 1,000 works located, catalogued, and digitized since the completion of the earlier microfilmed set, Early American Imprints, 1639-1800, which was also based on Charles Evans' American Bibliography.
Early American Imprints: Shaw-Shoemaker (1801 -1819)
Provides a comprehensive set of American books, pamphlets and broadsides published in the early part of the 19th century. It is based on the noted "American Bibliography, 1801-1819" by Ralph R. Shaw and Richard H. Shoemaker.
Early English Books Online (1473 - 1700)
Contains digital facsimile page images of virtually every work printed in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and British North America and works in English printed elsewhere from 1473-1700 - from the first book printed in English by William Caxton, through the age of Spenser and Shakespeare. Reproduces works listed in Pollard & Redgrave's Short-Title Catalogue, Wing's Short-Title Catalogue and the Thomason Tracts, online via ProQuest Direct.
Empire Online
This database offers approximately 60,000 images of original documents linked to essays by leading scholars in the field of Empire Studies. The sections cover Cultural Contacts, 1492-1969; Literature and Empire ; The Visible Empire; Religion and Empire; and Race, Class, Imperialism and Colonialism, c1607-2007.
Historic Documents
The online equivalent of the entire run of the print serial Historic documents, issued since 1972, each annual volume of which contains approximately 100 documents covering the most significant events of the year. The documents include presidential speech
Opening History
Opening History brings together over a thousand collections and more than a million items from libraries, museums, and archives across the U.S. As one of the largest digital resources on U.S. history and culture, it is meant to appeal to all sorts of historical researchers interested in primary sources. Access is by subject, object type (image, object, moving image, etc.), or region of the United States.

Papers of George Washington: digital edition This link opens in a new window
The Papers of George Washington Digital Edition (PGWDE) contains the entire text of the fifty-two volumes of the print edition published by the University of Virginia Press through 2005, in six series: Diaries, Revolutionary War, Colonial, Confederation, Presidential, and Retirement. For the most part, documents and annotations are presented on screen in a format similar to that of the printed versions.
Papers of James Madison : digital edition This link opens in a new window
The Papers of James Madison documents the life and work of one of the most important political and constitutional thinkers in our nation's history. As chief author of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, secretary of state during the Louisiana Purchase, and the fourth president of the United States, Madison played a central role in the American founding and the growth of the early Republic. This online resource contains all of the content of the print edition and adds to this a powerful XML-based search functionality, linked cross-references, and the ability to navigate chronologically or by series volume.
Papers of Thomas Jefferson : digital edition This link opens in a new window
This digital edition covers the collected papers of the third president, author of the Declaration of Independence, a chief figure of the Enlightenment. It brings together all thirty-three volumes published through 2006 into one searchable online resource. In addition, it includes the first four volumes of the Retirement Series.

Document Sources: Britain & Europe

Links to online document sources which you have access to through Baylor University Libraries' subscriptions.

