Helpful guide from Steve Knowlton, History librarian
To identify primary source materials in the library catalog, look for the word sources within a subject term: e.g. perform a Subject (keyword) search: e.g. cultural sources; or, sources food, etc.
Additional Subject (keywords) or (regular) Keywords to bring up primary sources or books with primary source content include the following: (these are several examples of words that would identify a source as primary; some will lead to content that is visual in nature)
* caricatures and cartoons
* case studies
* charters
* charts, diagrams, etc.
* correspondence
* diaries
* documents
* early works
* illustrations
* interviews
* letters
* manuscripts
* maps
* oral history
* oratory
* pamphlets
* personal narratives
* pictorial works
* sources
* speeches
* transcripts
Firestone and Mudd Libraries comprise the Special Collections Department, which includes collections of unique or rare items like author manuscripts and other (unpublished) materials, letters, rare books, music manuscripts, works on paper (prints), coins, death masks, etc. There are great opportunities for you to work with original materials, some of which may never have been investigated or worked on before. Marquand also has an extensive and growing rare collection. You can browse its holdings here.
Check out the Guide to Topics; and the Finding Aid search (archival collections), as well as the search by topic for archival materials. While you can find many of these collections in the library catalog, you can search by keyword here across collections within the guides that exist to help you navigate what’s contained in collections of papers for an important author, company, statesman, woman, etc.
PUL Digital Library: click here. Take some time to browse for the unique and interesting content from Special Collections that has been digitized.
Databases may also be good sources for primary source content of different kinds too (I encourage you to browse the databases by subject in general: there are some amazing resources here). One can browse our Database list by Subject at the top left, or search for a keyword (in title or description) in the search box at the upper right.
Works of art are primary sources. The "all-search on the main library website includes the PU Art Museum as a search facet. Museum websites in general can be useful places to search for information and images related to original objects. See lists for finding art museums at the very BOTTOM of this page.
LES ECRITS SUR L'ART (Texts of art criticism by notable French and other artists and writers, specifically focused on salons and important literary works written from 1741 to 1927.
GETTY RESEARCH PORTAL (provides access to important art history texts that are out-of-copyright)
