Primary Sources

Ms. Woznick

Investigate

Activity 1:

What documents or items would people use to research your own life story in 75 years? Jot down some quick answers in this form for us to review together in class.

Activity 2:

Browse the links in this section for a minute.

Then choose ONE postcard and ONE ad, and fill out this Primary Source Investigation form for each one.

Old postcards of Beverly estates and houses - from Beverly Public Library's Flikr pages

• Hetmere
• Stetson Cottage
• Holmes House
• Eagle Rock
• Sears Estate
• 31 Front St.

Advertising

• Flapper Dress Ad
• Chicago Flappers Frolic and Picnic
• Typewriter ad

If you have time, you can look at the car link or the editorial cartoon below too.

• 1922 Rolls Royce car - The photo itself is not the primary source (it's new) - the car is!
• Editorial cartoon

For further investigation tonight:

• Using Primary Sources to Interpret Life During the 1920s - The Learning Page, Library of Congress
• American Memory 1900-1929

If you look at some other resources online or elsewhere, remember, a primary source:

• is created at the time of or very soon after an event
• is created by a person who witnessed or lived through an event or particular time period
• has only the viewpoint of the time in which it was created - by definition, it cannot have the perspective created by time
• may be hard to find - primary sources are often one of a kind (diaries, for example) or are items generally disposed of (a railroad timetable, for example)
• may require more work from the user to interpret and analyze

Investigating Your Life Story - Responses

Primary Source Investigation - Responses