Georgia History
Information resources
Primary sources from library databases
- Atlanta Constitution, 1868-1984 (ProQuest Historical Newspapers) This link opens in a new windowNewspaper articles, backfiles, Atlanta, Georgia (more...).
- Slavery in America and the World: History, Culture & Law This link opens in a new windowBrings together a multitude of essential legal materials on slavery in the United States and the English-speaking world. (more...).
- Women's Studies Manuscript Collections from the Schlesinger Library: Voting Rights, National Politics, and Reproductive Rights This link opens in a new windowWomen's history, primary sources (more...).
Here to help
Caroline Hopkinson
Contact:
Georgia Southern University Libraries--Lane Library
Savannah, GA 31419-1997 chopkinson@georgiasouthern.edu
Savannah, GA 31419-1997 chopkinson@georgiasouthern.edu
912-344-3019
Local Repositories
- City of Savannah: Municipal Archives & Records Management The Municipal Archives & Records Management division: Collects, manages preserves and makes accessible records documenting the City of Savannah's history Administers the records management program and the City Records Center to increase the efficiency of City agencies Shares the City's history with City employees, citizens and visitors through outreach activities
- Catholic Diocese of Savannah: Archives & Records Department The mission of the Archives & Records Department is to administer the Archives & Records program which manages records created by the Diocese of Savannah; to serve as the institutional repository for records of historical and enduring value; and to promote an understanding of the Catholic Church, her history, and her heritage in South Georgia. The department is erected in accordance with Canon 482.
- Georgia Southern University Special Collections Lane Library’s special collections includes the university archives of the Armstrong Campus and the Florence Powell Minis Room Collection. The university archives documents Armstrong’s history and served as a resource for Janet Stone’s scholarly history, From the Mansion to the University: A History of Armstrong Atlantic State University 1935-2010. Endowed by the Minis family of Savannah, the Minis Room houses books about Savannah and the Coastal region, including works by Savannah authors. The Special Collection are open for research by appointment and we are always happy to introduce students to these collections, which include Alumni donations and feature student work. The online guide to the Special Collections is a good starting point, with links to digitized collections, such as The ‘Geechee yearbook (1937-1995), The Inkwell, Armstrong’s student newspaper and more. Also, contact the special collections librarian to arrange a visit to the Special Collections, for research or a class. See Special Collections at the Lane Library (Armstrong Campus) The Zach S. Henderson Library’s Special Collections was founded in the 1970’s. Housed within the department are rare books, manuscript collections, and artifacts relating to the history of the Statesboro region and Georgia Southern University. Special Collections has materials documenting the Civil War, World War II, southern railroads, early businesses, and local genealogy. Popular collections include: the Okefenokee Swamp Collection, the Bulloch County Historical Society Collection, and the Lucile Hodges Collection. Also available for research are the Marvin S. Pittman Collection and the Charles Holmes Herty Collection, to name only a few. See Special Collections at the Henderson Library (Statesboro Campus)
- Georgia Historical Society As a non-university research and educational institution, the Georgia Historical Society has collected, preserved, and shared some of the most important documents, rare books, maps, photographs, and artifacts that tell the story of our state’s journey through time. The cornerstones of the collection are Hodgson Hall, the National Historic Landmark building that serves as the GHS Research Center, and the impressive group of manuscripts, rare books, and archival materials housed in the adjacent Abrahams Archival Annex. The collection includes more than 4 million manuscripts, 100,000 photographs, 30,000 architectural drawings, 15,000 books, and thousands of maps, newspapers, portraits, and artifacts. The papers of many influential Georgians, including Griffin Bell, Vince Dooley, Benjamin Hawkins, Helen Dortch Longstreet, Juliette Gordon Low, and Bernie Marcus, are held in the society’s collections. Perhaps the most significant document in the collection is an original draft copy of the U.S. Constitution that belonged to Abraham Baldwin, a Georgia delegate to the national constitutional convention of 1787.
- Savannah State University's Special Collections The collections include documents, manuscripts, photographs, campus publications, and books by Savannah State faculty, staff, and alumni
Primary Sources--How to find them
Review what is primary and how to find it with this short video from Massasoit Libraries.
Primary Sources--Digital Collections About Georgia
A selection only....
- Georgia Historic Newspapers Archive This link opens in a new windowGeorgia historical newspapers (more...).
- Georgia State's Digital Collections part of the University LibraryBrowse digital Collections about Women, Georgia government, Southern labor, Music/Johnny Mercer, LBGTQ, Eastern Airlines, photographs, broadcasts and more!
- Digital LIbrary of GeorgiaPortal to digital collections in Georgia
- Savannah's Municipal Archives Digital ImagesIncludes images digitized from W.W. Law Collection depicting civil rights movement.
