Davis Family Library: 7:30am - 10pm
Armstrong Science Library: 7:45am - 5pm

| by Arabella Holzapfel

MiddPoints

montage of images including flags of Morocco, Liberia, Libya, and Italian East Africa

Middlebury (Vermont) users now have access to several primary source databases documenting the history of various nations in Africa.

European Colonialism in the Early 20th Century: Italian Colonies in North Africa and Aggression in East Africa, 1930-1939 : Italian colonial aspirations and policies mimicked those of other European countries during the modern period. Italian colonial policy during the period 1930-1939 was shaped more by Fascism. Fascist tenets related to governance and social policy was used in the administration and treatment of the African population in Libya, Eritrea, Somalia, and Italian East Africa. This collection comprises correspondence, studies and reports, cables, maps, and other kinds of documents related to U.S. consular activities. U.S. Consulates were listening posts reporting on the activities of the Italian colonial governments and later the mandate authorities, and the activities of the native peoples.

European Colonialism in the Early 20th Century: Political and Economic Consolidation of Portuguese Colonies in Africa, 1910-1929 : This collection comprises correspondence, studies and reports, cables, maps, and other kinds of documents related to U.S. consular activities. U.S. Consulates were listening posts reporting on the activities of the Portuguese colonial government and the activities of the native peoples. Highlights include the beginning of an anti-colonial movement and the industrialization and economic exploitation of Portugal’s African colonies.

Libya: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1796-1885 : This archive documents the American consulate in Tripoli. Included here are correspondences of Secretary of State James Madison during the Tripolitan War, 1801-1805, between the United States and the piratical North African Barbary States. Handwritten correspondences from Secretary of State William H. Seward in the Lincoln Administration, relating to the opening of the port of New Orleans in 1862, and exchanges from Secretary of State James G. Blaine, in the Garfield Administration.

Liberia and the U.S.: Nation-Building in Africa, 1864-1918 and  1918-1935. This series consists of correspondence and telegrams received and sent by the United States’ diplomatic post in Liberia. The topics covered by these records include all aspects of relations with Liberia, and interactions of American citizens with the Liberian government and people.

Morocco

  • Morocco: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1797-1929 : This archive reveals more than a century of U.S.-Morocco relations and includes, among various documents, correspondences from U.S. ministers in Tangier and Tetuan. It is sourced from the Central Files of the General Records of the Department of State. The records are under the jurisdiction of the Legislative and Diplomatic Branch of the Civil Archives, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.
  • King and People in Morocco, 1950-1959: U.S. State Department Records on the Internal Affairs of Morocco : Morocco’s strategic location has shaped its history. After gaining independence in 1956, Morocco made great strides toward economic and political liberalization. The sultan Muhammad V, ruling his newly independent nation, proclaimed his intention of turning it into a constitutional monarchy. His first act was to transform himself into a monarch and assume the title of king. The Moroccan government undertook a number of economic, social, and political reforms, including the drafting of a constitution. This collection of U.S. State Department Central Classified Files relating to internal and foreign affairs contain a wide range of materials from U.S. diplomats.

Media Contact

Arabella is the Electronic Resources Manager and Library Systems Specialist.