Colonial Era Documents

Women and Social Movements, Modern Empires Since 1820 includes personal writings by women related to the Habsburg Empire, the Ottoman Empire, the British, French, Italian, Dutch, Russian, Japanese, and United States Empires, and settler societies in the United States, New Zealand and Australia. To browse, open All Document Clusters.

Nineteenth Century Collection Online contains the "Archive" titled Exploration and Colonization of Africa which includes the following collections. You can search within a specified colelction by opening Exploration and Colonization of Africa.and scrolling down.

  • African Mail, 1904-1917
  • The African World and Cape-Cairo Express was a major business weekly devoted, as its masthead proclaimed, to “Commerce, Exploration, Mining, Finance.” Published in London 1905-1913
  • Annales de l'Extreme Orient et de l'Afrique 1878-1891
  • Bulletins du Comite de l'Afrique francaise 1891-1914
  • Colonial Africa Newspapers from the British Library (1821-1921)
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in Bathurst, Gambia, British Africa, 1857-1889
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in Boma, Congo, 1888-1895
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in Cape Town, Cape Colony, 1800-1906
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in Gaboon, 1856-1888
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in Goree Dakar, French Africa, 1883-1906
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in Grand Bassa, Liberia, 1868-1882
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in Lourenco Marques, Mozambique, Portuguese Africa, 1854-1906
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in Pretoria, The Transvaal, 1898-1906
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in Santiago, Cape Verde Islands, 1818-1898
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in Sierra Leone, British Africa, 1858-1906
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in St. Helena, British West Africa, 1831-1906
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in St. Paul de Loanda, Portuguese Africa, 1854-1893
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in Tamatave, Madagascar, 1853-1906
  • Despatches from U.S. Consuls in Zanzibar, British Africa, 1836-1906
  • Deutsche Kolonialzeitung (1884–1887)
  • German Colonialism in Africa: Selections from the Kolonialbibliothek (Colonial Library) Collection (1878-1910)
  • International Population Census, Africa (1820-1931)
  • Joseph Chamberlain Papers Relating to Africa (1893-1903)
  • Methodist Episcopal Church Missionary Correspondence, 1846-1912: Africa
  • Personal Narratives and Reminiscences of the Exploration of Africa (1836-1913)
  • Publications of the Cape Colony (Includes publications describing the pre-1860 Cape Colony)
  • Publications of the Natal Colony (1893-1909)
  • Bechuanaland and German Southwest Africa of 1898-1903
  • Report of the Boundary Survey between British Bechuanaland and German Southwest Africa of 1898-1903
  • Selected Africa Collections from the Bodleian Library (1809-1903)
  • Selected Cabinet Papers on Africa (1890-1916)
  • Selected Colonial Office Files on Africa (1794-1919)
  • Selected Dominions Office Files on Africa (1896-1897)
  • Selected Foreign Office Files on Africa (1825-1905)
  • Selected India Office Records on Colonial Africa (1867-1922)
  • Selected Maps and Plans Files on Africa (1896-1904)
  • Selected Narratives and Reminiscences on Colonial Africa (1792-1915)
  • Selected War Office Files on Africa  (1875-1938)
  • Yale Divinity School Periodicals on Africa (1800-1900)

Great Britain

Empire On-Line offers archival and printed materials relating to the British Empire in Africa, Australasia, the Americas, Oceania, and South Asia.

Images of Colonialism largely consists of late-19th and early-20th century trade cards and illustrated European newspapers

Nineteenth Century Collections Online: Europe and Africa: Commerce, Christianity, Civilization, and Conquest
--To search, select Advanced Search and deselect the other archives under Limit to.

Colonial Film: Moving Images of the British Empire offers information on over 6000 films with over 150 films online.

Population censuses and other official demographic statistics of British Africa: An Annotated Bibliography, by Henry J. Dubester. Washington: Library of Congress, 1950, 78 pp. 
HathiTrust Full Text

Additional material in Library Research Guide for British Colonial and Foreign Relations Sources

Communication to and from London

The Colonial Office List. London : Harrison, 1862-1966.
LLMC Version (1946-1965)
HOLLIS Record (1889-1940)
HathiTrust Version (1878-1922, incomplete)

A valuable source. Each volume includes brief descriptions of each colony with officials and statistics (largely population and import/export), brief biographical information on Colonial Office personnel, “Imperial and Local Acts of General Interest", colonial regulations, and “Papers Presented to Parliament relating to the Colonies since 1864” arranged by colony.

House of Commons Parliamentary Papers includes committee reports, draft bills, and other material emanating from the House of Commons. Includes reports submitted to Parliament. For more on Parliamentary papers.

There are two series of reports on the colonies: the Annual Reports and the Blue Books.

Find Colonial annual reports in HOLLIS by the search:

Author/creator exact phrase: Colonial Office
AND
Keywords anywhere contains: Uganda

Also in:
Great Britain. Colonial Office. Colonial reports - annual. London : H.M. Stationery Off., 1891-1940, No. 1 (1889)-no. 1936 (1938/39). 1936 v.
HOLLIS Record
--Paper Index: Nos. 1 (1889)-1936 (1938/1939). 1 v.
--No. 1-1071 (1889-1921) were issued as Papers by command and available in House of Commons Parliamentary Papers (1801- )

The titles and dates of the various series, by colony, may be conveniently found in Serial publications in the British Parliamentary papers, 1900-1968; a bibliography, by Frank Rodgers. Chicago, American Library Association, 1971, 146 p.
Documents (Lamont)  |  Br Doc 14.15

