Final Project
Each group will be crafting an urban history together, with each group member specializing in a particular type of primary source. You will be exploring the history of a particular place (a park, a building, a neighborhood, an intersection, a cemetery, a school, a factory, a bridge, a pier...) or a particular event (a strike, a parade, a festival, a disaster, an election...), and learning the ways in which varied sources complement and complicate the telling of your stories.
There are three aspects to this final project: a group presentation, a group history, and an individual essay on your own contribution. The group history will be a 15- to 20-page history a particular incident or place, and the individual essay will be a 4- to 6-page essay assessing your own contribution to the project – how your source material contributed to the group project, and how your interpretation fits into the whole.
Subject Portal » History » Course Guides »
Need Help?
- Susan Turkel, Outreach and Information Technology Librarian (BMC)
- Andrew Patterson, Reference Librarian (BMC)
- Arleen Zimmerle, Media & Reference Librarian (BMC)
- Eric Pumroy, Director of Library Collections and Seymour Adelman Head of Special Collections (BMC)
Related Subjects:
Databases A-Z:
Other:
CITY 250 / HIST 251 : 20th Century US Urban History (BMC)
Background Reading:
WorldCat
Provider: OCLC
A catalog of the holdings of books, journals, and other materials held by thousands of libraries.
Use EZ-Borrow / Interlibrary Loan to borrow items from outside the Tri-colleges.
Use EZ-Borrow / Interlibrary Loan to borrow items from outside the Tri-colleges.
Start with Tripod or WorldCat to find books on your topic. Possible subject headings to try:
- Urban Transportation Pennsylvania Philadelphia History
- University of Pennsylvania History
- World's Columbian Exposition 1893 Chicago Ill.
- New York World's Fair 1964 -1965
- MOVE Organization
- Eastern State Penitentiary of Pennsylvania
General Research - Archives:
Free Library of Philadelphia
The main building of the Free Library of Philadelphia has extensive holdings of Philadelphia-area maps and newspapers. The map department is open Monday through Friday, while the microfilm department also has weekend and evening hours. It is best to contact the department before a visit to discuss your project.
Philadelphia City Archives
The official repository for the records of the city government and its agencies. Particularly useful for this course are the records of the city planning agencies, city surveyors, and county prisons. The City Archives is open from 8:30 to 5:00 Monday through Friday, and you should contact them in advance of your visit to discuss your project and identify promising sets of records.
Temple University - Urban Archives
The Urban Archives was established in 1967 to document the social, economic, and physical development of the Philadelphia area from the mid-19th century to the present. The Archives functions as a repository for organizational records and related materials, and as a research facility for those interested in urban studies. The Archives collections are particularly strong in areas involving social service organizations, unions, housing development, community organizations, and contain many records from organizations involved with African Americans, education, and crime. The Archives also contains the photo archives of the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Evening Bulletin. A large number of images are available through an online catalogue, Digital Diamond.
Limited reference service is provided by the Archives staff. Please check ahead before visiting.
Limited reference service is provided by the Archives staff. Please check ahead before visiting.
Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collections Libraries
Gateway to the collections of most historical libraries in the Philadelphia region. Includes summary descriptions of the holdings of the libraries, links to their webpages, and a means of simultaneously searching the catalogs of most of the libraries.
Census:
Research Guide - Finding Census Information
Social explorer
Offers access to reports and interactive maps for the U.S. Census, 1790 through 2000.
Philadelphia NIS neighborhoodBase
Provides information from the U.S. Census and several city agencies on a variety of topics, including housing, population, land use, utilities, and more. Census information is from 2000; other city information is more recent.
Maps:
Research Guide - Maps and Geography
Penn Libraries - Philadelphia Maps and Geographic Information guide
The University of Pennsylvania Libraries have an excellent resource guide on finding all types of Philadelphia maps.
Greater Philadelphia GeoHistory Network
Provides historical maps of the city via a Google Maps viewer. Layers can be combined and viewed together. Click "Interactive Maps Viewer" to get started. Includes digitized versions of several late 19th century Philadelphia atlases and surveys.
