Prohibition and Government Documents

One invaluable resource for your students’ National History Day 2012 projects is the database HeinOnline.  HeinOnline is a premier online research product with more than 70 million pages of legal history.  This online database is a fully-searchable, image based format.  HeinOnline provides online access to the Congressional Record Bound volumes in entirety, complete coverage of the U.S. Reports back to 1754, famous world trials dating back to the early 1700′s, legal classics from the 16th to the 20th centuries, the United Nations and League of Nations Treaty Series, all United States Treaties, the Federal Register from inception in 1936, the Code of Federal Regulations from inception in 1938, and much more.


HeinOnline provides exact page images of the documents in PDF format just as they appear in the original print – this includes all charts, graphs, tables, pictures, hand written notes, photographs, and footnotes – thus providing excellent primary sources. 

Using “prohibition” as the search term, our results list will contain various documents such as Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States, Wickersham Commission Reports, and U.S. Attorney General Opinions.  Click the titles below to see examples: 

Challenge: Liquor and Lawlessness Versus Constitutional Govenment by William Gibbs McAdoo (1928).


Selected Articles on Prohibition, Modification of the Volstead Law by Lamar T. Beman (1924).

U.S. Wickersham Commission Reports. U.S. National Commission on Law Observance and Enforcement, Report on the Cost of Crime (1931)  (Includes a fascinating chart which tracks the cost of enforcing prohibition laws in the federal courts 1929 - 1930). 


These are only a few examples of the many documents and resources available through HeinOnline.  To access this database, start from GoWyld.net.  From here, access HeinOnline either through the alphabetical listing at the top of the page, or by selecting the Government Information link. Selecting HeinOnline from the list of databases will take you to the HeinOnline hompage.  Explore this fabulous resource for your each of your students’ History Day projects! 

NOTE: Only available in the State Library, State Law Library, and participating public libraries.  Check this list to see if you have access through your library.  

Agency Documents

Not only does the Wyoming State Library Federal Documents collection contain useful Congressional and Presidential documents, but also many publications by various federal agencies.  One example is the Social Security Board, which existed from 1935 to 1946. 

On August 14, 1935, against the backdrop of dark economic times of the Great Depression, President Franklin Roosevelt signed into law The Social Security Act of 1935.  Upon the signing of the Social Security Act on August 14, 1935, a three-person Social Security Board was created to run the new program.  The Social Security Act was a revolutionary idea at the time of its inception and many found it very controversial.  Focusing on this revolutionary legislation and subsequent reaction and reform, might be a possible topic for your students.  Within the Wyoming State Library collection are a series of Informational Service Circulars published under the newly created Social Security Board.  These circulars include:

·         Call #: SS 1.4:1/8

A Brief Explanation of the Social Security Act – Informational Service Circular No. 1, 1938

·         Old-Age Insurance under the Social Security Act – Informational Service Circular No. 3, 1938

·         Call #: SS 1.4:6/4

Aid to Dependent Children under the Social Security Act – Informational Service Circular No. 6, 1937

·         Call #: SS1.4:4/7

Social Security: What and Why? – Informational Service Circular No. 7, 1936

·         Call #: SS 1.4:8/2

Public Assistance under the Social Security Act for The Needy Aged, The Needy Blind, Dependent Children – Informational Service Circular No. 8, 1938

What a terrific original source these and other agency materials might make for your students’ History Day projects!

Presidential Papers

“It is hereby declared to be the policy of the President that there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion or national origin.”

Executive Order 9981, President Harry Truman, July 26, 1948

“Q. Mr. President… does your advocacy of equality of treatment and opportunity in the Armed Forces envision eventually the end of segregation? 

THE PRESIDENT: Yes”

The President’s News Conference of July 29, 1948; Public Papers of the Presidents - Harry S. Truman 

It is difficult to imagine that in the not-too-distant past, legal segregation was the rule for practically every aspect of American life – including the Armed Forces.  Thinking of this year’s History Day theme, one source of valuable primary source information for your student’s History Day project may be the Public Papers of the Presidents series.  The Office of the Federal Register began publishing the Public Papers of the Presidents series in 1957 as an official publication of United States Presidents' public writings, addresses, and remarks.  The series provides an historical reference covering the administrations of Presidents Hoover, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush, and Clinton. (The papers of President Franklin Roosevelt were published privately before the commencement of the official Public Papers series).  The Wyoming State Library contains the print version of this series.  These are located at call number AE 2.114:.  Online versions from President Reagan to President Obama can be found at the National Archives website.  

Government Control of Railroads

“Now, therefore, I, Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States, under and by virtue of the powers vested in me … do hereby… take possession and assume control at 12 o'clock noon on the 28th day of December 1917 of each and every system of transportation… located wholly or in part within the boundaries of the continental United States…”

·         Congressional Serial Set-ID: 7329, Senate doc. 159, January 7, 1918.

With this proclamation, President Woodrow Wilson put the United States railroad system under the control of the federal government.  Some might argue this as a necessary reaction to the threat of World War I.  An interesting topic to consider for NHD 2012!  Primary and secondary resources abound at the Wyoming State Library (WSL) and through your local Wyoming library. 

As an example of a primary resource, students might consider searching through the Congressional Serial Set (the official collection of reports and documents of the United States Congress).  The Wyoming State Library houses print copies of the Congressional Serial Set through 1996. These are located at call number Y 1.1/2:. 
Digital versions are available through the Wyoming Libraries Catalog (WyldCat) or through Proquest Congressional, a database available through GoWyld.net.

Additionally, WSL houses numerous U.S. Department of Transportation documents, including a report titled The Railroad Situation: A Perspective on the Present, Past and Future of the Railroad Industry, call number TD 3.15/5:79-7.  This report contains an excellent historical overview of the U.S. railroad industry up to 1929.   Even more in depth research into this topic might include a 1916 War Department document titled Military Railways Professional Papers No. 32, which discusses the difference between war and peacetime railroad practice and service.  This volume is located at call number W 7.10:32/1916 at WSL.  

For further information research for NHD, contact the Wyoming State Library or your local librarian!

Resources @ Your Library

As you begin to work with students for History Day 2012, keep in mind that your library houses a wealth of resources - primary and secondary.  Wyoming Libraries make available tools for research that can be accessed from school, your local library, and home.  Take a look at GoWyld.net and select a subject or a title.  For example, U.S. History in Context or Britannica Online.  Watch for future blogs about these electronic resources.  Or, contact Chris Van Burgh at 777-3642 for more information.

In addition to resources at your school, local library, or home, the Wyoming State Library offers a unique collection of resources supporting this year's History Day theme in the form of Federal Documents.  The theme of "Revolution, Reaction, Reform in History" can encompass a substantial number of topics which can be supported by a myriad of Federal Documents.

For example, the Wyoming State Library houses nearly all Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States.  One illustration might be a student researching on the topic of the use of the Atomic Bomb during World War II.  The Public Papers of Harry S. Truman contain all public messages, speeches and statements of President Truman on this topic, including news conference remarks.  Watch for future blogs on Federal Documents.  Or, contact Karen Kitchens at 777-7281 for more information.