For material on conducting Archival research, see our Research Methods Guide
Primary historical sources can include material such as personal documentation (e.g. letters, diaries); government documents (white papers, 
circulars, reports etc); photographs; rare books; school materials (e.g., old textbooks, documents, circulars, etc.).
Even though more initiatives of digitalisation of archives (such as by the British Library) and of rare books, historical newspapers, etc. (such as the Google News Archive) have been taking place, primary historical sources can be difficult to locate with many requiring a visit to a physical collection as not all material is digitised (especially in the case of materials not in the English language). You should therefore consider the accessibility of an archive when planning any research project using this material type.
Image attribution: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Documents_stacks_in_a_repository_at_The_National_Archives.jpg
| Please note that most of the suggested archives in the tabs above concentrate on UK history, but many countries around the world have their own National Archives and National Library archives. If your archival research focuses on non-UK contexts, those national archives can be a good place to start your research. |
| ArchiveSearch |
ArchiveSearch contains thousands of descriptions of archives held in Cambridge by almost 30 different repositories or archive organisations. ArchiveSearch allows you to:
For further information, see this LibGuide |
| ArchivesHub | “Brings together descriptions of thousands of the UK’s archive collections. Representing over 350 institutions across the country, the Archives Hub is an effective way to discover unique and often little-known sources to support your research.” |
| British Online Archives | "Hosts over 5 million records drawn from both private and public archives. Records are organised thematically, covering 1,000 years of world history, from politics and warfare to slavery and medicine." Note that not all material is available. |
| Education in the UK | Includes more than 600 historic education documents from the UK, including His Majesty Inspectorate publications, circulars and reports. |
| Faculty of Education Library Archive | A small physical archive containing a selection of materials relating to Education and the history of the Faculty. Do speak to a member of the Library Team should you wish to browse the Archive. |
| Faculty of Education Library National Curriculum Archive |
A small collection of material relating to the National Curriculum produced by:
The collection is for reference use only but fully browsable on Lily Pad 2 and includes the official documentation from the initial creation of the National Curriculum in 1988 through the revisions and changes of the National Curriculum Council to the Department for Education and Skills. The collection is organised in chronological order and separated by Government education departments and bodies. |
| Homerton College Archives | "The Archives contains records relating to the history of Homerton College, dating back to the 18th century. Our collections trace the roots of Homerton’s beginnings as a seminary in the London Borough of Hackney, its reestablishment in Cambridge in 1894, to the present day as part of the University of Cambridge." |
| National Archives (UK) | The official archive and publisher for the UK Government, and for England and Wales. Home to millions of historical documents created and collected by UK central government departments and major courts of law. |
| Secondary Education and Social Change in the UK since 1945 | "This project uses quantitative as well as qualitative material from the birth-cohort studies, other social surveys, school and local authority archives and oral histories to track the effects that universal secondary education had on the individual life course, career aspirations and achievements, and the experiences and identities of specific communities." |
| UCL Institute of Education Archives | "These archives predominantly relate to the history of education but have a broad coverage of research data, policy, practice, and thought in education. They provide a rich resource for the study of education and wider social policy worldwide and cover all levels from pre-school to higher education in formal and alternative settings.” Please note that most of this archive focuses on education in the UK, European and U.S. contexts. |
| Archives Unbound | "A multi-disciplinary resource, collections cover a broad range of topics from the Middle Ages forward-from Witchcraft to World War II to twentieth-century political history. Particular strengths include U.S. foreign policy; U.S. civil rights; global affairs and colonial studies; and modern history." |
| National Archives (US) | “The National Archives is the U.S. Government’s collection of documents that records important events in American history. The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is the Government agency that preserves and maintains these materials and makes them available for research.” |
| UCL Institute of Education Archives | "These archives predominantly relate to the history of education but have a broad coverage of research data, policy, practice, and thought in education. They provide a rich resource for the study of education and wider social policy worldwide and cover all levels from pre-school to higher education in formal and alternative settings.” Please note that most of this archive focuses on education in the UK, European and U.S. contexts. |
| Worldwide Diplomatic Archives Index | Provides a guide to the accessibility of diplomatic archives around the world. |
| The Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature (US based) | "Contains more than 115,000 volumes published in the United States and Great Britain from the mid-1600s to present day. The Library also has small holdings in manuscript collections, original artwork, and assorted ephemera such as board games, puzzles, and toys. The Baldwin Library is known for comparative editions of books, with special emphasis on Robinson Crusoe, Pilgrim's Progress, Aesop's Fables, and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. The Library also has the largest collection of Early American Juvenile Imprints of any academic institution in the United States." |
| Black Cultural Archives | "Our mission is to collect, preserve, and celebrate the histories of people of African and Caribbean descent in the UK and to inspire and give strength to individuals, communities, and society." |
| Churchill Archives Centre | World-leading collection of 20th century history. |
| Cotsen Children's Library | "Research collection of illustrated children's books, manuscripts, original artwork, prints, and educational toys from the 15th century to the present day." |
| Haithi Trust | The collection includes published materials from around the world - books, magazines, newspapers, sheet music, journals and government documents. |
| The Historical Children’s Book Collection at the University of Washington (European and US books) | "The Historical Childrens' Literature database chronicles by example the history of educational practice and reading, and the changing perceptions of gender, race and class and the role of religion in teaching. Both European and American books from the 18th to the 20th c. are represented in this collection." |
| The Hockliffe Project (De Montfort) (UK based) | Contains in excess of a thousand children's books which date from between 1685 and the early twentieth century. |
| National Arts Education Archive | "A repository of collections relating to the development of arts education in the UK from 1870 to the present day. The archive represents a distinctive and a unique collection of visual and documentary materials that trace the development of arts education over that period. It provides an historic time-line of arts education nationally and internationally." |