For more information on primary sources, please consult:
Primary Sources are:
A first-hand account or testimony of the past, written during that present moment
Something that describes the reactions or thoughts of a particular time period
Primary Sources are vastly different across a variety of disciplines, but the basic definition of what a primary source is stays the same - a testimony or an account describing reactions or thoughts from a particular time. How these testimonies take shape is what changes across disciplines.
Finding primary sources is a multi-step process. There is no "one-stop-shop" database that will give you everything you need for your paper. Follow these tips:
When searching for primary source collections online, include the following additional phrases with your keywords:
Be aware that digital collections only show a small portion of what an institution holds!
Connects archival collections concerning womens history from across the globe and from a wide range of sources. Focusing on the evolution of feminism throughout the 19th and 20th, the archive provides materials on womens political activism, such as suffrage, birth control, pacifism, civil rights, and socialism, and on womens voices, from female-authored literature to womens periodicals. (Coverage: 19th-20th century)
This collection can also be searched on Gale Primary Sources, an integrated platform that combines Gales digital archives into a single cross-searchable interface.
Organized around the history of women in social movements in the U.S. between 1600 and 2000. Includes document projects and archives, the online version of Notable American Women (1971-2004), the database on Commissions on the Status of Women (1961-2005), book reviews, teaching tools, and more.
Original British source material provides access to material that will enrich the teaching and research experience of those studying history, literature, sociology, and education from a gendered perspective. Allows scholars to research the ideals of social conduct, power distribution within the family, consumption and leisure, education of men and women, and gendered perceptions of the body to analyse and challenge the changing views and ideas surrounding traditional gender roles. (Coverage: Mid 15th c. to early 20th c.).
Historical primary source publications relating to the history and study of sex, sexuality, gender research and gender studies research. (Coverage: 16th - 21st centuries)
This collection can also be searched on Gale Primary Sources, an integrated platform that combines Gales digital archives into a single cross-searchable interface.
Over 400 years of personal writings by women from England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. Shows the various shapes and formats of the diary as it evolved. Allows researchers to view history in the context of women’s thoughts—their struggles, achievements, passions, pursuits, and desires. (Complements Alexander Street’s North American Women’s Letters and Diaries.) (Coverage: 1500s - 1950)
Showcases unique primary source material for the study of American social, cultural, and popular history in the 19th and early 20th centuries. (Coverage: c.1800-1920)
Thousands of fully searchable images of rare books, pamphlets, periodicals and broadsides addressing political, social and gender issues, religion, race, education, employment, marriage, sexuality, home and family life, health, and pastimes.
Primary source material drawn from across the U. S., Canada, U.K. and Australia. Documents 3 centuries of expansive developments in gender roles and relations. From traditional constructions of femininity and masculinity, to the struggle for women’s rights and the emergence of the men’s movement, this resource documents three centuries of expansive developments in gender roles and relations. (Coverage: 19th to 21st centuries)
Started by Dutch physician Aletta Jacobs Gerritsen in the late 1800s, this collection of monographs and periodicals reflects the evolution of a feminist consciousness and womens rights. By the time her successors finished their work in 1945, the collection was the greatest single source for the study of womens history in the world, with materials spanning 4 centuries and 15 languages. (Coverage: 1543-1945)
In many cases, the Gerritsen Collection provides easy access to primary sources otherwise available only in a few rare book rooms.
American and Canadian women’s diaries and correspondence, spanning more than 300 years. (Coverage: Colonial - 1950s)
Database of the Women Writers Project (WWP), Northeastern University; a long-term research project devoted to early modern women’s writing and electronic text encoding. (Coverage: 1400-1850)
Grey literature is information produced outside of traditional publishing and distribution channels, and can include reports, policy literature, working papers, newsletters, government documents, speeches, white papers, urban plans, and so on.
This information is often produced by organizations "on the ground" (such as government and inter-governmental agencies, non-governmental organizations, and industry) to store information and report on activities, either for their own use or wider sharing and distribution, and without the delays and restrictions of commercial and academic publishing. For that reason, grey literature can be more current than literature in scholarly journals.
However, because grey literature (usually) does not go through a peer review process, the quality can vary a great deal. Be sure to critically evaluate your source.
For an extensive list of the types of documents that might be considered grey literature, see Document types in grey literature (from GreyNet International).
o search across the websites of governments and organizations, use the resources below.
Another way to find grey literature is to identify organizations that might be publishing this type of information on topics that you're interested in and then to search their websites — paying close attention to website sections with names like "Documents", "Reports", and "Library". Consider government agencies, non-profits, professional associations, research institutes, and other organizations, based on the research you have already done.
Use Google's site limits to only search a government or institution's site or top-level domain, for instance use site:.gov to limit your search to US government sites. Use site:.org to limit your search to organizations. This technique paired with keywords in Google is a quick way to locate grey literature. Example search: site:.gov contraception
Type your search terms into these pre-built searches to limit results to specific organization types.
NGO Search
NGO Search is a Google Custom Search that searches across hundreds non-governmental organization (NGO) websites. NGO Search is a project of the International Documents Taskforce (IDTF) and the Government Documents Roundtable (GODORT) of the American Library Association (ALA). This is a spreadsheet of NGOs included in the project.
IGO Search
International governmental organizations (IGOs) are organizations made up of more than one national government—examples include NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) and the WHO (World Heath Organization). The governments are the members. IGO Search is a Google Custom Search that searches across IGO websites. It is a project of the International Documents Taskforce (IDTF) and the Government Documents Roundtable (GODORT) of the American Library Association (ALA). Here is the growing spreadsheet of IGO urls included in the search.
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It can often be challenging to locate current, contemporary primary sources for your research. Below are some types of primary sources and where you might find access to them. Typically, because these sources have been created recently, the best option is to see if you can see find them where they were produced.
Types of Primary Sources: | Where you can find them? |
---|---|
Social media | Social media platforms |
Interviews, News Articles, Op-Eds | News outlets |
Documentaries | Library databases and search engines |
Government reports | Government websites |
Vendor Lyrasis. Publisher LexisNexis.
New Subscribers: (have never had a personal or UDel account)
To create your new, free account, use this link: www.nytimes.com/activate-access/edu-access.
Existing New York Times Online Subscribers
Note: If you have an existing, paid NYT subscription, you must cancel it before you can activate the free UD Library provided subscription. You may cancel by emailing customercare@nytimes.com, connecting with a chat agent on the site, or calling 800-591-9233.
After cancelling your existing account:
Tips and Troubleshooting:
The database also contains Ethnic NewsWatch: A History, which provides historical coverage of Native American, African American, and Hispanic American periodicals.
Ethnic NewsWatch™ comprehensively covers these ethnic categories:
Registration Instructions
*If you already have a personal membership to the WSJ, call 1-800-JOURNAL and to inform the WSJ that you are switching to the membership provided by the University of Delaware.*
Select earlier content is accessible, particularly investigative journalism content related to U.S. President Richard Nixon and Watergate dating back to 1968. Search features do not enable limiting to specific date ranges, so the extent of this content is unknown.
Washington Post articles and indexing are also available from:
We have the following databases that have current documentaries on a variety of topics. You can also search for documentary videos in our catalog, DELCAT.
Examples of Documentary Websites:
Consider the following questions and points when evaluating current primary sources.
Author
Publisher/Platform
Purpose
Content
Context
Limitations
Connections