YCCC: United States History: Websites

U.S. History Websites

Be sure to check out the list of websites under the Primary vs. Secondary Sources tab!

Avalon Project of Yale Law School
Read actual documents of law, history and diplomacy from 4000 BCE to the 21st Century!
Digital Collections from the Library of Congress
A growing treasury of digitized photographs, manuscripts, maps, sound recordings, motion pictures, and books, as well as "born digital" materials such as Web sites.
Digital History
Searchable and browsable by era, topic, or publication type. You can even create your own custom timelines.
National Museum of American History
The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History offers a broad understanding of our nation and its many peoples.
U.S. History from Philadelphia's Independence Hall
The mission of the Independence Hall Association (IHA) is to educate the public about the Revolutionary and Colonial eras of American history.
1963: The Struggle for Civil Rights
Presents seven key "chapters" in one of the most tumultuous years in civil rights history.
Cold War: Overview
From "History of War in the 20th Century"

Be sure to check out the list of websites under the Primary vs. Secondary Sources tab!

Maine History Online
Maine History Online presents the state's history through essays organized by time periods, by themes, and by a critical approach to understanding history.
Maine Memory Network
The Maine Memory Network, a project of the Maine Historical Society, provides access to thousands of historical items belonging to over 260 organizations from across Maine.

Ask these questions to determine whether the resources you find are credible and reliable:

Who created the page? Does the person or organization have the appropriate credentials?
What is the purpose of the site? For example, is it sponsored by a company that has a financial interest in the topic?
When was the page last updated? How current is the information?
How does the author support his/her argument? Does the author cite trustworthy sources?

Learn more about evaluating websites from Cornell University; or print out our handy tipsheet.