Research Guides: Advanced Placement Capstone: Primary Sources

Selected Primary Source Databases and Collections

Additional primary source collections can be found on relevant subject guides, including History, Women's Studies, Texana, and Statistics.

American Periodicals This link opens in a new window
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Full text of American magazines, journals, and newspapers that began publication between 1740-1940; coverage ends in June 1943; includes page view
American State Papers This link opens in a new window
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(1789-1838) See also U.S. Congressional Serial Set.
Volumes were published in ten classes: I: Foreign Relations; II: Indian Affairs; III: Finance; IV: Commerce and Navigation; V: Military Affairs; VI: Naval Affairs; VII: Post-office Department; VIII: Public Lands; IX: Claims; and X: Miscellaneous. House & Senate journals not included. Approximately two-thirds of the publications cover the first 14 Congresses (1789-1817), whereas the remaining third chronologically overlap with the Serial Set from 1817-1838. Now Available: 1st Congress, 1st Session through 25th Congress, 2nd Session,1789-1838; American State Papers Vols. 01-038.
C-SPAN Video Library This link opens in a new window
"Gavel-to-gavel floor proceedings" since 1987 of the U. S. House of Representatives, U. S. Senate, and public affairs events originally broadcast on the Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network, with some older content from related programming
Digital Collections (Library of Congress) This link opens in a new window
Texts, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music that document the American experience and more, with selected content formerly found in American Memory collections
Digital Public Library of America This link opens in a new window
Digitized collection of historical books, photographs, maps, posters, and more representing American society’s cultural heritage
Documentary History of the First Federal Congress This link opens in a new window
Covers correspondence of key figures from America’s founding era 1789-1791
Docuseek2 This link opens in a new window
Documentary videos
Heritage Quest This link opens in a new window
Includes ProQuest's Genealogy & Local History Collection of 25,000+ family and local history books and the complete U.S. Federal Census, 1790-1930, including page images and corresponding indexes.
Homeland Security Digital Library This link opens in a new window
Full text public documents "related to homeland security policy, strategy, and organizational management." Access to restricted documents requires an account. Sponsored by FEMA's National Preparedness Directorate and the Naval Postgraduate School's Center for Homeland Defense and Security.

New York Public Library Digital Collections
"...prints, photographs, maps, manuscripts, streaming video, and more" with over 180,000 high resolution, public domain images available to download

New York Times (ProQuest Historical Newspapers) This link opens in a new window
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1851-2015; includes page view
Revolution in Mexico, the 1917 Constitution, and its Aftermath Digital Archive This link opens in a new window
U.S. State Department records consisting of political and military documents relating to the Mexican Revolution and its aftermath, 1910-1924
Shelley-Godwin Archives This link opens in a new window
Digitized manuscripts of Percy Bysshe Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, William Godwin, and Mary Wollstonecraft

Smithsonian Open Access
Download, share, and reuse millions of the Smithsonian’s 2D and 3D digital items and images. This open repository includes images and data from across the Smithsonian’s 19 museums, nine research centers, libraries, archives, and the National Zoo.

Statistical Abstract of the U.S. This link opens in a new window
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Online edition of annual statistics on the social, political, and economic organization of the United States

Texas Treasures
Texas State Library and Archives Division

U.S. Congressional Serial Set This link opens in a new window
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(1817-1980) See also American State Papers.

National Historical Geographic Information System
(1790- ) U.S. Census data tables and mapping files

US Major Dailies This link opens in a new window
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1980's to present; full text of Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post
Wall Street Journal (ProQuest Historical Newspapers) This link opens in a new window
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1889-2001; full text of the Eastern edition; includes page view

What is a Primary Source?

Primary sources:

are "fundamental, authoritative documents relating to a subject, ...e.g., original records, contemporary documents, etc."*
first-hand accounts by a direct participant or witness
may include letters, diaries, interviews, photographs, films, maps, government documents, field notes, and more

For the arts, history, and humanities, original primary source documents usually are housed in museums, archives, restricted library collections, and government offices. Reproductions often can be found in online digital collections, microform collections, books, and other secondary works.

For the natural and social sciences, primary sources include the original account of a research study, typically published as an article in a scholarly journal.

*Young, Heartsill, ed. The ALA Glossary of Library and Information Science. Chicago: American Library Association, 1983, p.176