February 2006

How to Find Primary Sources in the Library and Online

Comparison of Primary vs. Secondary Sources

Primary sources are contemporary accounts of an event, written by someone who experienced or witnessed the event in question. These original documents (i.e., they are not about another document or account) are often diaries, letters, memoirs, journals, speeches, manuscripts, interviews and other such unpublished works. They may also include published pieces such as newspaper or magazine articles (as long as they are written soon after the fact and not as historical accounts), photographs, audio or video recordings, research reports in the natural or social sciences, or original literary or theatrical works.

Primary Sources in the Millsaps Library

Library Databases

Britannica’s Original Sources
The site includes original source documents, critical selections and acclaimed works across U.S. and World History, Literature, Social Science, Political Science, Law, Science, Mathematics, Religion, Philosophy, and Language.

Women Writers Online
The WWP includes full text works in English, or in English translation, by women covering a period from 1400 to 1850.

Millsaps Library Catalog
AUTHOR search: to find materials someone has written
KEYWORD search: combine a topic, keyword, or person’s name with any of the following — autobiography, personal narratives, letters, correspondence, diaries, or memoirs.

Tip: “sources” is the official subject sub-heading used in the Library Catalog to describe primary sources. e.g. The subject heading “Crusades–Sources” indicates the work contains primary sources on the crusades. You can do a keyword search for crusades and sources to find books that are printed transcriptions of original documents.

Archives

J.B. Cain Archives of Mississippi Methodism and Millsaps College Archives

The Millsaps Archives contain official documents from the university’s past. Other special collections include primary source materials on Methodist history.

Newspapers

The Library has issues of local and national newspapers in microfilm dating back to the 18th century. See the Newspapers at Millsaps Library for more information about how to search the Library catalog for newspapers.

Government Documents

Government documents are also considered primary sources. A Library Catalog search will show which government documents the library owns. There are also many government documents located online at the following Web sites.

FirstGov(A government resources search engine)
GPO’s Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (1994 - )
Library of Congress Catalog
Science.gov(FirstGov for Science)

University of Mississippi Library - Guide to State of Mississippi Documents

Primary Sources in Other Libraries

Many primary sources have been republished in books and other formats and may be found in other libraries. In addition, research libraries and institutions have special, rare collections of books, photographs, sound recordings, diaries, letters, advertisements, and many other materials. These are often found in archives and/or special collections sections of academic libraries.

Primary Materials Reprinted in Published Works

WorldCat
AUTHOR: search the author’s name to find materials someone has written
SUBJECT: the term “sources” is used as a subject sub-heading for primary sources
KEYWORD search: the following terms often lead to primary sources — autobiography, personal narratives, letters, correspondence, diaries, or memoirs. Archival materials generally will not be available outside of the owning library. However, most books and other publications identified in WorldCat (and not available in the Millsaps Library) may be borrowed via Interlibrary Loan.

Primary Materials in Archival Collections

WorldCat
Limit type to Archival Materials
AUTHOR: search the author’s name to find materials someone has written
KEYWORD search: the following terms often lead to primary sources — autobiography, personal narratives, letters, correspondence, diaries, or memoirs. Most books identified in WorldCat (and not available in the Millsaps Library) may be borrowed via Interlibrary Loan.

Primary Sources on the World Wide Web

Research libraries and institutions have special, rare collections of books, photographs, sound recordings, diaries, letters, advertisements, and many other materials. Recently some of these collections have been digitized and are available to the general public. The sites below include some notable examples of primary source materials avaialable online.

Ad*Access
Provides over 7,000 advertisements printed in U.S. and Canadian newspapers and magazines between 1911 and 1955.

American Civil War Collections (University of Virginia)

American Memory Project
Digitized primary sources from the Library of Congress, and other collections, that document American history and culture.

American Memory Project; Performing Arts, Music
Sheet music, recordings, images, correspondence and other items in a number of collections

Bancroft Library
UC Berkeley’s rare books and special collections library. Includes documents from the Free Speech Movement and the Disability Movement.

Cornell Library Digital Collections
Includes the Making of America, math, agriculture.