British History online
This is a digital library containing some of the core printed primary and secondary sources for the medieval and modern history of the British Isles.
Colonial State Papers
Provides users with access to primary source documents centering on North American affairs from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries. It integrates the collection Privy Council and Related Bodies: America and West Indies, Colonial Papers (CO 1) from The National Archives and the Calendar of State Papers, Colonial: North America and the West Indies 1574-1739. The sources can be searched by keyword, title, place of origin, collection, or index terms. The "Calendar of State Papers, Colonial: North America and the West Indies 1574-1739" is a bibliographic resource making available more than 40,000 descriptive records covering CO 1 plus many documents from many other collections relating to the colonial past. Many of these bibliographic records include scans of the original document, full transcriptions, extracts, or summary abstracts. Includes the helpful "Reading Older Documents" for those reading documents in the original handwriting or paleography.
Early English Books Online (1473 - 1700)
Contains digital facsimile page images of virtually every work printed in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and British North America and works in English printed elsewhere from 1473-1700 - from the first book printed in English by William Caxton, through the age of Spenser and Shakespeare. Reproduces works listed in Pollard & Redgrave's Short-Title Catalogue, Wing's Short-Title Catalogue and the Thomason Tracts, online via ProQuest Direct.
Eighteenth Century Collections Online
A comprehensive digital edition of The Eighteenth Century microfilm set, which has aimed to include every significant English-language and foreign-language title, printed in the United Kingdom, along with thousands of important works from the Americas.
House of Commons Parliamentary Papers (1801 - 1900)
Makes available Parliamentary papers for the 19th century (1801-1900) covering issues in Great Britain and her many colonies. Provides digital access to the Papers. Useful "Guide to Parliamentary Papers" (http://parlipapers.chadwyck.com/infoCentre/hcppguide.jsp) for those working with them for the first time. Proquest.
Medieval Family Life
Medieval Family Life contains full-color images of the original medieval manuscripts that comprise the Paston, Cely, Plumpton, Stonor, and Armburgh family letter collections, along with full-text searchable transcripts from printed editions. Also includes family trees, chronology, a map, and a glossary.
English Historical documents
Provides modernized English language texts for major primary sources in English history from 500 to 1914, including American Colonial era documents. Browse by subjects (technology, foreign affairs, etc.), chronological timeline, or by original published volume order. Search by keyword or use advanced search for specific document title, personal name, or place name
Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) Daily Reports
This is a United States government agency which translates the text of daily radio and television broadcasts, newspapers and periodicals, government statements, books, and other sources of unrestricted information such as databases and gray literature from non-English sources around the world. Reports with translations are issued for eight world regions daily and cover such topics as military affairs, politics, the environment, societal issues, economics, and science and technology. Reports are available from 1974-1996, part 1 (Middle East, Africa, Near East and South Asia (MEA, NES).This guide details the various collections available at Baylor

Empire online This link opens in a new window
Provides access to primary source documents from libraries and archives around the world on the building of modern empires from the 15th to the 20th century.

Baylor Digital Archives

Baylor University Libraries has an active program to professionally digitize and make available a wide variety of documents, sheet music, recordings, and visual resources owned by the University and the Libraries. Explore what you can use by looking at the list of available digital collections. Since many of our collections remain to be digitized, please explore the additional links to our various libraries and special collections listed here:

Armstrong Browning Library

Poage Legislative Library

Texas Collection

University Archives

Many of these Libraries have materials in the BU Digital Collection. Texas Collection also has some "teaser" videos on YouTube about parts of the collection that have not yet been digitized. Check out the Texas Collection channel on YouTube.

Baylor University Libraries Digital Collections
A descriptive list with links to the many collections of primary source material owned and already digitized by Baylor University Library.

Government & Political Sources

The resources below are grouped into boxes by type of material or by time period as follows:

Music

Maps

Medieval & Early Modern

AAS - Access to Archival Databases (U.S. Government)
Provides access to a selection of nearly 50 million historic electronic records created by more than 20 federal agencies on a wide range of topics.
African-American Song
African-American Song is the first online resource to document the history of African-American music in an online music listening service. The collection contains a diverse range of genres such as jazz, blues, gospel, ragtime, folk songs, and narratives.
American Drama 1714-1915
When complete, the database will contain more than 2,000 plays by American dramatists that chronicle the history and culture of America through dramatic writings from 1714 to present. Advanced search allows for searching by author's ethnicity and nationality. by literary movement or period, and by play type.
American Memory
American Memory is a gateway to rich primary source materials relating to the history and culture of the United States. The site offers more than 5 million items from more than 90 historical collections.

Digital library of classic Protestant texts This link opens in a new window
This comprehensive electronic collection gives researchers immediate, Web-based access to more than 1,500 works from the Reformation and post-Reformation eras (16th and 17th centuries). These works include the theological writings of more than 300 Protestant authors, as well as a wide range of confessional documents, Biblical commentaries, polemical treatises, and Bible translations. NOTE: With the first release on April 22, there should be about 15,000 pages of text. The project will be completed in about 3 years

Digital Sanborn Maps 1867-1970
These digitized maps provide detailed property and land-use records that depict the architecture of Texas towns and cities throughout the past one hundred years.

