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HIST100 Research Guide
This guide will help you locate 5 different primary sources for your HIST 100 research paper.
On this guide you will find:
- Definitions of primary, secondary, and tertiary sources
- Where to find primary sources
- How to get additional help
Definitions of Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Sources
Primary sources are original documents or first hand accounts from a given historical period, as opposed to secondary sources, such as journal articles, which provide information about and analysis of events and primary sources.
Primary sources can take many forms, including: newspaper articles from the time period being studied, diaries, letters, photographs, autobiographies, posters, advertisements, original manuscripts, speeches, poems, oral histories, interviews, laws, transcripts, congressional hearings, pamphlets, and more.
- Check out this interactive game on analyzing sources
Primary Sources in the Digital Collection
Alleged speakeasy map
Primary source image from USC Digital Library Alleged "speakeasy map" of the National Capital, 1932 | from Los Angeles Examiner Collection, 1920-1961
Women's Suffrage 1915
Primary source image from USC Digital Library Three women holding a banner promoting women's suffrage in Oakland, ca.1915 from the California Historical Society Collection, 1860-1960