- Civil Rights Digital LibraryThe Civil Rights Digital Library promotes an enhanced understanding of the Movement by helping users discover primary sources and other educational materials from libraries, archives, museums, public broadcasters, and others on a national scale. The CRDL features a collection of unedited news film from the WSB (Atlanta) and WALB (Albany, Ga.) television archives held by the Walter J. Brown Media Archives and Peabody Awards Collection at the University of Georgia Libraries. The CRDL provides educator resources and contextual materials, including Freedom on Film, relating instructive stories and discussion questions from the Civil Rights Movement in Georgia, and the New Georgia Encyclopedia, delivering engaging online articles and multimedia.
- Civil Unrest in Camilla, Georgia, 1868Documents on a violent episode in the history of Georgia race relations during Reconstruction from the Records of the Freedman's Bureau found at the National Archives and Records Administration and at the DeSoto Trail Regional Library
- Cobb NAACP/Civil Rights SeriesOral histories of the Civil Rights movement and the NAACP in Cobb County, Georgia.
- Ellis Square Oral History Project About SavannahOral histories related to the development of Savannah's Ellis Square.
- First Person Narratives of the American SouthFocuses on the diaries, autobiographies, memoirs, travel accounts, and ex-slave narratives of relatively inaccessible populations: women, African Americans, enlisted men, laborers, and Native Americans.
- Georgia Open History LibraryFrom UGA Press digital editions of the Colonial Records of GA, Salzburger Reports and more
- Georgia Government Documentation ProjectOral histories of 20th century political figures.
- W. W. Law oral history interview, 1990 November 15 About SavannahPart of Georgia State's Georgia Government Documentation Project
- Georgia Southern Libraries Special Collectionsresources in the Digital Commons
- "Integrated in All Respects": Ed Friend's Highlander Folk School Films and the Politics of SegregationFootage of the Highlander Folks School anniversary celebration in 1957 and the subsequent broadside produced by the Georgia Commission on Education from the collections of the Richard B. Russell Library for Political Research and Studies.
- Leo Frank Papers, 1912-1916Records related to the Leo Frank family including correspondence, clippings about the trial, and financial documents.
- LGBTQ CollectionMaterials documenting the Georgia LGBTQ community.
- Living in Savannah volume 1Photos of housing in Savannah taken by students in a 1939/40 Armstrong Junior College sociology course.
- Living in Savannah volume 2Photographs of people in Savannah taken by student in a 1940/41 Armstrong Junior College sociology course.
- Ogeechee Riverkeeper Oral HistoriesInterviewees were asked to share personal experiences and perceptions regarding their land, their home, the Ogeechee River.
- Savannah Development and Renewal Authority (SRDA)-- West Broad Street AppraisalsAppraisals of West Broad Street parcels from 1958 and 1961 in preparation for the construction of U.S. Interstate-16 into Savannah.
- Saving the Voices from Augusta's Past: Fulcher CollectionOral histories of of African American teachers who taught in one room schools in Burke County, Georgia between 1930 and 1955.
- Southern Israelite: Georgia Historic NewspapersSearchable issues of the Southern Israelite from 1929 to 1958 and from 1984 to 1986.
Primary Sources--printed, examples
Journal of a Residence on a Georgian Plantation in 1838-1839 by Call Number: Main Stacks F 290 .K332 1984Publication Date: link to 1863 edition, newer editions in Main StackesOriginally published in 1863, Frances Anne Kemble's Journal has long been recognized by historians as unique in the literature of American slavery and invaluable for obtaining a clear view of the "peculiar institution" and of life in the antebellum South.- From "N Word" to Mr. Mayor by "Author Otis S. Johnson was born in Savannah, Georgia, in 1942. It was his intent to use his life's journey as an example of how people, especially of his generation, had to struggle with being called the N word all of their lives no matter how much they achieved in society. The book documents his journey through the Jim Crow era, the civil rights movement, affirmative action, becoming mayor of Savannah, Georgia, and now experiencing the positives and negatives of being black during the period of having the nation's first African American president."--Call Number: Minis Room and On Display F294.S2 J636 2016Publication Date: 2016
- Detailed Reports on the Salzburger Emigrants Who Settled in America byCall Number: several location follow linkPublication Date: 1989-19951733-1751, 18 volumes of documents from this community located near Savannah.
- Georgia -- History -- Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775 -- SourcesExample of subject heading search of primary sources in GIL Find library catalog, mostly books.
The Savannah Sun July 1963
Published in Savannah by Abram Eisenman the newspaper includes articles about Savannah's civil rights leaders, demonstrations such as sit in at Morrison's cafeteria and Eisenman's editorials. Bellow are images of the newspaper's issue for July 1963 which was 6 pages.
The Savannah Sun July 1963 p. 6