Introduction to Primary Sources
A primary source is a document, image, or artifact that provides firsthand or eyewitness information about a particular historical person, event, or idea. Typical examples of primary sources include letters, diaries, newspapers, photographs, paintings, maps, and oral histories. Historians use primary sources to answer research questions and to gather evidence to inform their arguments.
“Teaching the Freedmen.” From J.T. Trowbridge, The South: A Tour of Its Battlefields and Ruined Cities, a Journey through the Desolated States, and Talks with the People, Hartford, Conn.: L. Stebbins, 1866.
The image, “Teaching the Freedmen,” from J.T. Trowbridge, The South: A Tour of Its Battlefields and Ruined Cities, a Journey through the Desolated States, and Talks with the People is one example of how a single artifact, image, or document might be used to inform a broader argument or question. In the coming sections we will present a variety of these unique materials selected from the collections of Columbia University’s Rare Book & Manuscript Library. (See more on Public Education in Section 6.)
The RBML is Columbia University’s principal repository for primary source collections. The range of collections in RBML span more than 4,000 years and comprise rare printed works, cylinder seals, cuneiform tablets, papyri, and Coptic ostraca; medieval and renaissance manuscripts; as well as art and realia. Some 500,000 printed books and 14 miles of manuscripts, personal papers, and records form the core of the RBML holdings.
Key primary sources chosen from these collections by historians will complement the scholarly interpretations presented in the lectures and discussion forums. Tips for using these materials are available in the “Primary Sources” tab of the dropdown menu. Content-based modules using these sources will appear as part of the section sequences throughout the course.
Different types of texts offer varying potential questions and answers. Wills, financial records, and military accounts document the day-to-day functioning of a slave society. Photographic albums, engravings, and printed ephemera provide glimpses into the iconography of nineteenth-century culture. Personal belongings and correspondence beckon toward the intimate details of private lives, while mass-produced keepsakes blur the lines between historical evidence and pop-cultural kitsch. We will investigate the origins and intended functions of these materials. Placing individual documents in context will allow students the chance to think about the past in new ways. Asking scholarly questions of the materials will demonstrate how historians work to provide fresh interpretations of historical evidence
For scholars, these materials—and the questions they raise—constitute the foundational elements of historical work. Interrogating primary sources is one of the fundamental tasks every historian must perform in order to craft a nuanced, contingent, and evidence-based argument.
Working with primary sources
When working with primary sources it is important to begin with a few observational and interpretive questions, which can often suggest future research directions.
- When was this source created? If the source is not dated, can you use any contextual clues to make an educated guess?
- Who created it? If no individual’s name is apparent, can you guess their position within society?
- What was the original purpose of this source? Why was it created and what was its intent?
- Who is the intended audience of the source? How does this influence the way information is presented?
- Is there anyone, besides the author, who is represented in the source? What can you learn about them?
- How has the meaning of the source changed over time?
- How might a historian use this source as a piece of evidence? What research questions might it help to answer? What story might you tell using this source?
For further reading on the use of primary sources in historical research, students might consult these works:
Andrews, Thomas, and Flannery Burke. “What Does it Mean to Think Historically?” Perspectives on History (January 2007).
Barton, Keith C. “Primary Sources in History: Breaking Through the Myths.” Phi Delta Kappan 86 (June 2005).
Wineburg, Sam. Historical Thinking and Other Unnatural Acts: Charting the Future of Teaching the Past. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2001