Research Guides: History: Philadelphia History

Secondary Sources: Good Starting Points

Key Databases

America: History & Life with Full Text
Core resource for scholarly articles on American history topics
JSTOR
Full-text backfiles of scholarly journals including many of the most influential journals in the field of history. Coverage is usually from the first issue to 3-5 years before the present.

Key Journal Titles

Pennsylvania History: A Journal of Midatlantic Studies
Full-text access to the journal from 1934 - present.
Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography
Full-text access to the journal from 1877 - present

Selected Philadelphia Newspapers Online

Philadelphia Daily News
Full-text of the Philadelphia Daily News via Proquest Newsstand from 1983 to present.
Philadelphia Inquirer (1829-1922)
Full-text of the Philadelphia Inquirer via Readex from 1829 to 1922.
Philadelphia Inquirer (1860-2001) [via ProQuest Historical Newspapers]
The Philadelphia Inquirer from 1860-2001. When digitization is complete, the complete run will include 1829-2009.
Philadelphia Inquirer (1983-present)
Full-text of the Philadelphia Inquirer via Proquest Newsstand from 1983 to present.
Philadelphia Tribune (1912-2001)
America's oldest and Philadelphia's largest newspaper serving the African American community.

Philadelphia Tribune (1991 to Present)

Contemporary Issues in Philadelphia

Backgrounders: Connecting History with the Headlines
WHYY stories connected to topics in the Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia
Billy Penn
Billy Penn is designed to connect citizens to relevant news and information about Philadelphia, and to drive civic engagement via affinity groups and events.
City Council of Philadelphia
Explore the committees and work of Philadelphia's City Council. Search the legislative history of the Council and read session and meeting transcripts.
City of Philadelphia official website
News and information for residents and businesses in Philadelphia
Philadelphia Reserach Initiative
From the Pew Charitable Trusts. Research and analysis that helps Philadelphia’s citizens and leaders understand and address key issues facing the city.

Philadelphia Maps, Photos, Buildings, and Locations

Digital Sanborn Maps, 1867-1970
Note: Library of Congress also offers a publicly available collection of Sanborn Maps.
Digital Sanborn Maps provides access to large-scale maps of American towns and cities, including information such as the outline of each building, the size, shape and construction materials, heights, and function of structures, location of windows and doors.

Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps (Penn State University Libraries)
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An open-source version of the Digital Sanborn Maps database, listed above. The maps are easier to view and manipulate than in the TULibraries' database.
Greater Philadelphia GeoHistory Network
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"View mosaics of selected historic maps, mixed with current maps and aerial photographs from Google in an interactive viewer."
Historical American Buildings Survey (HABS) + HAER/HALS (Library of Congress)
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"The Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) and the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) collections are among the largest and most heavily used in the Prints and Photographs Division of the Library of Congress. Since 2000, documentation from the Historic American Landscapes Survey (HALS) has been added to the holdings. The collections document achievements in architecture, engineering, and landscape design in the United States and its territories through a comprehensive range of building types, engineering technologies, and landscapes..."
Historical Maps of Philadelphia (Department of Geography, University of Alabama)
National Historic Landmarks Program (National Park Service)
National Register of Historic Places (National Park Service)
Philadelphia Architects and Buildings
Philadelphia City Planning Commission (PCPC) Map Gallery
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Provides access to a number of census and district maps, and the 120-page document titled The Political and Community Services Boundaries of Philadelphia.
Philadelphia Maps and Geographic Information (University of Pennsylvania Libraries)
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A wide-ranging list of Philadelphia maps from the library at the University of Pennsylvania.
Philadelphia Neighborhood Information System
PhillyHistory.org
Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia
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"The mission of the Preservation Alliance is to actively promote the appreciation, protection, and appropriate use and development of the Philadelphia region’s historic buildings, communities and landscapes."

SimplyAnalytics (formerly SimplyMap)
Concurrent user limit: 10
Simply Analytics is a web-based mapping application that permits users to create thematic maps and reports using demographic, business, and marketing variables. Maps can be exported as high-resolution images; data can be selected, sorted, and compared to build custom reports that can be exported to a spreadsheet.

Featured Website

Encyclopedia of Greater Philadephia
The Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia is a civic project to increase understanding of one of America’s greatest cities. Based at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Center for the Humanities (MARCH) at Rutgers-Camden, the encyclopedia project builds from a foundation of civic engagement and brings the work of leading and emerging scholars to a wide general audience.

Explore the Backgrounders: Connecting History with Headlines section for historical essays and sources related to current news topics in Philadelphia.

PhillyHistory Blog

PhillyHistory.org's blog feed:

Philadelphia Area Libraries, Archives, and Primary Source Repositories

The following Philadelphia-area libraries and archives together constitute one of the richest repositories of primary source material in the United States.

American Philosophical Society
"The American Philosophical Society Library is a major national center for research in the history of the sciences, medicine, and technology. With its roots extending back to the founding of the Society in 1743."
The Athenaeum of Philadelphia
A member supported, not-for-profit, special collections library founded in 1814 to collect materials "connected with the history and antiquities of America, and the useful arts, and generally to disseminate useful knowledge" for public benefit.
Free Library of Philadelphia (Collections)
"Decades in the making, our growing collections are hand-selected by our librarians for quality, depth and breadth. Whether you're a serious researcher or simply curious, these gatherings are some of the great treasures of Philadelphia."
Hagley Museum & Library (Wilmington, DE)
Hagley Museum and Library collects, preserves, and interprets the unfolding history of American enterprise.
Haverford College Quaker and Special Collections
World-renowned Quaker collections, which illuminate Quaker life, faith, and practice from the earliest days of the Society of Friends to the present is the highlight of the collection.
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
"Founded in 1824 in Philadelphia, The Historical Society of Pennsylvania is one of the oldest historical societies in the United States and holds many national treasures."
Library Company of Philadelphia
Centuries-old library focusing on American history and culture from the 17th-19th centuries. Open and free to the public, it houses an extensive non-circulating collection of rare books, manuscripts, broadsides, ephemera, prints, photographs, and art.
National Archives at Philadelphia
Holds the permanent records created by Federal agencies and courts in the Mid-Atlantic region (PA, DE, MD, VA, WV)
Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission
Includes information about the Pennsylvania State Archives, located in Harrisburg.
Philadelphia City Archives
"The Philadelphia City Archives was established in 1952... Its mission is to preserve all City records not in current use which possess historical, administrative, legal, research, cultural or other important value. Currently, it forms an integral part of the Records Management Division of the Department of Records."
Rosenbach Museum & Library
The Rosenbach preserves a nearly unparalleled rare book and manuscript collection, with particular strength in American and British literature and history
Swarthmore College Peace Collection
Documents non-governmental efforts for nonviolent social change, disarmament, and conflict resolution between peoples and nations.
University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections
The Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts advances learning and inspires discovery in Penn's community and around the world.

Temple University

University Libraries

See all library locations

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