Library Research and Finding Primary Sources

 

Primary Sources Examples of Primary Sources Finding Primary Sources Books Find Books at our library Find Books at other NJ Academic libaries Finding Primary Source Articles Strategies for searching the databases  Use interlibrary loan Find specific journals in the library

 

 

 

 

Primary Sources

 

•  Primary Sources enable researchers to get as close as possible to what actually happened during an historical event or time period. The information and ideas were either created during the time period or created later by a participant or observer of the event being studied.

 

 

 

Examples of Primary Sources

 

• Memoirs, diaries, letters, interviews, and other first-person accounts

• Official publications, government documents, court reports and police records

• Newspaper and magazine articles from the period under study

• Paintings

• Photographs

• Film and television programs

• Print and television advertisments

• Music recordings

 

 

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Finding Primary Sources Books

 

Find Books at our library

 

• Catalog:use this link to find Books, government documents, reserve items, music, movies and journal titles (NOT JOURNAL ARTICLES) in our library

 

 

• Search the catalog using CommandLine/Boolean to find materials
  • This option lets you put terms in that will  yield results that are primary sources

 

• For Example: I would like some primary source material on my topic: World War II
  • my search might be: "world war II" and (interview or correspondence or diary or autobiography)
  • Using words like memiors, lettes, interviews, autobiographies, diaries, and correspondence will help to get the right materials 
  • Use the Subjects, etc... tab on the top of a record to the linked subject headings for more material.

 

Find Books at other NJ Academic libaries

 

• Catalog: use this link to locate material at other NJ academic libraries. Use Interlibrary Loan to get the material you find or drive to local schools and pick up the book.

 

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Finding Primary Source Articles

 

• These databases are for finding journal articles
• They are available 24/7 ONLY to Ramapo students
• Off campus use requires login: Ramapo email and password
• Some useful Databases for your projects:

 

History Databases	These includes some primary source material
America: History and Life (abc-clio)   America: History and Life (Ebsco)	History of the United States and Canada from pre-history to the present.   Tip:(ABC-Clio version) Links to JSTOR and Ebsco. When only a citation is included, click on the "Primary Catalog" link to see if the full text of the article is available in our collection.    Tip:(Ebsco version) When only a citation is included, click on the "Check availability at Ramapo" link to see if the full text of the article is available in our collection.
Historical Abstracts (abc-clio)   Historical Abstracts (Ebsco)	Tip:(ABC-Clio version) Links to JSTOR and Ebsco. When only a citation is included, click on the "Primary Catalog" link to see if the full text of the article is available in our collection.     Tip:(Ebsco version) When only a citation is included, click on the "Check availability at Ramapo" link to see if the full text of the article is available in our collection.
JSTOR	Tip: entirely full-text.  Cannot email articles-email yourself the stable url. Do not print from browser print button. Use the JSTOR print option
African American Studies Center	Includes bibliographies, interactive timelines and maps, thematic photo essays and image collections, key primary source documents, and editorially selected links to Internet resources.
Historical Newspapers
Historical New York Times	full-text of the entire NY Times from 1851-2002 Tip: Use the Page Map link (upper right hand side of screen) IN a record to view the entire front page of paper OR from the search screen click on MORE OPTIONS then DOCUMENT TYPE: FRONT PAGE
Historical Wasington Post	Full text of the entire paper from 1877-1991 Tip: Use the Page Map link (upper right hand side of screen) IN a record to view the entire front page of paper OR from the search screen click on MORE OPTIONS then DOCUMENT TYPE: FRONT PAGE
Historical Christian Science Monito	Full text of the entire paper from 1908-1994 Tip: Use the Page Map link (upper right hand side of screen) IN a record to view the entire front page of paper OR from the search screen click on MORE OPTIONS then DOCUMENT TYPE: FRONT PAGE
Historical Wall Street Journal	Full text of the entire paper from 1889-1990 Tip: Use the Page Map link (upper right hand side of screen) IN a record to view the entire front page of paper OR from the search screen click on MORE OPTIONS then DOCUMENT TYPE: FRONT PAGE

 

 

Strategies for searching the databases

 

• Always go back and revise your searches! Look at using different terms and synonyms.
• Always switch to the Advance Search page in a database. This will give you more control over your results.
• Always use Boolean Operators-AND, OR, NOT when running a search. For Example: advertising and 195? and (cosmetics or beauty or fashion)
  • AND: narrows your search ex: women and fashion
  • OR: broadens your search ex: (united states or america) and "vietnam war" and (letter or correspondence or diary)

  • NOT: eliminates ex: Mexico not (New Mexico or Gulf of Mexico)

• Always check your Spelling if the database results are Zero.
• To look for full-text use the: check availablity at Ramapo, primary catalog, or check availability links in the databases
•  Use the Subject Terms or Thesaurus link in databases to find the best search terms to use

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 Use interlibrary loan

 

• Use Interlibrary Loan if we don't have a book or article that you need

 

• Fill out the online form using your Ramapo Email (it will not be processed without that email address)

 

• WARNING: give yourself time (it can take longer than 2 weeks in some cases)

 

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Find specific journals in the library

 

• Use the Journal Finder to locate the full-text of journals in our library. These can be either online or in print.

 

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