Welcome - Primary Sources - Resource Guide - Stafford Library at Columbia College

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Primary Source Research Starter
A primary source is a historical document or artifact created during a particular period of time. Unlike secondary sources, which are secondhand accounts of historical events, primary sources provide researchers with information directly from the time period being studied. Examples of primary sources include letters, which often provide key details about everyday life; paintings, which, for example, can demonstrate the styles of clothing worn by people who lived at the time the paintings were created; and films, which frequently shed light on the cultural attitudes of the eras in which they were made.
Primary Sources on the Web: Finding, Evaluating, Using
Information from the Reference and User Services Association.
Keeping up with...Primary Source Literacy
This column appears in the February 2024 newsletter from the Association of College & Research Libraries.
Vital Repository of Columbia College
This is a digital repository of the Columbia College Archives and other MOBIUS libraries. The repository can include primary sources such as images and documents.

Primary Sources Books and E-Books

Primary sources can be found by search for items with the subjects: sources, diaries, narratives, memoirs, and autobiographies. Here are some sample searches in our online catalog. Results may be books, e-books, and videos. Use a keyword search and one of the primary source terms or browse through some of the links below. Expand your search to MOBIUS to request books from other libraries.

Databases with Primary Sources

HeritageQuest Online
HeritageQuest® Online is a comprehensive database of American genealogical sources—rich in unique primary sources, local and family histories, and finding aids. It delivers an essential collection of genealogical and historical sources—with coverage dating back to the 1700s.
American Antiquarian Society Historical Periodicals Collection
The American Antiquarian Society is the collection documenting the life of America's people from the Colonial Era through the Civil War and Reconstruction, giving digital access a collection of American periodicals published between 1684 and 1912. The historical periodicals collection contains digitized images of the pages of American magazines and journals and provides rich content detailing American history and culture, including advertising, health, women's issues, science, the history of slavery, industry and professions, religious issues, culture and the arts, and more.