National History Day Research

National History Day offers year-long academic programs that engage over half a million middle- and high-school students around the world annually in conducting original research on historical topics of interest.

Since 1974, NHD has continuously improved history education by providing professional development opportunities and curriculum materials for educators. The largest NHD program is the National History Day Contest that encourages more than half a million students around the world to conduct historical research on a topic of their choice. Students enter these projects at the local and affiliate levels, with top students advancing to the National Contest at the University of Maryland at College Park.

Theme

The 2022 National History Day theme is Frontiers in History: People, Places, and Ideas. Find out more in the 2022 Theme Book (PDF), which includes multiple articles introducing sample topic ideas. The theme narrative in this book explores multiple definitions of “frontier” and suggests different ways to approach the theme.

Contest Information & Dates

• District Contests

• Maryland History Day

• National History Day

• Contest Rules (PDF)

• Project Category Information

Research Materials & Resources

Ready to get started researching? The following trusted resources are a great place to start.

Pratt Library & State Library Resource Center

• If you do not have a library card and need one to access online resources, you can register for an e-card.
• Contact Pratt Central Library departments to ask about their unique resources and special collections.
• Live Chat with a Librarian for research assistance.
• Find articles in our collection from Periodicals and Newspapers.
• Use your Pratt Library card to access journal, articles, and book reviews in a wide range of research databases and historic newspapers, as well as SAILOR databases.

Other Local Resources

Not finding what you need in the Pratt Library collections? These local institutions may have helpful resources.

• County Historical Societies in Maryland
• Library of Congress
• Maryland Historical Society Student Research Center
• Museums in Maryland
• National Archives
• Smithsonian Institution Museums

Online Primary Source Collections

If you'd prefer to conduct your research entirely online, the following collections of primary sources may be helpful.

• American History Research Guide - University of Vermont Libraries
• African History Primary Sources - Bowdoin College
• African Studies and African History - Georgetown University
• British History Online - Institute of Historical Research
• Calisphere - University of California
• Canadian History - History Education Network
• Chronicling America - Library of Congress
• Connecting to the Past - Ohio State University
• Digital History - University of Houston
• Digital Maryland - Maryland State Library Resource Center
• Discovering American Women's History Online - Middle Tennessee State University
• DocsTeach - National Archives
• Documents for the Classroom - Maryland State Archives
• Eurodocs - Brigham Young University
• Latin American History - Johns Hopkins University
• Making of America - University of Michigan
• 100 Milestone Documents - National Archives
• Online Resources - Maryland Center for History and Culture
• Teaching with Primary Sources - MPT / Thinkport
• Trove - National Library of Australia