The Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress holds 10,000 collections containing more than 50 million items. These collections document all aspects of American history and culture and include papers of presidents; cabinet members; members of Congress; members of the Supreme Court; and other prominent Americans whose lives reflect the evolution of the United States. This guide highlights the following collections: Founding of the Nation; Presidency; Congress; Federal Judiciary; Military Affairs; Foreign Policy; Arts and Literature; Science and Medicine; African-American History and Culture; and Women's History. Many illustrations showing items from the collections are included. (JLB)
A thorough inventory of research resources in American repositories, the Guide lists collections in the history of chemistry and chemical engineering, the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, and a number of related chemical process industries and businesses, from personal and professional papers of chemical scientists and engineers to business records of the chemical process industries.
This book offers a detailed and comprehensive guide to contemporary sources for research into the history of individual nineteenth-century U.S. communities, large and small. The book is arranged topically (covering demography, ethnicity and race, land use and settlement, religion, education, politics and local government, industry, trade and transportation, and poverty, health, and crime) and thus will be of great use to those investigating particular historical themes at national, state, or regional level. As well as examining a wide variety of types of primary sources, published and unpublished, quantitative and qualitative, available for the study of many places, the book also provides information on certain specific sources and some individual collections, in particular those of the National Archives.
When the Handbook for Research in American History was first published, reviewers called it "an excellent tool for historians of all interests and levels of experience . . . simple to use, and concisely worded" (Western Historical Quarterly) and "an excellent work that fulfills its title in being portable yet well-filled" (Reference Reviews). The Journal of American History added, "It is not easy to produce a reference work that is utilitarian and enriching and does not duplicate existing works. Professor Prucha has done the job very well." This second, revised edition takes account of the revolution that is occurring in bibliographic science as printed reference works extend to electronic databases, CD-ROMs, and online networks such as the Internet. Focusing on and expanding the major section of the original Handbook, it provides information on traditional printed works, describes new guides and updated versions of old ones, notes the availability of reference works and of some full-text sources in electronic form, and discusses the usefulness to researchers of different kinds of material and the forms in which they are available. Extensive cross-referencing and a detailed index that includes authors, subjects, and titles enhance the book's usefulness.
A major document of African American participation in the struggles of the Depression, The Negro in Illinois was produced by a special division of the Illinois Writers' Project, one of President Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration programs. The Federal Writers' Project helped to sustain "New Negro" artists during the 1930s and gave them a newfound social consciousness that is reflected in their writing. Headed by Harlem Renaissance poet Arna Bontemps and white proletarian writer Jack Conroy, The Negro in Illinois employed major black writers living in Chicago during the 1930s, including Richard Wright, Margaret Walker, Katherine Dunham, Fenton Johnson, Frank Yerby, and Richard Durham. The authors chronicled the African American experience in Illinois from the beginnings of slavery to Lincoln's emancipation and the Great Migration, with individual chapters discussing various aspects of public and domestic life, recreation, politics, religion, literature, and performing arts. After the project was canceled in 1942, most of the writings went unpublished for more than half a century--until now. Working closely with archivist Michael Flug to select and organize the book, editor Brian Dolinar compiled The Negro in Illinois from papers at the Vivian G. Harsh Collection of Afro-American History and Literature at the Carter G. Woodson Library in Chicago. Dolinar provides an informative introduction and epilogue which explain the origins of the project and place it in the context of the Black Chicago Renaissance. Making available an invaluable perspective on African American life, this volume represents a publication of immense historical and literary importance.
