The Digital Comic Museum features thousands of free downloadable American comics from the early days of the medium through to the 1950s.
On this website, you'll find many copies of the popular comics of the time.
These comics cover a wide range of themes. There's a bit of everything, from westerns and horror to fantasy and - of course - superheroes, some of them very famous.
This selection is made up of titles from what is considered "the golden age of American comics".
It was in 1933 that Max Gaines brought out the first comic book in the format we now call "Comics". Success came quickly, and what is considered the Golden Age lasted from 1938 (appearance of Superman) to 1955.
Sales soared with publications centered around super-powered heroes like Superman.
Success was also amplified by the Second World War, which created anxiety and a need for exemplary patriotic figures. For example, in the first issue of Daredevil, the superhero thwarts Hitler's plans (no less!).
But in the early '50s, a campaign of criticism against the violence of the publications and a sharp drop in sales meant that many publishers went out of business in 1955.
On this site, you can read a large number of English-language comics from this period, free of charge. You'll only find works that are now in the public domain in the U.S. (for France, I don't know).
The archives are stored in the form of "scans" of the original comics. They are therefore in English and free of charge. They can be read online or downloaded. (You'll need to register to access them, though, as registration is free).
It's an excellent initiative for those wishing to familiarize themselves with the history of American comics.
You can visit the site here: Digital Comic Museum.
Comics can be downloaded in CBR, CBZ and PDF formats, depending on the title.
If you want to read CRB or CBZ files on your Kindle e-reader you can read this article : how to read CBR and CBZ on Kindle and Kindle Paperwhite.
