Research Guides: Native American and Indigenous Studies *: Government Sources

Government Sources

American Founding Era Collection This link opens in a new window
This Rotunda collection provides access to the papers of some of the major figures of the early republic: John Adams, Alexander Hamilton, Andrew Jackson, John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, Dolley and James Madison, John Marshall, Eliza Lucas Pinckney and Harriott Pinckney Horry, and George Washington.
This online collection also includes access to the Documentary History of the Ratification of the Constitution and the Founders Early Access project. All of these digital editions present material from published volumes, including editorial annotations and transcriptions of thousands of documents. This subscription collection also provides powerful advanced search features.
American Presidency Project This link opens in a new window
A website developed by the University of California-Santa Barbara. It is the only online resource that has consolidated, coded, and organized into a single searchable database the following content:
• The Messages and Papers of the Presidents: Washington - Taft (1789-1913)
• The Public Papers of the Presidents Hoover to G.W. Bush (1929-2006) & Obama (2009)
• The Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents: Carter - G.W. Bush (1977-2009)
• The Daily Compilation of Presidential Documents: Obama (2009-2012)
In addition this collection also contains thousands of other documents such as party platforms, candidates' remarks, Statements of Administration Policy, documents released by the Office of the Press Secretary, and election debates.
It provides a searchable database of over85,000 documents, such as speeches, official papers, executive orders,proclamations, news conferences, and press briefings. Various retrieval options are available, including by keywords, dates, document type, and presidents. Additional in depth analyses are offered on topics that maybe challenging to locate by other means, such as presidential relations with Congress. Lastly, Quick Time Player videos of important presidential election moments, addresses, and speeches are provided.
American State Papers, 1789-1838 This link opens in a new window
Login required Search or browse these legislative and executive documents, many originating from the important period between 1789 and the beginning of the U.S. Congressional Serial Set in 1817
The collection enables students and scholars to easily search and browse every legislative and executive document of the first fourteen U.S. Congresses, and more.
U.S. Declassified Documents Online This link opens in a new window
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The documents emanate from a wide variety of government agencies including the CIA, Department of State, National Security Council, Department of Defense, FBI, etc. It is possible to search by subject, title words, issue date, and documents source. Help in searching is available on-line or ask a librarian in VKC Library for assistance.
The full text of the documents are available online as well as on microfiche in VKC Library. The call number of the microfiche collection is no.427 and it is located in the microfiche cabinets on the east side of the library. It is necessary to have the Fiche Issue Date, the Fiche Number and the Document Number to locate a document in the fiche collection.

Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States
Contains material that was compiled and published by the Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration. It includes volumes covering the administrations of Presidents Hoover, Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush, and Clinton. As subsequent volumes are published, they will be added online.
Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln
Searchable full-text edition of the 1953 publication, The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln. Includes speeches, correspondence, and more, compiled by the Abraham Lincoln Association.
Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum
This institution, part of the National Archives and Records Administration, provides a gateway to many resources about FDR, the New Deal, and more.
Lincoln/Net
This Northern Illinois University site presents primary source materials from Lincoln's Illinois years (1830-1861) and other resources for study of antebellum Illinois

Papers of George Washington Digital Edition This link opens in a new window
Login required (from Rotunda/University of Virginia Press) This collection encompasses five separate series and the complete diaries, providing access to the complete Papers released through 2007 in one online publication. You may search on full text and by date, author, or recipient across all volumes and series. The indexing of the individual print volumes is combined here into a single master index, and all internal document cross-references are linked.
Users can search by keyword, date, author, and recipient. The indexing of the print volumes is combined into a single online master index, and all internal document cross-references are linked. The digitized content may be navigated by series, date, or index entry.

The Writings of George Washington from the Original Manuscript Sources 1745-1799
The Writings of George Washington from the Original Manuscript Sources 1745-1799 - posted by the University of Virginia E-Text Center

ProQuest Executive Branch Documents This link opens in a new window
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In addition to offering a record of Federal department and agency activities, this collection provides insight into virtually all facets of society.

National Security Archive
An independent non-governmental research institute and library located at The George Washington University, the Archive collects and publishes declassified documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act. The Archive also serves as a repository of government records on a wide range of topics pertaining to the national security, foreign, intelligence, and economic policies of the United States.

Proquest Congressional This link opens in a new window
Login required Contains the full-text of published and unpublished hearings from 1776-present, including statues proclamations, treaties, oral statements, committee questions and discussion, as well as texts of related reports, statistical analyses, correspondence, exhibits and more
U.S. Congressional Serial Set, 1817-1994 This link opens in a new window
Login required a full-text database of key publications of the United States Congress, including documents on the activities of the committees of the House and the Senate (journals, reports, and documents); publications of the executive departments for education, public health, and agriculture, as well as maps and color plates
It documents the official activities of the committees of the House and the Senate, including the journals, reports, and documents. In addition, through the nineteenth century the Serial Set also included publications of the executive departments relating to important public issues. It contains, for example, reports on education, public health, and agriculture, as well as maps and color plates. The database consists of approximately 369,000 publications published in 14,500 volumes and over 11 million pages.