Government & Military Source Collections, in print and microform formats
U.S. military intelligence reports, Italy 1918-1941 (Olin Library Microfilm 6149) 9 reels
U.S. military intelligence reports, China, 1911-1941 (Kroch Asia Library Microfilm 8787) 15 reels
U.S. military intelligence reports: France 1919-1941 (Olin Library Microfilm 6999) 12 reels
U.S. military intelligence reports: the Soviet Union, 1919-1941 (Olin Library Film 5989) 10 reels
U.S. military intelligence reports : surveillance of radicals in the United States, 1917-1941 (Olin Library Film 5785) 34 reels
- The Western European and Mediterranean Theaters in World War II byCall Number: Uris Library A.D. White Z6207.W8 S573 2009
- Tapping Hitler's Generals byCall Number: Olin Library, D810.S7 N3713 2007Translated from the German.
- Studies in social psychology in World War II ...Call Number: Library Annex, Mann, and Uris U22.S93Four volumes.
Social Science Research Council (U.S.) United States. Army Service Forces. Information and Education Division. Contents:- v. 1. The American soldier: adjustment during Army life, by S. A. Stouffer and others.
- v. 2. The American soldier: combat and its aftermath, by S. A. Stouffer and others.
- v. 3. Experiments on mass communication, by C. I. Hovland, A. A. Lumsdaine and F. D. Sheffield.
- v. 4. Measurement and prediction, by S. A. Stouffer and others.
Documentaries
BBC Archive A collection of freely available high-quality documentaries on World War II containing contemporary footage and interviews.
Government & Military Source Collections, online
- Combined Armed Forces Library Digital LibraryIncludes World War II Operational Documents.
- Defense Technical Information CenterMostly secondary books and articles but does include lots of reports and a few primary sources.
- US Army Center for Military HistorySome full text documents. Excellent bibliography.
- Digital National Security ArchiveDeclassified documents obtained through extensive use of the US Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) covering US foreign and military policy since 1945.
- Foreign relations of the United States: electronic facsimile.Some years may not be available. Also available through the Department of State
- ProQuest congressional publicationsA comprehensive collection of historic and current congressional information. Includes full text of congressional publications, hearings, finding aids, a bill tracking service, public laws and other research materials.
Newspapers
United States
- Index to Contemporary Military Articles of the World War II Era, 1939-1949 byCall Number: Uris Library Z6207.W8 B37 2005
- Proquest Historical NewspapersThe New York Times (1851-2003), the Wall Street Journal (1889-1989), the Washington Post (1877-1990), every page from every issue in PDF files.
- Reader's Guide RetrospectiveComprehensive index of the most popular general-interest periodicals published in the United States 1890 through 1982.
- Stars and Stripes (European and Pacific Editions) online Via AncestryFinding it is tricky. Once you’re in Ancestry, scroll to the bottom of the page, click on “all databases.” In the next screen, type Stars and Stripes as a title. Once you’re in, you don’t have to enter names, you can search simply by keyword on a term you’re interested in.
International
- The Times digital archive, 1785-2006Full-text and full-image articles from the Times of London for the years 1785-2006.
- Voices from wartime France, 1939-45Call Number: Library Annex Film 8266Clandestine resistance and Vichy newspapers, from the British Library Newspaper Library at Colindale, London. In French. On 206 reels of microfilm.
- The French forces of the interiorCall Number: Library Annex Film 5834In English. From the Historical Manuscripts File, Office of the Chief of Military History. On two reels of microfilm.
- The Belgian underground press in World War IICall Number: Library Annex Microfiche 1104From the collections of the Centre de recherches et d'études historiques de la seconde guerre mondiale, predominantly in French. Periodicals in French and Dutch; explanatory material in French; publisher's note in English. Accompanied by printed guide (located in Olin Library Reference) compiled by Etienne Josse and others, with parallel title: La presse clandestine de Belgique. Includes bibliographical references and index. 506 pages of microfiche..
Published Primary Sources
How to find published, translated sources such as memoirs, letters, etc.
