LibGuides: English and American Literature Subject Guide: Historical Text Databases: English Literature

Historical (Primary Text) Databases

These databases contain the transcriptions of primary texts written in England from about the 8th Century to the latter part of the 15th Century. For medieval illustrative material, please consult the list of Additional Resources given in the Medieval Studies Research Guide.

Dictionary of Old English Web Corpus
Complete record of surviving Old English except for some variant manuscripts of individual texts.
Loeb Classical Library
Online access to the Loeb Library series of Greek and Latin texts, along with their English translations covering drama, poetry, literature, history, biography, travel, and philosophy.
Middle English Compendium
Includes information on Middle English lexicon and usage for the period 1100-1500 from the Middle English Dictionary, a Bibliography of Middle English prose and verse, and a Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse.

These databases present the searchable texts and images of the materials published in books, broadsides, pamphlets, proclamations, and newspapers printed in England from 1473 until 1800. The spellings of words, names, and phrases can vary -- a simple word such as our dog can be spelled dog, dogg, dogge, etc. -- so be certain to try alternative spellings in order to get the best results.

British Library Newspapers
Includes London national newspapers, English regional papers, home country newspapers from Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, and titles in specialist areas such as Victorian radicalism and Chartism from 1732 to 1950.
Burney Newspapers Collection
Includes newspapers, pamphlets, and proclamations gathered by the Reverend Charles Burney (1757-1817).
Early English Books Online
Virtually every work printed in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and British North America and works in English printed elsewhere. 1473-1700.
Eighteenth Century Collections Online
Full-text of over 150,000 books published during the 18th Century. Covers history, literature, religion, law, fine arts, science and more. 1701-1800.
Nichols Collection Newspapers
Full text access to 17th and 18th century English newspapers gathered by printer/collector John Nichols (1745-1826).

These databases present the searchable texts and images of the materials published in books, broadsides, magazines, pamphlets, proclamations, and newspapers printed in England from 1801 to the present. The spellings of words, names, and phrases can vary, so be certain to try alternative spellings in order to get the best results.

Archives of Sexuality & Gender: LGBTQ History and Culture Since 1940
Includes articles, manuscripts, images, and correspondence on social, political, health, and legal issues impacting LGBTQ communities globally; sex and sexuality; and related issues.
British Library Newspapers
Includes London national newspapers, English regional papers, home country newspapers from Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, and titles in specialist areas such as Victorian radicalism and Chartism from 1732 to 1950.
Children's Literature and Culture (Adam Matthew)
Includes pamphlets, rare books, scores, and images in the area of children's literature from the 1820s-1920s.
Children's Literature & Culture (Gale)
Access photographs and texts on child welfare and reform, education, juvenile health, and juvenile crime and detention from the British Library and the Hine Collection (National Child Labor Committee).
British Periodicals
Full text of hundreds of periodicals from the late seventeenth century to the early twentieth.
Through June 30, 2023, unlimited users have access to the British Periodical Collection III & IV. Continued access beyond that date is not guaranteed and is subject to a purchase decision by the UConn Library.
HathiTrust Digital Library
Search the full text of over 10 million volumes digitized primarily from research libraries covering all academic disciplines. View scanned pages of public domain and open access titles, or snippets from copyrighted material.
Illustrated London News
Full text with images from the worlds first illustrated news-magazine, London News Illustrated, from 1842-2003.
Times Digital Archive
Full facsimile images of specific articles and complete pages of the Times of London. Includes all articles, advertisements and illustrations/photos. 1785 - 2012+. (Annual update.)
Times Literary Supplement
Access to the Times Literary Supplement from 1902 to 2019.
Times of India
Access to the full text of the Times of India newspaper.

English and American Literature Subject Guide — Historical Text Databases: English Literature

Historical (Primary Text) Databases