LibGuides: History: Primary Sources

Library of Congress

Our nation's warehouse of documents and artifacts

Library of Congress American Memory This link opens in a new window
Library of Congress Chronicling America This link opens in a new window
Veterans History Project This link opens in a new window

What is a Primary Source?

Primary Source vs. Secondary Source

A primary source is a document that shows direct, immediate or firsthand knowledge of a subject or event. It is a document written at the time or on the scene where an event occurred.

Secondary sources are those writings without direct knowledge of a topic or event. These include biographies, monographs, and general periodical articles. Secondary sources are written by people who did not witness or experience an event but have a great deal of knowledge about the topic. Writers often use primary sources in their writing of secondary sources!

Primary Source Types

Autobiographies
Diaries/Journals
Letters
Speeches
Travel Accounts
Messages and Papers
Government Documents
Magazine/Newspaper Articles
Manuscripts
Photographs
Other Non-Text Materials

Websites for Primary Source Content

The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History Primary Sources
The Collection includes more than 60,000 letters, diaries, maps, pamphlets, printed books, newspapers, photographs, and ephemera that document the political, social, and economic history of the United States.
New York Public Library Digital Gallery
Provides free and open access to over 800,000 images digitized from the The New York Public Library's vast collections, including illuminated manuscripts, historical maps, vintage posters, rare prints, photographs and more.

American Archive of Public Broadcasting This link opens in a new window
Contains over 13,000 audio and video files from public television and radio programs from the last sixty years
The National Jukebox This link opens in a new window
National Jukebox historical recordings from the Library of Congress project. You can now play this collection of old music from the early 20th century online.
World Digital Library This link opens in a new window
Search 11,324 items about 194 countries between 1200 BCE and 2000 CE

Finding Primary Sources in Newspaper Databases

Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers Search America's historic newspapers pages from 1836-1922 or use the U.S. Newspaper Directory tab to find information about American newspapers published between 1690-present.

+Newspaper Source Selected full-text articles from 200 national, regional, and international newspapers, including USA Today, Christian Science Monitor, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Detroit Free Press, Miami Herald, The Times (London), Toronto Star, etc. Also includes full-text television and radio news transcripts. (This database requires a public library card. Enter your PLCH library card number.)

+ProQuest Historical Newspapers Full-text and full-image articles for the complete backfile (1851–2000) of the New York Times. Digital reproductions include news stories, editorials, photographs, graphics, obituaries, legal notices, and advertisements. (This database requires a public library card. Enter your PLCH library card number.)

Primary Source Specific eBook Titles

Need a Password??

Visit our library page on Schoology and look for the passwords document in Resources.

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