GSU Library Research Guides: Legal and Constitutional History: Primary Sources

Legal and Constitutional History

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Selected Fugitive-Slave Materials Digital Collections

North Carolina Runaway Slave Advertisements, 1751-1840
A University of North Carolina Greensboro digital collection.
Texas Runaway Slave Project
From the East Texas Research Center, Stephen F. Austin State University
The Geography of Slavery in Virginia
Collection of advertisements for runaway and captured salves in 18th- and 19th-century Virginia newspapers. A University of Virginia project.

To find other similar collections, try searching in Google using this search string:

site:.edu digital collection* fugitive slave*

Try other related terms to see if other related collections come up!

*Why are those asterisks there? Those asterisks are called "truncation symbols," and they will bring up results that include both "collection" and "collections" in the first case, and "slave," "slavery," "slaves," and even "slaveholding" in the second case.

Government and Legal Documents: Available through GSU Library

HeinOnline This link opens in a new window
Many US and international government documents, including (among others):
- US Supreme Court Library
- US Presidential Library

US Supreme Court Records and Briefs, 1832-1978
Approximately 150,000 Supreme Court cases featured, the majority consisting of those for which the Court did not give a full opinion.

Making of Modern Law This link opens in a new window
Includes full-text legal treatises from US and England (1800-1926)
Early American Imprints, Series I: Evans, 1639 - 1800 This link opens in a new window
Contains virtually every book, pamphlet and broadside published in America over a 160-year period.
Early English Books Online (EEBO) This link opens in a new window
Includes virtually every work printed in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and British North America and works in English printed elsewhere from 1473-1700.
Eighteenth Century Collections Online This link opens in a new window
Comprehensive online library of 18th century titles printed in the United Kingdom. It includes over 180,000 titles from books, pamphlets, essays, broadsides, and more, printed in English as well as Dutch, French, German, Italian, Latin, Spanish, and Welsh.

Digital Collections: Available through GSU Library

Collections related to specific themes or subjects. These are GSU subscription resources requiring a campus ID and password for off-campus access.

19th Century U.S. Newspapers
Selected newspapers, encompasses the entire 19th century, with an emphasis on such topics as the American Civil War, African-American culture and history, Western migration and Antebellum-era life among other subjects.
African American Newspapers, Parts I - VIII This link opens in a new window
Digital collection of major African American newspapers from the 19th century.
American Periodicals This link opens in a new window
Includes digitized images of the pages of American magazines and journals published from colonial days to the dawn of the 20th century.
Atlanta Constitution, 1868 - 1984 (ProQuest Historical Newspapers) This link opens in a new window
Coverage from 1868-1984.
Black Thought and Culture This link opens in a new window
Non-fiction writings by major American black leaders—teachers, artists, politicians, religious leaders, athletes, war veterans, entertainers, and other figures (1700-present).
New York Times, 1851 - 2017 (ProQuest Historical Newspapers) This link opens in a new window
Complete full text coverage from 1851 to 2010.
Times Digital Archive (1785-1985) This link opens in a new window
An online, full-text archive of over 200 years of The Times details every issue from 1785 - 1985, covering major international historical events from the French Revolution to the Falklands War. (the oldest daily newspaper in continuous publication).

Other Digital Collections: Freely Available Online

A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation, 1744-1875
One of the Library of Congress' American Memory collections, beginning with the Continental Congress in 1884 through the 43rd Congress. Collections include:
- Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention
- Journals of Congress
- Debates of Congress
- Statutes and Documents
Slaves and the Courts, 1740-1860
Part of the Library of Congress' American Memory digital library. Includes more than 100 pamphlets and books (published between 1772 and 1889) concerning the difficult and troubling experiences of African and African-American slaves in the American colonies and the United States.
American Memory / Library of Congress
Broad range of primary sources available online. Can search within individual collections, or across all collections.
Digital Library of Georgia
Gateway to digitized Georgia historical sources, including books, manuscripts, photographs, government documents, newspapers, maps, audio, video, and other resources.
The Liberty Library of Constitutional Classics
The Avalon Project: Documents in Law, History and Diplomacy
Includes documents from 4000bce - present.
The Online Library of Liberty
A project of Liberty Fund, Inc.
The Founders' Constitution
Joint venture of University of Chicago Press and the Liberty Fund.