Henry Buhl Library: U.S. History 1: Colonial Times through Reconstruction: Colonial America

Encyclopedias & Books

Colonial America
Call Number: Ref E 162 .C63 2006 v.1-5
Includes biographies of important people, as well as articles on geographical locations, military and diplomatic affairs, politics, religion, and other cultural topics. Volume 5 includes a collection of primary documents and an extensive bibliography.
The Early Republic and Antebellum America: An Encyclopedia of Social, Political, Cultural, and Economic History
Call Number: Ref E 301 .E146 2010 v.1-4
Includes entries covering a wide variety of topics, as well as primary documents (v.4), chronologies (v.4), and a few essays (v.1). Featured entries: education & schools; Lewis & Clark Expedition; secession; slavery, life & culture; westward expansion; women
Birth of the Bill of Rights: Encyclopedia of the Antifederalists
Call Number: Ref E 302.5 .W35 2004 1-2
Concise and informative biographical sketches of 140 of the most influential Antifederalists are complimented by nearly 100 of their complete and excerpted speeches, pamphlets, editorials, and letters.

Salem History Online This link opens in a new window
Full-text access to the Great Lives & Great Events encyclopedias as well as the Decades in America series (1920's through the 2000's) and the Defining Documents series.

Dictionary of American History
Call Number: Ref E 174 .D52 2003 v.1-10
A phenomenal introduction to topics and events throughout American history. Includes a collection of primary source documents in Volume 9.
Encyclopedia of U.S. Political History
Call Number: Ref E 183 .E53 2009 v.1-7
Encyclopedia of U.S. Political History explores the events, policies, activities, institutions, groups, people, and movements that have created and shaped political life in the United States.
America in the World, 1776 to the Present
Call Number: Ref E 174 .D52 2003 Suppl. v. 1-2
Explains America's role on the world scene; the impact of U.S. policies not only nationally, on the domestic agenda, but globally; and the reactions of the world's nations to America's rise, 1776 to the present.
Encyclopedia of the American Constitution
Call Number: Ref KF 4548 .E53 2000 v.1-5
Vol. 2 of this encyclopedia provides a vast amount of information about constitutional history and the Constitutional Convention. Bibliographies are included.
Encyclopedia of the Industrial Revolution in World History
Call Number: Ref HD 2324 .E546 2014 v. 1-3
In The Encyclopedia of the Industrial Revolution in World History contributors survey the Industrial Revolution as a world historical phenomenon rather than through the traditional lens of a development largely restricted to Western society.

World at War: Conflict and Society This link opens in a new window
Provides information and insights into military conflicts, covering all time periods and regions. Includes essays, timelines, images, and primary sources.

Encyclopedia of War and American Society
Call Number: Ref E 181 .E634 2006 v.1-3
Covers topics surrounding wartime ranging from art, culture, and memory to education and religion, as well as coverage of key people and the wars themselves. Primary sources are available for each military conflict in Volume 3.
The Encyclopedia of War
Covers all aspects of war, including battles, cultures and society, key figures, strategy and tactics, and weapons across all continents and all periods of human history.
The Encyclopedia of North American Indian Wars, 1607-1890
Call Number: Ref E 81 .E533 2011 v.1-3
Provides comprehensive coverage of the North American Indian Wars, beginning with the first Indian-settler conflicts that arose in the early 1600s, through December 1890.
The Encyclopedia of the Wars of the Early American Republic, 1783-1812
This encyclopedia offers a comprehensive examination of U.S. military history from the beginning of the republic in 1783 up to the eve of war with Great Britain in 1812. The entries cover all the important battles, key individuals, weapons, Indian nations, and treaties, as well as numerous social, political, cultural, and economic developments during this period.
The American Revolution 1775-1783
Call Number: Ref E 208 .A433 1993 v.1-2
The Encyclopedia of the War of 1812
Call Number: Ref E 354 .E53 2012 v. 1-3
Entries spotlight the key battles, standout individuals, essential weapons, and social, political, and economic developments, and examine the wider, concurrent European developments which directly affected this conflict in North America. Primary documents are included.

