Primary Sources (digitized)
Question: What is a primary source?
According to the Healey Library at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, "Primary Sources are immediate, first-hand accounts of a topic, from people who had a direct connection with it. Primary sources can include:
- Texts of laws and other original documents.
- Newspaper reports, by reporters who witnessed an event or who quote people who did.
- Speeches, diaries, letters and interviews - what the people involved said or wrote.
- Original research.
- Data sets, survey data, such as census or economic statistics.
- Photographs, video, or audio that capture an event."
In an ELA class, a primary source is typically the original book or text being read and analyzed.
See America's founding documents along with other federal documents. Some federal records including military records are available.
Search many sets of primary sources including those on the Civil War, the Dust Bowl, veterans' stories, political cartoons, and segregation.
Managed by the National Archives. Access letters, maps, videos, speeches and photographs.
Access global history with links to primary sources.
Explore historical collections from libraries, museums, and archives across Massachusetts
Discover 36,918,180 images, texts, videos, and sounds from across the United States
Use our online library catalog to explore the books available in the learning commons.