This post was written by Matthew Shaw, Librarian and Michael Townsend, Collections and Metadata Librarian at the Institute of Historical Research. It is cross-posted from On History, a digital magazine published by the Institute of Historical Research

Like many places, the Institute of Historical Research has had to temporarily shut its physical doors to staff, students and visitors in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. This does not diminish our commitment, however, to serving communities worldwide with a shared passion for historical research. Our digital doors are still open.

The IHR library’s guide to Open and Free Access Materials for Research provides a selection of curated links to online research resources that can be used for historical research of all kinds.

From digitised archives to oral histories, newspapers, maps and printed collections, we hope that here you’ll find some materials that help with your work or provide some additional ideas and options for your students.

Some of this material was selected by IHR librarians and colleagues at the Institute, while other items have been suggested by historians and researchers.

If you’d like to recommend a freely accessible online resource, please do send your suggestions to ihr.library@sas.ac.uk. Alternatively, you can submit your recommendations via this online suggestion box.