LibGuides: HIST2600: Historical Methods (History of Immigration Focus): Archives and Manuscript Collections

Archives and Manuscript Collections

Primary Source Documents on Immigrants from "American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936 to 1940"
Almost 300 documents from a collection of life histories "compiled and transcribed by more than 300 writers from 24 states, working on the Folklore Project of the Federal Writers’ Project, a New Deal jobs program that was part of the U.S. Works Progress (later Work Projects) Administration (WPA) from 1936 to 1940. Typically 2,000-15,000 words in length, the documents vary in form from narratives to dialogues to reports to case histories."

Directory of Archives and Manuscript Repositories in the United States / United States. National Historical Publications and Records Commission. - 2nd ed. Phoenix: Oryx Press, 1988. - National Historical Publications and Records Commission.; Includes index. - Call Number: REF CD3020.D49: Holdings data on 4,560 archival and manuscript repositories in the nation. Despite its age, still useful as a tool for planning research trips. [Choice]
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA): "NARA is an independent Federal agency that helps preserve U.S. history by overseeing the management of all Federal records." NARA is currently undertaking a number of major digitization projects, including the Archival Research Catalog (ARC), an online searchable database containing information about some of NARA's holdings across the country. NARA has already digitized copies of its most popular and significant manuscripts, photographs, sound recordings, maps, drawings and other documents. Approximately 124,000 digital copies are available for researchers to view online through ARC, and the items can be searched by title, subject, or other keywords.
http://www.archives.gov/
Guide to Federal Records in the National Archives of the United States / United States. National Archives and Records Administration, Robert B. Matchette, Jan Shelton Danis, and United States. National Archives and Records Administration. - Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1995. - compiled by Robert B. Matchette with Anne B. Eales ... [et al.].; 3 v. ; 29 cm; "Supersedes both the 1974 edition and the 1987 reprint. It includes descriptions of federal records in the National Archives of the United States as of September 1, 1994"--Introd.; Rev. ed. of: Guide to the National Archives and Records Administration. 1987.; v. 1. Record groups 1-170 -- v. 2. Record groups 171-515 -- v. 3. Index / compiled by Jan Shelton Danis. - Call Number: REF CD3026: This major reference work provides an introduction to more than 1.7 million cubic feet of textual records, 300,000 rolls of microfilm, 2.3 million maps and charts, 9.2 million aerial photographs, 7.4 million still pictures, 178,000 sound recordings, 123,000 motion picture reels, and 7,000 computer data sets located in National Archives depositories in Washington; College Park, MD; regional branches; presidential libraries; and affiliated archives. It describes NARA's holdings as of September 1, 1994. The Guide is organized into descriptions of nearly 500 record groups, some dating from the prefederal period, that document the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government. Separately published finding aids noted in some record group descriptions supplement Guide entries. The third volume is a comprehensive index. [Choice]
National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections (NUCMC): NUCMC is a free-of-charge cooperative cataloging program operated by the Library of Congress. The purpose of NUCMC is to make available in one database the contents of archival and manuscript collections in research libraries, museums, state archives, and historical societies located throughout North America. From 1959 to 1993, the contents of NUCMC were published in print volumes. Since 1986, bibliographic records created for NUCMC have been made available in electronic format and can now be searched using this database. An important resource for U.S. history.
http://www.loc.gov/coll/nucmc/

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Richard Kearney

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Subjects: Art, Business, Economics, Finance, and Global Business, History, Liberal Studies, Open Access / Open Educational Resources