Compiled
by Kenneth Drexler, Digital Reference Specialist
The digital collections of the Library of Congress contain
a wide variety of material associated with the Mexican War
(1846-1848), including manuscripts, maps, broadsides, pictures,
sheet music, books, and government documents. This guide
compiles links to digital materials related to the Mexican
War that are available throughout the Library of Congress
Web site. In addition, it provides links to external Web
sites focusing on the Mexican War and a bibliography containing
selections for both general and younger readers.
Library of Congress Web Site | External
Web Sites | Selected Bibliography
Abraham
Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress
The complete Abraham Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress
consists of approximately 20,000 items, including correspondence
and enclosures, drafts of speeches, and notes and printed
material. Most of the items are from the 1850s through Lincoln's
presidential years. However, there are some documents from
Lincoln's term as a member of the House of Representatives
(1847-49) related to the Mexican War and its aftermath.
Examples of documents concerning the Mexican War include:
- A resolution introduced in the House of Representatives
by Lincoln on the Mexican
War, December 22, 1847.
- A draft of Lincoln's
speech to Congress regarding the Mexican War, January
12, 1848.
- A copy of the treaty
between Mexico and Texas used by Lincoln when preparing
for a speech on the Mexican War.
An
American Time Capsule: Three Centuries of Broadsides and
Other Printed Ephemera
The Printed Ephemera Collection at the Library of Congress
is a rich repository of Americana. In total, the collection
comprises 28,000 primary-source items dating from the seventeenth
century to the present and encompassing key events and eras
in U.S. history, including the annexation of Texas and the
Mexican War.
This collection includes the following documents concerning
the Mexican War:
California
As I Saw It: First-Person Narratives of California's Early
Years, 1849-1900
This collection consists of the full texts and illustrations
of 190 works documenting the formative era of California's
history through eyewitness accounts, including many references
to the Mexican War.
Among the collection's books concerning the Mexican War
are:
Search on
the phrase Mexican War to locate more recollections of
the conflict.
A
Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation
This collection contains the records of Congress from
1774 to 1875, including journals, debates, bills, and
laws. The
Congressional Globe, U.S.
Statutes at Large, House Journal,
and Senate Journal can all
be researched to examine the role of the Congress during
the Mexican War.
Highlights from the Mexican War in this collection include
the following:
Search this
collection in the 29th and 30th Congresses to locate additional
congressional information on the Mexican War and its aftermath.
Map
Collections
The focus of this collection is Americana and cartographic
treasures of the Library of Congress. These images were
created from maps and atlases selected from the collections
of the Geography and Map Division. Included in this collection
are eight maps associated with the Mexican
War.
Music for the Nation:
American Sheet Music, 1820-1860
This collection consists of over 15,000 pieces of sheet
music registered for copyright during the years 1820 to
1860. Included are popular songs, operatic arias, piano
music, sacred and secular vocal music, solo instrumental
music, method books and instructional materials, and some
music for band and orchestra. There are more than fifty
pieces of sheet music written about the Mexican
War in this collection.
The Nineteenth
Century in Print: Periodicals
This collection comprises periodicals published in the
United States during the nineteenth century, primarily
during the second half of the century. The materials selected
illuminate the subject areas of education, psychology,
American history, sociology, religion, and science and
technology. Search on
the phrase Mexican War to locate articles written about
the war.
Examples of articles written about the Mexican War include:
Jump
Back in Time: The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo Was Signed
In Mexico City.
The
Guadalupe Hidalgo Treaty
In honor of the 150th anniversary of the treaty signing,
the Library of Congress created an online presentation
on the Guadalupe Hidalgo Treaty. It includes page images
of the original treaty housed in the Library of Congress
Manuscript Division and the area map used during the
negotiations from the Geography and Map Division.
Pictorial
Americana: Selected Images from the Collections of the Library
of Congress
Pictorial Americana, a 1955
Library of Congress publication, contains a chapter
listing selected images related to the Mexican
War.
Search the Prints
and Photographs Online Catalog (PPOC) for additional
images concerning the Mexican
War.