Metropolitan Philadelphia Indicators Project
"MPIP maintains and updates a set of social, economic, and environmental indicators that portray the quality of life in the region's communities" - provides maps, data, and reports. MPIP is a product of Temple University and the William Penn Foundation, with partners in many areas of the city.
Newspapers:
Current News:
LexisNexis academic
Provider: LN
Full-text of thousands of U.S and international newspapers. Includes NY Times 1980-present.
Ethnic newswatch
Offers full-text articles from newspapers of the ethnic, minority and native press. Covers 1990-present.
Includes The Philadelphia Tribune from 1991 - present.
Includes The Philadelphia Tribune from 1991 - present.
Philadelphia inquirer (Philadelphia, Pa. : 1969)
Holdings:
(Bryn Mawr College) Available from 1981-present.
(Haverford College) Available from 1981-present.
(Swarthmore College) Available from 1981-present.
Publisher: Philadelphia, Pa. : Triangle Publications,
Online version of the newspaper Philadelphia Inquirer. Covers 1981-present.
Haverford owns 1984-2007 on microfilm, if page images are needed.
Haverford owns 1984-2007 on microfilm, if page images are needed.
Historical News
Research Guide - Historical Newspapers
The New York times on the Web
Holdings:
(Bryn Mawr College) Available from 1851-present.
(Haverford College) Available from 1851-present.
(Swarthmore College) Available from 1851-present.
Publisher: [New York, N.Y.] : New York Times.
Offers full-page-images and article images from the New York Times from 1851 to three years before the current date. The collection includes digital reproductions of every page from every issue, cover to cover, in downloadable image files.
Washington post (Washington, D.C. : 1974)
Holdings:
(Bryn Mawr College) Available from 1877-present.
(Haverford College) Available from 1877-present.
(Swarthmore College) Available from 1877-present.
Publisher: Washington, D.C. : The Washington Post Co.,
Bryn Mawr and Swarthmore's holdings begin with 1877 and include digital reproductions of every page from every issue, cover to cover, in downloadable image files. Haverford holdings provide full-text of articles from 1977 through the present.
America's historical newspapers
Provider: Readex
Includes full text of 61 Philadelphia newspapers ranging in coverage from 1736-1858.
For more information, log in and select "places of publication."
For more information, log in and select "places of publication."
Pennsylvania gazette (Philadelphia, Pa. : 1729)
Provides full-text access to the Pennsylvania gazette a newspaper published in Philadelphia from 1728-1800. This archive is fully digitized.
Philadelphia inquirer (Philadelphia, Pa. : 1860)
Available from 1860-1900 and 1901-1922.
The Inquirer is not available online from 1923 through 1977, but is available on microfilm at the Free Library of Philadelphia for those years. There is no print index for these years. There is more information on Philadelphia papers on microfilm at the Free Library here.
The Inquirer is not available online from 1923 through 1977, but is available on microfilm at the Free Library of Philadelphia for those years. There is no print index for these years. There is more information on Philadelphia papers on microfilm at the Free Library here.
Photos:
American Memory from the Library of Congress
American Memory provides free and open access through the Internet to written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps and more.
Use the search box at the top of the page to search for photos of your location.
Use the search box at the top of the page to search for photos of your location.
AP images
Electronic library containing the Associated Press's current photos and a selection of pictures from their 50 million image print and negative library.
NYPL Digital Gallery
Provides access to over 275,000 images digitized from primary sources and printed rarities in the collections of The New York Public Library, including illuminated manuscripts, historical maps, vintage posters, rare prints and photographs, illustrated books, printed ephemera, and more.
PhillyHistory.org
Provides online access to over 50,000 photographs from the collections of the Philadelphia Department of Records. Also provides digital access to the Philadelphia historical streets index and the Philadelphia historical photograph index.
Philadelphia Architects and Buildings
FREE REGISTRATION REQUIRED FOR SEARCHING. Brings together the collections, data, images and professional expertise of The Athenaeum of Philadelphia, the University of Pennsylvania Architectural Archives, the Philadelphia Historical Commission, the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, and several local cultural institutions, enabling free access to information on the built environment of the five-county Philadelphia area.
Human Help! :
Make an appointment with with a librarian or stop by the Reference Desk. We'd be happy to help!