Get started with encyclopedias
Not a history major? Get started on the right track with encyclopedias.
- You will get a sense of how large or small the topic is and choices for how to narrow
- You will get free recommendations for more sources, including primary sources
Credo Reference This link opens in a new windowFull-text of over 1,000 reference works (encyclopedias, dictionaries, etc).
Move to books and documentaries for more in-depth information
Once you have an idea of your topic, look for books and documentaries in OneSearch, WorldCat, and the databases.
Lib Hack: some books reprint selections of primary source documents--diaries, historical newspaper articles, etc--which you can use as primary sources for your project. Look for "sources" on the subject terms list or use it directly as a keyword, or use the type of document as a keyword (such as diaries or letters).
OneSearch This link opens in a new windowCatalog that searches books, ebooks, articles, videos, equipment, digital media, and more. You can search Vogel Library and our TRAC Partner Libraries through this portal.
WorldCat This link opens in a new windowSearch libraries around the world! Request items for free using the Interlibrary Loan (ILL) link.
AVON Academic Video Online This link opens in a new windowStreaming video database with more than 62,000 multidisciplinary video titles--documentaries, interviews, news series.
Kanopy This link opens in a new windowNEW MEDIATED ACCESS 6/1/21The entire Kanopy collection can be searched, but you will have to fill out a request form on the film's page and wait for approval in order to view. This is free to you but does necessitate planning ahead. Contact the library with any questions!
Kanopy is a streaming database of over 30,000 ad-free films--feature films, foreign films, documentaries, and more.
Look for articles when you are ready to find more specific information
Since you are not yet an expert in this topic, if you try to find articles first, you'll be pulled in a lot of directions by all the different specific aspects of a topic. That's why getting some background and then some book information will help you understand what more specific information you'd like to find in a researched article.
Once you have a framework of the subject and an idea of how you will appropriately narrow it, try out the databases below that are usually relevant to historical research.
America: History & Life This link opens in a new windowUS and Canadian topics--prehistory to the present. Scholarly; some full-text.
JSTOR This link opens in a new windowMultidisciplinary full-text academic journals, books, and primary sources (usually excludes the past 2-5 years).
Finding primary sources for history projects
The difference between primary in science and the humanities:
In the sciences, you often call something a primary research article if the topic is an original experimental study performed by the authors. In the humanities, a primary source is anything that is original to the time period which you are studying.
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- A newspaper article from September 12, 2001 can be a primary source if you are studying that time period.
- A diary, letter, or other personal communication is a primary source from whatever time period it was written.
- The social media post you write today will be a primary source about your life if anyone studies it in the future.
- A scholarly book published in 1985 writing about the Civil Rights movement is a secondary source if you are using it to get scholarly commentary--but it is a primary source if you are using it as evidence of how people wrote about race in the 80's.
- See the pattern? If it is original to the time period you are studying, it is a primary source for that topic.
- Primary sources don't have to be written--they can be objects, recordings, and other types of artifacts.
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Look for primary sources in print and online
- Use "source" as a subject term keyword in searching OneSearch and WorldCat or use the name of the document type as one of your keywords (such as Iowa women immigrant diaries).
- Use "primary source," museum, archive, and/or site:org as a keyword with your topic on Google or another online search engine. The two examples below are different and yielded equally interesting results with primary sources:
- Google search for: chicago fire museum site:org
- Google search for: chicago fire "primary source"
In addition, some databases and websites lead you to primary sources more directly:
AAS Historical Periodicals Complete Collection This link opens in a new windowDigitized American journals published from the late 17th century through the late 19th century. Provides rich content detailing American history and culture, including advertising, health, women's issues, science, the history of slavery, industry and professions, religious issues, culture and the arts, and more.
What is it? Why do I care? What does it really say?
Whatever source you use, but especially sources you find online, remember to mindfully answer the three evaluation questions
Quick reference for the three questions:
- What is it: What is the source type and author credibility?
- Quick Wikipedia checks are okay!
- Why do I care: Does the source type and author credibility meet your needs?
- Decide this at the beginning so you know whether to investigate or find something better.
- What does it really say: Perceive how the word choices influence the knowledge.
- How slanted the word choice is can make a difference in how or why you would use it.
