New e-resource: Making of the Modern World Part 1: The Goldsmiths-Kress Collection 1450-1850

Cambridge University Libraries are delighted to announce the acquisition of the digital archive Making of the Modern World Part 1 with access to University members in perpetuity.

For this new acquisition, we are sincerely grateful to the legacy of Dr. Mark Kaplanoff, Fellow of Pembroke College, whose endowment provides Cambridge with rich and diverse collections to support the study of the history of the United States in the University.

The Making of the Modern World, Part I: The Goldsmiths’-Kress Collection, 1450–1850 offers new ways of understanding the expansion of world trade, the Industrial Revolution, and the development of modern capitalism, supporting research in variety of disciplines.

This collection follows the development of the modern western world through the lens of trade and wealth — the driving force behind many of the major historical events during the period (1450-1850). With full-text search capabilities on an abundance of rare books and primary source materials, this resource provides unparalleled access to more than 61,000 books and 466 serials — more than 12 million pages in all — many of which are the only known copy of the work in the world.

We are thrilled to make this rich archive available in Cambridge, developing the access provided by Eighteenth Century Collections Online (ECCO) and offering new insights and pathways to research across the collections’ focus on history, interpreted in the widest sense, including political science, economics, women’s studies, legal and religious history, and special collections on transportation, banking, finance, and manufacturing.

Access the collection via this link or via the Cambridge University Libraries E-Resources A-Z.

Charles Christian Nahl, Der Isthmus von Panama auf der Höhe des Chagres River. 1850 Charles Christian Nahl, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

“Nor is the Chagres river, for most of the distance between Cruces and the Atlantic, in any sense obnoxious to the charge of unhealthiness. It cannot be so. The stream is too rapid, the water too clear, and the bottom and banks too solid and gravelly for the admission of such an idea. The current runs at the rate of about three miles an hour, and the indications of the timber and shrubbery that line its shores, all unite in repulsing the false notion, that up to within a short distance of the town of Chagres, any alarming miasmatic malady prevails, or can prevail. This view of the subject has no sort of connexion with the notorious unhealthiness of the little, squalid, miserable looking concern at its mouth, and which it is intended by all to avoid”–Union of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, at or near the Isthmus of Panama, examined and discussed : in a series of letters addressed to the National Institute, at Washington — Bryan, John A., National Institute for the Promotion of Science — 1845 — Kress Library of Business and Economics, Harvard University — GALE|U0106522206

New e-resource for American studies: University of Virginia Press (Rotunda) “American History Collection”

Cambridge University Libraries are delighted to announce the acquisition in perpetuity and in full of the “American History Collection” published by the University of Virginia Press (Rotunda imprint).

For this new acquisition, we are sincerely grateful to the legacy of Dr. Mark Kaplanoff, Fellow of Pembroke College, whose endowment provides Cambridge with rich and diverse collections to support the study of the history of the United States in the University.

The “American History Collection” includes documentary editions spanning three centuries, from the earliest surviving writings of George Washington through the presidential correspondence of Woodrow Wilson: more than 20 publications with content from over 550 letterpress and born-digital volumes, for a total of nearly 300,000 documents, diary entries, and editorial essays, all cross-searchable.

The “American History Collection” comprises the sub-collections:

The American Century Collection: Presidential Recordings; Papers of Woodrow Wilson; Booker T. Washington Papers

Antebellum, Civil War, and Reconstruction: Papers of Ulysses S. Grant, Daniel Webster, Andrew Johnson, Andrew Jackson, Frederick Law Olmsted; Correspondence of James K. Polk

The Founding Era Collection: People of the Founding Era; Papers of George Washington; Adams Papers; Papers of Thomas Jefferson; Diaries of Gouverneur Morris; Papers of Revolutionary Era Pinckney Statesmen; Dolly Madison Digital Edition; Papers of James Monroe; Papers of Eliza Lucas Pinckney & Harriet Pinckney Horry; Papers of James Madison; Documentary History of the First Federal Congress of the United States of America; Selected Papers of John Jay; Papers of Alexander Hamilton; Papers of John Marshall; Documentary History of the Ratification of the Constitution; Letters of Benjamin Rush

Access the collection via this link or via the Cambridge University Libraries E-Resources A-Z.

Painting depicting Parson Weems and his famous story of George Washington and the Cherry Tree.https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Parson_Weems%27_Fable.jpg – Artist: Grant Wood (1891-1942); Painting: Parson Weems’ Fable; Collection: Amon Carter Museum of Modern Art

New E-Resource – Le Monde, 1944-2000

We are pleased to announce that Le Monde, 1944-2000 (ProQuest Historical Newspapers) is now available to Cambridge University members.