Digital scriptorium This link opens in a new window
This test database includes, as of February 4, 1999, descriptions of 2,169 medieval codices or documents (cut-off date ca. 1550, but with some materials as late as the 19th century).

Early English Books Online
Contains over 125,000 titles listed in Pollard & Redgrave's Short-Title Catalogue (1475 – 1640), Wing's Short-Title Catalogue (1641-1700), and the Thomason Tracts (1640-1661). The Early English Books Tract Supplements will also be added to EEBO soon.
Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership
Ultimately the full text of over 25,000 titles from Early English Books Online will be available for searching and linked to the full-text images in Early English Books Online.
Eighteenth Century Collections Online
A comprehensive digital edition of The Eighteenth Century microfilm set, which has aimed to include every significant English-language and foreign-language title, printed in the United Kingdom, along with thousands of important works from the Americas.
Evans Digital Edition, 1639-1800 (Newsbank)
Based on the renowned American Bibliography by Charles Evans, this is the definitive resource for every aspect of life in 17th- and 18th-century America.
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From agriculture and auctions through foreign affairs, diplomacy, literature, music, religion, the Revolutionary War, temperance, witchcraft, and just about any other topic imaginable. Upon completion, Evans Digital will consist of more than 36,000 works and 2,400,000 images.

Evans early American imprint collection-text creation partnership This link opens in a new window
This is a collection of titles relating to the history of 17th- and 18th-century America.

Heritage Quest Online (Chadwyck-Healey/ProQuest)
Provides access to a growing collection of research materials for tracing family history and American culture, including original page images for all documents. This resource includes data from the Genealogy & Local History Database.
Historical Statistics of the United States (Millenial Edition)
Compiled from data collected for the U.S. Censuses and other resources from the Colonial period through the 2000 U.S. Census. The data is organized into 5 areas: population; work & welfare; economic structure and performance; economic sectors; and governance and international relations. Each section is preceded by a scholarly essay on the topic. You can search for specific data or create your own data table.
Making of America
This project provides access to a digital library of primary sources in American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction.
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It is particularly strong in the areas of education, psychology, American history, sociology, religion, and science and technology.
Making of Modern Law: Legal Treatises, 1800-1926
Making of Modern Law: Trials, 1800-1926
Music Online: American Song
Over 6,800 albums "includes songs by and about American Indians, miners, immigrants, slaves, children, pioneers, and cowboys. Included in the database are the songs of Civil Rights, political campaigns, Prohibition, the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, anti-war protests, and more."
ProQuest Legislative Insight
Covers and provides full-text digital access to the legislative history of the U.S. Congress - the steps leading up to a Bill's enactment as the law of the land. Covers from 1929 to the present. Included with the public law are: " bills (all versions), legislative reports, documents, CRS reports, committee prints, speeches in the Congressional Record and presidential signing statements."

Newspapers and Periodicals

African-American Newspapers: The 19th Century
Contains the complete text of the major African-American newspapers published in the United States during the 19th century.

American periodicals This link opens in a new window
Provides access to the digitized images of the pages of American magazines and journals published from colonial days to the dawn of the 20th century.
HarpWeek This link opens in a new window
Provides a searchable index to the content of Harper's Weekly, beginning with 1857 issues, intended to provide scholarly access to historians of the 19th century.
ProQuest historical newspapers. The New York times This link opens in a new window
Provides coverage for the New York Times from 1851 - three years ago (rolling date).

Times (London) Digital Archive, 1785 - 1985
Search the full-text of the Times (London) newspaper.
Index to Early American Periodicals
Indexes the microfilm collections: American Periodical Series I (APS I), 1741-1800, 89 periodical titles; American Periodical Series II (APS II), 1800-1850, 911 periodical titles; American Periodical Series III (APS III), 1850-1935, 118 periodical titles.