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HIST 300: Theory & Methods
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- Characteristics and Examples of Primary Sources:
- Primary sources are those created during that time that you are researching. Generally, they provide unfiltered information, which you may then interpret and comment upon yourself. Primary sources are often found in books and newspaper articles; historians are often interested in material found in manuscript collections and archives.
- Original documents (letters, diaries, manuscripts, speeches, interviews, news photographs and footage, first-hand accounts, memoirs, official records, statistics, journal articles that present new research and ideas)
- Creative works (art, poetry, fiction, music, dance)
- Relics or artifacts (furnishings, textiles (including clothing), decorative arts, buildings, remains, jewelry)
- Characteristics and Examples of Secondary Sources:
- Secondary sources interpret and analyze primary sources. They act as a filter between you and the object of your study. Secondary sources often incorporate and present primary sources.
- Publications (biographies, criticism, commentary, literature reviews, interpretations of news events by non-contemporaries, encyclopedias, textbooks)
- Documentary films
A wrinkle and a caveat: A source that might normally be a primary source can be used as a secondary source, and vice versa. It all depends on what the research question is. For example: biographies offer insight into how people of a given generation viewed the actions and accomplishments of someone else ... therefore, they can be used as primary sources.
We are indebted to Princeton University's "What is a Primary Source?"
Use I-Share to identify books on your topic. Subject searches can be very useful.
To identify primary sources, look for these words in the subject headings:
- Correspondence
- Diaries
- Early works
- Interviews
- Personal narratives
- Sources
- Speeches
To request books through I-Share, use the 14-digit barcode from your College ID (it begins 210110....)
Some books are not available through I-Share. Search WorldCat and use ILLiad to request WorldCat books (first, confirm that there are no available copies in I-Share).
Browsing
Browsing the stacks (looking at books in a particular section of the library) is invaluable ... but where to start? Generally,
D - World History and History of Europe, Asia, Africa, Oceania (detailed breakdown)
E - History of America and the United States (detailed breakdown)
F - United States local history and History of British, Dutch, French, Latin, and Spanish America (detailed breakdown)
Reference Books
General (including books with primary source material):
Encyclopedia of Historians and Historic Writing REF D 14 .E58 1999
History Highway: A 21st Century Guide to Internet Resources REF D 16.117 .H55 2006
Encyclopedia of American Cultural & Intellectual History REF E 169.1 .E624 2001
The Timetables of History REF D 11 .G78 1991
Reader's Guide to American History REF Z1236 .R43 1997 E178
American Republic: Primary Sources REF E173 .A7535 2002
Historic Documents REF E 839.5 .H57
Milestone Documents in American History REF E173 .M62 2008
Milestone Documents of American Leaders REF E173 .M623 2009
"Debating the Issues in Pro and Con Primary Documents" series REF E176.1 .P
Government, Politics, and Protest: Essential Primary Sources REF HN13 .G68 2006
Specific reference books for HIST 300 topics (be sure to browse the area near your book to find additional materials):
Historical Dictionary of Organized Labor REF HD 4839 .D58 2004
Cambodia [bibliography] REF DS 554.25 .J378 1997
Southwest Asia: A Historical Encyclopedia from Angkor Wat to East Timor REF DS 524 .S68 2004
New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture REF F 209 .N47 2006
Encyclopedia of Ethnicity and Sports in the United States REF GV 709.5 .E83 2000
The Palestinians and the Disputed Territories REF DS 119. .P288354 2004
Medieval Europe, 814 -1350 REF D 102 .M38 2002
European Renaissance and Reformation, 13501600 REF CB 359 .W67 2001
Education REF KF 4150.Z9 E38 2008
American Eras: Civil War and Reconstruction, 1850-1877 REF E 166 .A48 1997
The Dictionary of Art [in particular, vol. 5, p. 457ff] REF N 31 .D5 1996
Historical Abstracts and Academic Search Premier (for non US or Canada history)
ATLA (Religion)
American Antiquarian Society Historical Publications (1693 - 1820)
American Antiquarian Society Historical Publications (1821 - 1837)
List of newspaper databases
List of databases by subject
You may need to use a PRINT INDEX to search for historic newspaper and journal articles. Please see a librarian for assistance with these.
Some important print indexes:
The New York Times Index (1851-present) Reference area
The Chicago Tribune Index (1972-2009) Reference area
Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature (indexes important U.S. journals of the day, starting in 1900) Reference area
Poole's Index to Periodical Literature (1802-1907) Reference area
Essay & General Literature Index (1900-1970) Lower Level Indexes (outside Room 68)
International Index to Periodicals (1923 - 1965) Lower Level Indexes (outside Room 68)
Cumulative Index to a Selected List of Periodicals (1896 - 1898, 1900) Lower Level Indexes
Looking for a particular newspaper or journal? Use our journal search.
If an article is not available in full-text, click on "Check Lake Forest" or 
to locate or request it.
Primary sources available online:
American Memory (historical collections from the National Digital Library)
Avalon Project (documents in law, history, and diplomacy)
Documenting the American South
Documents for the Study of American History
EuroDocs (Western European Primary Historical Documents)
ICPSR (statistics/data across a range of social sciences, including education, history, public health, and racial and ethnic minorities)
Making of America (19th century books and magazines)
UNESCO Archives Portal (International)
Good for photographs and images:
National Archives Digital Copies
New York Public Library Digital Library Collection
Locating and indentifying manuscript collections & archives:
To identify collections of papers/archives, limit your search to "Archival Materials" and/or use these subject words in your search:
- Archives
- Records and correspondence
Repositories of Primary Sources
National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections Search
Encyclopedia of Associations Ready Ref AS 22 .E5 (as at the reference desk). Many associations have their own libraries and archives onsite.
If you are able to visit either Northwestern University or the University of Chicago for your research (we can arrange for either), do use the invaluable databases ArchiveGrid and Archive Finder.