Databases

Provides cover-to-cover online access to the prominent Canadian news magazine from its first issue in 1905 through 2015. Published weekly through much of its run, the magazine conveyed both domestic and international news and analysis on a spectrum of subjects of interest to Canadians.  Front and back covers are included, along with all advertisements, providing insight into 20th century social history.

Provides insight into the American consumer boom of the mid-20th century through access to the market research reports and supporting documents of Ernest Dichter, the era’s foremost consumer analyst and market research pioneer.

Includes content on some of America’s best known brands, containing thousands of reports commissioned by advertising agencies and global businesses in a booming era for consumerism, ‘Madison Avenue’ advertising and global brands on consumer goods ranging from tobacco and broadcasting to cars and hotels.

The collection supports researchers of consumer culture, business, advertising, marketing and psychology.

The Mass Observation project collected information about everyday life in Britain during the mid-twentieth century, reflecting attitudes, behaviors, and public opinion. Created by three British researchers as a personal research project, its focus changed as it served the government during the Second World War and then emerged as a market research organization. The findings continue to be valued for their insight into British society, although sometimes criticized for the self-selecting methodology used to collect the data.

The online database provides over 2,000 File Reports (top-level summaries), Day Surveys from 1937-38, Diaries from 1939-67, and a range of Topic collections including: Household Matters and Household Budgeting, 1939-1950; Juvenile Delinquency; Korea, 1950; Radio Listening, 1939-1948; World Outlook, 1945-1950, Film; Reading Habits; Dreams; Religion; Victory Celebrations, and Capital Punishment.

Includes primary sources that can be used to explore the history of illness, treatment and disease on international front lines from 1850 to 1949. Chart scientific advances through hospital records, medical reports and first-hand accounts.

The four conflicts robustly represented are the Crimean War, the American Civil War, the First World War and the Second World War. Many other conflicts also have relevant documents and can be discovered via keyword searching, including the Boer Wars, Spanish-American War and the Spanish Civil War.

Documents are organized into the following themes to facilitate browsing. 

This primary sources database presents manuscripts of some of the most important works of European travel writing from the later medieval period. The chief focus is on journeys to central Asia and the Far East, including accounts of travel to Mongolia, Persia, India, China and South-East Asia; it also includes accounts of travel to and through the Holy Land.

Provides digital access ( full color page-image format) to the backfiles of the following six major US and UK men’s-interest consumer magazines covering contemporary issues and trends in history and society, masculinity, sex roles, literature, sports, fashion, popular culture, entertainment, and more.

• All Sports Illustrated Weekly (1919 to 1930)
• Argosy (1882 to 1978)
• Esquire [UK edition] (1991 to 2015)
• M: The Civilized Man (1983 to 1992)
• National Police Gazette (1845 to 1977)
• Sports Budget (1923 to 1939)

Coverage is from issue 1 through to 2015 (or the publication ceased date), with issues scanned from cover to cover, although there will be some coverage gaps (issues / pages).

The content in this database is sourced from newspapers, journals, and radio and television broadcasts from 19 countries in the Middle East and North Africa as well as other nations with regional political, economic, and security interests. In addition to local and international news, it also includes government-level analysis and commentary. The database covers many topical categories, including the Israeli-Arab conflict, human and civil rights, international relations, terrorism, and others.

Online collection of recorded sound, including folk, popular, classical and world music, speeches, and oral histories, delivered via streaming audio.

Browse by musical instrument, geographic area, or topic, e.g. American folk traditions, blues, bluegrass and old-time country, American Indian traditions, world traditions (by continent), jazz, classical, spoken word, sound effects.

Historical content includes: ballads from the American Revolution, War of 1812, or the American Civil War; freedom and protest songs from the Civil Rights era; songs from the Slave Coast; Canada's history in song. Spoken word content includes: speeches, biography, memoir, drama (e.g. ancient Greek tragedies), poetry, language instruction.