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Free Public Domain Collection

Survival Reference Library

Military field manuals, FEMA guides, USDA handbooks, and historical texts — organized by topic. Free to read, no sign-up required.

13 topics 5,556 manuals 2,569 chapters

Browse by Topic

13 subject areas

Wilderness Survival

1,579 manuals

Shelter, fire, navigation, signaling, and the core skills for staying alive in any outdoor environment — from military field manuals to scouting handbooks.

Fire Starting & Fuel Shelter Building & Improvisation Navigation & Orienteering Signaling & Rescue Cold Weather Survival +4 more

First Aid & Medicine

359 manuals

Emergency medical care, wilderness medicine, and long-term health management when professional help is unavailable.

Triage & Emergency Response Wound Care & Hemorrhage Control Burns, Frostbite & Environmental Injuries Fractures, Sprains & Orthopedics Airway, Breathing & CPR +7 more

Food, Water & Foraging

1 manuals

Finding, procuring, and safely preparing food and drinking water in any environment — from wild plants to hunting and fishing.

Water Purification & Sourcing Wild Plant Foraging & Identification Hunting & Big Game Trapping & Snaring Fishing, Nets & Aquatics +3 more

Food Preservation & Storage

Long-term food storage, preservation techniques, and building food security reserves for self-sufficient living.

Canning & Bottling Drying, Smoking & Curing Fermentation & Pickling Root Cellars & Cold Storage Long-term Storage Planning +1 more

Farming & Homesteading

1,152 manuals

Self-sufficient food production, animal husbandry, and off-grid farm management from USDA and historical sources.

Soil, Composting & Fertilization Vegetable Gardening Livestock & Animal Husbandry Beekeeping & Pollination Dairy & Cheese Making +3 more

Disaster Preparedness

11 manuals

Emergency planning, response protocols, and community resilience for natural and man-made disasters — sourced from FEMA and government agencies.

Emergency Kits & Planning Evacuation & Shelter-in-Place Community Emergency Response & ICS Power Outages & Infrastructure Failure Pandemic & Public Health Emergency +3 more

Nuclear, Chemical & Biological

40 manuals

Protection and survival strategies for NBC threats — drawn from military, civil defense, and Cold War preparedness archives.

Radiation & Fallout Protection Nuclear Event Response Chemical Hazards & Decontamination Biological Threats & Disease Control NBC Personal Protection Equipment +1 more

Maritime & Water Safety

92 manuals

Seamanship, boat handling, water survival, and coastal emergency response from Coast Guard and naval publications.

Seamanship & Navigation Small Boat Handling & Safety Survival at Sea Flood & Inland Water Safety Search & Rescue at Sea +1 more

Weapons & Defense

Firearms, field craft, personal security, and military tactical knowledge from official military publications.

Firearms Safety & Maintenance Marksmanship & Shooting Techniques Edged Weapons, Axes & Tools Military Field Craft & Tactics Personal Security & Home Defense +1 more

Shelter & Construction

Building durable shelters, off-grid structures, and essential infrastructure for long-term self-sufficiency.

Emergency & Temporary Shelters Log & Timber Frame Construction Masonry, Earthworks & Adobe Off-Grid Power & Energy Systems Plumbing & Water Systems +2 more

Weather & Natural Hazards

185 manuals

Understanding, predicting, and surviving severe weather and geological events — from NOAA and National Weather Service guides.

Weather Interpretation & Forecasting Severe Storm Safety Wildfire Behavior & Safety Avalanche & Landslide Lightning Safety +1 more

Traditional Skills & Crafts

1,977 manuals

Time-tested manual skills, heritage crafts, and practical arts from pre-1928 public domain books and historical sources.

Woodworking & Carpentry Leatherwork & Hide Tanning Rope Making & Knots Textiles, Sewing & Tailoring Metalworking & Blacksmithing +3 more

Historical Reference Library

160 manuals

Pre-1928 public domain manuals, textbooks, and field guides covering medicine, surgery, hygiene, pharmacy, and practical survival knowledge from the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Triage & Emergency Response Medications & Improvised Medicine Wound Care & Hemorrhage Control Infectious Disease & Sanitation Childbirth & Obstetrics

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