Advertising Databases
Ad*Access (1911-1955)
https://repository.duke.edu/dc/adaccess
Over 7,000 U.S. and Canadian advertisements dated between 1911 and 1955 covering five product categories: Beauty and Hygiene, Radio, Television, Transportation, and World War II. The advertisements are from the J. Walter Thompson Company Competitive Advertisements Collection in Duke University's David M. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
https://repository.duke.edu/dc/eaa
"Over 3,300 advertising items and publications dating from 1850 to 1920, illustrating the rise of consumer culture and the birth of a professionalized advertising industry in the United States" (publisher's description). The advertisements are from the J. Walter Thompson Company Competitive Advertisements Collection in Duke University's David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.
Brings together manuscript, printed and visual primary source materials for the study of global commodities in world history. The commodities featured in this resource have been transported, exchanged, and consumed around the world for hundreds of years. They helped transform societies, global trading operations, habits of consumption, and social practices.
"The J. Walter Thompson Company Archive documents the history, operation, policies and accomplishments of one of the world's largest and oldest advertising firms. The papers here reveal many aspects of twentieth-century cultural, social, business, marketing, consumer and economic history while investigating the human psyche" (publisher's description).
"... Presents a multi-national journey through well-known, little-known and far-flung destinations unlocked for the average traveler between 1850 and the 1980s. Guidebooks and brochures, periodicals, travel agency correspondence, photographs and personal travel journals provide unique insight into the expansion, accessibility and affordability of tourism for the masses and the evolution of some of the most successful travel agencies in the world" (publisher's description).
"... Provides a unique insight into the American consumer boom of the mid-20th century through access to the market research reports and supporting documents of Ernest Dichter; the era's foremost consumer analyst and market research pioneer. The collection is a treasure trove of information on some of America's best known brands, containing thousands of reports commissioned by advertising agencies and global businesses in a booming era for consumerism, 'Madison Avenue' advertising and global brands on consumer goods ranging from tobacco and broadcasting to cars and hotels" (publisher's description).
https://repository.duke.edu/dc/mma
About 600 advertising items and publications dating from 1850 to 1920, illustrating the rise of consumer culture and the birth of a professionalized advertising industry in the United States. The collection represents a wide range of products such as cough and cold remedies, laxatives and indigestion aids, and vitamins and tonics, among others. The majority of images are from the "Competitive Advertisements Collection" (pre-1955 files) within the J. Walter Thompson Company Archives in Duke University's David M. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
"...Documents the history of ‘popular’ remedies and treatments in nineteenth century America, through primary source materials drawn from the extensive collections at the Library Company of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The material covers popular trends such as phrenology, herbal medicine and hydrotherapy, and documents the rise of widespread advertising by commercial manufacturers of medical aids" (publisher's description).
- Ad* Access (1911-1955) (Duke University)Over 7,000 U.S. and Canadian advertisements covering five product categories - Beauty and Hygiene, Radio, Television, Transportation, and World War II propaganda - dated between 1911 and 1955
- Emergence of Advertising in America: 1850-1920 (Duke University)"Over 3,300 advertising items and publications dating from 1850 to 1920, illustrating the rise of consumer culture and the birth of a professionalized advertising industry in the United States."
- Global Commodities : Trade, Exploration & Cultural Exchange (Adam Matthew)"This resource brings together manuscript, printed and visual primary source materials for the study of global commodities in world history. The commodities featured in this resource have been transported, exchanged and consumed around the world for hundreds of years. They helped transform societies, global trading operations, habits of consumption and social practices."
- J. Walter Thompson : Advertising America (Adam Matthew)"The J. Walter Thompson Company Archive documents the history, operation, policies and accomplishments of one of the world's largest and oldest advertising firms. The papers here reveal many aspects of twentieth-century cultural, social, business, marketing, consumer and economic history while investigating the human psyche."
- Leisure, Travel & Mass Culture : The History of Tourism (Adam Matthew) (1850-1980s)"This resource presents a multi-national journey through well-known, little-known and far-flung destinations unlocked for the average traveller between 1850 and the 1980s. Guidebooks and brochures, periodicals, travel agency correspondence, photographs and personal travel journals provide unique insight into the expansion, accessibility and affordability of tourism for the masses and the evolution of some of the most successful travel agencies in the world."
- Market Research and American Business, 1935-1965 (Adam Matthew)"provides a unique insight into the American consumer boom of the mid-20th century through access to the market research reports and supporting documents of Ernest Dichter; the era’s foremost consumer analyst and market research pioneer. The collection is a treasure trove of information on some of America’s best known brands, containing thousands of reports commissioned by advertising agencies and global businesses in a booming era for consumerism, ‘Madison Avenue’ advertising and global brands on consumer goods ranging from tobacco and broadcasting to cars and hotels."
- Medicine & Madison Avenue (Duke University)"About 600 advertising items and publications dating from 1850 to 1920, illustrating the rise of consumer culture and the birth of a professionalized advertising industry in the United States."
- Popular Medicine in America, 1800-1900 (Adam Matthew)"documents the history of ‘popular’ remedies and treatments in nineteenth century America, through primary source materials drawn from the extensive collections at the Library Company of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The material covers popular trends such as phrenology, herbal medicine and hydrotherapy, and documents the rise of widespread advertising by commercial manufacturers of medical aids."
Additional Databases
The following databases can be useful for identifying articles dealing with various aspects of advertising and its affect on popular culture.
A database that abstracts and indexes over 3,200 scholarly journal, and offers full-text (often dating back to 1990) for over 1,000 journals.
APA PsycINFO (1887+)
Useful for locating articles, conference proceedings, book chapters, and dissertations dealing with the cognitive sciences and philosophy of mind.
Art and Architecture Source (1984+)
This art research database covers a broad range of subjects, from Fine, decorative and commercial art, to various areas of architecture and architectural design. It features full-text articles, as well as indexing and abstracting for an array of journals, books, and more" (publisher's description). See also Art Index Retrospective, below.
Art Index Retrospective (1929-1984)
"...provides users access to over half a century of art literature covering fine, decorative, and commercial art. Content includes high-quality indexing of nearly 600 publications, many of which are peer-reviewed, and citations of over 25,000 book reviews" (publisher's description).
Covers management, economics, finance, banking, investment, and related fields. Full text included for nearly 2,300 journals.
Offers full text for over 200 titles and contains citation coverage for additional sources.
Full text of core research journals (including almost 600 titles in music) from the year of their inception, many dating back to the early 1900s. JSTOR frequently does NOT cover the last three to five years of journals.
MLA International Bibliography (1926+)
Indexes critical literary and language scholarship in journals published worldwide, and also includes articles on such topics as dramatic arts, film, folklore, rhetoric and writing studies, teaching of language, and history of publishing. Its expansive scope also makes it an excellent resource for research in history, philosophy, communications, and cross-disciplinary subjects such as gender studies and area studies.
Provides online, full-text access to articles in over 300 journals in the arts, humanities, and social sciences from over 60 scholarly publishers. Usually, this database does not include the full run of a journal title.
Sociological Abstracts (1952+)
Major source for abstracts and full-text of articles in the sociological literature.