Find Primary Sources Online to Support Your Research
As you do research for History Day, remember that a lot of great resources are available online. Check out our (growing) list of ways you can access the online collections of New York City archives, museums, and libraries.
- Brooklyn Public Library Digital Collections
- Center for Brooklyn History: online maps | oral histories | digital collections | online projects
- Central Park Conservancy Research Guide
- Did you know we have a national park right here in NYC? Check out Gateway National Park and learn about the history and ecology of some of the city's most beautiful places.
- Green-Wood Cemetery's online archives and digital collections
- Museum of the City of New York Digital Collections
- New York City Municipal Archives Collections
- New York Heritage Digital Collections
- New York Public Library Digital Collections
- New York Historical Society Digital Collections
- New York Transit Museum Digital Collections
- Queens Public Library Digital Collections
- Municipal Art Society: explore books and archival documents about the complex ecology of cities, urban culture, and the natural and built environment.
- New York University Special Collections: explore this special list of collections with digitized content.
- Library of Congress
- National Archives Digital Resources
- Chronicling America Digitized Newspapers
- Independent Voices: a digital collection of alternative press newspapers
- Digital Public Library of America
- National Park Service: National History Day Research Guide
- ArchiveGrid: a search tool for archives around the United States that contain historical documents, personal papers, family histories, and more
- Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History Resources
- Digital History, a resource from the University of Houston
- Harvard Digital Collections. For more specific American History collections such as "Slavery, Abolition, Emancipation, and Freedom" click here
- African Online Digital Archive
- Library of Congress International Research Pages
- Europeana (European Digital Archive)
- Harvard Digital Collections. For more specific Global History collections such as "Expeditions and Discoveries" click here
- Hope College Collated Resources on Modern Imperialism
- LACLI (Latin American, Caribbean, U.S. Latinx, and Iberian Online Free E-Resources)
- Wilson Center Digital Archive
- ACT UP Oral History Project
- Digital Transgender Archive
- GLBT Historical Society Digital Collections
- Lesbian Herstory Archives
- Library of Congress LGBTQ+ Digital Archive
- Queens LGBTQ+ History Collection: These are interviews with LGBTQ+ activists who live, work and attend school in Queens. They have organized major events like the Queens Pride Parade and founded advocacy organizations that provide services in and beyond New York City.
- Berkeley Library: Asian American and Asian Diaspora Digital Archives and Oral History Collections
- Densho Digital Archives: Japanese American History
- Library of Congress Asian American and Pacific Islander Resource Database
- SAADA: South Asian American Digital Archive
- BlackPast
- Civil Rights Digital Library
- Digital Black History Collated Resources
- Freedom on the Move Digital Collections
- International African American Museum Digital Collections
- National Archives Black History Directory
- Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture (New York Public Library) Digital Collections
- Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture Digital Archives
- Berkeley Library: Native American Studies Digital Collections
- Library of Congress Native American Digital Collections
- Native Northeast Portal
- University of Texas Native American Digital Collections
- Bracero Oral History Archive
- Berkeley Library: Latin American and Hispanic History Digital Collections
- LACLI (Latin American, Caribbean, U.S. Latinx, and Iberian Online Free E-Resources)
- ARTSTOR: An open access database of over 2 million images from top museums, archives, scholars, and artists
- The Black Music History Library
- Brooklyn Academy of Music Online Archive
- The Cleveland Museum of Art Digital Collections
- Digital Library of the Middle East
- Library of Congress Performing Arts Digital Collection
- Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art Digital Collections
- The Morgan Library & Museum Digital Collections
- New York Public Library Music Division Digital Collections
- OMuERRA: Online Museum Educational Resources in Asian Art
- Alan Turing Digital Archive
- American Museum of Natural History Digital Collections
- Harvard Library: Exploration and Scientific Discovery in the Modern Age
- Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum Digital Collection
- Explore these resources from the Library of Congress: Science and Technology Digital Collections, Women in Science Digital Collections, Mapping National Parks
- National Library of Medicine Digital Collections
- Science History Institute: Women and Science Digital Collections
- Did you know we have a national park right here in NYC? Check out Gateway National Park and learn about the history and ecology of some of the city's most beautiful places.
