History - Government Sources: Congress, Foreign Relations, Founding & Declassified Documents
Government related sources of American history.
Founding Documents
- Charters of FreedomContains copies of the Bill of Rights, the Constitution of the United States, and the Declaration of Independence.
- Core Documents of U.S. DemocracyContains a core group of current and historical basic Federal Government documents that define our democratic society.
Congressional History
- United States Congressional Serial Set (GPO FDSys)Current online editions of the Serial Set from the 100th (1987-1988) Congress forward with about a two year publication lag.
- United States Congressional Serial Set (Library of Congress)Numbered Senate and House Documents and Reports bound by session of Congress. Presently contains records for the 23rd (1833-35) through the 64th (1915-1917) Congress, but check for new records.
- Congressional by ProQuest This link opens in a new windowFormerly LexisNexis Congressional, this resource provides full-text access to historical (1789- ) and current U.S. Congressional publications, and information about members of Congress and Congressional committees. Track federal bills and laws.
- Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates 1774-1875Library of Congress site containing records and acts of Congress from the Continental Congress and Constitutional Convention through the 43rd Congress.
Foreign Relations - History
- Foreign Relations of the United States"Presents the official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions and significant diplomatic activity." This online version Includes the administrations of Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon-Ford with works in progress for succeeding administrations. For earlier administrations the University of Wisconsin is digitizing the series and has made available online volumes from 1861-1958/1960 with some gaps.
The State Department's Office of the Historian has also made available online on January 23, 2014 a preview edition of Toward "Thorough, Accurate, and Reliable": A History of the Foreign Relations of the United States Series to be superseded by the final edition once edits are completed. - Statesman's YearbookAvailable through 2012
Foreign Relations - Declassified Documents
- Declassified Documents CatalogPaper copies shelved in Gov Ref Z1223.Z9 D43 of v.12, 1986 - v.29, 2003. See also the Declassified documents, retrospective collection, Gov Ref Z1223 .Z9 D4.
- Digital National Security Archive This link opens in a new windowThe database contains more than 35,000 of declassified U.S. federal documents that led to policy decisions.
- IC on the RecordSite from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence providing "direct access to factual information related to the lawful foreign surveillance activities of the U.S. Intelligence Community."
- U.S. Declassified Documents Online This link opens in a new windowThese U.S. government documents are from presidential libraries, CIA, FBI and other agencies spanning the 20th and 21st century (Gale). Fondren Library owns access to the 2017 through 2023 online annual supplements.
- Woodrow Wilson Center Digital ArchiveThe Digital Archive contains once-secret documents from governments all across the globe, uncovering new sources and providing fresh insights into the history of international relations and diplomacy. It collects the research of three Wilson Center projects which focus on the interrelated histories of the Cold War, Korea, and Nuclear Proliferation.
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