National Archives

Archival records and historical records

Search the public U.S. National Archives Catalog for historical records.

Search records

Search records

Search public National Archives Catalog records by keywords, year, material type, and online availability. Results follow catalog relevance order; year filters use catalog matches and may include records dated outside the range.

Your information

PageOptional

Page of matching results, for example 2.

Query

Keywords to find in catalog records, for example Apollo 11.

End YearOptional

Latest year to search, for example 1969.

Start YearOptional

Earliest year to search, for example 1960.

Max ResultsOptional

Number of records per page, for example 20.

Online OnlyOptional

Whether to include only digitized records, for example true.

Record TypeOptional

Material type to include, for example photographs.

1 credit per completed run

The same inputs also work from your code or an AI assistant. See For developers.

Example results

Search results

About the National Archives tool

National Archives (NARA) Search records returns public catalog records matching keywords, with optional year, material type, and digitization filters.

Built from catalog.archives.gov. Last checked Oct 7, 2026.

Actions

Search records

1 credit

What you provide

Field	Type	Required	Description
Page`page`	Number	Optional	Page of matching results, for example 2.Example: 2
Query`query`	Text	Required	Keywords to find in catalog records, for example Apollo 11.Example: Apollo 11
End Year`end_year`	Number	Optional	Latest year to search, for example 1969.Example: 1969
Start Year`start_year`	Number	Optional	Earliest year to search, for example 1960.Example: 1960
Max Results`max_results`	Number	Optional	Number of records per page, for example 20.Example: 5
Online Only`online_only`	Yes or no	Optional	Whether to include only digitized records, for example true.Example: Yes
Record Type`record_type`	Text	Optional	Material type to include, for example photographs.Example: Photographs

What you get

Field	Type	Description
Records`records`	List	Matching catalog records in relevance order.
Date`records[].date`	Text	Example: April 17, 1970
Title`records[].title`	Text	Example: President Richard Nixon, Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins, Apollo 8…
Digitized`records[].digitized`	Yes or no	Example: Yes
Image Links`records[].image_links`	List
Record Type`records[].record_type`	Text	Example: Photographs and other Graphic Materials
Catalog Link`records[].catalog_link`	Text	Example: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/34929665
Record Group`records[].record_group`	Text	Example: Collection RN-WHPO: White House Photo Office Collection (Nixon Administration)
Creating Agency`records[].creating_agency`	Text	Example: President (1969-1974 : Nixon). White House Photo Office. 1969-1974; General…
Short Description`records[].short_description`	Text	Example: James E. Webb, head of National Aeronautics and Space Administration, leans…
National Archives Identifier`records[].national_archives_identifier`	Text	Example: 34929665

Example result

For Page: 2, Query: Apollo 11, End Year: 1969, Start Year: 1960, Max Results: 5, Online Only: Yes, Record Type: Photographs

JSON

{
  "records": [
    {
      "date": "April 17, 1970",
      "title": "President Richard Nixon, Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins, Apollo 8 Astronaut William Anders, and Henry Kissinger Watch the Apollo 13 Command Module \"Odyssey\" Splash Down on Television",
      "digitized": true,
      "image_links": [
        "https://catalog.archives.gov/medialz/presidential-libraries/nixon/194277/BATCH01/37-whpo-3359-07a.jpg"
      ],
      "record_type": "Photographs and other Graphic Materials",
      "catalog_link": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/34929665",
      "record_group": "Collection RN-WHPO: White House Photo Office Collection (Nixon Administration)",
      "creating_agency": "President (1969-1974 : Nixon). White House Photo Office. 1969-1974; General Services Administration. National Archives and Records Service. Office of Presidential Libraries. Office of Presidential Pap…",
      "short_description": null,
      "national_archives_identifier": "34929665"
    },
    {
      "date": "July 16, 1969",
      "title": "President and Mrs. Johnson and James Webb witness Apollo 11 launch",
      "digitized": true,
      "image_links": [
        "https://catalog.archives.gov/medialz/presidential-libraries/truman/photographs/97/97-280.jpg"
      ],
      "record_type": "Photographs and other Graphic Materials",
      "catalog_link": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/350900580",
      "record_group": "Collection HST-PHC: Photograph Collection",
      "creating_agency": "National Archives and Records Administration. Office of Presidential Libraries. Harry S. Truman Library. (4/1/1985 - 7/31/2011)",
      "short_description": "James E. Webb, head of National Aeronautics and Space Administration, leans over to speak to President Lyndon B. Johnson, and First Lady Lady Bird Johnson during the launch of Apollo 11 at Cape Kenned…",
      "national_archives_identifier": "350900580"
    }
  ]
}

For developers

Call it from your code with one request. Change the values in input to run it on new data. To get an API key, open Developers at the bottom of Studio, turn on Developer mode and go to API keys.

cURL

curl 'https://api.fous.com/v1/query' \
  --fail-with-body --silent --show-error --max-time 180 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data-raw '{
  "api": "@national-archives",
  "visibility": "public",
  "operation": "search_records",
  "version": 1,
  "input": {
    "page": 2,
    "query": "Apollo 11",
    "end_year": 1969,
    "start_year": 1960,
    "max_results": 5,
    "online_only": true,
    "record_type": "photographs"
  },
  "response": {
    "format": "json"
  }
}'

What you can do with it

Find catalog records about a person, event, or topic
Locate digitized records for research
Filter records by year or material type
Review records by title, date, or creating agency

Questions about National Archives

Can I run it with my own inputs?

Yes. Change the inputs in Studio and press Run, or send new inputs from your code, or ask a connected AI assistant.

Can I call this National Archives tool as an API?

Yes. Send a POST request to /v1/query with your Fous API key and the inputs, and get JSON back.

How much does it cost?

Each completed run costs 1 credit. Failed runs without a completed receipt are free; completed work can remain charged if delivery is interrupted. With pay as you go, a credit costs 1¢. Monthly plans cost less per credit.

Do I need a National Archives account?

No. You only need a Fous account.

How current is the data?

Fous gets the data from catalog.archives.gov when you run it. Some results are reused for up to 24 hours, and results that use your account or key are never reused. It was last verified on Oct 7, 2026.