Research Guides: [old] HIST 212: The History of the African American Family: Civil War and Reconstruction

Primary Source Databases

Voices From the Days of Slavery
Oral histories with 23 individuals born between 1823 and 1863, discussing how they felt about slavery, slaveholders, coercion of slaves, their families, and freedom. Includes some songs learned during their enslavement. Interviewees also speak about their lives after enslavement (1870-1930s).
[Note: These are all audio files. Use Subject Headings in records to learn more about what is discussed in the interview]
North American Slave Narratives
Collection of books, images, and articles documenting the African American experience from the 18th to early 20th century. Includes autobiographical narratives of fugitive and former slaves.
[Note: Does contain fictionalized slave narratives. For best search experience use 'Browse Images by Subject' and then use the link back to the text document.]

African American Newspapers, 1827-1998 This link opens in a new window
Broad coverage of African American history, culture, and daily life. Newspapers from over 35 states. Coverage: 1827-1998.

JSTOR This link opens in a new window
Multidisciplinary full-text journal articles from 1,500 major journals. Please note: In many cases, JSTOR does not include the most recent 3 to 5 years of these journals. Please use other databases to retrieve recent articles, especially for current events topics. Coverage: Varies by title. Access is available to 2007+ alumni; requires W&M userid and password.
America: History & Life with Full Text This link opens in a new window
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Provides full text coverage of the history and culture of the United States and Canada from prehistory to the present. Includes nearly 200 journals and 100 books, selective indexing for over 1,700 journals, and abstracts in English of foreign language articles.
Academic Search Complete This link opens in a new window
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Multidisciplinary database of journal articles (including peer reviewed), books, book chapters, reports, conference proceedings, etc. Coverage: 1887-present.