Historical Research Project Resources - GRSW 5000 - Social Work Research Guide - Research Guides at St. Catherine University

Welcome

This guide is for MSW students taking the History and Philosophy of Social Work course. It is meant to augment the resources available in the GRSW 5000 Canvas course for the historical research project. Please view the tutorial to jump-start your research!

Contact Sue Gray, the social work librarian, at sagray@stkate.edu for assistance.

GRSW 5000 - Historical Research Project Tutorial
This library tutorial will provide you with tips, strategies, and resources for conducting primary source research for this specific assignment.

Social Work/Welfare/Issues Archives & Resources

Social Welfare History Archives, University of Minnesota Libraries
Over 370 collections that document the history of social services and social reform in the United States. You can search the archives by guides, digital collections, and the University's library catalog.
Social Welfare History Project, VCU Libraries
Created to help the public understand and appreciate the history of social reform and social welfare services in the U.S. Contents mostly secondary sources but some entries link to primary sources.
International Federation of Social Workers
Contains information dating back to 1846 and IFSW papers from 1932 when the predecessor to IFSW was launched in France.
Minnesota Historical Society Social Issues Research Guides
25 guides on a range of social issues that provide secondary and primary sources, and newspaper suggestions from the MHS collections.

Primary Sources Databases

Immigrations, Migrations and Refugees: Global Perspectives, 1941-1996
A collection of news reports and transcripts from media sources outside the United States focusing on refugees and migration.
Reports from Foreign Broadcast Information Services (FBIS) looking at the refugee flows during World War ll through 1996.
American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection
This database provides digital access to the American Antiquarian Society's comprehensive collection of more than 7,500 titles, in 5 series, published between 1684 and 1912.
Slavery and Anti-Slavery: A Transnational Archive
A collection of books, journals, and manuscripts devoted to the scholarly study of slavery from a multinational perspective.
Covers the transatlantic slave trade; the global movement for the abolition of slavery; the legal, personal, and economic aspects of the slavery system; and the dynamics of emancipation in the U.S. as well as in Latin America, the Caribbean, and other regions. Includes books, journals, manuscripts, supreme court records, and more.
Britannica Original Sources
Contains thousands of primary source documents in literature, science, law, politics, and religion.

Historical Newspaper Databases and Websites

New York Times (ProQuest Historical Newspapers)
Full-page images of the New York Times from 1851-2021.
Nineteenth Century U.S. Newspapers
Full-page imaging of American newspapers from the 1800s, including every article, advertisement, and illustration.
African American Periodicals, 1825-1995
A collection of more than 170 periodicals by and about African Americans published between 1825 and 1995.

Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers
Search America's historic newspaper pages from 1770-1963 or use the U.S. Newspaper Directory to for American newspapers published between 1690-present.

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Minnesota Digital Newspaper Hub
A searchable website of Minnesota newspapers published between 1849 and today. Due to potential copyright restrictions most issues published less than 95 years ago can only be accessed from the Minnesota History Center.

Minneapolis Tribune (1867-1922)
Scanned images of the paper (various titles) published between the years 1867 and 1922.

National Digital Collections & Resources

ArchiveGrid
Helps researchers looking for primary source materials held in archives, libraries, museums and historical societies. You can search by people, places, events and more.
WorldCat
Search for books, articles, video, and more in libraries in the U.S. and around the world. To locate primary sources, go to the Advanced Search (click the icon next to the search box). Type in your search term(s), and then go to the Format drop-down menu and choose "Archival Material." The record for an archival collection will usually link to the finding aid or to the repository that holds that collection.
Digital Public Library of American (DPLA)
Provides millions of materials from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions across the country
HathiTrust
The HathiTrust Digital Library is home to millions of digitized books and publications.
Internet Archive
Non-profit library of millions of free books, movies, software, music, websites. You can find some primary documents such as the Hull House Yearbook from 1907 (https://archive.org/details/hullhouseyearbo00illgoog/page/n2/mode/2up)
DocsTeach
Searchable collection of primary documents from the National Archives
Library of Congress Digital Collections
The National Child Labor Committee Collection, the National American Woman Suffrage Association Collection, and the LGBTQ+ Studies Web Archive might be of interest, among other collections.
History of Hull-House Settlement House: Archival Resources
From the UIC Library
Civil Rights Digital Library
Represents one of the most ambitious and comprehensive efforts to date to deliver educational content on the Civil Rights Movement via the Web. From the Digital Library of Georgia.
Discovering American Women's History Online
Provides access to digital collections of primary sources (photos, letters, diaries, artifacts, etc.) that document the history of women in the United States. Last updated in Oct. 2016.
St. Catherine University Library Archives & Special Collections
Contains University Archives, which provides access to documents about the history of St. Catherine, and Special Collections, with materials that support the University's mission by focusing on women's leadership and Catholic social teaching.

Minnesota Digital Collections & Resources

Minnesota Historical Society Research Tools
MNopedia
A digital encyclopedia created by the Minnesota Historical Society. Use the references in a topic's entry to find primary sources.
Minnesota Digital Library
Includes digital content from almost 200 participating organizations from across the state, including digitized content such as 55,000 photographs, postcards, maps, documents, letters, and oral histories.
UMedia
Provides open access to digitized materials (images, maps, manuscripts, video, audio) from across the University of Minnesota.
Hennepin County Library Digital Collections
Features a variety of digitized materials, primarily related to the history of Minneapolis, Hennepin County, and WWII
Owning Up: Racism and Housing in Minneapolis
A digital exhibit for the Sabathani Community Center’s Cultural Heritage Museum. The Museum showcases the history of Sabathani and the South Minneapolis Black community.
With an Eye to the Past: Index of Historical Documents
Minnesota Department of Administration, Governor's Council on Developmental Disabilities, 1920's to the present.

Minnesota Archives, Historical Societies, & Special Collections

Gale Family Library, Minnesota Historical Society
Immigration History Research Center Archives, UMN Libraries
The Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Studies, UMN Libraries
Largest LGBTQ-specific archival repository in the upper Midwest.
Mapping Prejudice, UMN Libraries
Identifies and maps racial covenants, clauses that were inserted into property deeds to keep people who were not White from buying or occupying homes.
Hennepin County Library Special Collections
Hennepin History Museum
Ramsey County Historical Society
The Archives of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, St. Paul Province
Coordinate through Amy Shaw, St. Kate's archivist, archives@stkate.edu
Minnesota Legislative Reference Library
Provides unbiased information to support the legislative process since 1969. The Library's collection focuses on public policy materials including state government documents, consultants' reports, and newspaper resources. The Library also collects primary legislative materials including House and Senate committee minutes and audio recordings of legislative hearings.

Twin Cities Museums & Libraries

The Somali Museum of Minnesota
Hoċokata Ṫi’
Minnesota African American Heritage Museum and Gallery
Hmong Resource Center Library
Hmong Museum (Digital)
Dedicated to the preservation and education of Hmong culture, history, experiences, and arts. Located in St. Paul.
Center for Hmong Studies, Concordia University
Quatrefoil Library

Social Work Research Guide

Looking for an Archival Topic?

Citing Archival Content in APA

Archival Silences & Biases

Librarian