Library Research Guides: HIST 2111/2112 Thomas: Primary Sources

Types of Sources

Primary Sources

Direct evidence, first-hand testimony, or an eyewitness account of a topic or event
Primary sources provide the raw data for your research
Examples: In addition to diaries, correspondence, photographs, and many other types of sources typically considered to be primary sources, you may add just about anything to the list. The way you interpret or use a source determines whether it is a primary source or not.

Definitions from NYU Libraries. Adapted from The Craft of Research by Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G. Colomb, Joseph M. Williams. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, c2008.

Primary Sources

A page from John Washington’s diary in 1858. (left) and a letter written by Maria Perkins to her husband while she was a slave. (right).

Article from the Atlanta Constitution, 1874.

Secondary Sources

Use primary data to solve research problems
Examples: scholarly books and articles

Definitions from NYU Libraries. Adapted from The Craft of Research by Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G. Colomb, Joseph M. Williams. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, c2008.

Journal Article

Wintory, B. (2009). The House that Cotton Built: Recovering African American History at Lakeport Plantation.
Arkansas Review: A Journal Of Delta Studies, 40(2), 100-104.

Tertiary Sources

Books or articles that synthesize and report on secondary sources for general readers
Examples: textbooks, encyclopedia articles, Wikipedia

Definitions from NYU Libraries. Adapted from The Craft of Research by Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G. Colomb, Joseph M. Williams. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, c2008.

Tertiary Sources

Rodriguez, Junius P. Slavery in the United States: A Social, Political, and Historical Encyclopedia.
Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, 2007. Print.

Wikipedia, Slavery in the United States. 2017.

	Primary Source	Secondary Source
Art:	original artwork	article critiquing the piece of art
History:	slave diary	book about the Underground Railroad
Literature:	poem	book or article on a particular genre of poetry
Political Science:	treaty	essay on Native American land rights
Science or Social Sciences:	report of an original experiment	review of several studies on the same topic
Theater:	videotape of a performance	biography of a playwright

Examples from Georgetown University Library.

Historical Newspapers

Atlanta Constitution, 1868-1925
The Atlanta Constitution (1868-1942) offers full page and article images with searchable full text back to the first issue.
New York Times, 1851-2002
The New York Times newspaper coverage provides easily-searchable first-hand accounts and unparalleled coverage of the politics, society and events of the time.
The Guardian, 1821-2003
The Guardian (1821-2003) newspaper coverage provides easily-searchable first-hand accounts and unparalleled coverage of the politics, society and events of the time.
The Observer, 1791-2003
The Observer (1791-2003) newspaper coverage provides easily-searchable first-hand accounts and unparalleled coverage of the politics, society and events of the time.

Georgia Historic Newspapers Archive This link opens in a new window

Chronicling America Historic American Newspapers (The Library of Congress)
Search America's historic newspaper pages from 1777-1963 or use the U.S. Newspaper Directory to find information about American newspapers published between 1690-present.
19th Century U.S. Newspapers
Washington Post, 1877-1994
The Washington Post (1877-1997) newspaper coverage provides easily-searchable first-hand accounts and unparalleled coverage of the politics, society and events of the time.