J. Eugene Smith Library
Finding Primary and Secondary Sources
Primary sources are original records that document evidence or supply first-hand testimony of a particular time period, event, or subject. This record or documentation is usually created close to the time of the occurrence by a participant or observer. If created at a later date, the documentation would take on the form of an autobiography, oral history, or memoir.
Primary source accounts can be a person’s recollection or description of a particular event or time, there may be misunderstandings or misinterpretations. When looking for primary sources, it is helpful to obtain more than one account of a particular event in order to determine the reliability of the information.
The following are generally considered primary sources:
Personal Accounts
Diaries, interviews, letters, manuscripts, memos, speeches
autobiographies, memoirs, oral histories
Original Recordings of an Event, Time Period, or Place
Books, journal, magazine and newspaper articles, advertisements, photography, audio and video recordings, pamphlets, broadsides/posters, maps
Organization or Government Agency Records
Minutes of meetings, agendas, correspondence
Research Data and Reports
Public opinion polls, census records, laws, experiments, studies, statistical data
Creative Expression
Works of art, literature, poetry, architecture, music
Artifacts
Physical objects, clothing, tools, furniture
Secondary source materials are produced by analyzing and interpreting a particular time period, event or subject. The authors of this interpretation are not first-hand participants or observers of the event. Primary sources are often used to provide the evidence for secondary source materials.
Examples of secondary sources are biographies, journal articles, and documentaries written some time after the event being studied. Historical textbooks, for example, are often compiled by analyzing and interpreting primary sources.
Other Interpretations of Primary Sources
How to Distinguish Between Primary and Secondary Sources
Examples of Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Sources
Beginning the Research Process
As a first step, it is advantageous to locate background information for a more complete understanding of the subject being studied and to help narrow a topic. This will help to establish an historical framework of specific events, dates, and names of significant individuals within the timeframe being studied. For this purpose, subject-specific encyclopedias and historical survey books can supply a broad overview of an event or time period. The information gleaned from these resources will also help to provide terms and keywords to use for more relevant searches within catalogs, databases, and Web sites.
The following are a few examples of books at ECSU related to American History, primary sources, and the research process. These are good starting points that can be used for background information related to American History.
Also note that in our Catalog/CONSULS there is a selection that can be made to search "ECSU Reference". This option is found on the drop down under "Search All Libraries".
Visit or call the reference desk (465-4699) for assistance in locating other subject-specific encyclopedias and historical survey books related to a particular topic or geographic location.
Reference/2nd Floor
Library Use Only
Atlas of American History (G1201.S1F4 1987) Found in Reference and Stacks
Atlas of American Migration (G1201.E27F5 1998) Oversized Reference
American Decades Primary Sources (E169.1.A471977 (2004) Covers 1900-1999
American Eras (E169.1.A47 1979 (1997-1999) Covers 1600-1899
Dictionary of American History (E147.D52 2003 v. 1-10)
Dictionary of American Immigration History (JV6450.D53 1990)
Facts on File: Weekly World News Digest With Cumulative Index (Serials, Index and Abstract Area)
Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups (E 184.A1H35 1980)
Historical Dictionary of the Civil War (E468.J777 2002 v. 1-2)
A History of Women in the United States: State-by-State Reference (HQ1410.H58 2004 v. 1-4)
Letters of Delegates to Congress, 1771 – 1789 (LC 1.34: v. 1-26) US Documents
Encyclopedia of the American Civil War (E468.H47 2000 v. 1-5)
Encyclopedia of American Historical Documents (E173.E54 2004 v. 1-3)
Encyclopedia of American Social Movements (HN57.E594 2004 v. 1-4)
Stacks/3rd Floor
These Can Be Borrowed
The American Republic: Primary Sources (E173.A7535 2002)
The Voice of the People: Primary Sources on the History of American Labor, Industrial Relations, and Working-Class Culture (HD8066.V65 2004)
What American Women Did, 1789 - 1920: A Year-by-Year Reference (HQ1154.C665 2001)
The Oxford Guide to Library Research (Z710.M23 1998)
See index for chapters on primary sources, archives, manuscripts, and public records
Student Guide to Research in the Digital Age: How to Locate and Evaluate Information Sources (ZA3075.S74 2006) Available in 3rd Floor Stacks and Reference Section. See index for chapters on primary sources discussed in several forms.
