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Emily Cook
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Subjects: Africana Studies, Art, Classics, East Asian Languages and Literatures, East Asian Studies, French, German, History, Italian, Latin American and Caribbean Studies, Literature in Translation, Medieval and Renaissance Studies, Middle East & South Asian Studies, Music, Philosophy, Religion, Russian, Russian Area Studies, Spanish
Defining Primary Sources
Primary source, noun
In scholarship, a document or record containing firsthand information or original data on a topic... Primary sources include original manuscripts, periodical articles reporting original research or thought, diaries, memoirs, letters, journals ... government documents, public records, eyewitness accounts, newspaper clippings, etc... —definition from the Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science
Primary Sources Government Documents & Publications
- GovInfoPortal for access to U.S. government documents, bills, code, and more.
- HathiTrust: U.S. Federal Documents CollectionThe following searchable collections enable focused discovery of U.S. federal documents in HathiTrust:
U.S. Federal Documents, U.S. Congressional Serial Set, Bureau of Indian Affairs publications, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency publications, Foreign Relations of the United States, Statistical Abstract of the United States, U.S. Civil Rights Commission
- HeinOnline U.S. Congressional Serial Set This link opens in a new windowComplete indexing of the more than 17,000 volumes of the Serial Set.
- National ArchivesUsing the Advanced Search, select "archival materials online" to access digitally available sources.
- ProQuest Congressional This link opens in a new windowThis is almost certainly the most comprehensive database of Congressional publications, some dating back as far as the late 1700's. Includes the complete texts of hearings and most other documents. An interesting sub-set of the database provides legislative histories. (Law Library subscription.)
- U.S. Declassified Documents Online This link opens in a new windowSearchable database of previously classified federal records spanning the twentieth and twenty first centuries. The types of materials include intelligence studies, policy papers, diplomatic correspondence, cabinet meeting minutes, briefing materials, and domestic surveillance and military reports. Database allows users to to locate the full text of documents and filter their search results by document type, issue date, source institution, classification level, and date declassified as well as other document characteristics.
Primary Sources: Presidential Papers
Primary Sources: Newspapers
- Black Studies Center: NewspapersTitles include: Atlanta Daily World, Baltimore Afro-American, Chicago Defender, Cleveland Call and Post, Daily Defender, Los Angeles Sentinel, New York Amsterdam News, Norfolk New Journal and Guide, Philadelphia Tribune, & Pittsburgh Courier
- New York Times, The, Historical Newspaper This link opens in a new windowThis historical newspaper provides genealogists, researchers and scholars with online, easily-searchable first-hand accounts and unparalleled coverage of the politics, society and events of the time. The Historical New York Times with Index (1851-1993) provides search capability using subject terms and topics for focused and targeted results in combination with searchable full text, full page, and article-level images from the Historical New York Times beginning with the first issue in 1851.
- Wall Street Journal Historical Archive This link opens in a new windowOffers full page and article images with searchable full text back to the first issue (1889)
- Washington Post Historical Newspaper (1877-1996) This link opens in a new windowFull page and article images with searchable full text back to the first issue in 1877.
Primary Sources: Magazines
- Billboard MagazineDigitized by Google Books. Freely available for viewing. Includes issues from the 60s.
- EbonyAvailable from 1945-
- Life MagazineDigitized by Google Books. Freely available for viewing.
Primary Sources: Digital Archives on Women, Sexuality, & Gender
- Archives of Sexuality & Gender: LGBTQ History and Culture Since 1940 Part 1 & 2 This link opens in a new windowPrimary source materials frown from hundreds of organizations including: major activist organizations and local, grassroots groups. The archive focuses on aspects of LGBTQ life in the second half of the 20th century and beyond.
- Women's Liberation Movement: Print CultureA digital collection from Duke Archives.
- Women's Studies Archive This link opens in a new windowWomen's Issues and Identities provides the opportunity to witness history from the female perspective. Offering coverage of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Women's Issues and Identities allows for the serendipitous discovery of commonalities among a variety of archival collections.