Presidential Documents Research Guide

Presidential documents include Executive Orders and proclamations, as well as other documents such as determinations, letters, memorandums, and reorganization plans. This guide focuses on the most important Presidential documents for legal research: Executive Orders and proclamations. This guide describes these materials and where to find them in print, on the web, Lexis, Westlaw, and microfiche.

ProQuest Executive Branch Documents are now part of the ProQuest Congressional database. To limit your search to Executive Branch documents, please deselect all, then select Executive Branch Documents only.

A major repository of presidential documents has been created by the University of California, Santa Barbara. The American Presidency Project includes State of the Union addresses, presidential commencement speeches, as well as addresses to Foreign governments and the United Nations.

Compilation of Presidential Documents. GovInfo makes the Compilation of Presidential Documents available from 1992 until present. Using the Advanced Search feature on GovInfo, researchers can search the Compilation of Presidential Documents by keyword or date. The Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents (1965-2009) is available on HeinOnline and updated by the Daily Compilation of Presidential Documents.

Presidential End of Term Web Archive. This archive started as a partnership between the International Internet Preservation Consortium and National Digital Infrastructure and Preservation Program.  Their goal was to archive the web at the end of presidential administrations -- beginning with George W. Bush -- in order to capture federal government websites before they changed during the next administration. The archive is full-text searchable and browsable, though still fairly rudimentary.  It includes all three branches of government and covers a few months preceding and after the new term.  New partners have since joined and the Archive continues to grow and evolve while providing access to materials across presidential administrations.

Public Papers of the President. One very convenient source for Presidential public messages, speeches, and statements is the Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States series (J80 .A283). This series is published by the National Archives and Records. Dates of coverage for the print series are: 1929-1933 and 1945-2012. The Public Papers set is the cumulation of the Weekly Compilations of Presidential Compilations.

Additionally, HeinOnline, now includes the Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States in its U.S. Presidential Library.

Lexis has a database Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States. Coverage begins January 20, 1981.

Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents, 1789-1897. This 10 volume set contains documents from George Washington through William McKinley. It is available in print, on ProQuest Congressional and on HeinOnline.

For assistance in locating these or other resources, please ask a librarian for help.

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Links 6/14 (MK)
Updated 9/17 (MK)
Links 11/18 (SB)