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HIST 320 - History of Technology
Library Research Guide
What is a Primary Source?
Anything that has been created by a person who witnessed or experienced an event as a contemporary would be a primary source. Examples of primary sources would include letters, diaries, autobiographies, and contemporary documents such as newspaper articles, government documents, and oral histories.
Tim Watts
Content Development Librarian
K-State Libraries
Primary sources can take many forms, including books, diaries, maps, photographs, advertisements, newspapers, films, and more.
Most of the primary sources you need for your research will in books or digitized online in databases or digital archives.
Primary Sources in Books
Find books that include primary sources by searching Search It, HathiTrust, or WorldCat.
- Use an Advanced Search screen. This will provide multiple boxes to mix-and-match search terms.
- In one box, enter search terms that describe your topic (example: Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition).
- In second box, enter search terms that describe primary sources. Possible terms include:
- sources
- papers
- letters
- narratives
- diaries
- records
Combine the primary source terms in the second using the word OR (example: sources OR papers OR letters OR diaries). OR tells the database that you want any of the terms.
- HathiTrust Digital Library
Publication Dates Covered: pre-1500-2009 Paid for by K-State Libraries
A preservation repository with millions of volumes digitized by Google, the Internet Archive, and HathiTrust’s partner institutions. Approximately one-third of the volumes are in the public domain and can be viewed in their entirety. K-State faculty, staff, and students who login to HathiTrust with their K-State eID can download full-text PDFs of these public domain works. - Search It
Search It enables simultaneous searching of information about K-State Libraries' physical and online collections and about articles and other sources from hundreds of databases, journal publishers, and organizations.
- WorldCat Discovery
Paid for by K-State Libraries
Provides information about books, serials, videos, and other items cataloged by libraries around the world, including K-State. Editions and formats will be grouped together, not listed separately as in FirstSearch. Discovery processes searches similarly to Search It and may find additional resources beyond a FirstSearch search.
Primary Sources in the Libraries Databases
K-State Libraries purchased or subscribes to many primary source databases that you can access from the Libraries' website.
Below are a sample of relevant primary source databases. You can find others through K-State Libraries by using the "Primary" tag on our databases page.
Reading the database description and the dates covered will help you decide which one to use.
Magazines and News
These databases include many popular and widely read news sources. The articles can help you understand the impact of different technologies and the how social issues were addressed in the media.
- African American Newspapers Series 1, 1827-1998Publication Dates Covered: 1827-1998 Paid for by K-State Libraries
Covers African American experiences before the Civil War through the Civil Rights Movement, and up to the end of the 20th century. Includes more than 270 newspapers (published by or for African Americans) from 35 states, including many rare and historically significant 19th century titles, and provides access to both full-text and images. - American PeriodicalsPublication Dates Covered: 1740-1940 Paid for by K-State Libraries
Contains periodicals published between 1740 and 1940, including special interest and general magazines, literary and professional journals, children's and women's magazines and many other historically-significant periodicals. Includes graphic elements and article layouts. - Harper’s Weekly
Publication Dates Covered: 1857-1912 Paid for by K-State Libraries
Harper’s Weekly was one of the leading literary and news publications of 19th century America. It was noted for its use of illustrations and carried information on a variety of topics to a national audience. Searchers can search the full text of articles and retrieve both images and text files of relevant stories. - New York Times, Historical
Publication Dates Covered: 1851-2021 Paid for by K-State Libraries
Digitized version of The New York Times since its first issue in 1851. Search the full text of articles to find articles on a wide variety of topics. Full name of the database is ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times with Index.
Books and Pamphlets
These databases include digitized copies of books and pamphlets covering hundreds of years. If you learn about a book or other publication while researching, particularly those published in the U.S. before 1926, you may find a digitized copy in these databases.
- HathiTrust Digital Library
Publication Dates Covered: pre-1500-2009 Paid for by K-State Libraries
A preservation repository with millions of volumes digitized by Google, the Internet Archive, and HathiTrust’s partner institutions. Approximately one-third of the volumes are in the public domain and can be viewed in their entirety. K-State faculty, staff, and students who login to HathiTrust with their K-State eID can download full-text PDFs of these public domain works. - Internet Archive: eBooks and TextsPublication Dates Covered: mostly pre-1923 Free Resource
Browse an international collection of books, articles, pamphlets, and other documents contributed by governments, libraries, and other organizations. It includes many of the most popular works of literature and scholarship as well as a host of lesser-known gems. Each of its items can be viewed, downloaded, and printed for free. - Sabin AmericanaPublication Dates Covered: 1500-1926 Paid for by K-State Libraries
Search Joseph Sabin’s bibliography of works on life and culture in North America from 1500 to 1926. Includes more than 29,000 full-text works, books, pamphlets, broadsides, and serials on topics such as Native Americans, agriculture, slavery and abolition.
Images of Art, Technologies, and other Cultural Objects
Use Artstor to find a good, high quality image of a technology, work of art, or other cultural objects.
How to Search for Primary Sources
Search Tips:
- Mine the books and articles (secondary sources) relevant to your topic. A high quality secondary source should always tell you where to find the primary sources they used in their research.
- Read the bibliography and footnotes, looking for items with a publication date related to your event, technology, or social issue. Check in Search It or WorldCat for the title.
- Look for any images that are reproductions of articles, advertising, pictures, or other primary sources. Where did the author find them?
- Create a list of possible terms to search for, add to that list as you learn more about your topic. These can include:
- People's names
- Locations
- Organizations
- Product types, company names, or product names (e.g. typewriter, E. Remington & Sons, Remington No. 1)
- Use dates to focus your search on relevant primary sources. Create a list of relevant specific dates, date ranges, or names for eras (e.g. 1944, 1939-1945, World War II, Second World War).
- Search using the language and terms used during the event you are studying. Primary source materials are historical and cultural and use words and phrases that might be particular to that time or cultural group. A database or website is more likely to find sources that match your search if your language matches the language used in the documents.
- Because primary sources are records of particular times, places, and people, you may encounter language and images that are offensive. We do not condone the language and images, but do recognize that they are part of our history and provide insight into the lives of people and cultures.
