HIST 344: Historiography and Research Methodology: Primary Source Searching

Museums, government agencies and archivists preserve and are undertaking the task of digitizing history so that researchers can access it from anywhere without the need to visit the museums to see or handle the original items. 

Below are links to some suggested sources of digital collections. However, if you are doing specialized research, try looking for a digital repository in the state or locale that is the subject of your topic.

Three Steps: Observe, Contextualize, Infer

• Observe: List what you observe about the primary source as simply and concretely as possible - just the facts - names, images, physical medium, damage, wear and tear, etc.
• Contextualize: Contextualize your observations. Use your phones or computers to look up any observations with which you were unfamiliar. Are there names or images or words or people that you don't know? A simple Google search will work! Get the general historical context.
• Infer: Use your observations and contextualizations to assert some statement about the people, the culture, or the world that the object was produced or owned by and how it was used. There is no objectively wrong inference so long as it is grounded in evidence but your inference but be open to critique, disagreement and debate by others who may draw different inferences.

• correspondence
• diaries
• interviews
• personal narratives
• speeches
• notebooks
• photos
• recordings
• maps
• art
• posters
• newspapers
• artifacts (clothing, personal items, historical equipment)

Primary & Secondary Sources from PALNI on Vimeo.

Many historical documents were handwritten in cursive. In order to conduct historical research, you may need to learn how to read handwritten documents. Watch the videos and look at the samples below to learn how to do this.