Library Research Guides: ENGLISH &amp; COMPARATIVE LITERATURE: Primary Sources

Special Collections at Wellesley

If you would like to see primary source materials in person, visit Special Collections, which is located on the fourth floor of the Clapp Library.

Here are just some of the collections that may be of interest to those studying English Literature.

English Poetry Collection
Over 12,000 volumes of English poetry, encompassing over five and a half centuries, from Geoffrey Chaucer to Ted Hughes, and from Anne Bradstreet to Maya Angelou.

Rare Books
Includes first editions of many famous literary works. Other highlights include illuminated manuscripts, tracts by Martin Luther, and works in philosophy, the classics, and the history of science.

Digital Primary Sources Guides

For more information on available primary sources, try these additional guides:

Primary Sources - Literature
by Laura O'Brien Last Updated Mar 26, 2024 351 views this year
Primary Sources - History
by Sarah Moazeni Last Updated Feb 29, 2024 614 views this year

Also consult the Internet Resources and Historic News & Reviews pages of this guide for more primary source collections.

Selected E-book, E-journal, and E-text collections

AM Explorer This link opens in a new window
Primary source collections from Adam Matthew Digital spanning the 15th to 21st centuries. Collection themes include area studies, cultural studies, empire and globalism, ethnic studies, gender and sexuality, history, literature, politics, theatre, and war and conflict.
Early English Books Online This link opens in a new window
Contains digitized images of virtually every work printed in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and British North America and works in English printed elsewhere from 1473-1700.
Eighteenth Century Collections Online This link opens in a new window
Searchable and browsable page images of every significant title printed in the United Kingdom, along with thousands of important works from the Americas, between 1701 and 1800; includes books, pamphlets, broadsides, & ephemera
British Periodicals This link opens in a new window
Searchable full text facsimiles of more than 460 British periodicals from the late 17th to the early 20th century, covering literature, philosophy, history, science, the fine arts and social sciences
American Periodicals, 1740-1940 This link opens in a new window
Contains full-text journals and magazines published between 1740 and 1900, including special interest and general magazines, literary and professional journals, children's and women's magazines, and other historically-significant periodicals.
Shakespeare in Performance: Prompt Books from the Folger Shakespeare Library This link opens in a new window
These prompt books show Shakespeare’s plays as they were performed in theatres throughout Great Britain, the US and internationally, from the 17th to 20th century.

Subject Librarian

Karen Storz

Email Me

Contact:

781-283-3372
kstorz@wellesley.edu

Research & Instruction Librarian
Office: Clapp Library 218B

Subjects: Africana Studies, American Studies, Cinema & Media Studies, Cognitive & Linguistic Sciences, Comparative Literature, East Asian Languages & Cultures, East Asian Studies, English, German & German Cultural Studies, Italian Studies, Latin American Studies, Portuguese, Russian & Russian Area Studies, Spanish