Magazine and Newspaper Resources for U.S. Historical Research
Magazine and Periodical Indexes and Collections
American Antiquarian Society Historical Periodicals Collection (1623-1912)
This database is a digitized full-text collection from the most comprehensive collection of American historical magazines and periodicals, The American Antiquarian Society in Worcester, Massachusetts. It includes thousands of titles on all topics. Topicareas include news, science, agriculture, religion, politics, homemaking, business and economic concerns, social issues (i.e. temperance, slavery), literature and the arts - as well as a many more. Although the end date 1912 is listed above, the vast majority of materials were published before 1880. The collection is in five parts and links to very helpful overview articles on the development of magazine and periodical publishing in each era are included below the titles.
American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 1 (1684-1820) This link opens in a new window
American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 2 (1821-1837) This link opens in a new window
American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 3 (1838-1852) This link opens in a new window
American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 4 (1853-1865) This link opens in a new window
American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 5 (1866-1912) This link opens in a new window
Other Indexes and Databases
Accessible Archives This link opens in a new window
This is an extensive collection of 18th and 19th century American magazines and newspapers. It features a many core popular magazines, extensive holdings of African American Newspapers, women's suffrage materials, military-related publications.
The major digital repository for research libraries. Although Shippensburg is not a member, the public domain materials in the database (items published before 1925) are available to all. This includes an extensive collection of 18th and 19th century American magazines and newspapers.
Early American Periodical Index to 1850
Microcard index to American periodicals up until 1850. Use the ScanPro 3000 microform scanner to read and copy this material. Shelved in the Reference Storage area - please request at Circulation or Reference Desk.
Poole's Index to Periodical Literature (1801-1906)
This printed index is your main source for identifying 19th century American and British periodical articles on any subject. It covers "590,000 articles in 12,241 volumes of 479 American and English periodicals" (Guide to Reference Books). A separate author index is included.
Readers' Guide Retrospective: 1890-1982 (H.W. Wilson) This link opens in a new window
RGR indexes most popular general-interest periodicals published in the United States between 1890 and 1982 reflecting the history of 20th century America.
Academic Search Ultimate This link opens in a new window
Academic Search Ultimate is our largest single comprehensive database. It includes records for some 40 million items, with 25+ million immediately available in full-text. It covers all subject areas and includes newspapers and other news sources, general and specialized magazines, and scholarly journals. It is an excellent starting place for most undergraduate research.
Full Text of Historical U.S. Magazines
One of America's oldest and most important magazines. It has primarily been a literary and commentary magazine, with commentary covering the whole range of cultural topics including politics, social issues, education, and many others.
- The Crisis (1910-1972; 1993-Present)
The oldest and longest tenured magazine focused on African-American topics. It is the official publication of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and was founded under the editorship of W. E. B. Dubois. While it always has played an important role in providing news and commentary related to racism and racial issues (i.e. lynching), through the years it has expanded coverage of literature, the arts, and other topics.
- 1910-1925 - Online
- 1910-1972 - Microform & Print
- 1993-1996 - Online
- 1997-2003 - Online (New Crisis)
- 2003 -Present - Online (Crisis)
Ebony Magazine Archive (1945-2014)
One of the longest running general interest magazines dedicated to the interests of the African American community.
Foreign Affairs (1922-Present)
One of the most influential and longest running American magazines that focus on international affairs and foreign policy. Throughout the years, major political figures and thinkers have regularly published articles in this publication.
Nation (1865-Present)
Online: 1990-Present; Microform: 1914-Present
One of the nation's most influential and long-running news and commentary publications. Its political focus is liberal/left-leaning.National Geographic Virtual Library (1988-Present)
Brings together a complete archive of National Geographic magazine — every page of every issue — along with a cross-searchable collection of National Geographic books, maps, images and videos. The Virtual Library also includes National Geographic: People, Animals and the World and National Geographic Kids.
National Review (1955 - Present)
Online: 1975 - Present
Founded in 1955 by William F. Buckley, Jr.. National Review is one of the most influential American news and commentary magazines. The political focus of the magazine is conservative.New Republic (1914-Present)
Online: 1990-Present; Microform: 1914-Present
Founded in 1914, The New Republic has been one of America's most influential news and commentary magazines. Although it has varied in more recent decades, the magazine has historically had a liberal/progressive political perspective.Newsweek (1933-2012)
Microfilm: 1933-1990; Online:1990-2012; Newsweek Global: 2013-Present
Along with Time and U.S. News & World Report, one of the three most influential American weekly news magazines during the 20th century.Saturday Evening Post (1931-Present)
This publication was one of the most important general interest magazines in the United States for the first two-thirds of the twentieth century. Although dating back to its beginnings as a newspaper in the early 19th century, it didn't become influential until the beginning of the 20th century. It featured beautifully illustrated covers (i.e. especially famous for those by Norman Rockwell), cartoons, literary contributions, as well as articles on topics of current or general interest. Many important American writers contributed to its pages. More info
Scientific American (1845-Present)
JSTOR, 1845-5 yrs ago; Other databases 2007-Present
Scientific American has the distinction of being the oldest continuously published magazine in the United States (see website). Throughout its history, this monthly publication has featured scientific articles aimed at the educated general reader.Time Magazine (Academic Search Ultimate)
Complete full-text access to the entire archive of Time Magazine, from 1923 to the present. Be sure to choose to search the full-text by selecting "TX All Text" from the "Select a Field" pull-down options.
This archive from the Time Magazine website allows you to search the entire full-text archive of this key news magazine from 1923 to the present. The full-text is no longer freely available from Time, but we have full access through Academic Search Complete. This link is still listed, because it provides another complementary search engine for exploring the archive.
U.S. News & World Report Magazine (1948-2010)
Online: 1948-1984, 1990-2010; Microform: 1948-2006
Along with its more famous competitors, Time and Newsweek, U.S. News & World Report was one of the group of three most influential American weekly news magazines of the 20th century. It transitioned to web-base publishing in 2011.This is a very important news source as, each month, it brings together copies of the most significant speeches. Published monthly since 1934, it currently includes 18,500+ speeches.
Newspaper Databases and Digitized Collections
Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers (1836-1922)
This is an extraordinary archive of 3,100+ digitized U. S. newspapers from the 19th and early 20th century. This freely available resource is produced by the Library of Congress.
Pennsylvania Newspaper Archive This link opens in a new window
The Pennsylvania Newspaper Archive is the gateway to the Commonwealth's historical full-text searchable newspaper database. Newspaper titles and holdings will continue to be added as they become available from all 67 counties stretching back to our colonial roots to the present.
Westlaw This link opens in a new window
Westlaw is our major legal database that includes secondary and primary legal sources. It contains statutes, codes, arbitrations, and case law. Westlaw also includes the legal encyclopedias, journals, treatises, and law reviews. In addition to legal materials, it also has extensive collections of national and state/local news sources, as well as regional business magazines.
ProQuest Global Newsstream This link opens in a new window
One of the most comprehensive news databases in the world, ProQuest Global Newstream includes access to over 3000 news sources, including 2,200 newspapers, as well as blogs, podcasts, websites and news wire feeds worldwide.
Gale Primary Sources This link opens in a new window
Search The Economist Historical Archive, The Sunday Times Digital Archive, The Times Digital Archive, The Times Literary Supplement Historical Archive and the Archives of Sexuality and Gender, or any combination of the above, in one search.
