March is Women’s History month! 

Colleagues have arranged trials to three eresources on women’s history and women’s studies. Across the University many Departments are now undergoing changes to rectify historic gaps in teaching and enhance inclusivity. In this vein, these trials has been arranged as part of the Bodleian’s Changing the Narrative project (https://libguides.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/changingthenarrative).

Please send any feedback to Helen.Worrell@bodleian.ox.ac.uk.

1. Women and Social Movements, International (Trial until 31 March 2020)

Through the writings of women activists, their personal letters and diaries, and the proceedings of conferences at which pivotal decisions were made, this collection lets you see how women’s social movements shaped much of the events and attitudes that have defined modern life.  This digital archive includes 150,000 pages of conference proceedings, reports of international women’s organizations, publications and web pages of women’s non-governmental organizations, and letters, diaries, and memoirs of women active internationally since the mid-nineteenth century.  It also includes photographs and videos of major events and activists in the history of women’s international social movements.

Finally, 30 essays commissioned from leading contemporary scholars explore themes illuminated by the primary documents in the archive.

2. Women’s Magazine Archive 1 & 2 (Trial until 31 March 2020)

Women’s Magazine Archive 1 provides access to the complete archives of the foremost titles of this type, including Good Housekeeping and Ladies’ Home Journal, which serve as canonical records of evolving assumptions about gender roles and cultural mores. Other titles here focus on narrower topics but deliver valuable source content for specific research areas. Parents, for example, is of particular relevance for research in the fields of children’s education, psychology, and health, as well as reflecting broader social historical trends.

Women’s Magazine Archive 2 features several of the most prominent, high-circulating, and long-running publications in this area, such as Woman’s Day and Town & Country. Collection 2 also, however, complements the first collection by including some titles focusing on more specific audiences and themes. Cosmopolitan and Seventeen, for example, are oriented towards a younger readership, while black women’s interests are represented by Essence. Women’s International Network News differs in being a more political, activist title, with an international dimension.

Topics covered these collections include family life, home economics, health, careers, fashion, culture, and many more; this material serves multiple research areas, from gender studies, social history, and the arts, through to education, politics, and marketing/media history.

3. Women’s Studies Archive (Trial until 6 April 2020)

As a comprehensive academic-level archival resource, Women’s Studies Archive: Issues and Identities will focus on the social, political, and professional achievements of women throughout the nineteenth and twentieth century. Along with providing a closer look at some of the pioneers of women’s movements, this collection offers scholars a deep dive into the issues that have affected women and the many contributions they have made to society.

Not all of these are affordable, so please consider which should be prioritised and why and send your feedback to Helen.Worrell@bodleian.ox.ac.uk.

While you are here, check out our

• electronic resources for women’s history in Databases A-Z.
• LibGuide for Women’s Studies
• news on Women’s resources in the HFL Blog.
• brief survey of Oxford archival resources for women’s history.