For Students
A wealth of primary source material useful for many kinds of student research, is found in the Federal documents located in New York City. Students can use these materials as the foundation for extensive research projects, as a resource for answering or illustrating specific questions, and for supplementing other sources.
- Federal Records at New York City
- How to Find Material for Research
- Student Workshop Offerings
- Additional Student Resources
Federal records at New York City (New York)
We have the records of regional offices of 80 Federal agencies and the Federal courts located in New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands from 1685 to the 1990's. These records are especially useful for exploring regional aspects of historical events.
Typical types of federal records at the Regional Archives in New York include:
- Records about Individuals
- Census Records
- Tax Record
- Draft Records
- Naturalization Records
- Administrative Records
- Correspondence
- Financial
- Personnel
- Shipyard
- Records that Document an Action or Process
- Collecting Customs Duties
- Building a Ship
- Records With Legal or Evidential Value
- Court Case Files
- Contracts
- Records Relating to the Sale of Public Property Such as Former Nike Missle Sites
- Shipyard
- Records That Document Activities Related to Major Historical Events
- Loss of life and property liability case file regarding the Titanic
- Loss of life and property liability case file regarding the Titanic
- For more information and ideas about topics that can be researched at NARA, see Research by Selected Topic
How to Find Materials for Research
- Learn How to Get Started
doing research at NARA facilities.
- For help with concepts and terms unique to archival research, see
Research Tips
- See For the Public Access to
Historical Documents, For an introduction to the kinds of archival materials located in New York.
- Try browsing through Selected Finding Aids for the New York facility.
- Use the Guide to Archival Holdings to see how the records are organized by Record Groups.
- Search using NARA's online catalog, ARC.
- Locate digitized historical documents and images of New York
regional records in ARC.
(Please note that ARC is not fully populated at this time and does not represent the entire holdings of any branch of NARA).
- Locate digitized historical documents and images of New York
regional records in ARC.
- The archives staff can help. Call us at: 212-401-1620 or toll-free at 1-866-840-1752, or e-mail us at: newyork.archives@nara.gov. When contacting staff, please be ready to explain your topic, including the time period, geographic location, and what you hope to be able to find.
Student Workshop Offerings
The Regional Facility offers workshops suited to students. They currently include:
- Introduction to Archival Research
- What's new on the NARA Website?
- What to do with your History Degree: Careers in Archives
Visit our Workshop Calendar for date offerings.
Additional Student Resources
- Learn more about NARA and why we keep Federal records at:
What is the National Archives &
Records Administration?
- How to cite NARA records
- National History Day
Attention 6th through 12th grade students! Learn about National History Day and find out what you can do with historical research. National Archives staff can also provide answers since we judge contests throughout New York and New Jersey and award "Best Use of Primary Resources" certificates to contestants. For information on National History Day 2009, see our brochure Getting Ready for National History Day - 2009, Using Resources From the National Archives - New York.
- Volunteer or Intern in New York and gain valuable experience.
- Visit NARA's Online Exhibit Hall
- Encounter the National Archives
Experience online or in person at the National Archives in Washington, DC
- Explore the Presidential
Libraries for Kids
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