Finding Primary Sources
Primary sources are found in a variety of places but you have to know where to search for them. Because primary sources can be both published and not published, they can be tricky to find.
Often materials that are not published can be rare items that don't have many copies; things like diaries and letters. However, sometimes you can find primary sources that are published, like collections of letters or a person's diary published after the fact.
Places to Look
- Harvard Digital CollectionsHarvard Digital Collections provides free, public access to more than 6 million objects digitized from our collections - from ancient art to modern manuscripts and audio visual materials.
- Digital Public Library of AmericaThe DPLA offers a single point of access to millions of items—photographs, manuscripts, books, sounds, moving images, and more—from libraries, archives, and museums around the United States. Users can browse and search the DPLA’s collections by timeline, map, format, and topic; save items to customized lists; and share their lists with others. Users can also explore digital exhibitions curated by the DPLA’s content partners and staff.
- Women Veterans Historical ProjectThe Betty H. Carter Women Veterans Historical Project documents the contributions of women in the military and related service organizations since World War I. The project includes a wide range of source material including photographs, letters, diaries, scrapbooks, oral histories, military patches and insignia, uniforms, and posters, as well as published works.
- Digital Transgender ArchiveThe purpose of the Digital Transgender Archive (DTA) is to increase the accessibility of transgender history by providing an online hub for digitized historical materials, born-digital materials, and information on archival holdings throughout the world. Based in Boston, Massachusetts at Northeastern University, the DTA is an international collaboration among more than sixty colleges, universities, nonprofit organizations, public libraries, and private collections. By digitally localizing a wide range of trans-related materials, the DTA expands access to trans history for academics and independent researchers alike in order to foster education and dialog concerning trans history.
- Sallie Bingham Center for Women's History & CultureThe Sallie Bingham Center for Women's History and Culture acquires and preserves published and unpublished materials that reflect the public and private lives of women throughout history. Our center, housed at the Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library at Duke University, makes these materials available to a large number of researchers from around the world.
- Library of Congress Digital CollectionsThe Library of Congress has an extensive online collection of primary source material. Their online collection includes prints, photographs, historic newspapers, maps, sound recordings, oral histories, diaries, letters, family papers of prominent Americans, manuscripts, and more.
Databases
- Documenting the American SouthA digital publishing initiative of the University of North Carolina to provide internet access to texts, images, and audio files related to southern history, literature, and culture.
- Slavery in America and the World: History, Culture and Law This link opens in a new windowThis HeinOnline collection brings together a multitude of essential legal materials on slavery in the United States and the English-speaking world. This includes every statute passed by every colony and state on slavery, every federal statute dealing with slavery, and all reported state and federal cases on slavery. Hein
Note: Remote access is restricted to UHV users. - Hein Online This link opens in a new windowHeinOnline is a premier online database containing more than 155 million pages and 200,000 titles of legal history and government documents in a fully searchable, image-based format. HeinOnline bridges the gap in historical research by providing comprehensive coverage from inception of more than 2,500 law-related periodicals. In addition to its vast collection of law journals, HeinOnline contains the entire Congressional Record, Federal Register, and Code of Federal Regulations, complete coverage of the U.S. Reports back to 1754, and entire databases dedicated to treaties, constitutions, case law, world trials, classic treatises, international trade, foreign relations, U.S. Presidents, slavery and much more. Hein
Note: Remote access is restricted to UHV users. - HeritageQuest Online This link opens in a new windowHeritageQuest® Online combines digital, searchable images of U.S. federal census records with the digitized version of the popular ProQuest Genealogy & Local History collection and other valuable content. Powered by Ancestry® with more than 4.4 billion records and coverage dating back to the 1700s. Chadwyck-Healey
Newspapers
- Nineteenth Century U.S. Newspapers (Gale Primary Sources) This link opens in a new window
This link opens in a new window
Access to 500 newspaper titles from the 19th century, featuring full-text content and images from a range of urban and rural regions throughout the U.S. The collection encompasses the entire 19th century, with an emphasis on such topics as the American Civil War, African-American culture and history, Western migration and Antebellum-era life, among other subjects. Gale - American Antiquarian Society Historical Periodicals Collections This link opens in a new window
Documents the life of America's people from the Colonial Era through the Civil War and Reconstruction, providing digital access to the most comprehensive collection of American periodicals published between 1684 and 1912. EBSCO
Features the following collections:
- American Antiquarian Society Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 1 (1684-1820)
- American Antiquarian Society Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 2 (1821-1837)
- American Antiquarian Society Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 3 (1838-1852)
- American Antiquarian Society Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 4 (1853-1865)
- American Antiquarian Society Historical Periodicals Collection: Series 5 (1866-1912)
- New York Times Historical (1851-4 years ago) This link opens in a new windowThis historical database of the New York Times provides the full image of articles published in the NYT from its first issue in 1851. It is searchable by keyword, author, article title, and first paragraph. It includes illustrations and advertisements. Proquest
- Victoria Advocate This link opens in a new windowDigitized version of the Victoria Advocate newspaper. The Victoria Advocate has been in publication since 1848 and covers local events of Victoria and the surrounding counties.
Digital version covers 1848-current (1 year delay) and provides keyword search function.
Microfilm version is housed in the NW Campus storage facility and covers 1848-current (1 year delay).
Subject Terms
Keywords
Keywords can be used in a database when you want to find items that have a word or a phrase anywhere in the item record. This can be a good way to get started, but it's important to note that the item may only mention your keyword once, so it may not be relevant to your research. Here are some keywords you may want to consider:
- Personal Narratives
- Women
- African Americans
- Social Aspects
- Campaigns
- Slavery
- Psychological Aspects
Subject Terms
Subject terms can be a more specific way to search. Each item that is entered into our catalog is assigned Subject Terms. These are terms that describe the focus of the resource. The one difficult thing about subject terms is figuring out what subject term is assigned to your topic. Here are a few subject terms that can get you started.
- Sex customs--United States--History--Sources.
- Women--Germany--Legal status, laws, etc.--History--Sources.
- Sex role--United States--History--19th century--Sources.
- Marriage--History--To 1500--Sources.
- Marriage customs and rites--New England--History--Sources.
- Family--England--History--19th century--Sources.
- Slavery--United States--History--Sources.
