Guides: History of the United States: History of California

Resources for the History of California

Books on the History of California will be located on the 6th Floor of the University Library:

History of California (General): F856-F870 (6th Floor)
History of Los Angeles: F869 L8- F869 L89 (6th Floor)
History of San Francisco: F869 S3- F869 S39 (6th Floor)
History of San Diego: F869 S22- F869 S24 (6th Floor)
History of the California Gold Rush: F864-F865 (6th Floor)

History Vault
A digital archive offering full-text and full-image primary resources about historical figures, events, and social movements. Search the entire History Vault, browse the modules, or search each module individually:
LA84 Foundation
Periodical, Book and Other Resource Titles. Free full text articles on sports history and books and studies on other aspects of sport.
Los Angeles Public Library California Index
The LAPLCalifornia Index is a citation index based on the LAPL Card Index. It indexes hundreds of California Publications not indexed elsewhere and also provides some full image access to publications.
Los Angeles Sentinel Historical (1934-2010)
Full-page and article images from the Los Angeles Sentinel, the oldest and largest black newspaper in the western United States and the largest African-American owned newspaper in the U.S., covering issues concerning the African-American community and its readers. Searchable with full text.
Los Angeles Times Current (1985 - present)
The L.A. Times offers full page and article images; covers 1985 to present.
Los Angeles Times Historical (1881-2000)
The L.A. Times (1881-2000) offers full page and article images with searchable full text back to the first issue.
Nineteenth Century U.S. Newspapers
Primary source newspaper content from 1800-1899, featuring full-text content and images from about 500 newspapers from a range of territories and urban and rural regions throughout the U.S. Includes topics such as the American Civil War, the Confederacy, African-American culture and history, Western migration, immigration, elections and Antebellum-era life. Funded by the History Department.
Sabin Americana: History of the Americas (1500-1926)
An online collection of books, pamphlets, serials and other works about the Americas, from the time of their discovery to the early 1900s. Covering a span of 400 years in North, Central and South America, as well as the Caribbean, this fully searchable digital archive is an essential tool for the study of the western hemisphere. It provides primary source material critical to the understanding of the society, politics, religious beliefs, literature, customs and momentous events of the times.

California State Library
California State Archives
Online Archive of California
An online repository of finding aids to primary source materials from a variety of universities and organizations.
USC Digital Library
Great online version of USC’s vast holdings; particularly strong in Los Angeles and West Coast history covering the last 200 years. The main library at USC (Doheny) also maintains strong California-related collections.
California Digital Newspaper Collection
This is a great compendium of historical California newspapers (particularly local newspapers).
Calisphere
Free public gateway to over 150,000 digitized primary source materials held by the University of California campuses. Especially organized for use by K-12 classrooms. Includes information and lesson plans for teachers.
LA as Subject Database
L.A. as Subject is an alliance of research archives, libraries, and collections dedicated to preserving the rich history of the Los Angeles region. L.A. as Subject is working to increase the visibility of local archives and improve access to them for students, researchers, K-12 educators, and everyone else with a stake in Southern California history. Smaller archives and repositories, many of them topic or community specific, can be found here.
Survey of California and other Indian Languages
THE SURVEY OF CALIFORNIA AND OTHER INDIAN LANGUAGES is an archive and research center in the Department of Linguistics, University of California, Berkeley, supporting the documentation, analysis, preservation, and revitalization of the indigenous languages of the Americas.
California Missions Foundation
The California Missions Foundation is a nonprofit public benefit corporation dedicated to preserving the landmark California Missions and associated historical and cultural resources for the benefit of the public through funding preservation activities and facilitating educational programs, conferences, and scholarship.
California Missions Resource Center
The California Missions Resource Center is a comprehensive and unique resource for historical information on the twenty-one California Missions.
California as I Saw It: First-Person Narratives of California's Early Years, 1849 to 1900 - Library of Congress
The collection covers the dramatic decades between the Gold Rush and the turn of the twentieth century. It captures the pioneer experience; encounters between Anglo-Americans and the diverse peoples who had preceded them; the transformation of the land by mining, ranching, agriculture, and urban development; the often-turbulent growth of communities and cities; and California's emergence as both a state and a place of uniquely American dreams. The production of this collection was supported by a generous grant from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation.

Pomona Valley Historical Collection
Cal Poly Pomona’s Pomona Valley Historical Collection, a sub-repository of the University Library’s Special Collections and Archives, collects, organizes, preserves, and makes available archival materials documenting the history of the Pomona Valley. These historic materials support research and teaching at Cal Poly Pomona and promote the history of the surrounding area. Pomona Valley Historical Collection materials are available for use by all interested users including students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the general research community.
Southern California Wine and Wine Industry Collection
Cal Poly Pomona’s Southern California Wine and Wine Industry Collection, a sub-repository of the University Library’s Special Collections and Archives, collects, organizes, preserves, and makes available archival materials documenting the history of Southern California Wine.

These historic materials support research and teaching at Cal Poly Pomona and promote the heritage of our region. The wine collections are available for use by all interested users including students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the general research community.The wine collections include materials in a variety of formats including:

-Textual materials: Books, periodicals, newsletters, reports, and clippings

-Audiovisual materials: Photographs, oral histories, and other audio recordings

-Ephemera and realia: Wine labels and bottles, pamphlets, postcards, and grape crate labels

California State Websites

State of California Homepage
California Digital Library
California Dept. of Education
California Census Data
California Dept. of Water Resources
California Energy Commission
U.S. Dept. of Energy
Gold Rush (Virtual Museum of San Francisco)
Earthquake Hazards (USGS)
Public Policy Institute of California
The Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank. Our mission is to inform and improve public policy in California through independent, objective, nonpartisan research.
Pew Research Center