Getting Started: Primary Sources for all Topics
No matter what topic you're researching, there are places that you can go to get started with primary source research. The History Guide is a great place to find library-specific sources. You can use the links below to find documents, articles, images, and records on a variety of topics. Additionally, here are some ideas you can use to search for your topic outside of this guide:
- Search for oral histories
- Local library, such as Denver Public Library
- Local museums, such as History Colorado
- Local or national newspapers or journalists
- Local activists
- Local governments and politicians
- Search for your topic and add “archives” or “newspaper” or “primary source.”
- Check Wikipedia for primary sources
Need help with your research? Book a research consultation with your subject librarian, Melissa. She is available to meet in-person or over Zoom.
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JSTORThis is an archived collection of 150 e-journals in language & literature, music, art & art history, religion, history, and Asian, Jewish, and African-American studies. The journals are a nearly complete run from vol. 1 up to 4 years prior to the current issue. The individual journals can also be located through Lumen.
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National Archives: Primary SourcesThe National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is the nation's record keeper. Of all documents and materials created in the course of business conducted by the United States Federal government, only 1%-3% are so important for legal or historical reasons that they are kept by us forever and are available to you.
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Library of CongressThe Library of Congress is the largest library in the world, with millions of books, recordings, photographs, newspapers, maps and manuscripts in its collections. The Library is the main research arm of the U.S. Congress and the home of the U.S. Copyright Office.
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HathiTrustHathiTrust is a partnership of academic and research institutions, offering a collection of millions of titles digitized from libraries around the world.
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Digital Public Library of AmericaThe Digital Public Library of America amplifies the value of libraries and cultural organizations as Americans’ most trusted sources of shared knowledge. They make millions of materials from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions across the country available to all in a one-stop discovery experience.
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National Security ArchiveFounded in 1985 by journalists and scholars to check rising government secrecy, the National Security Archive combines a unique range of functions: investigative journalism center, research institute on international affairs, library and archive of declassified U.S. documents ("the world's largest nongovernmental collection" according to the Los Angeles Times), leading non-profit user of the U.S. Freedom of Information Act, public interest law firm defending and expanding public access to government information, global advocate of open government, and indexer and publisher of former secrets.
