Transcript Using Sources in History

Using Sources in History
WHAT TYPES OF EVIDENCE
ARE THERE?
The evidence that we use in History comes
from one of two types of source.
Primary sources are made or written at
the time an event happened.
Secondary sources are written or made after
an event by someone who wasn’t there.
Primary Sources
• Primary sources are works created:
– at the time of an event,
– or by a person who directly experienced an event.
• It is the content, not necessarily the format, of a
work that makes it a primary source.
– For example, an online copy of a newspaper from March
20, 1897, is still a primary source even though the
article viewed on your computer was digitized more than
a century after the article was first printed.
Primary Sources
• Primary sources can include:
– Interviews, diaries, letters, journals,
speeches, autobiographies, and
witness statements
– Articles containing original research,
data, or findings never before shared
– Original hand-written manuscripts
– Government documents and public
records
– Art, photographs, films, maps, fiction,
and music
– Newspaper and magazine clippings
– Artifacts, buildings, furniture, and
clothing
Secondary Sources
• Secondary sources are works that:
– are one step removed from the original event
– or experience provide criticism or interpretation of a
primary source
Secondary sources can include
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Textbooks
Review articles and critical analysis essays
Biographies
Historical films, music, and art
Articles about people and events from the past