November
5, 1844
On November 5, 1844, Democratic candidate James K. Polk
defeated Whig party candidate Henry Clay to become the
eleventh president of the United States.
June
23, 1845
On June 23, 1845, a special session of the legislature
of Texas voted in favor of annexation by the United States.
May
8, 1846
General Zachary Taylor defeated a detachment of the
Mexican army in a two-day battle at Palo Alto and Resaca
de la Palma on May 8, 1846.
February
23, 1847
The Battle of Buena Vista was won by the United States
on February 23, 1847. General Zachary Taylor, future
president of the United States, was the commander of
American troops in this victory over Mexican General
Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna.
February
2, 1848
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed in Mexico
City on February 2, 1848.
Descendants
of Mexican War Veterans
This site contains an essay on the Mexican War, as well
as a chronology of events and a bibliography. It also
includes images, government documents, maps, statistics,
and a list of historical sites associated with the war.
Invasion
Yanqui: The Mexican War
An online exhibit created by the Texas Council for the
Humanities that includes an essay on the war in both
English and Spanish, as well as educational resources
such as interactive games, learning activities, and images.
The
Mexican-American War
This Northern Illinois University Web site contains a
historical overview of the Mexican-American War (1846-1848),
as well as documents, images, sound recordings, and lesson
plans related to the conflict.
Online
Bookshelves: Mexican War
The U.S. Army Center of Military History provides the
full text of online books related to Mexican War and a
bibliography of selected readings.
Palo
Alto Battlefield
The National Park Service provides background information
on the battle at Palo Alto and the Mexican War in general.
This site also provides links to external sites associated
with the war.
The U.S.
Mexican War (1846-1848)
This site on the Mexican War is a companion to a PBS
documentary on the war. It includes an overview on the
war and its aftermath, biographical essays, an interactive
timeline, video clips, and lesson plans. It also contains
primary-source materials such as maps, illustrations,
and posters.
Bauer, K. Jack. The Mexican War,
1846-1848.
New York: Macmillan, 1974.
LC call number: E404 .B37 [Catalog
Record]
Eisenhower, John S. D. So Far from
God: The U.S. War with Mexico, 1846-1848. New
York: Random House, 1989.
LC call number: E405 .E37 1989
[Catalog
Record]
Frazier, Donald S., ed. The United
States and Mexico at War: Nineteenth-Century Expansionism
and Conflict. New York: Macmillan Reference USA,
1998.
LC call number: E404 .U66 1998 [Catalog
Record]
Heidler, David S. and Jeanne T. Heidler. The
Mexican War. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2006.
LC call number: E404 .H44 2006 [Catalog
Record]
Johannsen, Robert Walter. To the
Halls of the Montezumas: The Mexican War in the American
Imagination.
New York: Oxford University Press, 1985.
LC call number: E404 .J64 1985 [Catalog
Record]
Mahin, Dean B. Olive Branch and Sword:
The United States and Mexico, 1845-1848. Jefferson,
N.C.: McFarland & Co., 1997.
LC call number: E408 .M34 1997 [Catalog
Record]
Winders, Richard Bruce. Mr. Polk’s
Army: The American Military Experience in the Mexican War.
College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 1997.
LC call number: E409.2 .W56 1997
[Catalog
Record]
Bardhan-Quallen, Sudipta. The Mexican-American
War. Detroit: Blackbirch Press, 2005.
LC call number: E404 .B35 2005
[Catalog
Record]
Carey, Charles W., Jr. The Mexican
War: "Mr. Polk's War". Berkeley Heights,
N.J.: Enslow Publishers, 2002.
LC call number: E404 .C26 2002
[Catalog
Record]
Mills, Bronwyn. U.S.-Mexican War.
New York: Facts On File, 2003.
LC call number: E404 .M55 2003 [Catalog
Record]
Nardo, Don. The Mexican-American
War.
San Diego, Calif.: Lucent Books, 1999.
LC call number: E404 .N37 1999 [Catalog
Record]
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