Start in the Cornell Library Catalog's Advanced Search
Recommended Example Search #1
In box 1
type= World War 1939 Ital* (the asterisk means that the system will search both Italy and Italian and Italians); Use the pulldown menu and set it to subject
In box 2
type= personal narratives. Use the pulldown menu and set it to subject.
Recommended Example Search #2
Instead of personal narratives, use the word sources as a subject. In a library catalog, the word source refers to primary sources. It might be published, translated, edited sources, or books about sources, or collections of excerpted translated sources. All are very helpful.
Archives
National Archives and Records Administration
- US Military Documents from WWII (NARA)US Military Documents from WWII as well as other confiscated records are not typically available online, but many are available on microfilm and may be able to be borrowed through Interlibrary Loan (may take 2-3 weeks). Some have to be viewed on site in D.C. or elsewhere. Some have been published in part elsewhere. Ask a Librarian for help.
- NARA Catalog(hint: Subject Access Terms- World War II agency) will lead to such things as: OSS Documents on microfilm
Archival Collections at Cornell
- Kroch Rare and Manuscript CollectionsThe Rare and Manuscript Division is located in an underground addition attached to Olin Library. It houses unpublished sources from a variety of periods.
Selected German military documents in translation
This is a nice collection of 24 volumes of material, partly in English translation. Its organization is challenging. Email me for help with it.
World War II German military studies: a collection of 213 special reports on the Second World War prepared by former officers of the Wehrmacht for the United States Army / Donald S. Detwiler, editor, Charles B. Burdick and Jürgen Rohwer, associate editors. (Olin Library D757 .W92 volumes held: 1-15;v.19-24)
A similar collection is Foreign Military Studies, produced by the Historical Division at the Headquarters of the European Command immediately after the War. They are not available online, and the Cornell Library has very few of them. Try Borrow Direct or Interlibrary Loan. Catalogs were published which list the titles of manuscripts by topical subject compiled as part of the Foreign Military Studies Program after World War II. Manuscripts were written by German officers about their wartime experiences. Each citation lists: title, manuscript number, and whether it is available in German, English, or at OCMH.
German primary sources in German
- Das Deutsche Reich und der Zweite WeltkriegTable of Contents:
Bd. 1. Ursachen und Voraussetzungen der deutschen Kriegspolitik / von Wilhelm Deist ... [et al.]
Bd. 2. Die Errichtung der Hegemonie auf dem europäischen Kontinent / von Klaus A. Maier ... [et al.]
Bd. 3. Der Mittelmeerraum und Südosteuropa / von Gerhard Schreiber, Bernd Stegemann, Detlef Vogel
Bd. 4. Der Angriff auf die Sowjetunion (2 v.)
Bd. 5. Kriegsverwaltung, Wirtschaft und personnelle Ressourcen / von Bernhard R. Kroener, Rolf-Dieter Müller, Hans Umbreit (2 v.)
Bd. 6. Der globale Krieg / von Horst Boog ... [et al.]
Bd. 7. Strategischer Luftkrieg in Europa, Krieg im Westen und in Ostasien 1943-1944/45
Bd. 8. Die Ostfront, 1943/44
Bd. 9. Die deutsche Kriegsgesellschaft, 1939 bis 1945 (2 v.)
Bd. 10. Der Zusammenbruch des Deutschen Reiches 1945 (2 v.)
Series:
Beiträge zur Militär- und Kriegsgeschichte
Includes bibliographies and indexes.
Donovan Nuremberg Trials Collection
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuremberg_trials
The Donovan Nuremberg Trials Collection collection consists of nearly 150 bound volumes of Nuremberg trial transcripts and documents from the personal archives of General William J. Donovan (1883-1959). The Donovan papers contain both original statements from the defendants in German and typed translations in English prepared by the Allies.
The searchable transcripts reveal information about a wealth of topics and experiences.
Holocaust
Source: U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
Repositories of sources relating to the Holocaust also touch on many other topics.
- Visual History Archive (USC Shoah Foundation)Create an account using your Cornell email for the most complete access. This guide provides tips and strategies for searching.
- U.S. Holocaust MuseumA wealth of resources including a collection of translated testimony and other types of sources.