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How to Find Primary Sources

This is a companion guide to the Library 101: How to Find Primary Sources workshop. This guide contains information on how to find and access primary sources, their use in research, and analysis.

Primary Source Defined

A primary source is the original document/material/item or a first hand account. Primary sources are analyzed by secondary sources. Here are some examples and how they can be identified as a primary source:

  • A Research Project: The raw data you've collected for a research project (field notes, survey data) is a primary source. 
  • A Cookbook: The information inside of a cookbook is a primary source which provides information on popular (and unpopular) foods and available ingredients from a particular time period. This includes the notes written in the margins! What we eat in 2021 is quite different from what we ate in 1990. Imagine the differences across centuries!
  • A Poem: An original poem, whether it is in a book, a journal, or on Instagram, is a primary source. A paper turned in after reading, conceptualizing, and analyzing the poem would be a secondary source. 
  • A Magazine: A contemporary magazine is also a primary (and popular) source. If you were studying fashion in the 1970s, you might look at Vogue, Ebony, and other popular magazines to determine what the fashion trends were. 

These are a few examples of primary sources and ways they can be used. For a more detailed breakdown of primary source types, scroll down. 

Types of Primary Sources

Primary sources can come in all formats, whether they are digital, printed, painted, or audiovisual. Below are some more examples of primary sources:

  • Correspondence (letters or messages)
  • Novels and poems 
  • Diaries, journals, and scrapbooks
  • Photographs, works of art, and films
  • Organizational records: meeting minutes, university records, or club manifests
  • Maps and atlases 
  • Government documents and reports
  • Memoirs, oral histories, and interviews
  • Speeches or addresses
  • Newspapers and magazines
  • Original research: public opinion polls, statistics, case studies
  • Artifacts: clothing, toys, anything that could be considered an object

Any of these materials can also exist in a digital format. For example, a journal is a journal whether it is written by hand or on a phone. It is still a primary source, just in the digital sphere. You may also have original transcripts of materials which were formatted to be heard or seen. These can be especially valuable when the initial intended format is not accessible. An example of this would be a play or unrecorded speech. 

Helpful Terms

Archive 

A place in which materials are stored for preservation and future access. An alternate definition would be the documents themselves which are stored.

Born Digital

Materials such as text, images, audiovisual recordings, etc. that were created in a digital form rather than converted from analog to digital. An example of a born digital record would be a picture taken on a phone and uploaded to cloud storage.

Ephemera

An item which has a temporary existence. Ephemera may include posters, broadsides, tickets, etc. items which were expected to be discarded. Many archives collect ephemera to provide cultural and historical context for daily events.

Incunable (plural, Incunabula)

A book printed before the year 1500 A.D.

Manuscript

A document or book which is handwritten, or a book which has not yet been published. Two examples of this would be a medieval manuscript written by hand in the 13th century, but also a book written in Microsoft Word which has not been printed or published. The term has evolved to accommodate new technologies. 

Metadata

It's data about data! In other words, metadata is the description of another set of data. For example, the subject term section of an article you've read.

Paleography

The study of deciphering, analyzing, and interpreting inscriptions (or handwriting). An example of this would be reading a medical treatise from the 16th century or a diary written in a personalized shorthand. 

Provenance

The history of ownership. If available, collection information will often include the provenance of an item in the metadata. 

Special Collection

A collection of materials which is usually kept separate from the library's general collection and often has stricter access regulations (typically items are in-library use only). Check the collection's website for rules regarding access. Many special collections are built around a particular theme or have a more specific collection development policy.

Typography

The art and practice of printing, including the aesthetics and arrangement of the material printed.

All definitions paraphrased from the Oxford English Dictionary unless otherwise noted.