Sources for Historic and Contemporary Newspapers
- America’s Historical NewspapersFull-text database of newspapers published in the United States. Includes titles from all 50 present states, in various, separately searchable, series
- FactivaOver 8000 news and business publications in 22 language. Search by geographic locations, type and language.
Data and Maps
Census Data:
- Social Explorer (census data: 1790 - present). Create your own account!
- NHGIS provides, free of charge, aggregate census data and GIS-compatible boundary files for the United States between 1790 and 2014. Census data on the census tract level for Baltimore, MD, is accessible on Goliath/Geo/Baltimore.
- SimplyAnalytics (formerly SimplyMap) census data from 2000 and 2010, as well as market and business data). Sign up with your Harvard email! Includes the Claritas Prizm Market segment data, descriptions available here. There is a zip code look-up available as well.
- The book, The Clustered World, also goes into detail on the group characteristics.
- American Factfinder
- Ancestry Library Edition
- PolicyMap has current data on housing and income in the US.
Maps:
- Sanborn Maps Geo Edition
- Digital Sanborn Maps (1867-1970)
- Harvard Map Library Visit the Map Library to look at historic maps, or fire insurance plans!
- Harvard Geospatial Library
- Harvard Map Collection Digital Maps
- David Rumsey Map Collection
Aerial Photos and Images
Tips for Working with Ancestry Library Edition
Ancestry.com is a useful tool for accessing census schedules. Unfortunately for researchers of cities, it was designed primarily for genealogists, and therefore is much easier to search by name of resident rather than location of residence. In order to research your neighborhood of interest:
Find a range of addresses and intersections representative of your neighborhood of interest (use Google Maps, etc.).
Go to Ancestry Library Edition
Navigate to US Census Collection, then year of choice.
Navigate to your state and county of interest, and note how the city is divided up (wards, enumeration districts, etc.).
Use Obtain EDs in One Step (http://stevemorse.org/census/unified.html) to find correct enumeration district and ward by street intersection.
Go back to Ancestry and find the ward or enumeration district of interest. You may have to flip through many pages to find your location of interest.
Use the 1930 enumeration district number to get the corresponding enumeration district number for the 1940 Census.
Locating City Directories
Mapping Tools & Other Resources
- ArcMapDownload and install the software from the Goliath server. Only runs on Windows!
- ArcGIS OnlineAllows any Harvard affiliate to:
-Create interactive maps and apps and share them easily with the public (blogs, social media posts, etc.), or a private group quickly and easily with nothing to install or setup.
-Access a rich collection of basemaps, demographic maps, image services, and data.
Register to Access Harvard's ArcGIS Online Community at http://gis.harvard.edu/tools/software/arcgis-online - CartoSign up for free as a student for this easy-to-use mapping tool!
- Media Lab at the Lamont LibraryGet help with your videos from professional staff! The lab provides access to over 100 video and animation software, including Final Cut, LiveType, Soundtrack Pro, and more.
- KanopyAcccess to films on the streaming video platform is now mediated.
Related Guides
Selected Indexes to Journal Articles
Most useful databases:
- Avery Index of Architectural Periodicals
- Urban Studies Abstracts
- Academic Search Premier (EBSCO): a multidisciplinary database that includes citations and abstracts from over 4,700 scholarly publications (journals, magazines and newspapers). Full text is available for more than 3,600 of the publications and is searchable.
- America: History and Life.
- Proquest Statistical Abstract of the United States