The country Blue Books were statistical reports sent to the Colonial Office annually from each colony. They contain statistical and other information on agriculture, education, transport, imports and exports, crime, hospitals, health, laws passed, expenditures and revenue, etc., together with the name, date appointed, and salary of colonial officials. They are described in Royal Commonwealth Society Official Publications Project. They are not available in the House of Common Parliamentary Papers database.  Any that Harvard does not possess must be obtained via interlibrary loan.  Find them in HOLLIS by searching the country and the phrase “blue book”. Example:

Nyasaland. Blue book.
Documents (Lamont) | Afr Doc 3603.5 F (Holdings:  1904/5-Dec. 1929 incomplete)

African blue books of statistics, 1821-1953

Confidential print: Africa, 1834-1966 contains printed material, from single letters to large volumes, circulated to officials in the Foreign or Colonial Office, to the Cabinet, and to heads of British missions abroad. Nature and Scope

British documents on the end of empire.  Online Access
Location : Widener WID-LC DA10 .B75

Series A: HOLLIS Record
•Vol. 1: Imperial policy and colonial practice, 1925-1945
•Vol. 2: Labour government and the end of empire, 1945-1951
•Vol 3: Conservative government and the end of empire 1951-1957
•Vol. 4: Conservative government and the end of empire 1957-1964

Series B: HOLLIS Record
•Vol. 1: Ghana
•Vol. 7: Nigeria

Series C: HOLLIS Record
•Sources for colonial studies in the Public Record Office.
--v. 1. Records of the Colonial Office, Dominions Office, Commonwealth Relations Office and Commonwealth Office. Online version 
--v. 2. Records of the Cabinet, Foreign Office, Treasury and other records.

Empire and commonwealth: archives of the Royal Commonwealth Society from Cambridge University Library. 2 pts on <43> microfilm reels
Pt. 1: The colour question in imperial policy, 1830-1939 (reel 1-25), includes materials concerning relations with native races, issues of race and empire, initial cultural contacts and race and cultural interchange.
--pt. 1 Online Guide
Pt. 2: Imperial & commonwealth conferences, 1835-1955 (reel 26-43), and materials on colonial reform.
--pt. 2 Online Guide
HOLLIS Record

Local Government

in HOLLIS with your country added as a keyword, for example. Most material must be obtained via Interlibrary Loan. This includes:

Government publications relating to Nigeria, 1862-1960
Government publications relating to Sierra Leone, 1808-1961
Government publications relating to the Gambia, 1822-1965
Government publications relating to the Gold Coast, 1846-1957

Library of Congress guides: Full text in HathiTrust. Useful for identifying names of government agencies and publications which can then be searched in HOLLIS, HathiTrust, Internet Archive, etc.

Other Colonizing Countries

Population censuses and other official demographic statistics of Africa, not including British Africa, , by Henry J. Dubester. Washington: Library of Congress, 1950, 53 pp.
HathiTrust Full Text

Belgium

 

Histoire de la colonisation belge du Congo

Bulletin officiel du Congo belge. Bruxelles, 1908-59
HOLLIS Record with online 1908-1924
Online Version (1885-1959)
--Continued by: Moniteur congolais.  HOLLIS Record

Search in HOLLIS and WorldCat “Belgium. Ministère des colonies”

Rapport sur l'administration de la colonie du Congo Belge présenté aux chambres législatives. Belgium. Ministère des affaires africaines. 1927-1956.
HOLLIS Record
--Continues: Belgium. Ministère des colonies. Rapport annuel sur l'activite de la colonie du Congo Belge présenté aux chambres législatives ?-1926 [Holdings: 1915-1926] HOLLIS Record   [Link to HathiTrust Full Text 1916-1920]
--Continued by: Belgium. Ministère du Congo Belge et du Ruanda Urundi. Rapport sur l'administration du Congo Belge présenté aux chambres législatives 1957-1959 HOLLIS Record

France

Gallica Presse colonial

Thème de la Grande Collecte-L'Afrique et la France aux XIXe et XXe siècles

European colonialism in the early 20th century. French colonialism in Africa: from Algeria to Madagascar, 1910-1930 (actually -1910-1941)  offers U.S. State Department files.

French colonial Africa: a guide to official sources, by G. D. Westfall. London; NY: Hans Zell Publishers, 1992, 226 p.
HOLLIS record

Washington: Library of Congress, guides: Full text in HathiTrust

French colonies in Africa: a list of references, by Helen F. Conover.  Washington: Library og Congress, 1942, 89 pp.
HathiTrust Full Text

Germany

Sources on German Colonial History online

European colonialism in the early 20th century: German colonies to League of Nations mandates in Africa 1910-1929

Italy

European colonialism in the early 20th century : Italian colonies in North Africa and aggression in East Africa, 1930-1939  offers U.S. State Department files.

Portugal

European colonialism in the early 20th century. Political and economic consolidation of Portuguese colonies in Africa, 1910-1929 offers U.S. State Department files.

Portuguese Africa, a guide to official publications. Washington: Library of Congress, 1967, 217 p.
HathiTrust Full Text

Anúario colonial. Portugal. Ministério das Colónias. Lisboa, Imprensa Nacional, 1916-
HOLLIS Record Holdings 1917/1918, 1927/1929
--Publication suspended 1919-25.
--Continued by: Portugal. Ministério do Ultramar. Anúario colonial

Spain

Spanish-speaking Africa; a guide to official publications, by Susan Knoke Rishworth. Washington: Library of Congress, 1973, 66 pp.
HathiTrust Full Text