Primary Sources

GOOGLE SCHOLAR SEARCH

Some articles may be primary and some may be secondary when doing a google search. Check accuracy of information.

WHAT IS A PRIMARY SOURCE?

Primary Sources

A primary source is a piece of information about a historical event or period in which the creator of the source was an actual participant in or a contemporary of a historical moment. The purpose of primary sources is to capture the words, the thoughts and the intentions of the past. Primary sources help you to interpret what happened and why it happened.

Examples of primary sources include documents, artifacts, historic sites, songs, or other written and tangible items created during the historical period you are studying.

Secondary Sources

A secondary source is a source that was not created first-hand by someone who participated in the historical era. Secondary sources are usually created by historians, but based on the historian's reading of primary sources. Secondary sources are usually written decades, if not centuries, after the event occurred by people who did not live through or participate in the event or issue. The purpose of a secondary source is to help build the story of your research from multiple perspectives and to give your research historical context.

An example of a secondary source is Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era by James M. McPherson, published in 1988. They are a great starting point in helping you see the big picture. Understanding the context of your topic will help you make sense of the primary sources that you find.

The primary and secondary sources McPherson used are listed in the bibliography. Another researcher might consult these same primary sources and reach a different conclusion.

Tertiary Sources

Tertiary sources are based on a collection of primary and secondary sources and may or may not be written by an expert. Tertiary sources should never appear in your bibliography but are only used as exploratory sources, to give you ideas about what to research. Wikipedia is not a reliable source and should not be utilized or appear in your bibliography.

Examples are dictionaries, encyclopedias, fact books, and guidebooks.

Content © 2009 National History Day

PRIMARY SOURCES

    • American Heritage - This magazine is an excellent history resource. Use the print cumulative (1954-1999) index in the library or search the online archive.

    • American Memory - Provides free and open access to written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music that document the American experience. (from website)

    • Chronicling America - Search and view newspaper pages from 1836-1922 and to find information about American newspapers published between 1690-present.

    • Civil Rights Digital Library - Primary sources and other educational materials relating to the struggle for racial equality in the 1950s and 1960s.

    • National Archive Document Search - Excellent resource for primary source documents.

    • THOMAS - Library of Congress access to federal legislative information

    • US Patent and Trademark Drawings: Actual Patents - A patent is a primary source. You are looking for innovations. Patents are innovations.

    • USA.gov: Government Information - Not everything is a primary source, but you can find many primary source documents here. Government documents are generally primary sources.

    • World Digital Library - Primary materials from countries and cultures around the world.

    • Project Guttenberg - A collection of over 50,000 eBooks.

    • American Archive of Public Broadcasting - A collection of significant public television and radio programs of significance to American political, social, cultural history and creativity.