History
What is a Primary Source?
A primary source is generally defined as document or physical object which was written or created during the time under study. These sources were present during an experience or time period and offer an inside view of a particular event. Depending on your research topic and perspective, primary sources can include:
- Original Documents (autobiographies, personal correspondence and diaries, speeches and oral histories, newspapers, government documents, audio and video recordings, photographs, and maps)
- Creative Works (Art, drama, poetry, music, novels)
- Relics or Artifacts
[Nelson Mandela at north London Home of Oliver Tambo, 1962. Photograph: Michael Peto, University of Dundee, The Peto Collection]
Suggested Library Databases
- Ancestry Library Edition This link opens in a new windowHistorical records, photos, stories, newspapers and magazines for genealogy research (more...).
- Civil Rights Digital Library This link opens in a new windowAmerican Civil Rights Movement; images; movies; articles (more...).
- EEBO: Early English Books Online This link opens in a new windoweBooks, England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and British North America,1473-1700 (more...).
- Library of Congress Digital Collections This link opens in a new windowPrimary sources, images, maps, American history (more...).
- Slavery in America and the World: History, Culture & Law This link opens in a new windowBrings together a multitude of essential legal materials on slavery in the United States and the English-speaking world. (more...).
- Women's Studies Manuscript Collections from the Schlesinger Library: Voting Rights, National Politics, and Reproductive Rights This link opens in a new windowWomen's history, primary sources (more...).
- World Digital Library (WDL) This link opens in a new windowPrimary resources, world history (more...).
#mediaviewer/File:101st_Airborne_at_Little_Rock_Central_High.jpg){kind=link}