UC Library Search
Tips to find UCSB archival collections!
- UC Library Search for Archival CollectionsYou can search for archival collections using UC Library Search!! Select the option UCSB Special Research Collections at the top of the screen. Then, in the search box, type your keywords, e.g., Chicano, Chicana, or "Mexican American," to see what collections we have access to
- Doing Research at the ArchiveArchives are different from libraries since you need to request an appointment to access their physical collections. Visit the UCSB Library's Special Research Collection to learn what you need to do to get started!
- Create a Special Collections Research Account!Special collections are different from libraries. To materials in special collections do not circulate outside the archive. Instead, they need to be viewed on site. For that you need to make an appoint to see the material. At SRC, you need to create a research account. Follow this link to learn more about how to create your very own research account and set up an appointment to visit SRC!
Where to find...?
Primary Sources are documentary evidence of events as remembered by the people that experienced them. There are a wide variety of sources that can be labeled "primary" such as:
- Artwork (painting, sculptures, pottery, posters)
- Diary, memories, and autobiographies
- Interviews in a newspaper or magazine
- Letters
- Performance (like a play or a ballet or a flash mob)
- Poem and other types of literature (novels, short stories, fables, etc.)
- Treaty and other legal documents that document decisions such as bills of sales, wills, etc.
Sometimes, a secondary source (a source that analyzes primary sources to understand why a phenomenon happened such as scholarly articles published in academic journals, research books, biographies, textbooks, etc.) can be treated as a primary source depending on the context of your research. For example, if you are doing a research study about how biology teaching has changed through time, then biology textbooks are considered a primary source.
Primary sources can be found both in libraries and archives. Many have been digitized and accessible online while others are only accessible by visiting an archive or getting a print book at the library or through Interlibrary Loan. Explore the tabs on this page to see where and how you can find and access these sources!
Caption: Crystallizing the Chicano Art Myth (detail). Photograph part of the Royal Chicano Air Force archives collection located at the UCSB Special Research Collections
UCSB Primary Sources Databases
- Latino Civil Rights during the Carter AdministrationLatino Civil Rights During the Carter Administration gives a rich insight into the efforts of the Executive Branch of the U.S. government to reach out to the burgeoning Latino population during the last 2 years of the Carter Administration. Major topics covered in this collection include inflation, bilingual education, police brutality, political unrest in Latin America, Haitian refugees, immigration (legal and otherwise), Puerto Rican self-determination, and the U.S. Navy’s use of Vieques Island.
- Migrant and Guest Worker Programs (Primary Sources)To study the U.S. Government laws and programs that govern migration and guest worker programs, a good place to search the ProQuest Congressional Database! This particular site focuses on the history of migration legislation, the Bracero Program and similar guest workers programs.
- ProQuest Congressional This link opens in a new windowCovers legislative and regulatory information from the United States Government.
Freely Accessible Online Archival Collections
- Chicana/o Studies Oral History ProjectThis project document the historical development and formation of the Chicana/o Studies field through in-depth interviews with the first generations of scholars who shaped it.
- Bracero History ArchiveThe Bracero History Archive collects and makes available the oral histories and artifacts pertaining to the Bracero program, a guest worker initiative that spanned the years 1942-1964. Millions of Mexican agricultural workers crossed the border under the program to work in more than half of the states in America.
- Digitized Benson Collections at UT-AustinThis site offers a selection of collections digitized from The Benson's Latin American Collections, including many materials from Mexico and the borderlands.
- Google Arts and Culture: UCLA Chicano Studies Research StudiesA selection of digital collections from the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Studies Library
- Library of Congress Digital CollectionsYou can search the rich collection of digitized materials that document the life and history of the United States. You can search by topic such as "Mexican American War" or ethnic groups such as Mexican American or Chicano and see what type of materials are available.
- Smithsonian Latino Center | Learning LabVisit this site to explore the many resources about the history of Latino Americans curated by the staff at the Smithsonian Latino Center
- ProQuest News and Newspapers Databases This link opens in a new window
Contains full text historical and current newspaper databases and news sources. Includes individual newspaper files and topical collections that can be searched simultaneously or individually.
- Alternative Press Index This link opens in a new windowThe Alternative Press Index is an excellent resource to find newspapers written by ethnic and gender minorities. This database coverage starts from 1991 to the present. If you are looking for newspapers written by Chicanos and other Latino groups, African Americans, Asian American, or LGBTQ, this is the place to find them.
