Research Guides: Gender &amp; Sexuality Studies Resources: Primary Sources

Subject Headings

Subjects for Primary Sources

Examples from Library Catalog, VU Collections (subject contains)

Women -- United States -- Diaries
Jesús, Ursula de, 1604-1666 -- Diaries
Women authors, Japanese -- Heian period, 794 -1185 -- Diaries
Women, Black -- Caribbean area -- Diaries
French letters -- Women authors -- 19th Century
Travelers' writings, English -- Women authors -- History and criticism
Women prisoners -- Interviews

Other KeywordTerms

personal narrative(s)
interview(s)
journall(s)
personal writing(s)
oral history/histories
portrait(s)
pictorial work(s)

Primary Sources

Archives of Sexuality & Gender This link opens in a new window
Mainstream and alternative gay and lesbian newspapers, newsletters, and periodicals from several countries, reports, policy statements, and other documents related to gay rights and health, including the worldwide impact of AIDS, materials tracing LGBTQ activism in Britain, etc.
Coverage: 1940-.
Crime, Punishment, and Popular Culture This link opens in a new window
Trial transcripts, court proceedings, police and forensic documents, photographs, true crime literature and detective novels, and newspaper accounts derived from French, German, Spanish, Australian, British and U.S. sources.
Coverage: 1790-1920.
Defining Gender This link opens in a new window
British primary sources providing a gendered perspective on social conduct, power distribution within the family, religion and morality, consumption and leisure, education of men and women, and perceptions of the body.
Coverage: 1450‑1910.
Everyday Life and Women In America This link opens in a new window
Monographs, pamphlets, periodicals, and broadsides addressing 19th and early 20th century political, social and gender issues, religion, race, education, employment, marriage, sexuality, home and family life, health, and pastimes. The collection is rich in conduct of life and domestic management literature, offering insights into the daily lives of women and men, as well as emphasizing contrasts in regional, urban and rural cultures.
Coverage: 1800-1920.
Food and Drink in History This link opens in a new window
Key food and drink history stories from the evolution of food within everyday life to haute cuisine, charting key issues around agriculture and food production, and looking into advertising histories of key food and drink brands. The materials in this collection illustrate the deep links between food and identity, politics, power, gender, race, and socio-economic status.
Coverage: 16th century to present.
Gender: Identity and Social Change This link opens in a new window
Primary source materials from men’s and women’s organizations, advice literature, and etiquette books documenting women's suffrage, the feminist movement, the men’s movement, government and legislation, employment, education, the body, the family, and changing societal expectations about gender roles.
Coverage: 19th to 21st centuries.
HistoryMakers Digital Archive This link opens in a new window
Oral history interviews with both well-known and unsung African American artists, business leaders, scientists, athletes, and intellectuals.
History Vault This link opens in a new window
Digitized letters, papers, photographs, scrapbooks, financial records, diaries, and other primary source materials. In addition to the Women's Studies collection, other collections include the contributions of important women in the respective subject areas.
Independent Voices This link opens in a new window
Alternative press journals, magazines, and newspapers covering feminists, dissident GIs, campus radicals, Native Americans, anti-war activists, Black Power advocates, Latinx, gays, lesbians, etc.
Coverage: 1951-2015.
LGBT Magazine Archive This link opens in a new window
Archival runs of 26 of the most influential, longest-running serial publications covering more than six decades of the history and culture of the LGBT community.
Coverage: 1954-2015.
LGBT Thought and Culture This link opens in a new window
Books, periodicals, and archival materials documenting LGBT political, social, and cultural movements.
Coverage: 20th Century to present.
Magazine Archives (EBSCOHost) This link opens in a new window
Collection of popular magazine archies: Ebony Magazine Archive, Life Magazine Archive, Sports Illustrated Magazine Archive, The Atlantic Magazine Archive, The Nation Magazine Archive, Time Magazine Archive, The National Review Archive, Architectural Digest Magazine Archive, Maclean's Magazine Archive, People Magazine Archive, The New Republic Magazine Archive, U.S. News and World Report Magazine Archive, Vanity Fair Magazine Archive
Ebony Magazine Archive, Life Magazine Archive, Sports Illustrated Magazine Archive, The Atlantic Magazine Archive, The Nation Magazine Archive, Time Magazine Archive, The National Review Archive, Architectural Digest Magazine Archive, Maclean's Magazine Archive, People Magazine Archive, The New Republic Magazine Archive, U.S. News and World Report Magazine Archive, Vanity Fair Magazine Archive, Jet Magazine Archive
Popular Culture in Britain and America, 1950-1975 This link opens in a new window
Explores the dynamic period of social, political, and cultural change in the U.S. and U.K., covering such topics as music and television, the Vietnam war, student protests, the civil rights movement, and women's liberation. Includes the Social Protest Collection from UC Berkeley, a wide range of zines and alternative press publications, posters, and multimedia.
Coverage: 1950-1975.
Readers' Guide Retrospective, 1890-1982 This link opens in a new window
Index of articles from magazines, including full coverage of the original print volumes of Readers’ Guide to Periodical Literature™. Atlantic Monthly, Century Magazine, Christian Century, Commonweal, Foreign Affairs, Fortnightly Review (London), Good Housekeeping, Harper's, Ladies Home Journal, Literary Digest, The Nation, New Republic, Reader's Digest, Saturday Evening Post, Saturday Review, Scribner's, and Women's Home Companion.
Coverage: 1890-1982.
Sex & Sexuality This link opens in a new window
Correspondence, research papers, and records from the Kinsey Institute Library and Special Collections explores changing attitudes towards human sexuality, gender identities, and sexual behaviors.
Coverage: 20th Century.
Vogue Archive This link opens in a new window
Complete archive of American Vogue, documenting American and international fashion, culture, and society. High-resolution color page images, with every page, advertisement, cover, and fold-out included.
Coverage: 1892-present.
Women's Magazine Archive This link opens in a new window
Women’s interest consumer magazines with detailed article-level indexing. Includes Better Homes and Gardens, Chatelaine, Cosmopolitan, Essence, Good Housekeeping, Ladies' Home Journal, Parents, Redbook, Seventeen, WIN News, and Woman's Day.
Coverage: late-19th century to 2005.
Women's Studies Archive This link opens in a new window
Diaries, letters, photographs, news clippings, organizational records, and journals. History of the social, political, and professional aspects of women's lives and the roles, experiences, and achievements of women in society.
Coverage: 19th and 20th centuries.
Women and Social Movements in the United States This link opens in a new window
Document projects and archives, including book, film, and website reviews, notes from the archives, and teaching tools; organized around the history of women in social movements.
Coverage: 1600-2000.
Women Working, 1800-1930 This link opens in a new window
Digitized books, manuscripts, and images from the collections of Harvard University Libraries and Museums on the topic of women in the U. S. economy from 1800-1930.
Coverage: 1800-1930.