Tip
Secondary sources such as books and scholarly journal articles written after an event or time can also be a good resource to find primary sources. Footnotes and bibliographies in secondary sources can point to primary source materials.
Finding Primary Sources in the Library Catalog: CONSULS
CONSULS (Connecticut State University Library System) is the shared library catalog of the four Connecticut State University Libraries and the State of Connecticut Library in Hartford. Searching CONSULS will locate library materials within each of the five libraries. There is an opportunity to limit a search to only one library at a time if preferred.
Some of the materials in CONSULS include books, audio-visual materials, titles of periodicals, government documents, and more. You will not be able to search for articles in CONSULS. For this purpose, refer to our databases that can be reached from the library homepage.
Getting Started in CONSULS
- Starting from the J. Eugene Smith Library homepage
- Select Online Catalog - CONSULS tab
- Use a Keyword or Subject Search
- For a Keyword search, you can either search all of the CSU libraries or select "Search ECSU" as shown below, if only interested in materials at ECSU.
Note: If searching the entire CONSULS CSU system (CCSU, ECSU, SCSU, WCSU) simply enter terms without any selection or modifications. If the items are not found at ECSU, most of the materials from the CSU system can be requested online in CONSULS, except for reference materials.
Examples of primary source terms to use in a search:
- sources or history sources
- archiv* (Example use of asterisk to find archive, archives, archival)
- history
- autobiography
- correspondence
- diary
- interview
- letter
- oral history
- manuscript
- map
- memoir
- narrative
- records
- speech
Keyword Search In CONSULS
Try using a keyword search by inserting a relevant term or person’s name along with the operator AND with one or more of the terms that are listed above:
Type in your search terms and click "Search".
If the material in CONSULS is at another Connecticut State University (Central, Southern, Western), simply select "Request". After requesting an item, you will be able to pick it up at our circulation desk after being contacted within approximately 2-3 business days.
You will need a Library Pin Code to use "Request".
Keyword Searches: Carefully read the instructions for keyword searching in CONSULS. Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT), truncation, and use of parentheses work very well in a keyword search.
More examples of terms to use to find primary sources:
Using an asterisk (*) in CONSULS allows for a selection of any and all endings after the letters you type in. Example: diar* will pull up diary, diaries, etc.
primary sources and america*
revolution and sources and war (this can be narrowed further)
vietnam and diar*
war and autobiog*
massachusetts and lowell and women
primary sources and african americans
(african americans or minorities) and civil rights and sources
primary sources and war (in place of war, type in a specific war with dates included)
primary sources and women and (narrow by adding suffrage, feminism, employment, etc.)
women and america* and diar*
stowe, harriet and letters
caribbean and sources
french and (united states or america) and 1600 – 1763
Keyword search example: “stowe, harriet and (letters or memoirs)”
If choosing to use more than one primary source term within a search, use parentheses and the operator OR to include materials that contain one or the other as in the above example.
If using “stowe, harriet and (letters and memoir)” you are asking for material about Harriet Beecher Stowe that contain both letters and memoirs within each individual record. This will significantly limit a search. When looking for primary sources it is best to create a search that is as broad as possible, at least in the beginning stages.
Subject searches in CONSULS can be effective if the correct subject headings are used. Individual records contain Library of Congress subject headings. For help in finding a variety of subject headings used by the Library of Congress, select the subject search tab in CONSULS and the link to "Library of Congress Subject Headings." Here you will be able to type in your terms and obtain specific subject headings.
