NHS Library: Research Tools: Primary Sources

What are Primary Documents?

PRIMARY DOCUMENTS were either created during the time period being studied or were created at a later date by a participant in the events being studied (as in the case of memoirs). They reflect the individual viewpoint of a participant or observer. Primary sources enable the researcher to get as close as possible to what actually happened during a historical event or time period. Some examples of primary sources include:

Diaries, journals, speeches, interviews, letters, memos, manuscripts
Memoirs or autobiographies.
Record of or Information collected by government agencies.
- For Example, births, deaths, marriages, permits, census data all document conditions in the society
Record of organizations. Their minutes, reports, correspondence
Published materials (books, magazine and journal articles, newspaper articles) written at the time about a particular event.
- Accounts by participants, or written by journalists or other observers. Important to distinguish between material written at the time of an event versus material written as historical analysis.
Photographs, audio recordings, and moving pictures or video recordings
Materials that document the attitudes and popular thought of a historical time period.
- Sources include public opinion polls taken at the time - ideas and images conveyed in the mass media, literature, film, popular fiction.
Research data
- Such as anthropological field notes, the results of scientific experiments, and the other scholarly activity of the time.
Artifacts of all kinds: objects, buildings, furniture, clothing, toys Source: U.C. Berkeley Library

A SECONDARY SOURCE is a work that interprets or analyzes a historical event or phenomenon. It is generally at least one step removed from the event is often based on primary sources. Examples include scholarly or popular books, articles, reference books, textbooks.

Finding Primary Sources Online

Locating Primary Sources in Books

Locating Primary Sources in Books

How do I find primary sources in books?

Often books contain excerpts or entire transcripts of primary source materials. When searching the online catalog, look for subject headings that use the terms "personal narratives" or "sources." These terms indicate there are primary sources located in a book.

Search the Library Catalogs (NHS and Newburyport Public Library)

Remember that primary sources may be in the form of reprints (monograph compilations, reprinted letters, diaries, microfilm, etc.) Doing a search in a library catalog adding the following subject headings to your keyword search, will help you find these reprints as well as original archival collections:

charters correspondence diaries interviews manuscripts oratory pamphlets pictorial works sources speeches

Locating Primary Sources on the Web

Locating Primary Sources
on the Web

Enter your search term and "primary source" in a Google search and you will find posted documents.

Revolutionary War Primary Documents LINK

Mr. Hill & Mrs. Osgood Link to Primary Doc

Primary Source Websites

Search these collections and databases for Primary Sources!

New York Public Library Digital Collections
Access to almost 800,000 documents - Locate manuscripts, maps, rare prints, photos and more.
National Archives
Over 120,000 digitized documents, including the Declaration of Independence!
Library of Congress
The largest library in the world!!
World Digital Library
Contains over 7,000 items from all over the world.
Life Photo Archive
Find Life Magazine photos from multiple decades.
Massachusetts Historical Society
The Coming of the American Revolution will ground students’ understanding of the facts relating to the events leading up to the American Revolution,
The Library of Congress American Memory Project
Written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music that document the American experience
The Historical Text Archive
A database of full-text articles, and links to other digitized primary sources.

Electronic Databases with Primary Source Materials

Locating Primary Sources in Electronic Databases

The databases listed below contain primary source materials that are searchable by subject and most are available full text.

World History Reference Center (GALE DB)
History Resource Center offers Full-text and facsimile images for more than 1,400 primary source documents.
Massachusetts HIstory Online (GALE DB)
U.S. History in Context (Gale)
History Resource Center: U.S. provides access to more than 1,000 historical (primary) documents, more than 30,000 reference articles, and more than 65 full-text journals covering themes, events, individuals and periods in U.S. history from pre-Colonial times to the present.
Docs Teach - National Archives
tThousands of primary source documents to from the National Archives including images, maps, charts, graphs, that spans the course of American History

History Reference Center EBSCO Database

Offers the full text of history reference books, leading history periodicals, historical documents, and biographies of historical figures.

Nearly 57,000 historical documents
More than 80,000 biographies of historical figures
More than 1,990 full-text reference books, encyclopedias and non-fiction titles
Nearly 46,000 historical photos & maps
More than 80 hours of historical video

Using Primary Documents

Using Primary Sources on the Web
This brief guide is designed to provide students and researchers with information to help them evaluate the internet sources and the quality of primary materials that can be found online. It was created by RUSA, a division of the American Library Association.