Digital Collections

The digital collections of the Library of Congress contain a wide variety of primary source materials associated with the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, including government documents, manuscripts, and newspaper articles. Provided below is a link to the home page for each relevant digital collection along with selected highlights.

Congressional Publications

A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774-1875
This collection contains congressional publications from 1774 to 1875, including debates, bills, laws, and journals.

14th Amendment Debate References:

References to debate on the 14th Amendment (H.J. Res. 127) can be found in the Congressional Globe on the following dates:

May 7, 1866 (Debated in the House of Representatives)
May 8, 1866 (Debated in the House of Representatives)
May 9, 1866 (Debated in the House of Representatives)
May 9, 1866 (Debated and passed in the House of Representatives)
The House passed the 14th Amendment (H.J. Res. 127) by a vote of 128 to 37, 19 not voting.
May 23, 1866 (Debated in the Senate)
May 24, 1866 (Debated in the Senate)
May 29, 1866 (Debated in the Senate)
May 30, 1866 (Debated in the Senate)
May 31, 1866 (Debated in the Senate)
June 4, 1866 (Debated in the Senate)
June 5, 1866 (Debated in the Senate)
June 6, 1866 (Debated in the Senate)
June 7, 1866 (Debated in the Senate)
June 8, 1866 (Debated and passed in the Senate)
The Senate passed the 14th Amendment (H.J. Res. 127) with amendments by a vote of 33 to 11.
June 13, 1866 (Debated and passed in the House of Representatives)
The House agreed to the Senate's amendments and passed the 14th Amendment (H. Res. 127) by a vote of 120 to 32, 32 not voting.
June 22, 1866
President Andrew Johnson sent a message to Congress announcing that the 14th Amendment had been sent to the states for ratification. Johnson voiced his displeasure with the amendment by stating that his actions should "be considered as purely ministerial, and in no sense whatever committing the Executive to an approval or a recommendation of the amendment to the State legislatures or to the people."
July 28, 1868
Secretary of State William Seward issued a proclamation certifying the ratification of the 14th Amendment by the states.

Historic Newspapers

Chronicling America
Historic American newspapers selected and contributed by state partners in the National Digital Newspaper Program.

Selected articles from this collection:

Rare Books

African American Perspectives: Materials Selected from the Rare Book Collection
"African American Perspectives" gives a panoramic and eclectic review of African American history and culture and is primarily comprised of two collections in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division: the African American Pamphlet Collection and the Daniel A.P. Murray Collection with a date range of 1822 through 1909.

14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Primary Documents in American History

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