Primary sources for history

Primary sources across time periods and countries

Historical newspapers

Newspapers from the 18th century onwards provide vital primary source material to researchers.

17th-18th Century Burney Collection Newspapers This link opens in a new window
Includes newspapers, newsbooks, Acts of Parliament, addresses, broadsides, pamphlets, proclamations. The most comprehensive collection of early English newspapers.
American Indian Newspapers This link opens in a new window
From historic pressings to contemporary periodicals, explore nearly 200 years of Indigenous print journalism from the US and Canada.
Historical Newspapers: The Guardian and The Observer This link opens in a new window
Fulltext articles including obituaries from the Guardian (1821-2003) and the Observer (1791-2003).
Historical Newspapers: The New York Times (1851 - Five Years Ago) This link opens in a new window
Provides searchable full text, full page, and article-level images. It also can be searched for obituaries.
Service newspapers of World War 2 (Module I) This link opens in a new window
The collection consists of newspapers published during World War 2 and its immediate aftermath (1939-1948). Titles from all the key theatres are featured, including some non-English material in German, Czech, Hindi, Russian, French, Italian, Polish, Hebrew, Afrikaans, Swahili, and African dialects.
Times digital archive, 1785-2012 This link opens in a new window
Digital edition of the Times (London, England : 1788) and its predecessors The daily universal register (1785-1787) and the Times, or, Daily universal register (1788).

British Newspaper Archive
A partnership between the British Library and findmypast
Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers
Date range: 1789-1963
From The Library of Congress
Papers Past
Digitised NZ and pacific newspapers from the 19th and 20th centuries, NZ serial publications 1868 - 1975, selected letters and diaries, and Reports and publications from the NZ House of Representatives.

Historic Australian Newspapers 1803-1954 (Trove) This link opens in a new window
Search for newspapers published in each Australian state and territory from the 1800s to the mid-1950s.

Subjects: History (Primary sources)

Tags: history, primary sources