What's the diff? - A primary source is a document or physical object which was written or created during the time under study, or created later by a participant or observer of the event being studied.
These sources were present during an experience or time period and
offer an inside view of a particular event. Primary sources enable you
to get as close as possible to what actually happened during an
historical event or time period. Some examples include:
- Memoirs, diaries, letters, interviews, and other first-person accounts
- Newspaper articles
- Paintings
- Government documents
- FOR SEARCHING IN OUR LIBRARY: You might want to limit your search to
- Online material (listed under Quick limit in the catalog)
- or to the Documents Without Shelves collection (in the catalog under the location option within the More Limits link)
- A secondary source interprets and analyzes primary sources.
These sources are one or more steps removed from the event. Secondary
sources may have pictures, quotes or graphics of primary sources in
them. Some types of seconday sources include:
- PUBLICATIONS: Textbooks, magazine articles, histories, criticisms, commentaries, encyclopedias
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