Searching the internet is a great way to find primary sources. It will help you get an introductory understanding of your historical topic and see what kinds of sources may be relevant for further study. There is no single website, book, or database for finding sources, or even a single location for a subject. You may need to check several archives, Wikipedia bibliographies, newspapers, government documents, etc. to find the sources you need. A primary source in history is a document or artifact created during the time under study. Some examples of primary sources include:
(Image: Provo, Utah, c. 1920s, from the Larson Studio Negative Collection via Mountain West Digital Library)
Wikipedia, like any encyclopedia, can be very useful in providing simple overviews of a topic. Even if you cannot cite the actual Wikipedia article, check out the sources referenced at the bottom of the page because you can quite often follow the links to primary sources that you can cite in your assignments.
You can find entries on your subject that will reference relevant people and events. They will often have a bibliography and links that can lead you to primary sources. Look at the link below for an example of the primary sources that can be found on Wikipedia.
The Wikipedia page for Fannie Lou Hamer:
Check the bibliographies of your scholarly and secondary sources. If a specific archive is mentioned, see if they have an online repository (digital collection).
A wide variety of primary sources can be found outside the library, and many of these are freely available on the Web. The great majority of these are supported by libraries and museums around the world. For example, the Library of Congress has a service called Chronicling America (see below) that provides free scanned images of newspapers from all over the United States going back to 1789. There is almost no limit to the range of subjects with sources online, but the following are great places to get started looking for primary sources online.
Non-peer reviewed. Some full-text content. Open access. Audio recordings. Videos.
Focuses on the breadth of human expression and the riches of America's libraries, archives, and museums. Indexes the written word, works of art and culture, records of America's heritage, and the efforts and data of science.Non-peer reviewed. Some full-text content. Open access.
Access information about historic newspapers and select digitized newspaper pages. Includes a searchable database of U.S. newspapers.Non-peer reviewed. Full-text content. Open access.
Indexes digital resources from universities, colleges, public libraries, museums, archives, and historical societies in Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Arizona, Montana, and Hawaii. Includes photos, maps, art, oral histories, books, and more.
Non-peer reviewed. Some full-text content. Statistical & research data.
This genealogy database locates records from around the world, including census, immigration, church records, and more.The Internet Archive is a nonprofit library with 40+ million media objects and billions of archived web pages, so it can be daunting to navigate. This introduction video provides a quick introduction to the major collections in the library and provides pointers on how to find books, movies, music, images, and software more efficiently.
Non-peer reviewed. Some full-text content. Open access.
This historical database offers access to digitized newspapers within Utah. Contains pages from more than 50 newspapers.Everyone knows how to search using Google. Just key in a word or phrase and press enter. But many don’t know there are many other functions to Google search, and they can all be accessed through Google Advanced Search. Exact phrase searching narrows your search results by allowing you to define precisely how you want the words to appear. Placing the phrase in quotation marks instructs the database or search engine to look for the terms together and in the order typed. For example, to find websites and organizations that have resources about the oral histories of Japanese Internment survivors, enter the terms "oral history" AND Japanese internment, as shown below.
Limit your Google search results to videos. Try adding speech or interview, for example try Fannie Lou Hamer speech. Make sure you look at the date the video was created. Below are some specialized web resources to help you locate videos from the time period you are researching.
Non-peer reviewed. Full-text content. Videos.
This database, created by Films Media Group, focuses on films for most academic disciplines. Contains international films, documentaries, and more.Non-peer reviewed. No full-text content. Videos.
Docuseek provides video streaming of educational documentaries and social-issue films. Provides access to films from Bullfrog Films, Collective Eye Films, Icarus Films, Kartemquin Films, and more.Full-text content.
Historical reference books, encyclopedias, and non-fiction books. Leading history periodicals, historical documents, biographies of historical figures, historical photos and maps, and more than 80 hours of historical video.Non-peer reviewed. Full-text content. Open access.
Indexes digital resources from universities, colleges, public libraries, museums, archives, and historical societies in Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Arizona, Montana, and Hawaii. Includes photos, maps, art, oral histories, books, and more.Non-peer reviewed. Some full-text content. Open access. Audio recordings. Videos.
Focuses on the breadth of human expression and the riches of America's libraries, archives, and museums. Indexes the written word, works of art and culture, records of America's heritage, and the efforts and data of science.