Primary sources are the documents or artifacts that are first-hand accounts and that you can use as evidence to support your research. They are often created during the time period that is being studied, but can also be produced later by eyewitnesses or other participants (oral histories, memoirs are examples). You can find primary sources in their original format in an archive or reproduced in a variety of ways in databases, books, or on microfilm. Types of primary sources include: correspondence, diaries, newspapers, government documents, and art.
The resources below will help you find primary sources including books, pamphlets, letters, & more. Please check the Historical/Primary Sources page to find a complete list of primary sources available through FSU Libraries.
The Dictionary of Old English (DOE) defines the vocabulary of the first six centuries (600–1150 A.D.) of the English language, using today's most advanced technology. The DOE complements the Middle English Dictionary (which covers the period 1100–1500 A.D.) and the Oxford English Dictionary (which documents the development of the English language to the present), the three together providing a full description of the vocabulary of English. The Dictionary of Irish Biography, a collaborative project between Cambridge University Press and the Royal Irish Academy, is the most comprehensive and authoritative biographical dictionary yet published for Ireland. It contains 9,014 signed biographical articles which describe and assess the careers of subjects in all fields of endeavor, including politics, law, religion, literature, journalism, architecture, painting, music, the stage, science, medicine, engineering, entertainment and sport.
Abbreviation: doe
Vendor: University of Toronto
Subjects: English, Linguistics, Literature
Type: Encyclopedias & Dictionaries, Historical / Primary Sources
The Dictionary of Old English Web Corpus is an online database consisting of at least one copy of every surviving Old English text. In some cases, more than one copy is included, if it is significant because of dialect or date. As such, the DOE Web Corpus represents over three million words of Old English and fewer than a million words of Latin, or almost five times the collected works of Shakespeare. The Web Corpus is compiled as part of the Dictionary of Old English project at the University of Toronto.
Abbreviation: doecorpus
Vendor: University of Toronto
Subjects: English, Literature
Type: Encyclopedias & Dictionaries, Historical / Primary Sources
The Nineteenth Century Collections Online includes Asia and the West: Diplomacy and Cultural Exchange; British Politics and Society; British Theatre, Music, Literature: High and Popular Culture; Children's Literature and Childhood; European Literature, 1790-1840: The Corvey Collection; Europe and Africa, Colonialism and Culture; Mapping the World: Maps and Travel Literature; Photography: The World Through the Lens; Religion, Spirituality, Reform, and Society; Science, Technology, and Medicine, 1780–1925; Science, Technology, and Medicine, 1780–1925, Part II; Women: Transnational Networks.
The resources below will help you find primary sources including books, pamphlets, letters, & more. Please check the Historical/Primary Sources page to find a complete list of primary sources available through FSU Libraries.
History Commons provides diverse primary sources from the 18th, 19th, and early 20th century, reflecting broad views across American history and culture, including African American life, Women’s Suffrage, American County Histories, Colonial America, the Civil War, America in World War I, and much more. The databases allow access to the rich store of materials—eyewitness accounts of historical events, vivid descriptions of daily life, editorial observations, and commerce as seen through advertisements—from over 200 years of leading books, newspapers, and periodicals then current.
Abbreviation: aacarc
Vendor: Coherent Digital
Subjects: African-American Studies, History, Women's and Gender Studies
Type: Newspapers and Newswires
The resources below may be helpful in finding primary sources including historical newspapers, letters, and more. Please check out the Historical/Primary Sources page to find an A-Z listing of primary sources offered by FSU Libraries.
Indigenous Newspapers in North America aims to present a diverse and robust collection of print journalism from Indigenous peoples of the US and Canada over more than 9,000 individual editions from 1828–2016.
Abbreviation: aminews
Vendor: Adam Matthew Digital Ltd
Coverage: 1828–2016
Subjects: Anthropology, Cultural Heritage, History
Type: Historical / Primary Sources, Newspapers and Newswires
The resources below may be helpful in finding primary sources including historical newspapers, letters, and more. Please check out the Historical/Primary Sources page to find an A-Z listing of primary sources offered by FSU Libraries.
Sourced from the archive of The Worshipful Company of Stationers & Newspaper Makers, located at Stationers Hall in the City of London, Literary Print Culture: The Stationers Company Archive, 15542007, allows access to a vast and unique collection of primary source documents. The collection is widely regarded as one of the most important primary sources for studying the history of the book as well as publishing history, the history of copyright and the workings of an early London Livery Company. Explore the variety of documents to uncover the story of the role the Stationers Company played in the history of the book trade.
Abbreviation: amlpc
Vendor: Adam Matthew Digital Ltd
Coverage: 1554–2007
Subjects: History, Literature
Type: Government Publications, Historical / Primary Sources, Images
© Florida State University Libraries | 116 Honors Way | Tallahassee, FL 32306 | (850) 644-2706