Bibliography
There are several specialized bibliographies of the War of 1812. From the Canadian
point of view, the most recent and best is actually a part of a book, compiled
by Donald E. Graves in his updating of J. Mackay Hitsman's The Incredible War
of 1812, listed in the General Works section.
The brevity of entries in this bibliography sometimes makes it difficult to identify
items accurately, but it contains a wealth of material. Smith and Fredriksen approach
the war from the American point of view. Fredriksen has located a great many previously
little-known contemporary accounts and personal narratives and, since the publication
of his bibliography, has edited and published a considerable number, which are
not listed here. The Encyclopedia of the War of 1812, by the Heidlers,
listed in its own section, has a valuable bibliography, again with an American
emphasis.
General bibliographies of Canadian history also provide useful material. J.M. Bumsted's bibliographic essay in Canadian history : a reader's guide is an excellent introduction to the war, although some important works have come out since it was published.
Canadian history : a reader's guide. Volume 1 : Beginnings to Confederation. -- Taylor, M. Brook, ed. -- Toronto : Univ. of Toronto Press, 1994. -- P. 404-407
Fredriksen, John C., comp. -- Free trade and sailors' rights : a bibliography of the War of 1812. -- Westport, Conn. : Greenwood Press, 1985. -- [400] p. -- (Bibliographies and indexes in American history, no. 2)
- The compiler has succeeded in ferreting out a great number of contemporary accounts not listed elsewhere.
- In the years since this was published, Fredriksen has edited and published many memoirs that he identified as manuscripts.
_____.War of 1812 eyewitness accounts : an annotated bibliography. -- Westport, Conn. : Greenwood Press, 1997. -- 311 p. -- (Bibliographies and indexes in military studies, no. 8)
- There is an annotation for each entry.
- Lots of Canadian content.
- Interestingly enough, there is no entry in the index for Laura Secord.
Hyam, Grace et al. -- Manuscript Division = Division des manuscrits. -- Ottawa : National Archives of Canada, 1994. -- 41,44 p. -- (General guide series)
- Hyam and Lovering provide an introduction to the organization of records at the National Archives of Canada, which a researcher must access to gain a full understanding of the War of 1812.
- See also the National Archives of Canada website, listed below.
Lovering, Cynthia, comp. -- Government Archives Division = Division des Archives gouvernmentales. -- Ottawa : National Archives of Canada, 1991. -- 154,164 p. -- (General guide series)
Rouillard, Jacques, dir. -- Guide d'histoire du Québec : du Régime français à nos jours : bibliographie commentée. -- Montréal : Méridien, 1991. -- [368] p.
Smith, Dwight L. -- The War of 1812 : an annotated bibliography. -- New York : Garland, 1985. -- 340 p. -- (Wars of the United States, Vol. 3 : Garland reference library of social science, Vol. 250)
- Although there is an American orientation, coverage is excellent.
- Becoming somewhat dated.
- Includes some hard-to-find pamphlet materials.
- Organized by subject.
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