Subject Searches:
(limit to searching only ECSU to narrow search, if desired)
industrial revolution
adams, john quincy (type in any famous or political figure)
civil war 1861 – 1865
world war 1914 – 1918
world war 1939 – 1945
prohibition
emigration and immigration
african americans history
french americans history
marriage records connecticut
diaries
census
school census
household surveys
government questionnaires
laws
You can also try a title, author, or number search in CONSULS if this information is known.
Ask a reference librarian for help with selecting search terms
when looking for primary source materials.
J. Eugene Smith Library Archives
The library archives are a good resource for finding primary sources. You can locate some of these materials when searching the CONSULS catalog or browsing the Archive Collection List that contains some of the archive holdings.
The State Library has a great deal of primary source materials. Most items are only available at the library at 231 Capitol Avenue in Hartford, CT. Some materials can be accessed full-text online via the Connecticut Digital Archive. Note that many documents that the State Library holds are also at ECSU within our Government Documents and Connecticut Archives sections.
The Connecticut State Library is part of CONSULS. Notice StLib for items held by the State Library.
Use the Connecticut Digital Archive link for step by step instructions on finding a document in CONSULS and connecting to the full text. Scroll down to "How to Find a Document in the Connecticut Digital Archive."
Index to Connecticut State Library Research Resources
An alphabetical index to the Connecticut State Library's research resources. With the many and varied resources available in this collection, viewing the index helps in selecting materials by subject area and also provides direct access to these materials. While the index is quite broad, it does not contain everything available on the CT State Library Site.
Connecticut State History Resources
Links to an abundant list of Connecticut history resources organized by historical periods and topics. Some of the databases are only available at the Connecticut State Library.
Finding Primary Sources in Periodicals
Journals, Magazines, Newspapers
Finding specific articles about an event, subject, or time period requires use of an index (print or online) or searchable database. Indexes include the New York Times Index and the Readers Guide to Periodical Literature found on the 2nd Floor in the Reference/Index area.
See the list of History Research Databases for help in choosing a database to begin a search for articles. Select a database that contains journals, magazines, newspapers, etc. in the subject area being investigated. Be sure to notice the dates of coverage.
JSTOR is one of the resources included in our History Research Databases. JSTOR contains an archive of core scholarly journals from a variety of fields such as arts and sciences, language and literature, music, and business. Some of the journals are archived back to the 1800s.
Project Muse is another ECSU database that can be searched for historical resources. When opening the Project Muse search interface there is an opportunity to also select searching within JSTOR simultaneously. Project Muse contains American Periodicals, a Journal of History, Criticism and Bibliography.
WorldCat (OCLC) contains periodicals as well as a variety of other historical records from libraries represented in over 80 countries. Includes manuscripts written as early as the 12th century. A good database for finding archival materials. In the advanced search mode, select archival materials.
Newspapers
Search the NYT web site of several million articles from 1851 – Present by keyword, phrase, author, headline or date. Also check CONSULS for dates of coverage in microform or link to a database at ECSU to find full-text.
(If the above NYT web site does not obtain the desired results, there is also the option of using the New York Times Index found on the 2nd Floor in the Reference/Index area. Select the desired year and locate a topic area. After finding a specific article date and location, go to the 1st Floor microform area to find the actual article. Ask a librarian for assistance in this process).
Search the Hartford Courant web site for articles from 1764 – Present and also check CONSULS for dates of coverage in microform or link to a database at ECSU to find full-text.
The Chronicle, Willimantic Chronicle
Search The Chronicle web site for articles from 1999 – Present
Also check CONSULS for dates of coverage in microform at ECSU to find full-text.
Our CT Studies Collection on the 4th floor has a complete run of the newspaper on microfilm dating from 1879-present.
Note: This newspaper has changed its name several times. AKA The Chronicle (most recent), Willimantic Chronicle, Willimantic Daily Chronicle.
Search the Internet Public Library’s list of U.S. and world newspapers on the Internet.
Also see iCONN Newsstand (under Databases A - Z) for a collection of 7 major newspaper titles with more recent articles including:
New York Times (covers June 1990 - Present)
