Research Guides @ Fordham: History (Countries and Regions of the World): Primary Sources

What is a Primary Source?

Primary sources are original records created during the time under study. Because they were present during the experience, they offer an inside first-hand view of a particular event unfiltered by interpretation, criticism, or evaluation.

Some examples:

Letters
Newspapers
Interviews
Photographs
Manuscripts
Memoirs
Speeches
Diaries
News film footage
Autobiographies
Official records
Personal narratives
Creative works: poetry, drama, novels, music, art
Anecdotes
Correspondence
Pamphlets
Case studies

American Library Association Guide for Primary Source Materials

A guide to finding, evaluating, and using primary source materials created by the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) of the American Library Association (ALA).

Primary Source Material Collections - Global

HathiTrust Digital Library
Partnership of major research institutions and libraries creating digital archive of library materials. Full text access only to the portion of the archive comprising public domain works, indicated by "Full View". Not completely Open Access. Downloading or printing depends on each title's copyright status. Click into each title to see entitlements on the left sidebar.
Nineteenth Century Index - Access Ends 7/31/25 | NYPL Remote Access Available

Remote access available through NYPL. Click here for information on how to access NYPL resources online. Now on the main ProQuest platform, C19 Index is the bibliographic spine of 19th century research, providing integrated access to the most important finding aids for books, periodicals, official publications, newspapers and archives.
Eighteenth Century Collections Online

Full text of 180,000 books published from 1700 to 1799. Transitioning to a new platform. Not all Browse functions working.

World History Sources
A project of the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media, George Mason University, with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation.

World Protest and Reform Movements: Global Perspectives, 1945-1996
From Readex. Translated and English-language radio and television broadcasts, newspapers, periodicals, government documents, and books providing global reaction to major protest and reform movements.
European Views of the Americas: 1493 to 1750
Index and comprehensive guide to the printed records and bibliography "European Americana: A Chronological Guide to Works Printed In Europe Relating to The Americas, 1493-1750.”

Historic Audio Sources

Music and Dance Online: Smithsonian Global Sound - Access Ends 7/31/25
Recordings of all kinds of music from all over the world.
Music and Dance Online: Contemporary World Music - Access Ends 7/31/25
Delivers the sounds of all regions from every continent. Contains important genres such as reggae, worldbeat, neo-traditional, world fusion, Balkanic jazz, African film, Bollywood, Arab swing and jazz, and others.

Digital Historic Documents

Original Sources (formerly Omega Sources)
E-books database of primary sources in world and American history, politics, social sciences, philosophy, law, literature, and science.

READING EPUB FILES
When opening an ePub file, make sure to choose “save file”
Remember the file name and where it is saved on your computer. You will need to know this when it is time to read the file in the EPUBReader extension.

Add the CHROME EPUBReader browser extension:
menu icon (3 dots) > more tools > extensions > get more extensions > search for EPUBReader > add to chrome > close welcome box.
The EPUBReader icon should be automatically added to your toolbar.

Add the Firefox browser extension:
menu icon (3 lines) > add-ons > get add-ons > see more add-ons > search for EPUBReader > add to firefox > close the welcome box
The EPUBReader icon should be automatically added to your toolbar.

TO READ AN EPUB FILE:
Click on the EPUBReader icon in your Chrome or Firefox toolbar to open it > click on the folder icon at the top of the page and select the previously saved ePub file.
NOTE: Your file will not be saved in the Reader; you will have to open the file each time you want to read it.

Avalon Project
Full text of documents relating to the fields of history, law, politics, diplomacy, government and economics from ancient times to the present.

LUNA Commons
A wide variety of high quality open-access image collections of cultural heritage material from museums, archives, universities and other repositories.

Foreign Relations of the United States
Official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions that have been declassified and edited for publication. The series is produced by the State Department's Office of the Historian. There are two cumulative indexes covering 1861-1899 and 1900-1918.

Archival Materials

National Archives of England, Wales, and the United Kindom
UK government's official archive containing over 1,000 years of history.

ArchiveGrid
"...includes over 5 million records describing archival materials, bringing together information about historical documents, personal papers, family histories, and more. With over 1,000 different archival institutions represented, ArchiveGrid helps researchers looking for primary source materials held in archives, libraries, museums and historical societies."
National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections
Provided by the Library of Congress, NUCMC is a searchable catalog of manuscript collections in WorldCat.

History (Countries and Regions of the World): Primary Sources