Identifying and Evaluating Sources: Primary and Secondary Sources

Primary Sources are the raw materials of history. They are unique materials that are created at the time of a historical event that serve as proof of historical facts. Primary Sources provide firsthand evidence about a historical event or period in which the creator of the source was an actual participant in or a contemporary of a historical moment.  

Examples:

• Photographs
• Newspapers written at the time of the event
• Diaries or journals
• Correspondence (letters)
• Oral history, videotaped or telephone interviews
• Email or text messages
• Artwork and sketches
• Speeches
• Manuscripts, or drafts, of a literary person's writings, such as novels or poems
• Official records of a business, including financial ledgers, labor files and business reports
• Maps
• Real estate records
• Patents

Secondary Sources are created when Primary Sources are analyzed and summed up sometime after the event has occurred. 

Examples:

• Books
• Articles
• Biographies
• Dissertations
• Essays
• New Reports
• Book Reviews
• Dictionaries
• Encyclopedia

"What are primary and secondary sources?" by the University of Houston Libraries is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution - NonCommercial ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Primary and Secondary Sources is adapted and used under a Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial 4.0 International License from the "Topic: What is a Primary Source? — Overview" by UCONN Library.