Research Guides: CM HI 150C: Early Africa in the Global Context / Prof. Molosiwa / FA24: Primary Sources

Primary Source Databases

Making of the Modern World This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Explore primary sources related to the history of western trade with a focus on the coal, iron, and steel industries, the railway industry, the cotton industry, banking and finance, and the modern corporation.
Content type: Primary sources, eBooks, reports, maps, diagrams, photographs, paintings, etc.
Coverage dates: 1400s-1940s
Additionally, there are sources discussing the history of the working class, the history of slavery and colonization, the labor movement, as well as other topics that relate to and challenge capitalism.
Language: English, French, Spanish, German, Latin, Italian, and other European languages.
Times Digital Archive This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Access full page scans of this daily, national British newspaper, including images and advertisements.
Content type: Newspaper articles, primary sources
Coverage dates: 1785-2019
Includes coverage of business, sports, and the arts, as well as weather reports, birth and marriage announcements, death notices, and obituaries.
Language: English
Liberia and the U.S.: Nation-Building in Africa, 1864-1918 This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Good for unique primary sources relating to communications between U.S. diplomats in Liberia.
Content type: Primary sources, correspondence, telegrams
Coverage dates: 1864-1918
Language: English
Keywords: Archives Unbound
African Diaspora, 1860-present This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Good for researching the communities of diverse people, histories, and cultures of the African diaspora, with a focus on Brazil, India, UK, France, and the Caribbean.
Content type: Primary resources, personal papers, organizational papers, diaries, newsletters, court documents, correspondence, ephemera, videos
Coverage dates: 1860-present
Language: English

Finding Primary Sources Via The Library Search

Primary sources of all types can also be found in our regular, circulating books, in Special Collections, and beyond. Here are few ways to find primary texts and sources by using Library Search.

1. Use the author search to find books we have by a particular author, politician, journalist or another type of historical witness.

2. Do an advanced keyword search and then limit by publication year under “limit your search”) (note: you can also limit by language and many other ways).

3. . Do an advanced keyword and then limit by years and then limit to the word "sources" in the subject field (by using the dropdown menu), for example:

First Row: history (in subject field)

Second Row: Africa (in subject field)

Third Row: sources (in subject field)

and you will find the subject heading (Africa--History --Sources)

Third row:

"sources" in the subject field

This brings us the Library of Congress Subject subheading “sources” which is sometimes used to designate primary source collections of different kinds — as in "Slave trade--England -18th Century - Sources."