LibGuides: Research: A Step-by-Step Guide: 3b. Primary vs. Secondary Sources

Primary vs Secondary Sources

When evaluating the quality of the information you are using, it is useful to identify if you are using a Primary, Secondary, or Tertiary source. By doing so, you will be able recognize if the author is reporting on his/her own first hand experiences, or relying on the views of others.

Source Type	Examples
Primary A primary source is a first person account by someone who experienced or witnessed an event. This original document has not been previously published or interpreted by anyone else.	Diaries Letters Photographs Art Maps Video and film Sound recordings Interviews Newspapers Magazines Published first-hand accounts, or stories
Secondary A secondary source is one step removed from the primary original source. The author is reexamining, interpreting and forming conclusions based on the information that is conveyed in the primary source.	Newspaper reporting on a scientific study Review of a music CD or art show Biography
Tertiary A tertiary source is further removed from primary source. It leads the researcher to a secondary source, rather than to the primary source.	Bibliography Index to articles Library catalog Almanac Guide Books

Primary Resource Databases

Frontier Life This link opens in a new window
Primary source documents relating to existence on the edges of the anglophone world from 1650-1920: European and colonial frontier regions of North America, Africa, and Australasia.

Many historical primary sources are being scanned and are now available electronically. The following links are great resources for those of you who want to examine primary sources that might otherwise be inaccessible. The sites touch on a variety of topics, including Gaelic studies, women's studies, and world history.

European History Primary Resources
European History Primary Sources (EHPS) is a joint initiative of the Library and the Department of History and Civilization of the European University Institute in Florence, Italy. It is also part of the WWW Virtual Library History Central Catalogue that is hosted at the EUI.

Canadiana Online This link opens in a new window
Digital library that provides access to pages of Canada's printed heritage, with works published from the time of the first European settlers up to the early 20th Century.
* Primary sources
* Full text articles
* French content

English Historical Documents Online
English Historical Documents Online contains over 5,500 expertly indexed and fully searchable primary documents from 500-1914 related to British history.
Historical Debates of the Parliament of Canada
Ontario Newspapers Digitized
This collection is a pilot project to digitize backfiles of community newspapers in Ontario
Diaries of William Lyon MacKenzie King
There are approximately 50 000 pages available for you to access in this database of the Diaries of Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King,
Indian Affairs Annual Reports
The Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development was created in 1966. The Indian Affairs Annual Reports (1864-1990) collection contains the complete annual reports for the department from 1967 to 1990. In 1991 the departmental annual report was integrated into the Estimates Part III (which now includes the Report on Plans and Priorities and the Performance Report) and the Public Accounts.
Archive Grid
ArchiveGrid includes over four million records describing archival materials, bringing together information about historical documents, personal papers, family histories, and more. With over 1,000 different archival institutions represented, ArchiveGrid helps researchers looking for primary source materials held in archives, libraries, museums and historical societies.
The Memory Project: Stories of the Second World War
This nationwide bilingual project provides a record of Canada’s participation in the Second World War as seen through the eyes of thousands of veterans.
CBC Archives
Listen and view generations of journalists, technicians, performers, politicians, artists and people from every walk of life who have left their mark on programs and broadcasts recorded somewhere among the millions of tapes, discs, films, documents and artifacts that fill the CBC/Radio-Canada archives

China: Trade, Politics and Culture, 1793-1980 This link opens in a new window
Collection of materials (manuscripts, maps, photographs, paintings) relating to British and American diplomats, missionaries, business people and tourists in China from 1793 to 1980.
* Primary sources
* Full text articles
* Video files
Eighteenth Century Journals I & II This link opens in a new window
Rare journals printed between 1693 and 1799 illuminating all aspects of eighteenth-century social, political and literary life.
Empire Online This link opens in a new window
Collection of original documents relating to Empire Studies, including: exploration journals, correspondence, missionary papers, travel writing, slave papers, memoirs, colour maps & illustrations.
* Primary sources
* Full text articles
* Image files

Nelson Mandela Archive
Digitized archive of material from Nelson Mandela

Slavery Abolition and Social Justice, 1490-2007 This link opens in a new window
Collection of thousands of original manuscripts and rare printed materials on trans-Atlantic slavery and abolition, with links to external sources.
* Primary sources
* Full text articles
* Image files
Medieval Travel Writing This link opens in a new window
Extensive collection of manuscript materials for the study of medieval travel writing in fact and in fantasy. The main focus is accounts of journeys to the Holy Land, India and China.
* Primary sources
* Full text articles
* French content
* German content
* Spanish content
Gael Stream (Gaelic Folklore Collection) This link opens in a new window
Comprehensive collection of visuals and sound recordings relating predominantly to Nova Scotia's living Gaelic tradition and language. Collected and digitized at StFX.
* Primary sources
* Audio files
* Video files
* Image files
* Gaelic content
Mass Observation Online This link opens in a new window
Collection of documents relating to British Social History, 1937-1972. Mass Observation explored "the gulf between public opinion and what was often described as public opinion."
* Original manuscript and typescript papers, printed publications, photographs and interactive maps.
* Primary sources
* * Full text articles
* Image files

Champlain Collections
The collection contains 101 of the Champlain Society's volumes (almost 50,000 printed pages) dealing with exploration and discovery over three centuries. It includes first-hand accounts of Samuel de Champlain's voyages in New France as well as the diary from Sir John Franklin's first land expedition to the Arctic, 1819-22.
The Glenbow Museum
At the Glenbow Museum, intriguing stories from Western Canada connect with extraordinary art and artifacts from around the world. Combining a museum, art gallery, library and archives all under one roof, Glenbow boasts over a million artifacts and some 28,000 works of art in its vast collections and is one of the largest museums in Canada.
VCH Explore (English History)
This site provides free access to reliable local history materials, produced by academics and volunteers. Photographs, paintings, drawings, maps, text, transcribed documents and audio files are organised thematically and by their geographical location.
A Vision of Britain through Time
A vision of Britain between 1801 and 2001, including maps, statistical trends and historical descriptions

Tip

Search the Library Catalogue to find primary source material for your topic.

Try adding one of the keywords below:

charters
correspondence
diaries
documents
interviews
letters
manuscripts

oratory
pamphlets
personal narratives
sources
speeches