InfoGuides: Core Sources in Latin American History: Access Specialized Collections

About These Resources

The resources on this page represent digitized primary source collections either from a special collections/archives or a digital collection focused on a specific topic or theme. The vast majority of material found in special collections and archives exists only in print. To locate physical archives, please check out the Finding Repositories and Archives box on this page.

Each of the resources here is unique. There's no one way to search or browse them. Consult the About page or Help file to discover what each contains and tips for locating the type of resources you need.

Collected Primary Sources By Topic

Cold War International History Project
1945-1990s. The Project supports the full and prompt release of historical materials by governments on all sides of the Cold War, and seeks to accelerate the process of integrating new sources, materials and perspectives from the former "Communist bloc" with the historiography of the Cold War which has been written over the past few decades largely by Western scholars reliant on Western archival sources.

Confidential Print: Latin-America, 1833-1969 This link opens in a new window
Resource for Latin American history in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Covers the revolutions, territorial changes, political movements, foreign financial interests, industrial and infrastructural development (including the building of the Panama Canal), wars, slavery, immigration from Europe, and relations with indigenous peoples. Tutorial for the Confidential Print: Latin-America, 1833-1969 database.
Early Encounters in North America This link opens in a new window
Documents the relationships among peoples in North America from 1534 to 1850. The collection focuses on personal accounts and provides unique perspectives from all of the protagonists, including traders, slaves, missionaries, explorers, soldiers, native peoples, and officials, both men and women. The project brings coherence to a wide range of published and unpublished accounts, including narratives, diaries, journals, and letters. Tutorial for Early Encounters in North America database.
Foreign Relations between Latin America and the Caribbean States, 1930-1944 This link opens in a new window
Covers a wide range of viewpoints on political, social, and economic issues organized by countries. Sheds light on the foreign relations interactions between Central American and South American countries. In the Caribbean, Cuba, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic are represented. Includes cables, memoranda, correspondence, reports and analyses, and treaties.
Fuente Académica This link opens in a new window
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Accesses scholarly journal articles from Latin America, Portugal and Spain. Covers all major subject areas with particular emphasis on agriculture, biological sciences, economics, history, law, literature, philosophy, psychology, public administration, religion, and sociology.
Tutorial for the Fuente Academia database.
Handbook of Latin American Studies (HLAS) This link opens in a new window
Provides a selected annotated bibliography of scholarly monographs, journal articles, conference papers, books chapters and electronic resources. Edited by the Hispanic Division of the Library of Congress, the Handbook covers a range of disciplines including anthropology, art, economics, geography, government & politics, history, international relations, literature, music, philosophy and sociology.
View a tutorial on this database here.
Latino American Experience This link opens in a new window
Explores the history and culture of U.S. Latinos. Content includes full-text scholarly essays as well as primary documents and media, including speeches, maps, songs, audio clips, interviews, and historical photographs. Coverage ranges from precontact Aztec and Maya societies to 21st-century political issues and cultural themes.
Gale Archives of Latin American and Caribbean History, Sixteenth to Twentieth Century This link opens in a new window
Provides historical and primary source documents about Latin America and the Caribbean. Access original manuscripts, signed letters, expedition records, reports, maps, diaries, descriptions of voyages, ephemera, and more. Some foreign language material.
Tutorial for the World Scholar: Latin America and the Caribbean database.
Formerly World Scholar: Latin America and the Caribbean

Arte Público Hispanic Historical Collection: Series 1 This link opens in a new window
Presents a digital collection of historical content pertaining to the U.S. Hispanic history, literature, and culture, from the earliest moments of the country's history through contemporary times.
Tutorial for the Arte Público Hispanic Historical Collection: Series 1 database.
Early Encounters in North America This link opens in a new window
Documents the relationships among peoples in North America from 1534 to 1850. The collection focuses on personal accounts and provides unique perspectives from all of the protagonists, including traders, slaves, missionaries, explorers, soldiers, native peoples, and officials, both men and women. The project brings coherence to a wide range of published and unpublished accounts, including narratives, diaries, journals, and letters. Tutorial for Early Encounters in North America database.
Hispanic American Periodicals Index This link opens in a new window
Multi-subject index to periodical literature on Latin America and Hispanics in the United States since 1970. Coverage includes everything from political, economic, and social issues to the arts and humanities. Tutorial for the Hispanic American Periodicals Index database.

Caribbean Newspapers 1718-1876 This link opens in a new window
Access more than 150 years of Caribbean and Atlantic history, cultures and daily life. Features more than 140 newspapers from 22 islands, chronicling the region's evolution across two centuries through eyewitness reporting, editorials, legislative information, letters, poetry, advertisements, obituaries and other news items.
Tutorial for the Caribbean Newspapers 1718-1876 database.
Early Encounters in North America This link opens in a new window
Documents the relationships among peoples in North America from 1534 to 1850. The collection focuses on personal accounts and provides unique perspectives from all of the protagonists, including traders, slaves, missionaries, explorers, soldiers, native peoples, and officials, both men and women. The project brings coherence to a wide range of published and unpublished accounts, including narratives, diaries, journals, and letters. Tutorial for Early Encounters in North America database.
Feminism in Cuba: Nineteenth through Twentieth Century Archival Documents This link opens in a new window
Covers feminists and the feminist movement in Cuba between Cuban independence and the end of the Batista regime. Draws on rich primary sources-texts, personal letters, journal essays, radio broadcasts, memoirs from women's congresses.
Foreign Relations between Latin America and the Caribbean States, 1930-1944 This link opens in a new window
Covers a wide range of viewpoints on political, social, and economic issues organized by countries. Sheds light on the foreign relations interactions between Central American and South American countries. In the Caribbean, Cuba, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic are represented. Includes cables, memoranda, correspondence, reports and analyses, and treaties.
Gale Archives of Latin American and Caribbean History, Sixteenth to Twentieth Century This link opens in a new window
Provides historical and primary source documents about Latin America and the Caribbean. Access original manuscripts, signed letters, expedition records, reports, maps, diaries, descriptions of voyages, ephemera, and more. Some foreign language material.
Tutorial for the World Scholar: Latin America and the Caribbean database.
Formerly World Scholar: Latin America and the Caribbean

Music Online: Smithsonian Global Sound for Libraries This link opens in a new window
A virtual encyclopedia of over 35,000 tracks of music, spoken word, and natural and human-made sounds that includes recordings from the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings label and archival audio collections of the Folkways Records, Cook, Dyer-Bennet, Fast Folk, Monitor, Paredon and others. Browse by musical instrument, geographical area, or cultural group. View a tutorial on this database here.
Films on Demand: World Cinema Video Collection This link opens in a new window
Offers feature films from renowned directors across the globe, including films from the silent era, international directors, American and European masterworks from the mid-20th century, and award-winning contemporary films featured by Global Lens.

Latin American Public Opinion Project This link opens in a new window
Specializes in the development, implementation, and analysis of public opinion surveys. Since the 1970s, LAPOP has gathered databases containing political perspectives from Latin America and the Caribbean.
Latinobarometro This link opens in a new window
An annual public opinion survey that involves some 19,000 interviews in 18 Latin American countries, representing more than 400 million inhabitants.