U.S. Civil War Research

Use this guide to find primary and secondary sources for the study of the U.S. Civil War, 1861-1865.

Key Databases & Web Resources

New York Times (Historical) (ProQuest) This link opens in a new window
Covers 1851-2020. Includes the complete paper-cover-to-cover, with full-page and article images in easily downloadable PDF format.
Chicago Tribune (Historical) (ProQuest) This link opens in a new window
Covers 1849-1999. Includes the complete paper-cover-to-cover, with full-page and article images in easily downloadable PDF format.
HarpWeek This link opens in a new window
Provides electronic access to the complete historical backfile of the journal Harper's Weekly, published between 1857 and 1912. Included are full images of articles from the weekly publication, as well as original advertising and illustrations, providing a comprehensive, week-to-week chronological record of world events and society in the last half of the 19th and the early years of the 20th centuries.
19th Century U.S. Newspapers (Gale) This link opens in a new window
Full-text access to nearly 500 newspapers published between 1800-1899 from urban to rural regions, large cities to small towns across the U.S. Includes a broad cross-section of publications: mainstream papers as well as those published by women’s rights groups, labor groups, political parties, Native Americans, the Confederacy, the black press of the antebellum & the post-civil war periods, and other select groups. Includes advertisements, editorials, illustrations, etc.

Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers
Search and view more than a million digitized newspaper pages. Coverage is from 1756-1963. Sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Library of Congress.

African American Newspapers (Readex) This link opens in a new window
A large collection of full-text / full-image African American newspapers from all around the country. Covers the 19th and 20th centuries.

Portal to Texas History: Newspapers
A digital gateway to historical materials from private collectors and collaborative partners, including libraries, museums, archives, and other historical groups.
Brooklyn Daily Eagle
A daily newspaper from Brooklyn, New York with coverage from 1841 to 1963.
Illinois During the Civil War
Contains background information and a variety of primary sources including newspaper articles, letters, diaries, photographs,and more from the state of Illinois.
Richmond Daily Dispatch
One of the main papers of the Confederate capital. Coverage from 1850 to 1884.
Secession Era Editorial Project
Transcribed editorials from the 1850s covering the Nebraska-Kansas Act, the caning attack on Charles Sumner, Dred Scott, and John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry.

Guardian and Observer (Historical) (ProQuest) This link opens in a new window
British newspaper covering 1791-2003. Includes the complete paper-cover-to-cover, with full-page and article images in easily downloadable PDF format.