- Jackie Robinson Museum: Get started with your research on Jackie Robinson’s impact on and off the field on the Dig Deeper page at JRLegacy.org. You’ll find videos to spark research ideas about Robinson as an athlete and activist, ready-to-use primary sources, FAQs, and more, plus submit questions to Jackie Robinson Museum staff.
- Library of Congress: Sports and Recreation Digital Collections
Check out Examples of Past Projects in Each Category
- Shirley Chisholm: Championing Domestic Workers through Debate and Diplomacy by Joanna Fabian, Lorenzo Guaman, Maria Manouselakis, Cecilia McConnaughy, and Ariana Mendez, New York City, Junior Division
- Little Rock: A Frontier of the Global Cold War by Lawson Wright, New York City, Senior Division
- The Camera as a Sword: Asian American Representation in Corky Lee's Photography by William Ling-Regan, New York City, Senior Division
- Women Strike for Peace: How 1960s American Mothers Used Diplomacy to End Atmospheric Nuclear Testing
- Building a Home from Diaspora: Making and Remaking the First American Chinatown by Yan Zhen Zhu, New York City, Senior Division
- Route 66: The Road of Possibilities by Jack Anderson, Jader Briggs, Daytona Foley, Logan Smith & Megan Swancutt
- Black, White and Blue: Vivien Thomas and the Cure for Blue Baby Syndrome by Jasmine Hughley
New York City History Day is sponsored in part by the Rose M. Badgeley Residuary Charitable Trust and the Morris and Alma Schapiro Fund.
Upcoming Events
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
CBH Talk | The Divine Nine: The Origins and History of Black Greek-Letter Fraternities and Sororities
The Divine Nine, formally known as the National Pan-Hellenic Council, are nine historically Black Greek-letter fraternities and sororities that have played a pivotal role in shaping Black American life and culture. The first of these organizations, Alpha Phi Alpha, was founded in…
CBH Talk | Claire Hoffman and Eliza Griswold Discuss “Sister, Sinner: The Miraculous Life and Mysterious Disappearance of Aimee Semple McPherson”
On a spring day in 1926, Aimee Semple McPherson wandered into the Pacific Ocean and vanished. The nation’s most famous evangelist, Aimee was known as a sophisticated marketer who had used Hollywood magic and the newest technology to bring her message to the masses. Although Aimee’s Pentecostal…
CBH Talk | Larry Racioppo’s Photographs of Loss and Remembrance in NYC
We all die. Rich and poor, famous and unknown, we all meet the same fate. Almost everyone is mourned, but the method can vary greatly.
Larry Racioppo, "Here Down On Dark Earth"
In Here Down On Dark Earth,…
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
Opening the Archives: Exploring the CBH Collection - Building Research
One of the most common research topics at CBH is Brooklyn’s buildings. Join us for a hands-on workshop in the Othmer Library, led by urban data historian Jeremy Lechtzin and CBH archives manager Dee Bowers. This session will introduce you to four key collections used for building…
CBH Talk | “Capitalism and Its Critics” with John Cassidy and Doug Henwood
In his new book, Capitalism and Its Critics: A History from the Industrial Revolution to AI, The New Yorker’s John Cassidy traces 200 years of global capitalism through the voices of its most insightful and influential critics. At a time when technology, climate change, inequality,…
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
The Power of Story: An Intro to Oral History Workshop with The Dear Neighbor Project
Learn how to craft compelling interviews, develop thoughtful questions, and record stories in this hands-on oral history workshop led by Emmy-nominated storyteller and photographer Naeem Douglas.
This is the first session in a multi-part series designed to give participants…
CBH Talk | Voices from the Past: Tracing Black Lineage and the Power of Genealogy
Being the narrators and experts of our own pasts comes with unique challenges for Black Americans. What we know about our families matters—and everyone deserves the ability to honor their ancestors’ stories.
CBH’s new exhibition, Trace/s, explores the crucial…
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