Digital Scriptorium Projects
Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library. Duke University. Includes advertising, music, women, Renaissance, elections.

Electronic Text Center.
University of Virginia. Literature, economics, history, archeology, bibliography, religion, history of medicine, teaching, classics.

Library of Congress American Memory Collection
Includes more than 7 million items from the Library of Congress.

Making of America Project (University of Michigan)
A project developed by Cornell University and the University of Michigan. Provides digitized access to primary information sources describing American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction. Currently includes 8500 books and 50,000 journal articles. Also available via Cornell University.

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)
The official depository for U.S. government materials. Select “Online Exhibit Hall” for interesting collections.

New York Public Library Digital Collection
Collections include performing arts, the Hudson River, the American West, African Americans

Profiles in Science. National Library of Medicine
Archival collections of prominent twentieth-century biomedical scientists.

Sunsite Digital Text Collections¼br /> A lengthy list compiled by the UC Berkeley Digital Library.

Tobacco Control Archives A collection housed at the University of California, San Francisco. Provides access to papers, unpublished documents, and electronic resources related to the tobacco industry and tobacco litigation.

Google To locate subject or topical databases: Combine any subject or topic with the word “database”

To locate a specific category of digital collections: Combine any subject or topic with the phrase “digital collections”

CSU Stanislaus Library http://wwwlibrary.csustan.edu/gorenstein/helpguides/primary_v.htm

Yale University Library
http://www.library.yale.edu/instruction/primsource.html

Duke University Libraries
http://www.lib.duke.edu/databases/primary.html

Link to: African Americans at War

The Library of Congress African American Stories Go Online Feb. 1 in honor of Black History Month

A selection of 23 fully digitized collections of materials submitted by African American war veterans will be highlighted on the Veterans History Project web site beginning Feb. 1, 2006. The collection of fully-digitized stories is titled “African Americans at War: Fighting Two Battles,” and will be added to “Experiencing War” stories from the Veterans History Project at www.loc.gov/warstories.

“As the nation celebrates Black History Month, the Veterans History Project is honoring African American veterans who have served in the United States military by highlighting some of the remarkable stories we have received,” said Bob Patrick, acting director of the Veterans History Project. “We also invite and encourage all minority military veterans to contribute their story so that their sacrifice and service on behalf of this nation will not be forgotten.”

This is the tenth set of individual stories—comprising interviews, letters, photographs and written memoirs—to be featured on the site. Past themes have included D-Day, prisoners of war, military medicine and war’s end. Companion sites to the project’s two books, “Forever a Soldier” and “Voices of War,” can also be viewed on the “Experiencing War” site.

The Veterans History Project site now has 2,248 stories online, many of which include audio and video interviews, photographs, diaries, letters and other materials, consisting of more than 100,000 online items. These materials are part of the continuing effort by the Library to make its collections accessible online.

“African Americans at War” presentation honors the service of veterans by sharing their stories with the public. One of the featured veterans, Pearle W. Mack, Jr., is one of the 11 African American’s who served in the segregated U.S. Army of World War II. Mack went on to a lifetime career in the armed forces. In his interview, Mack talks about the changes in the attitudes toward race that occurred during his 30-year career.

“The Next Generation” features veterans such as Willie Boyd who served two tours of duty in Vietnam as the only black man in his platoon. During his service, Boyd was shot down three times. In the interview, Boyd recalls, “Once you get with a unit and you start working as a team, color never comes up.” Also featured in “The Next Generation” is the Deputy Librarian of Congress, Donald L. Scott. After completing a college ROTC program in 1960, Scott rose steadily in the ranks to become a Brigadier General. In his interview, Gen. Scott talks about “the shadow of race.”

Veterans from World War I through the current conflict, and the civilians who supported them, are coming forward to record their personal stories and contribute personal documents for a growing archives at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress. The goal is to collect, preserve and share with future generations the stories of all American war veterans. To date, more than 40,000 individuals have submitted stories to the collection.

Those interested in becoming involved in the Veterans History Project are encouraged to send e-mail to vohp@loc.gov to request a project kit. The kit is also available on the Veterans History Project Web site at www.loc.gov/vets or call the toll-free message line at (888) 371-5848.