Historical fiction resources

Published by

Victoria

on

June 2, 2024

When I started dreaming up the storyline of The Summer of Moons and Monsters, I knew there was a lot of research ahead of me. I was actually pretty excited about it. But I had no idea the rabbit holes it would take me down or how much time I’d be spending studying various components of the Ford Model T. Learning about life in the 1920’s also gave me an excuse, not that I needed one, to interview both of grandmothers about growing up in the 30’s and 40’s and their mothers’ experiences before them.

To me, learning about the past often feels like a treasure hunt, and it’s an enormous source of inspiration. We also have a responsibility as writers, especially when writing for young people, to be as accurate as possible when depicting history. We learn as we read and young readers are often encountering historical events and facts for the very first time.

In the spirit of all my research, I’ve compiled a list of resources that I’ve found helpful. I’ll continue to add more as I encounter them.

Web & Print Sources

The Food Timeline– Find out what was on your character’s plate

Chronicling America– Digital database of historical newspapers (and where to view a copy in person)

Project Gutenberg– Over 70,000 free eBooks spanning a vast period of time

Develop historically accurate dialogue and narration with Online Etymology Dictionary and Historical Thesaurus

Check out the National Register of Historic Places and our National Historic Parks for inspiration

Everyday Life in America book series
•Everyday Life in Early America (17th century settlement)
•The Reshaping of Everyday Life (1790-1840)
•Expansion of Everyday Life (1860-1876)
•Victorian America (1876-1915)
•The Uncertainty of Everyday Life (1915-1945)

The Writer’s Guide book series
•Everyday Life in the Middle Ages
•Everyday Life in Regency & Victorian England
•Everyday Life from Prohibition to World War II
•Everyday Life in the Wild West
•Everyday Life in Colonial America
•Everyday Life in the 1800’s

Digital Museum Collections

Browse the Smithsonian Digital Collection

Explore the British Museum Collection online

View The Met Collection online

Images

Images of America book series

National Archives Photography Collection

Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Catalogue– Includes graphics like ads and posters

Maps

Library of Congress Sanborn maps and bird’s eye view maps

University of Texas’s Perry-Castaneda Library Map Collection

Boston Library’s Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center