- Alternative Press Index ArchiveAlternative Press Archive is the companion database for Alternative Press Index. This database coverage starts in the 1960s to 1991. Great resource to find archival newspapers, magazines, and zines by a wide variety of ethnic and gender groups!
- Arte Público Hispanic Historical Collection: Series 1 & 2 This link opens in a new window
Archive of publications focused exclusively on US Hispanic history, literature and culture from colonial times until 1960. Context is written, indexed and searchable in Spanish and English. Series 1 focuses on the creative life of US Latinos and Hispanics. Series 2 chronicles Latino-Hispanic civil rights leaders, religious thinkers and women writers in the United States from the late 19th to mid 20th century.
- Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers This link opens in a new windowChronicling America provides access to information about historic newspapers and select digitized newspaper pages.
- California Newspaper Project This link opens in a new windowThe California Newspaper Project is an 18-year effort by the CBSR to identify, describe and preserve California newspapers.
- Rumbo a California: Making Mexican American Music in the Golden State
This is an exhibit online that celebrate Mexican music produced and recorded in California. Rumbo a California tells the story of the people, the labels, and the songs that made Mexican and Mexican American music such a vital part of California culture in the twentieth century. - New York Public Library. Digital Collections.Prints, photographs, maps, manuscripts, streaming video, and more, from the collections of the New York Public Library. You can find historical images of the many ethnic groups in NYC and the United States, e.g. Mexican American, Puerto Rican, Dominican, etc.
- Oxford Art Online This link opens in a new windowThis database includes biographies, articles, and images from all around the world! Search for Latino, Chicano, or "Mexican American" AND Art to find articles and images. You can also search for specific artists' names.
- Google Arts and Culture: UCLA Chicano Studies Research StudiesA selection of digital collections from the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Studies Library
The UCSB Library, as well as the rest of the UC campuses, hold rich collections of archival materials created by Chicana/o, Hispanic/Latinx people. Some collections are accessible physically at UCSB Archives and Special Collections while others can be accessed online through the Online Archive of California (where you can search for finding aids) and Calisphere, the portal to digital collections from California's libraries, archives, and museums.
Definitions:
- Finding Aids: It's a guide for an archival collection. It includes an explanation of the historical background of the collection; information about the content (dates of coverage, subjects, creators, individuals or events represented, etc.), how it has been organized, and an inventory of the content and where it is located (boxes and folders). You use it to find materials that you want to see and/or request from an archive
- Surrogate(s) or facsimiles: Copy of items from a collection that are made available either in a print or electronic format. For example, Calisphere offers access to electronic surrogates of papers, photographs, and/or movies from many archival collections housed across the state of California.
Not all archival collection is available online, so it is important to check the finding aids first to determine if the archive has what you want to access. If you have questions or need help, please contact me!!
Explore these resources following the links below:
- Calisphere
Calisphere aggregates digital materials from all UC's, and libraries, archives, and museums across the state. A great resource to find images and other digital resources related to the Hispanic/Latinx and Chicana/o populations in CA and the rest of the United States. You can search across all collections, search for specific collections, or search within any of the UC campuses sites. Try search by ethnicity or a topic such as "United Farm Workers" or "Chicano movement". Tip: Use quotation marks to search for phrases! - CEMA: California Ethnic and Multicultural ArchivesThe California Ethnic and Multicultural Archives, also known as CEMA, is a division of the Special Research Collections Department of the University of California, Santa Barbara Library. CEMA is a permanent program that advances scholarship in ethnic studies through its varied collections of primary research materials. These unique collections document the lives and activities of African Americans, Asian/Pacific Americans, Chicanos/Latinos, and Native Americans in California. Visit the site to explore the digital collections--also available through Calisphere!
- El Teatro Campesino (CEMA 5) Online!!The archives of El Teatro Campesino are the largest archival collection on Chicano theater. They include a variety of formats, dating from El Teatro's founding in 1965. Some of their content has been digitized, and it is available at the Internet Archive
- Revolution and Protest Online This link opens in a new windowYou can search for primary and secondary sources related to the Chicano movement and similar social movements (labor, students) in the United States
- History Vault This link opens in a new windowThis is a great primary sources database that covers a wide range of topics. For your research, I recommend exploring these collections:
- Civil Rights and the Black Freedom Struggle
- Women's Studies
- Workers, Labor Unions, and Radical Politics
- Latino Civil Rights during the Carter Administration (Under Latinx History)