Finding Primary Sources in the Library Catalogue

There are four strategies for searching the library catalogue to find published primary sources that are straightforward.

• combining topic keyword with primary source type keyword
• using “Sources” as a subject heading
• refining keyword search by “genre”
• limiting by date of publication.

Once you know the four techniques, you will be easily able to find primary sources on your topic.

Combining Topic Keyword with Primary Source Type Keyword

The first simply technique combines a keyword for your topic with a keyword for the type of primary source.

Combine your topic keyword with one of the primary source types:

• diaries
• letters
• personal narratives
• speeches
• correspondence.

In this example, our sample research topic is prisoners of war.

On the next page, use the filters on the left-hand side to limit the number of results. You can refine the list of titles by language, library location, and a more specific subject.

For instance, selecting “World War, 1939–1945” under Subject will limit the results to diaries of soldiers who were imprisoned during World War II.

Some titles are available electronically as well as in print.

This book is not available electronically. Note the name of the library and the call number to find the print version in the stacks.