The historical archive of Le Monde, considered one of the newspapers of record for France and one of the best-known and most influential publications in the world, is an invaluable resource for exploring the history and culture of France from 1944 to 2000.

Le Monde was created at the request of General Charles de Gaulleas the German army was vacating Paris during World War II. At a timewhen other Parisian newspapers were accused of Nazi sympathies or other political alliances, Le Monde was established for its political independence, and has been ever since. Le Monde is also renowned for its balance in coverage, deep analysis of historical events, and focus on journalistic quality and high intellectual standards.

With cover-to-cover full-page images, article-level indexing and searchable text, users can retrieve all types of content from ProQuest’s Le Monde archive, including news articles, photos, advertisements, obituaries, cartoons and more.

L’euro et le pétrole au secours de la croissance. Le Monde (1944-2000); Paris [Paris]. 30 Dec 2000: 1.

New E-Resource – Nineteenth Century Collections Online: Children’s Literature and Childhood

We are very pleased to announce that Nineteenth Century Collections Online: Children’s Literature and Childhood is now available to Cambridge University members.

Children’s Literature and Childhood provides a wide range of primary sources related to the experience of childhood in the long nineteenth century. Included in the archive are books and periodicals for children, primers and other material related to education, pamphlets produced by child welfare groups, documents and photos related to children and crime, newspapers produced by youths, and much more. Curated by experts in the field of children’s literature, this unique assemblage of material is sourced from such renowned institutions as the University of Florida’s Baldwin Library Collection of Historical Children’s Literature, the National Archives (UK), and the British Library, among others.

In its focus and range, Children’s Literature and Childhood offers an array of compelling subjects for research and teaching. Children’s literature from any period reflects that period’s social, moral, economic, and political views. This archive serves as a rich resource for nineteenth-century study across disciplines.

Image credit: ‘The Antique Toy Rocking Horse’ by Clive Varley on Flickr 

Text from the Gale platform.

New E-Resource – Nineteenth Century Collections Online: British Politics and Society

We are very pleased to announce that Nineteenth Century Collections Online: British Politics and Society is now available to Cambridge University members.

Politics and Political Figures in the Age of Discontent and Reform

Personalities in the collections range from political leaders and officials—including the British government’s inner circle, the Cabinet—to social reformers. A wealth of source materials including correspondence, journal and diary entries, speeches, official papers, and press cuttings offer insight into the views and attitudes of these leading figures. These collections offer an understanding of key events such as the Chartist agitation, the Anti-Corn Law disturbances, and tensions underlying policy formation and the nature of Victorian government.

Working-Class Radicalism and the Political Response

The largest grouping of collections in this archive revolves around the evolution of the urban working class and the growth of radical and militant politics.

During this time period, a host of radical and anti-radical societies, trade unions, workingmen’s associations, and other political action groups attempted either to subvert or defend the “ancient constitution.” These collections cover many aspects of working-class life and experience and provide a vivid picture of working-class conflict and struggle throughout England in these formative years of the Industrial Revolution.

Nineteenth-Century Society

These collections will enable students and scholars to examine the effects of early industrialization and social deprivation and offer a detailed picture of cities and towns in the nineteenth century. In addition, these collections set the stage for an understanding of the religious zeal that would reach its ascendancy by the end of the century.

Access is for 2023.

Image by Brigitte Werner from Pixabay

Text from the Gale platform.

New E-Resource – Nineteenth Century Collections Online: British Theatre, Music, and Literature: High and Popular Culture

We are very pleased to announce that Nineteenth Century Collections Online: British Theatre, Music, and Literature: High and Popular Culture is now available to Cambridge University members.

British Theatre, Music, and Literature features a wide range of primary sources related to the arts in the Victorian era, from playbills and scripts to operas and complete scores. These rare documents, many of them never before available, were sourced from the British Library and other renowned institutions, and curated by experts in British arts history. Covering more than a century, British Theatre, Music, and Literature is without equal as a resource for 19th century scholars.

This unparalleled collection provides a detailed look at the state of the British art world with, for example, not only manuscripts and compositions, but also documents such as personal letters, annotated programs, meeting minutes, and financial records, offering scholars an unmatched glimpse into the inner workings of the arts world and life in Victorian Britain.

Image credit – ‘BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall’ by Paul Hudson on Flickr 

Access is for 2023.

Text from the Gale platform.

New E-Resource – Nineteenth Century Collections Online: Women and Transnational Networks

We are very pleased to announce that Nineteenth Century Collections Online: Women and Transnational Networks is now available to Cambridge University members.

