HIST 122 - Laura Puaca: Primary Sources

This site from the National Archives provides not only access to primary source documents, but also various activities and tools for understanding and using materials in the classroom.

"This resource has been designed for students and scholars of early modern English letters, history, theology, and philosophy--for anyone whose research will embrace original English manuscript sources in this period. "

Information on evaluating primary source materials is provided in this site from the Reference and User Services Association of the American Library Association.

Provides suggestions to help you read 18th century documents

"... provide strategies for analyzing online primary materials, with interactive exercises and a guide to traditional and online sources. “Scholars in Action” segments show how scholars puzzle out the meaning of different kinds of primary sources, allowing you to try to make sense of a document yourself then providing audio clips in which leading scholars interpret the document and discuss strategies for overall analysis."

Designed primarily as a resource for middle and high school students and teachers, the site contains interactive exercises to aid in the understanding of American History topics from the period of 1880-1920. It helps students in learning to analyze primary source materials, especially visual resources.

This site from the U.K. National Archives provides "online tutorials on Latin and palaeography will help you to read documents from the medieval period and beyond, through practical activities and useful examples."

"This website offers guidance in the deciphering of documents written in handwr​iti​ng styles or alphabets no longer in general use. The tutorials and​ materials gathe​red here are meant to help a varie​ty of people – students, researchers, historians, genealogists, and indexers – learn more about old scripts and how to make use of that knowle​dge to analyze and int​erpret the past. The concentration is on western European scripts, particularly those in use between 1500 and 1800. There is general introductory material about the history of writing and the development ​of different scripts (or hands) as well as extensive, and interactive, language-specific materials. ​"

Provided by the MLA, this site provides access to a collection of articles about primary sources and their use.

Guides to using and analyzing primary sources. Although these were designed for use by teachers in the classroom, the information provided will still help you analyze materials.