Sources for Cameroonian colonial history in Western archives and libraries

Abstract

Despite the publication of several excellent guides to colonial materials and Africana collections held in Western libraries, locating suitable archival sources for Cameroonian colonial history remains a challenge. While some documentation continues to reside in Cameroon itself, the bulk of material from the colonial period can be found in a series of Western libraries and archives scattered across Europe and the United States. The following introductory guide, based on my own research and correspondence with the institutions in question, is intended to help other researchers locate archival materials of interest to their work.Shortly after the German Colonial Society was disbanded the University of Frankfurt acquired its extensive library of colonial materials and integrated them into its own collection. Consequently, Frankfurt is by far the best source for locating published materials on the German colonial empire.