Voices from the Past: Enhancing Your Research with Primary Sources
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Transcript of Voices from the Past: Enhancing Your Research with Primary Sources
Voices from the Past: Enhancing Your Research
with Primary Sources
What is a primary source?• Primary sources are the evidence of
history, original records or objects created by participants or observers at the time historical events occurred or even well after events, as in memoirs and oral histories.
• OR, more simply, a primary source is: – A first-hand account– Direct evidence
Some Examples of Primary Sources
• Letters• Manuscripts• Diaries• Journals• Newspapers• Maps• Speeches• Interviews• Documents produced by government agencies• Photographs• Audio or video recordings• Born-digital items (e.g. emails)• Research data• Objects or artifacts (such as works of art,
buildings, tools, weapons, etc.)
Where to Find Primary Sources:
University Resources• Mahn Center for Archives & Special Collections– Contact the curators!
• University Archivist Bill Kimok [email protected]
• Manuscripts Curator Doug McCabe [email protected]
• Special Collections Librarian Miriam Intrator [email protected] (rare books & documentary photo archive)
• ALICE• Digital Collections• Databases• Your subject liaison librarian!
Where to Find Primary Sources:
External Resources• Digital Public Library of America• Archive Grid• HathiTrust Digital Library• Internet Archive
– Wayback Machine• The Vault on Slate• Wellcome Library
Reflection Points• Let your sources guide your research• What you do not find may be as, or
more important, than what you do find. – Silences and gaps in the historical record
can be very informative and powerful!
• Originals Versus Digitized Versions/Surrogates– Good? Bad? Neutral? Depends?– http://ebooks.library.cornell.edu/h/harp/
index.html
Challenges…and Opportunities!
• Deciphering handwriting• Identifying contemporary vocabulary• Being as objective and sensitive to the
time and place as possible– i.e. avoiding bias
• Contextualization• Uncovering the stories of those whose
voices often went unrecorded– Women, minorities, children, those who could
not read or write, societies with oral culture, etc.
Initial Questions1. What is it?2. Who wrote or made it?3. When was it written or made?4. Where was it written or made?5. How was it written or made?6. What evidence does this source
contribute to my research?7. What questions does it raise?
What else do you want to know about the source, its author, its context, etc.?
Getting Started• Start early and plan ahead• Search for materials• Follow the bibliographic trail-which
primary sources do your secondary sources cite?– Never assume any source has already been
depleted. You have a new and fresh perspective!
• Always contact the curator, librarian, or archivist prior to planning your visit!– Verify accessibility, availability, hours,
reproduction and usage policies and prices
More Information• American Library Association • Library of Congress• National Archives• Alden Library • Contact me: Miriam [email protected]