Research Guides
Why should I use archives?
Archival research is an exciting exploration of primary sources. Personal letters, documents, photographs, manuscripts and more offer first-hand personal and community narratives and histories. Archives often specialize in local history and culture, but are not always limited to this scope. You may be surprised what global treasures your local archives hold!
Archives fit into a broader category called "Special Collections," though this sometimes refers specifically to rare book collections.
Tip: Look on the institution's website for guidelines on visiting and using the collection. Libraries and archives often have a "prepare for your visit" section and email or chat help services. See UW Special Collections' "Using the Collections" page as an example.
Search Google using keywords for archives (or digital collections) and the name of the city, state, region or country of interest to find local archives (use the language of the country).
There are archives devoted to notable people as well, so use names as keywords. "Papers" is often a good keyword when searching for personal collections.
Sample searches:
Special Collections and archives use "finding aids" or collection guides to inventory and describe their collections, and to help users identify relevant materials.
Some of this content is adapted from the University of Colorado Boulder's Introduction to Archival Research.