LibGuides: Political Science & International Relations: Primary Resources

Librarian Pro Tip

Try searching for your topic online and add the term 'LibGuides' or 'Digital Humanities' to search through guides of sources and digital projects compiled by other librarians and scholars.

Using Wikipedia as a Tool

Although almost all instructors advice against using Wikipedia as a supporting resource for your paper or project, you can still use Wikipedia as a tool to locate other online resources. Look at the References and Resources links at the end of a Wikipedia article to locate outside resources that may link to reliable and useful leads. Try a search for your topic and see if there are any links to online libraries, archives, or other primary material that might help you in your search.

Searching for Primary Sources by Type

Where can I find primary sources?

Library Catalog

Enter the type of primary source you’re looking for in the first box (narratives, correspondence, music scores, etc.)
Change the drop-down menu next to the first search box from “Keyword” to “Subject”
In the second box, type a related keyword (author, event, geographical location, etc.)

For example: You may type “narratives” in the first box and “Anne Frank” in the second box to look for Anne’s diary and related primary sources.

Library Databases

Articles and Newspapers:

Newspaper Source Plus – Contains U.S. newspapers, international newspapers, newswires, newspaper columns, and TV and radio news transcripts
Economist – Content from 1997 to present.
JSTOR – JSTOR provides full text articles from more than 2,000 core scholarly academic journals, dating back to the first volume ever published for each title.
Nexis Uni – Covers news (international, national, and U.S. regional), government, law, business and medicine. Articles are full text.
The New York TImes – The New York Times digital edition is available to Beloit College staff, faculty, and students.

Speeches and Interviews:

Academic Search Premier

Under “Search Options,” scroll down to the “Limit your results” section
Under “Document type,” select “Speech” or “Interview.” To search both simultaneously hold down the “Control” key when making your selection

Current Newspapers

Chronicle of Higher Education This link opens in a new window
Create an account with your beloit.edu for access to content via mobile devices..
Newspaper Source Plus This link opens in a new window
Includes hundreds of full text national and international newspapers. Also includes radio and television news transcripts. Provided by BadgerLink.
New York Times Digital This link opens in a new window
The New York Times digital edition is available to Beloit College staff, faculty, and students. To claim your academic pass for access, please follow these instructions.
Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
Covers news (international, national, and U.S. regional), government, law, business and medicine. Articles are full text.

Historic Newspapers

19th Century US Newspapers This link opens in a new window
Includes full-text searchable newspapers from urban and rural areas in every region of the country. Also includes newspapers published by special interest groups.
Caribbean Newspapers, Series I: 1718-1876 This link opens in a new window
Caribbean newspapers from 1718-1876.
Historical Newspapers: New York Times (1851-2016) This link opens in a new window
This historical newspaper provides genealogists, researchers and scholars with online, easily-searchable first-hand accounts and unparalleled coverage of the politics, society and events of the time.
The Times (London) Digital Archive This link opens in a new window
Includes full-text page scans of every issue of The Times from 1785-2011.

Print Newspapers

Morse Library's current newspaper subscriptions:

Beloit Daily News
Chicago Tribune
Christian Science Monitor
Guardian Weekly
Le Monde
El Pais
Wall Street Journal
Washington Post

The American Presidency Project
The American Presidency Project (APP), non-profit and non-partisan, is the leading source of presidential documents on the internet. Archives contain 117,774 documents and are growing rapidly. The APP, hosted at the University of California, Santa Barbara, has been a collaboration between John T. Woolley (UCSB) and Gerhard Peters (Citrus College) since 1999.
American Rhetoric Online Speech Bank
Database of and index to 5000+ full text, audio and video versions of public speeches, sermons, legal proceedings, lectures, debates, interviews, other recorded media events, and a declaration or two.
C-SPAN
The C-SPAN Archives records, indexes, and archives all C-SPAN programming for historical, educational, research, and archival uses.
Congress.gov
Congress.gov is the official website for U.S. federal legislative information. The site provides access to accurate, timely, and complete legislative information for Members of Congress, legislative agencies, and the public. It is presented by the Library of Congress (LOC) using data from the Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Office of the Secretary of the Senate, the Government Publishing Office, Congressional Budget Office, and the LOC's Congressional Research Service.
Gifts of Speech: Women’s Speeches from Around the World
Gifts of Speech is a non-profit project, sponsored by Sweet Briar College, dedicated to preserving and creating access to speeches by inspirational, influential and contemporary, women from around the world.
History & Politics Out Loud
Searchable archive of speeches, both audio and transcripts available, relevant to American history and politics. Run by WyzAnt, a tutoring company.
The White House Briefing Room
The White House provides timely and accurate information about the President's latest events and public statements. Here you'll find photos, video, and transcripts, as well as proclamations, executive orders, and press releases.

Avalon Project
A project out of Yale Law School, "digital documents relevant to the fields of Law, History, Economics, Politics, Diplomacy and Government," with supporting documentation.
FindLaw
Legal information and news.
National Archive
Legal and historical documents and materials from the National Archives and Records Administration
USA.gov
Official guide to government information and services

American Memory
Library of Congress collections. Contains: Slaves and the Courts.
Avalon Project
A project out of Yale Law School, "digital documents relevant to the fields of Law, History, Economics, Politics, Diplomacy and Government," with supporting documentation.
FindLaw
Legal information and news.

American National Elections Study Guide
The Guide provides immediate access to tables and graphs that display the ebb and flow of public opinion, electoral behavior, and choice in American politics over time. It serves as a resource for political observers, policy makers, and journalists, teachers, students, and social scientists. It currently contains data from 1948 through 2012.
Pew Research Center
Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world.
Polling Report
An independent, nonpartisan resource on trends in American public opinion.
Public Agenda Online
Public Agenda is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that helps diverse leaders and citizens navigate divisive, complex issues and work together to find solutions.

American Memory
Library of Congress collections. Contains: Slaves and the Courts.
National Archive
Legal and historical documents and materials from the National Archives and Records Administration
Teaching American History
Historical documents and materials.

American Memory
Library of Congress collections. Contains: Slaves and the Courts.
National Archive
Legal and historical documents and materials from the National Archives and Records Administration
New York Public Library Digital Gallery
Search in the advertisement and advertising collection genres.