American National Biography This link opens in a new window
Contains over 19,000 biographies of significant, influential, or notorious figures from American history written by prominent scholars. The American National Biography (ANB) is the successor to The Dictionary of American Biography (DAB).
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography This link opens in a new window
Contains 60,000+ biographies of important British historical figures from the Roman era to the present day, with 11,000+ portraits
Salem History Online This link opens in a new window
Full-text access to the Great Lives & Great Events encyclopedias

Suggested search terms

African Americans -- History -- To 1863
America -- Discovery and exploration -- French
America -- Discovery and exploration -- Spanish
Constitutional history -- United States
Education -- United States -- History
Indians of North America -- First contact with Europeans
Spain -- Colonies -- America -- History
United States -- History -- Colonial Period, ca. 1600-1775
Women -- United States -- History -- 17th century

Journal Article Databases

America: History and Life This link opens in a new window
Covers the history and culture of the United States and Canada from prehistory to the present with indexing for 1,700 journals from as far back as 1910
Historical Abstracts This link opens in a new window
Contains citations and abstracts for articles from 2,300+ academic journals back to 1955 for world history (excluding US and Canada) from 1450 to present
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
Archival Database of full text scholarly journal articles
Military & Government Collection This link opens in a new window
Offers full text of 300+ journals providing current news and information pertaining to all branches of the military and government.
Project Muse This link opens in a new window
Large collection of full-text scholarly articles and books supporting research in the humanities and social sciences.
Academic Search Premier This link opens in a new window
Covers a wide range of subject matter in both popular and scholarly periodicals.
Academic Search Complete is a comprehensive scholarly, multi-disciplinary full-text database, with more than 5,500 full-text periodicals, including more than 4,600 peer-reviewed journals. In addition to full text, this database offers indexing and abstracts for more than 9,500 journals and nearly 10,000 publications including monographs, reports, conference proceedings, etc. This scholarly collection offers unmatched full text coverage of information in many areas of academic study including: animal science, anthropology, area studies, astronomy, biology, chemistry, civil engineering, electrical engineering, ethnic & multicultural studies, food science & technology, general science, geography, geology, law, materials science, mathematics, mechanical engineering, music, pharmaceutical sciences, physics, psychology, religion & theology, veterinary science, women's studies, zoology, and many other fields. Academic Search Complete offers critical information from many sources unique to this massive collection. The database features PDF content going back as far as 1887, with the majority of full text titles in native (searchable) PDF format. Searchable cited references are provided for 1,000 journals.

Journal articles are very specific.

Finding articles is easier after you have read up on your topic.

Use more than one article database.

No database searches everything.
For thorough research, use more than one database and try different search terms.

A to Z List of Journals
Always check the A to Z list to see if we have access to the journal title and date of publication you need!

Need an article that isn't full text? Access the request form below.

Document Delivery Forms

Remember, scholarship is international.

You may come across some great articles in which the titles (and thus the articles) are not in English.

So, when you can, it is a good idea to limit your searches to articles in English.

Primary Sources

American Presidency Project
Call Number: Search HENRY by President as AUTHOR for call numbers
Search the papers of the presidents from George Washington through Joe Biden. Users can search by president, date, keyword, document type, and more.
Defining Documents in American History : Exploration & Colonial America (1492-1755)
Call Number: Ref E 187 .E96 2013 v.102
It begins with a collection of exploration and colonial documents, including important journals of exploration, reports of New World settlements, early political tracts on self-governing. Also included are narratives on colonial life and slavery and indentured servitude.
Documents of American History
Call Number: Ref E 173 .C66 1963 and Ref E 173 .C66 1973b v.1-2
Includes a selection of primary documents related to American history. Coverage begins in 1492 and continues into the twentieth century. Highlighted documents include: documents from the First Continental Congress, accounts of the Battle of Lexington, and the Articles of Confederation.
Milestone Documents in American History
Includes important primary sources related to American history from 1763 to 2003.
Milestone Documents in American History, 2nd ed.
Call Number: Oversz E 173 .M62 2020 v. 1-4
Includes documents from African American history, women's history, immigration history, as well as 21st-century issues ranging from terrorism to campaign finance to LGBTQ rights. Vol. 1 1619-1831. -- v.2 1832-1898. -- v.3 1901-1956. -- v.4 1957-2019.
Milestone Documents of American Leaders
Call Number: Oversz E 173 .M62 2009 v.1-4
Milestone Documents of American Leaders features important full-text sources written by presidents, jurists, legislators and other influential people who helped shape the nation.
Understanding U. S. Military Conflicts Through Primary Sources
Call Number: Ref E 181 .U53 2016 v. 1-4
* Covers benchmark documents in U.S. diplomatic and military history from 14 conflicts.

