Research Guides: African History: Primary Resources

Primary Resources for African History

Making of the Modern World This link opens in a new window
This database of full-text books form 1550 to the mid 19th Century is a good place to find Europan books about Africa or mentioning Africa before and during the Colonial Period.
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
The Times of London from 1785 to 1985. One good place for newspaper articles about the last two centuries of African history.
Includes coverage of business, sports, and the arts, as well as weather reports, birth and marriage announcements, death notices, and obituaries.
Language: English
New York Times, Historical This link opens in a new window
The New York Times back to 1851. Another good place to find newspaper articles about African History.
Language: English
Keywords: NYT ProQuest Historical Newspapers
HathiTrust Digital Library This link opens in a new window
An enormous collection of both in-copyright and public domain book and serial resources, many from the 19th and early 20th century.
HathiTrust is a collective of academic and research libraries that digitizes materials, whether they are in-copyright or the public domain, for the purpose of preservation. Eligible students with a print disability can request a copy of any book in the collection, regardless of copyright status.
Language: English, German, French, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, etc.
Keywords: Hathi Trust
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
Liberation Movement in Africa and African America This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Explore digitized FBI surveillance files on the activities of the African Liberation Support Committee and All African Peoples Revolutionary Party.
Content type: Primary sources, FBI surveillance and informant reports, correspondence, news clippings, pamphlets, speech excerpts
Coverage dates: 1970-1985
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
European Colonialism in the Early 20th Century: German Colonies in Asia and the Pacific: From Colonialism to Japanese Mandates, 1910-1929 This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Explore materials related to U.S. consular activities in Germany's Pacific colonies and German-leased territories in China.
Content type: Primary sources, correspondence, reports, maps
Coverage dates: 1910-1929
Materials from the U.S. Department of State Central Files.
Language: English
Keywords: Archives Unbound

Primary Sources in Library Catalogs

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 our own 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 in The Library 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 in Library Search and then limit to the word "sources" in the subject field (by using the dropdown menu), for example:

"africa and women" in the keyword field

"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

Women—Africa--21st century -Social conditions--Sources

Special Collections

Special Collections is the Library’s principal repository for print and manuscript primary sources. The collections number nearly 200,000 volumes and more than 11,000 linear feet of a diverse array of literary and historical manuscripts, personal papers, and college archives that span more than 900 years of human history. The collections are available for research, teaching, and study in person, and, increasingly, digitally in the Claremont Colleges Digital Library.

Explore collections on the Special Collections website.
Request materials using your Special Collections Account.
Make an appointment to view your requested materials.

Visit the Special Collections Access Guide for help discovering and requesting Special Collections materials and contact Special Collections with questions.