Guides: PAID 112 Section 16: Thorne (Spring 2021): Find Primary Sources

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Life Magazine Archive (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
Life Magazine Archive presents an extensive collection of the famed photojournalism magazine, spanning its very first issue in November, 1936 through December, 2000 in a comprehensive cover-to-cover format. Published by Time Inc., the magazine has featured story-telling through documentary photographs and informative captions.
New York Times, Historical plus Index (ProQuest) This link opens in a new window
ProQuest Historical Newspapers: the New York Times provides the full image of articles published in the New York Times from its first issue in 1851. It is searchable by keyword, author, article title, and first paragraph (abstract). You can browse issues by clicking Publications at the top of the screen. It includes illustrations and advertisements. The title changed from the New York Daily Times to the New York Times in 1857.
Times Digital Archive (1785-2013) This link opens in a new window
The Times Digital Archive is an online, full-text facsimile of more than 200 years of The Times (London), one of the most highly regarded resources for eighteenth-, nineteenth-, and twentieth-century news coverage, with every page of every issue from 1785 through 2013. This historical newspaper archive allows researchers an unparalleled opportunity to search and view the best-known and most cited newspaper in the world online in its original published context.
Winneshiek County Newspaper Archives This link opens in a new window
This collection includes several newspapers published in Winneshiek County, with earliest content beginning in 1857. A 2-year embargo is maintained for currently-published titles included in the collection. Notable titles include "Calmar Courier," "Decorah Journal," and "Decorah Public Opinion." The resource is a joint project between Luther College and the Winneshiek County Historical Society, with support from the State Historical Society of Iowa's Historical Resource Development Program.

Primary Source Collections

Many libraries and archives have digitized primary sources from World War II to share online. These primary sources include letters, photographs, scrapbooks, government publications, and oral history interviews with veterans. You can browse these collections as part of your research.

Center for American War Letters Digital Collection - World War II
Collection of digitized letters written by servicemembers during WWII held at Chapman University's Center for the American War Letters.
Digital Collections of the National World War II Museum
Digitized collections of oral histories and photographs from the collections of the National WWII Museum.
Experiencing War: Stories from the Veterans History Project
A collection of oral histories and wartime correspondence from veterans in several American conflicts, including WWI, WWII, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Collection assembled by the Library of Congress.
Historic Government Publications from World War II
Digitized collection of WWII-related government publications from Southern Methodist University Libraries. Publications cover a variety of topics, including wartime rationing and canning, informational guides to other countries, and wartime employment, particularly of women.
National Museum of the Pacific War Digital Archive
Selected collection of digitized letters, photographs, oral histories, and documents from the Center for Pacific War Studies, focusing on the Pacific Theater of WWII. Collections made available by the National Museum of the Pacific War.
World War II Documents from the Avalon Project
A large, reputable collection of primary source documents related to WWII from the Lillian Goldman Law Library at Yale University. Primary sources are primarily political in nature.

Analyzing Primary Sources

Primary sources need to be evaluated and analyzed before you use them in your research, just like any other resource. Here are some helpful guides and worksheets for evaluating primary sources:

How to Evaluate Primary Sources on Cultural Heritage Websites: This worksheet from Robin M. Katz should be used with any source you find using Google or another search engine.
Document Analysis Worksheets: These worksheets from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) include worksheets for specific types of primary sources (photographs, documents, videos, etc.) You can use these for any primary source you use.

PAID 112 Section 16: Thorne (Spring 2021)

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Primary Source Collections

Analyzing Primary Sources

PAID 112 Section 16: Thorne (Spring 2021)

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Find us on:

On This Page

On this page, you'll find:

Newspapers

Primary Source Collections

Analyzing Primary Sources

Information & Research Help: