Several of our most popular online resources are listed below. You can find additional collections available online by searching the Harvard Library catalogs HOLLIS, HOLLIS for Archival Discovery, and HOLLIS Images. For more information and help with searching, please contact the Archives reference staff.

Harvard-Radcliffe Online Historical Reference Shelf

Harvard-Radcliffe Online Historical Reference Shelf The Harvard-Radcliffe Online Historical Reference Shelf contains digitized versions of the annual reports of the presidents and treasurers of Harvard and Radcliffe, 1826–1995, narrative histories, official University publications, student and alumni publications, information about Cambridge buildings and architects, and more.

Harvard & Radcliffe Annual Reports Includes full-text searchable reports of Harvard presidents, treasurers, deans, and department heads, with varying coverage, from 1825/26 to 1994/95. Links to current and archived website for Harvard reports after 1995 are also included. Reports of Radcliffe presidents cover 1879/80 to 1987/88, and contain Radcliffe treasurers' reports from 1879/80 through 1959/60.

Quinquennial Catalogue of the Officers and Graduates of Harvard University, 1636-1930 The Quinquennial Catalogue is an historical directory of Harvard degree recipients from the first graduating class in 1642 through the classes of 1929.  The Catalogue also includes the names and terms of service of University administrators and faculty from 1636 to 1930. It is organized in three sections: lists of University administrators and faculty; lists of graduates by academic degree; and an alphabetical index of graduates.

Harvard University Catalogs

Please note: The Harvard University Catalogues from 1923 to 1998 are not yet available online. Original (print) volumes are available for onsite use in the University Archives' reading room.

  

Official Register of Harvard University

The Official Register is a series of publications published annually by the University. While the titles included within the register have varied since it was first published in 1900, it consistently includes items such as annual reports of the president and treasurer, University catalogue,  individual courses catalogs for Harvard College and professional schools, announcements of departments and divisions, student handbooks, and directories of University officers and students. 

Certain components of this publication are available online (the holdings may not be complete):

 

Additional content is also available the Hathi Trust but certain content may be limited to “Search Only.”

Archived Websites

The Harvard University Archives collects two categories of websites: sites created by Schools, departments, and administrative units throughout the University (A-Sites), and sites created by the broader Harvard community, including faculty, students, visiting scholars, and staff (H-Sites). The Archives has been collecting websites since 2007.

  

The Harvard Charter of 1650

The Harvard Charter of 1650: History, transcription, and view online Signed on May 31, 1650 by Governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony Thomas Dudley, the Charter of 1650 established the Harvard Corporation as Harvard's primary governing board. Harvard continues to operate under the authority of the Charter of 1650 to this day.

Tolman Index

The Tolman Index to University Records, 1636-1870s and Sibley's Private Journal, 1846-1882, informally named for its compiler, Bertha Tolman, is an exhaustive name and subject card index covering most of the official University records from 1636 to the 1870s. The index also references the personal diary of Harvard librarian John Langdon Sibley and the correspondence of five Harvard presidents.

Calendar of Harvard History

The Calendar of Harvard History provides access to information about people, events, policies, academic and extracurricular student life, and other activities at Harvard from 1636 to the present. It is searchable by date and keyword.

 

Historical Register of Harvard University, 1636-1936

Historical register of Harvard university, 1636-1936. (Cambridge: Harvard University, 1937). Includes, important dates in Harvard history, 1636-1936. -- Chronological tables. -- Officers of government and instruction, 1637-1936.

 

Harvard University Gazette

Harvard University gazette. (Cambridge, Mass.: The University, 1906-) is the official news outlet for Harvard University and currently published today in an online only format. Additional online content available via the publisher.

Harvard Library Digital Collections

Worlds of Change: Materials from 17th and 18th century North America provides access to digitized manuscripts and archives documenting a wide range of topics related to 17th- and 18th-century North America. From business ledgers to personal correspondence to government documents, explore thousands of items from the North American Colonial period across Harvard Library's collections.

The Harvard University Open Collections Program (OCP) provides online access to virtual collections of thematically linked material selected from numerous Harvard repositories. Selected documents and images from the Harvard University Archives are included in the following OCP projects.

Doctors of Philosophy with the Titles of their Theses

Published directories listing Harvard doctors of philosophy and the titles of their doctoral dissertations.