Primary Sources: Databases & Websites - HSS 300 - Reconstruction & Other Late 19th Century Topics

Finding and Identifying Primary Sources

Primary Source vs. Secondary Source

A primary source is a document that shows direct, immediate or firsthand knowledge of a subject or event. It is a document written at the time or on the scene where an event occurred. These include:

Autobiographies
Diaries/Journals
Letters
Speeches
Travel Accounts
Messages and Papers
Government Documents
Magazine/Newspaper Articles
Manuscripts
Photographs
Other Non-Text Materials

Secondary sources are those writings without direct knowledge of a topic or event. These include biographies, monographs, and general periodical articles. Secondary sources are written by people who did not witness or experience an event but have a great deal of knowledge about the topic. Writers often use primary sources in their writing of secondary sources!

Primary Sources on the Web

Finding Primary Sources in Newspaper Databases

Accessible Archives This link opens in a new window
This is a primary source-centric database that covers American history from the 19th century through the early 20th century. Search for newspapers, eyewitness accounts, and more for events such as the Civil War, women's suffrage, and the abolitionist movement. It also contains a collection of African American newspapers from 1827-1909.
America’s Historical Newspapers Series: 1690-1922 This link opens in a new window
This database contains American newspaper articles from the late 17th century through 1922.
ProQuest American Periodicals This link opens in a new window
This database contains over 1,100 periodicals that first began publishing between 1740 and 1940, including special interest and general magazines, literary and professional journals, children’s and women’s magazines, and many other historically-significant periodicals.
Britannica Original Sources This link opens in a new window
This database provides access to more than 2,000 primary sources plus 700 multimedia elements from all aspects of American history from 1493-2009.
It includes speeches, memoirs, poems, historical accounts, and more.
Gale Primary Sources This link opens in a new window
Search across 19th Century US Newspapers, Liberty Magazine Historical Archives (1924-50), Smithsonian Collections, The Illustrated London News Historical Archive (1842-2003) and The Times Digital Archive (1785-2009).
ProQuest Historical Newspapers This link opens in a new window
Search and read full text articles from 28 historical newspapers listed below [click "more..." to view list"]:

• The Atlanta Constitution (1868-1984)
• Atlanta Daily World (1931-2003)
• The Baltimore Afro-American (1893-1988)
• The Baltimore Sun (1837-1987)
• The Boston Globe (1872-1984)
• Chicago Defender (1909-1975)
• Chicago Tribune (1849-1992)
• The Christian Science Monitor (1908-2003)
• Cleveland Call and Post (1934-1991)
• Detroit Free Press (1831-1922)
• The Guardian and The Observer (1791-2003)
• Hartford Courant (1764-1990)
• Indianapolis Star (1903-1922)
• The Irish Times and The Weekly Irish Times (1859-2015)
• Los Angeles Sentinel (1934-2005)
• Los Angeles Times (1881-1989)
• New York Amsterdam News (1922-1993)
• New York Times (1851-2014)
• New York Tribune (1841-1922)
• Norfolk Journal and Guide (1916-2003)
• Philadelphia Tribune (1912-2001)
• Pittsburgh Courier (1911-2002)
• San Francisco Chronicle (1865-1922)
• The Scotsman (1817-1950)
• The St. Louis Post Dispatch (1874-1922)
• The Times of India (1838-2007)
• The Wall Street Journal (1889-1999)
• The Washington Post (1877-1999)
EBSCOhost The Nation Archive This link opens in a new window
Established July 6, 1865, The Nation offers a 135-year archive of reporting opinion and criticism. It is an immensely important clearinghouse of primary source material covering the history of politics, culture, books and the arts – in America and around the world.
Gale Primary Sources: Nineteenth Century U.S. Newspapers (Gale) This link opens in a new window
This database provides full text access to hundreds of 19th century U.S. newspapers.
Gale Primary Sources: Archives Unbound - Introduction to U.S. History: The Civil War This link opens in a new window
This digital archive of primary sources documents the war that transformed America, ending slavery and unifying the nation around the principles of freedom.
Gale Primary Sources: Archives Unbound - Introduction to U.S. History: Slavery in America This link opens in a new window
This digital archive of primary sources provides access to a wide variety of documents, from personal narratives, pamphlets, addresses, political speeches, monographs, and sermons to plays, songs, poetic and fictional works published between the 17th and late 19th centuries.

HSS 300 - Reconstruction & Other Late 19th Century Topics: Primary Sources: Databases & Websites

Finding and Identifying Primary Sources

Primary Sources on the Web

Finding Primary Sources in Newspaper Databases