Issues of gender and class ignited nineteenth-century debate in the context of suffrage movements, culture, immigration, health and many other concerns. Using a wide array of primary source documents—serials, books, manuscripts, diaries, reports, and visuals—Women and Transnational Networks focuses on issues at the intersection of gender and class from the late-eighteenth century to the era of suffrage in the early-twentieth century, all through a transnational perspective. The collection contains deep information on European and North American movements, but also expands its scope to include collections from other regions.

Researchers and scholars will find rare content related to:

• Social reform movements and groups
• High and popular culture
• Literature and the arts
• Immigration
• Daily life
• Religion

Access is for 2023.

Image credit: ‘Windblown Women’ by Dave Miller  on Flickr.

Text from the Gale platform.

New E-Resource – China and the Modern World: Hong Kong, Britain, and China, 1841-1951

We are very pleased to announce that China and the Modern World: Hong Kong, Britain, and China, 1841-1951 is now available to Cambridge University members.

An essential primary source archive for researching the history of Hong Kong in the context of Modern China and the British Empire in Asia.

This collection of British Colonial office correspondence relates to Hong Kong as a British colony between 1841 and 1951, and provides detailed information on the political, military, social, economic, and external development of Hong Kong. It also sheds light on the British Empire in Asia, China’s transformation from empire to republic, mainland China-Hong Kong relations, and the international politics of East Asia.

China and the Modern World: Hong Kong, Britain and China 1841–1951 presents a collection of British government documents on colonial Hong Kong, spanning a period of over a century. Digitized from the British Colonial Office records grouped under the CO 129 Series titled “War and Colonial Department and Colonial Office: Hong Kong, Original Correspondence,” the collection consists of despatches and correspondence between the governors of Hong Kong and the Colonial Office, as well as letters and telegrams of other government departments and organizations such as the Foreign Office, Home Office, and War Offices. In the form of bound volumes, these records were arranged chronologically till 1926 when arrangement by subject files was introduced. Each volume comes with a contents list, or a précis of each letter giving the name of correspondent, date of letter, and subject matter.

This collection of British Colonial office correspondence on colonial Hong Kong provides detailed and valuable information on the political, military, social, economic, and external development of Hong Kong during the period covered. It also sheds light on the British Empire in Asia, China’s transformation from empire to republic, mainland China-Hong Kong relations, and the international politics of East Asia.

Access is for 2023.

Text from the Gale platform.

New E-Resource – British Literary Manuscripts Online: c1600-1900

We are very pleased to announce that British Literary Manuscripts Online: c1600-1900 is now available to Cambridge University members. Along with British Literary Manuscripts Online, Medieval and Renaissance we now have access to the complete British Literary Manuscripts Online collection.

British Literary Manuscripts Online presents facsimile images of literary manuscripts, including letters and diaries, drafts of poems, plays, novels, and other literary works, and similar materials. Searching is based on tags and descriptive text associated with each manuscript. Images of the complete manuscript can be viewed, manipulated and navigated on screen.
Please note that the text of the manuscripts themselves is not searchable.

Access is for 2023.

Image by Henryk Niestrój from Pixabay

Text from the Gale platform.

E-resources Advent Calendar Window 3: Spotlight on Historical Newspapers

Cambridge University Libraries provide a wealth of digital archives of historical newspapers. This year we were proud and delighted to add to our collections the American Indian Newspapers collection from Adam Matthew Digital.

Our calendar window opens in a year earlier than most titles in the collection that grew out of the Wounded Knee Occupation. The collection’s unique titles invite researchers to expore subjects including the self-determination era and American Indian Movement (AIM), education, environmentalism, land rights, and cultural representation from an Indigenous perspective.

From the collection we share the Christmas joy felt in 1926 in the Indian School Journal, in this poem by Philipps Brooks published in the Indian School Journal, December 1926, © Sequoyah National Research Center, University of Arkansas, Little Rock.

Everywhere, everywhere, Christmas tonight!

Christmas in lands of the fir-tree and pine,

Christmas in lands of the palm-tree and vine,

Christmas where snow peaks stand solemn and white,

Christmas where corn-fields lie sunny and bright,

Christmas where children are hopeful and gay,

Christmas where old men are patient and gray;

Christmas where peace, is like a dove in its flight,

Broods o’er brave men in the thick of the fight;

Everywhere, everywhere, Christmas tonight,

For the Christ Child who comes is the master of all;

No palace too great and no cottage too small.

AshishTripurwar, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons