Document Actions
Primary Source
- Element Name
- Definition
- Where Can the Primary Source Information be Found?
- How Primary Source Works in the Metadata Form
- How Should Primary Source be Filled in?
- Comments
- Resources
Element Name
Primary Source
Definition
The primary source field designates firsthand accounts of historical subjects.
Where Can the Primary Source Information be Found?
- Whether or not an item is a primary source is determined by examining the item
- For our purposes, primary sources are firsthand accounts or archival copies of historical items
How Primary Source Works in the Metadata Form
- Parts:
- 1. Yes -- radio button
2. No -- radio button - Repeatable?
- No
How Should Primary Source be Filled in?
- If the resource is a primary source, click the radio button marked "Yes" on the metadata entry form
- If the resource is not a primary source, click the radio button marked "No"
- If the item contains components that are both primary and secondary, choose "No" and include a note
Is the item a primary source?
| Primary Source |
Not a Primary Source |
|---|---|
| autobiographies | biographies |
| a personal collection of original school photographs |
yearbooks |
| journal article written in 1943 about WWII |
journal article written in 2008 about WWII |
| original census data published by the government |
written history that quotes census numbers |
- For more clarification about a particular item
- See if the item fits one of the example categories in the next section
- Try reading the Scholars' Definitions of Primary Sources
Other Examples
- Diaries, personal journals, letters, memos, postcards, manuscripts, memoirs, autobiographies, oral histories
- Private papers, deeds, wills
- Speeches, interviews, personal accounts, oral histories
- Documentary photographs, audio recordings, movies, or videos
- Government records, proceedings, court records, census data, patents
- Records of organizations (e.g. minutes, reports, correspondence)
- Public opinion polls, consumer surveys
- Scientific experiments, field notes, artifacts, schematic drawings, technical reports
- City directories
- Maps
- Paintings, sculptures, jewelry
- Published materials (books and magazine/newspaper articles) written AT THE TIME about a particular event
- Reprinted primary sources (often in reference books such as Speeches of the American Presidents or Documents of American History)
Comments
- To describe the category of the resource, use the Resource Type element.
Resources
- Scholars' Definitions of Primary Sources