Return to Naval Historical Center home page Return to Early History Branch

Early History Branch

Research Materials Available

The Early History Branch carries out research, writing, and editing responsibilities on the history of the United States Navy from the American Revolution through the First World War. In connection with two major ongoing documentary publication projects, the Branch has assembled extensive collections of microfilms and photostatic copies of documents on the American Revolution and the War of 1812. The collection is available for research, provided such research does not interfere with the work of the branch, and subject to restrictions placed by the repositories from which the copies have been obtained.

Materials must be used during business hours between 0900 and 1600 (9:00 to 4:00). Materials may not be borrowed or sent out on interlibrary loan. An appointment to use research materials is recommended.

American Revolution

• Private papers of Continental and State Navy officers, including Joshua Barney, John Barry, Seth Harding, Elisha Hinman, John Paul Jones, Hector McNeill, Samuel Tucker, and Abraham Whipple
• American and British admiralty court records; state archival records of state navies; letter books and ledgers of American merchants, privateer owners, navy agents, and politicians
• An extensive collection of journals and logs of Royal Navy ships from the Public Record Office and the National Maritime Museum, as well as several logbooks of Continental and State Navy ships and of American privateers
• North American and British newspapers
• British Colonial Office records and British Admiralty records, including admirals' dispatches, from the Public Record Office; French records from the Archives de la Marine and the Archives du Ministre des Affaires Etrangeres, Correspondance Politique; and Spanish records from the Archivo General de Indias, Seville, the Archivo Historico Nacional, Madrid, and the Archivo General de Simancas, Valladolid

War of 1812

• Correspondence between the Secretary of the Navy and naval officers, from the National Archives, Record Group 45
• Official correspondence of British military and naval officers, from the British Public Record Office, London, England
• Official correspondence of British military and naval officers serving in Canada, from the National Archives of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
• Private papers of American and British naval officers, including Isaac Chauncey, Sir Alexander F. I. Cochrane, John H. Dent, Sir Henry Hotham, Isaac Hull, Pulteney Malcolm, Charles Morris, Oliver Hazard Perry, and John Rodgers

10 April 2001