LibGuides: English: Primary Sources

What are Primary Sources?

Primary sources are original sources of information, typically created at the time of the events or individual being researched. The databases and websites listed on this page will help you to find primary sources that provide context for a literary work.

Primary sources have not yet been filtered through analysis, examination or interpretation. If you need help interpreting primary sources, try these links:

Key Primary Sources for English

EEBO: Early English Books Online [Full-text Digital Library]
EEBO includes Include works by major authors such as Shakespeare, Malory, Spenser, Bacon, Erasmus and many more. The collection includes historical documents, Bibles, royal statutes and other public documents.
ECCO: Eighteenth Century Collections Online [Full-text Digital Library]
Full text of every significant title printed in the UK, plus important works from the Americas, published between 1701 and 1800.
NCCO: Nineteenth Century Collections Online [Full-text Digital Library
Primary source collections of the nineteenth century. Content includes: monographs, newspapers, pamphlets, manuscripts, ephemera, maps, statistics, and more. Includes collections: Asia and the West: Diplomacy and Cultural Exchange; British Politics and Society; British Theatre, Music, and Literature: High and Popular Culture; European Literature, 1790-1840: The Corvey Collection.
17th and 18th Century Burney Newspapers Collection [Full-text Digital Library]
The newspapers, pamphlets, and books gathered by the Reverend Charles Burney (1757-1817) and held in the British Library represent the largest and most comprehensive collection of early English news media. The present digital collection totals almost 1 million pages and contains approximately 1,270 titles.
ARTstor: Illuminated Manuscript Collection [Image DigitalLibrary]
Over 3,000 images, whether miniatures, historiated initials, or other examples of manuscript illumination, accompanied by cataloging records from some 200 of the 500 Medieval and Renaissance manuscripts contained throughout the collections of the Princeton University Library.
JSTOR [subscription full-text digital archive]
Digitized journals, with coverage ranging from as early as 1665. You can limit by date range (e.g. 1837-1901 for the Victorian Era).

University Library Special Collections

The University Library Special Collections holds a significant research collections of 11,000+ pre- and post-1800 books and manuscripts that showcase aspects of European civilization and culture from the Renaissance to the end of the 20th century. It has strengths in works by and about John Evelyn and John Locke, 17th century English history, politics and philosophy, 18th century poetry, travel and guidebooks, horticulture, European architecture, theology, Greek and Roman classics, science, philology, and Middle Eastern languages.

Special Collections at the University of Otago Library
Special Collections at University of Otago Library preserves and provides access to special, rare and unique books and manuscripts. We do this to support learning, teaching and research within the University, throughout Aotearoa, and internationally.

Primary Sources Worldwide

These are all great places to find Primary Sources!

ARTstor Digital Library
Over 1.8 million high quality digital images in art, anthropology, architecture, classics, history, literature, urban planning, visual literacy, and more.
Gale Artemis: Primary Sources
Cross-search across Gale platforms, including: 17th and 18th Century Burney Collection, 19th Century British Newspapers, Eighteenth Century Collections Online, Nineteenth Century Collections Online, the Making of Modern Law, and The Times Digital Archive.
World History in Context
Includes primary source documents relating to the history of the UK and Europe.
Empire Online
Manuscript, printed and visual primary source materials for the study of 'Empire' and it's theories, practices and consequences.
Women and Social Movements International
The writings of women activists, their personal letters and diaries, and the proceedings of conferences at which pivotal decisions were made.

FamilySearch This link opens in a new window
FamilySearch is the largest genealogy organization in the world. Millions of people use FamilySearch records, resources, and services to learn more about their family history. For over 100 years, FamilySearch has been actively gathering, preserving, and sharing genealogical records worldwide.
Google Books: Advanced Book Search This link opens in a new window

Historypin
A map of the world, where people have pinned over 160 000 photos, videos, audio clips and stories. Search by place, and narrow by date or subject.

Internet Archive: Audio Archive This link opens in a new window
This library contains over two hundred thousand free digital recordings ranging from alternative news programming, to Grateful Dead concerts, to Old Time Radio shows, to book and poetry readings, to original music uploaded by users.

Old Maps Online
An easy-to-use gateway to historical maps in libraries around the world. Search by place-name or by clicking in the map window, and narrow by date.

Repositories of Primary Sources This link opens in a new window
A listing of over 5000 websites describing holdings of manuscripts, archives, rare books, historical photographs, and other primary sources for the research scholar.