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MHS/MVTHS Library: Social Studies Resources

Primary Sources

Freedom on the Move is a searchable database of advertisements for fugitives from American slavery. The ads offer insight into the experiences of enslaved people.

The National Archives and Record Adminstration is an independent agency of the United States government charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records

Life Magazine Photo Archive Founded in 1936, LIFE magazine is the visual chronicle of the “American century.” The magazine's ninety staff photographers documented the events, stories, and people that shaped the modern era.

The Smithsonian Learning Lab contains millions of searchable Smithsonian digital images, recordings, texts, and videos in history, art and culture, and the sciences.

Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1938 Collected in conjunction with the Works Projects Administration, this archive contains more than 2,300 first-person accounts of slavery and 500 black-and-white photographs of former slaves.

Eurodocs Primary historical documents from Western Europe 

Voices of the Holocaust features interviews and transcriptions of Holocaust survivors.

Documents of the Holocaust A collection of primary historical documents, speeches, and other materials around the Holocaust.

Library of Congress Civil Rights History Project Interviews with activists who participated in the Civil Rights Movement. 

Websites

The World Fact Book, an online and print publication issued by the CIA, contains information on the history, people, government, economy, and geography for 267 world entities, and includes both geographical and political maps. The CIA also publishes a directory of Chiefs of State and Cabinet Members of Foreign Governments which is updated weekly. 

Today's Front Pages Washington D.C.'s Newseum displays front pages from over 800 newspapers around the world each day.

The Freedom Forum is a nonpartisan foundation that champions the First Amendment freedoms of speech, press, religion, assembly and petition. Its educational institute includes the First Amendment Center and the Religious Freedom Center.

United States Holocaust Museum Intended as a living memorial to the Holocaust, the museum "inspires citizens and leaders worldwide to confront hatred, prevent genocide, and promote human dignity."

POTUS: Presidents of the United States  Biographical information, cabinet members, election results, notable events, and short videos about every U.S. president.

Websites for each of hte three branches of the federal government:  Executive (the White House); Legislative (the Senate & the House of Representatives); and Judicial (the Supreme Court),

Anne Frank Information about Anne Frank, her family and the secret annex from the website of the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam.

The Civil War Published by the National Park Service, this website contains a database of soldiers and sailors who served during the Civil War, information about battles and virtual collections of Civil War artifacts.

Social Studies Databases

Search across all databases or 

search a specific database: 

Biography In Context    Biographical and contextual information on notable

    people throughout history

 

Britannica School     Comprehensive encyclopedia with dictionary, thesaurus, 

    atlas,and more   

 

Diversity Studies Collection     Articles that explore cultural differences, influences in

    society, and more

 

General OneFile    Magazine, news, and journal articles on general interest

   topics and current events

 

Global Issues In Context    International academic perspectives on global issues\

 

 

Religion and Philosophy Collection     Article on world religions, philosophies, and related fields

 

U.S. History In Context    Academic articles, videos, primary documents, and more

   on topics in U.S. history

 

War and Terrorism Collection    Articles on war and its causes, current events, terrorism,

   and more

 

World History In Context    Academic articles, videos, case studies, and more on

   topics in world history

Medford High School and Medford Technical Vocational High School Library, 489 Winthrop Street, Medford, MA 02155, (781) 393-2278 

highschoollibrary@medford.k12.ma.us