History - Primary Sources: What are primary sources & Where to find them

Primary sources are original artifacts or documents.

• Primary sources also offer accounts from participants or people directly involved in an event.
  • Speeches
  • Government Documents (Text of laws, treaties, court documents, etc)
  • Interviews
  • Data (census data, scientific studies, poll results, etc)
  • Letters and diaries
  • Magazines, newspapers, and journal articles from the time period of the topic . Check with your teacher if the article can be used as a primary source.

Search Tip: Tertiary and Secondary sources can lead to primary sources.

Click here for the National Archives eBooks collection that offers exhibit guides and books incorporating primary sources.