National Archives Connection to U.S. Digital Collections
Press Release · Monday, April 6, 2020

Washington, DC

In addition to exploring the vast collections of historical records digitized by the National Archives in our Catalog (https://catalog.archives.gov/), users can also access millions of documents through the work supported by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) and our partners in the states. 

A national network of online resources is available at https://www.archives.gov/nhprc/projects/digital-resources.

Through the work of state archives, historical societies, and others, online collaborations have created digital archives from coast to coast. The National Archives is a major contributor to the Digital Public Library of America https://dp.la, as are many state collaboratives. All states also provide access to millions of documents through their own sites—from the Online Archives of California to DigitalNC. In addition, a number of online collections reach across state lines, including databases on slavery records and the Densho archives of the Japanese American experience.  

Through the scholarship of editorial teams, scores of digital documentary editions and virtual collections provide access to online collections of leading historical figures and national movements. Transcribed and annotated records collections from America’s Founding Era (founders.archives.gov) to the Papers of Eleanor Roosevelt are available for discovery and use. One particularly rich resource is Rotunda, the electronic imprint of the University of Virginia Press, which publishes 18 digital projects funded through the NHPRC.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the University of Virginia Press announced that it had joined with many other university presses to make their ebooks open access to the world through at least the end of academic spring semesters (for UVa Press, until June 30, 2020). Many of their history titles are available. See the Project MUSE page on Free Resources for a full list of participating publishers.

UVA Press has expanded the free-trial period for Rotunda. The standard free trial, available to the general public, will be increased to seven days, and the month-long extended trial (intended for library and university professionals) will be increased to 90 days. These provisions are subject to revision as conditions warrant: https://www.upress.virginia.edu/rotunda.

The National Historical Publications and Records Commission has funded 5,000 projects since it first began awarding grants in 1964. More information on the National Archives grants program is available at archives.gov/nhprc.