Accessible Archives This link opens in a new window
Collection of primary and early sources for American history, including historical newspapers and county and regimental histories. In particular, it contains important resources for the study of African American history, the Civil War, American regional history (including Pennsylvania), and women’s suffrage.
American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 1-5 This link opens in a new window
The AAS Historical Periodicals Collection contains more than 6,500 historical periodical titles dating from 1693 to 1877.
Military & Government Collection This link opens in a new window
Access to journal and magazine articles, books, government documents, speech transcripts, etc. relating to the military and government. Both primary and secondary sources are available here.

The American Republic
Call Number: Oversz E 173 .A7535 2002
A collection of primary sources related to American history from 1610-1858. Documents include letters, speeches, selected Federalist Papers, and more.
The Early Republic
Call Number: E 301 .E15 2004
Some of the issues discussed include: the nation's first regime change (as the Federalists lost control of the White House to the Republicans); the Louisiana Purchase; the War of 1812; slave revolts; the fear of immigrants; disunion; and the wars against the Native Americans.
Journals of the House of Burgesses of Virginia, 1619-1776
Call Number: STOR J 87 .V6
Request these items at the Check-Out Desk.
Defining Documents in World History: the 17th Century (1601-1700)
Call Number: D 242 .A17 2017 v. 1-2
This volume offers in-depth analysis of a broad range of historical documents and historic events that shaped law, government, religion, and culture throughout the 17th century.

France in America = La France en Amerique
Provides access to primary sources available from these two libraries, covering the settlement of North America by the French, as well as other historical events involving France in the U.S. (from Library of Congress & the Bibliotheque Nationale de France).
Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive
Consists of an electronic collection of primary source materials relating to the Salem witch trials of 1692 and a new transcription of the court records (from the University of Virginia).

The Greenwood Library of American War Reporting. Volume 1, The French and Indian War & the Revolutionary War
This title consists chiefly of contemporary first-person and news accounts.
Debating the Issues in Colonial Newspapers
Call Number: E 187 .C78 2000
Includes "31 events from abolition, religion, and women's rights to the Stamp Act crisis and the Boston Tea Party."

Defining Documents in American History : The American Revolution
Call Number: E 203 .A5727 2013 v.1-2
The American Revolution (1754-1805) chronicles key documents during the revolutionary era. Included are founding documents, speeches and political tracts, political sermons, and letters. Also included are Native American and African slave narratives.
The American Revolution
Call Number: E 203 .A579 2001
Drawn from letters, diaries, newspaper articles, public declarations, and other sources, this collection includes over 120 pieces by more than 70 participants who describe the major events of the War of Independence.
The Revolutionary Era
Call Number: E 203 .H88 2003
Focuses on 26 pressing issues of the war and the early republic. Each issue is presented with an introductory essay and multiple primary documents from the newspapers of the day, which illustrate both sides of the debate.
Eyewitness Accounts of the American Revolution [Series]
Call Number: Check HENRY for call numbers
Defining Documents in World History: the 18th Century (1700-1799)
Call Number: D 286 .A18 2017
These volumes highlight important historical documents -speeches, letters, manifestos and more -from influential figures during this pivotal century.
The Greenwood Library of American War Reporting. Volume 1, The French and Indian War & the Revolutionary War
This title consists chiefly of contemporary first-person and news accounts.
Women's Letters: America from the Revolutionary War to the Present
Call Number: HQ 1410 .W6845 2005
Historical events of the last three centuries come alive through these women's singular correspondences often their only form of public expression.

The Papers of George Washington -- The Complete Correspondence
The Papers of George Washington, a grant-funded project, was established in 1968 at the University of Virginia, under the joint auspices of the University and the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association of the Union, to publish a comprehensive edition of Washington’s correspondence.
Papers of the War Department, 1784-1800
This "project, will ... mak[e] some 55,000 documents of the early War Department many long thought irretrievable but now reconstructed through a painstaking, multi-year research effort available online to scholars, students, and the general public."

Encyclopedia of the American Constitution
Call Number: Ref KF 4548 .E53 2000 v.1-5
Vol. 2 of this encyclopedia provides a vast amount of information about constitutional history and the Constitutional Convention. Bibliographies are included.
Birth of the Bill of Rights: Encyclopedia of the Antifederalists
Call Number: Ref E 302.5 .W35 2004 1-2
Concise and informative biographical sketches of 140 of the most influential Antifederalists are complimented by nearly 100 of their complete and excerpted speeches, pamphlets, editorials, and letters.

Suggested search terms

United States -- History -- Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775 -- Sources
United States -- History -- Revolution -- 1775-1783 -- Personal narratives
United States -- History -- Confederation, 1783-1789 -- Sources

Simply add "primary source" to your search using the Note field.

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