Primary Source Timeline
See our Primary Source Timeline to browse a selection of primary source databases organized by coverage dates and locations.
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Primary Sources
In literature, a “primary source” or, more specifically a “primary text,” generally means the literary work that is being read/studied/analyzed. Whenever possible, primary sources other than the author's works of literature should be consulted. An author's thoughts about his or her own work, or the thoughts of the author's contemporaries, can provide invaluable insight about the works of literature you are studying.
Examples of primary sources are:
- personal and professional correspondence
- professional papers
- diaries and memoirs
- manuscripts
- political documents
- photographs and other images
- works of art and literature
- artifacts
- speeches
- autobiographies
- interviews and oral histories
- newspapers and magazine articles when written at the time of an event
Detailed information about how to locate primary sources can be found on our Finding Primary Sources page.
Examples of primary source databases that are useful for literary studies are listed below.
- Early English Books Online (EEBO) This link opens in a new windowAccess the first book published in English through titles from the age of Spenser and Shakespeare. This collection contains titles listed in Pollard & Redgrave's Short-Title Catalogue (1475-1640) and Wing's Short-Title Catalogue (1641-1700) and their revised editions, as well as the Thomason Tracts (1640-1661) collection and the Early English Books Tract Supplement. It covers many subject areas, including: English literature, history, philosophy, linguistics, theology, music, fine arts, education, mathematics, and science. Coverage: 1475-1700, contains primary sources. Full text.
- Eighteenth-Century Collections Online (ECCO parts I & II) This link opens in a new window
Access works catalogued in the eighteenth-century section of the English Short-Title Catalogue. The collection includes a wide variety of materials from books and directories, Bibles, sheet music and sermons to advertisements and works by many well-known and lesser-known authors. It is cross-searchable with other collections via Gale Primary Sources. Coverage: 18th century, contains primary sources. Full text.
- HathiTrust Digital Library This link opens in a new window
Access books and other materials from across the disciplines, including but not limited to fiction, nonfiction, music scores/sheet music, and scholarly works. Approximately 51% of content is in English, the other 49% consists of materials in over 450 different languages. Most content dates from the late 18th to the early 20th centuries. Items in the public domain are in full-view for everyone and items held in copyright are searchable. Coverage: varies, contains primary sources. Some full text. See our special access instructions.
- Nineteenth Century Collections Online Archive (NCCO) This link opens in a new window
Access primary source material from rare collections around the globe. This archive includes 12 collections:
- (1) Asia & the West: Diplomacy & Cultural Exchange includes government reports, diplomatic correspondence, periodicals, newspapers, treaties, trade agreements, NGO papers, & more.
- (2) British Politics & Society includes sources related to the political climate in Great Britain.
- (3) British Theatre, Music, & Literature: High & Popular Culture includes primary sources such as playbills, scripts to operas & complete scores.
- (4) Children's Literature & Childhood includes books & periodicals for children.
- (5) Europe & Africa: Commerce, Christianity, Civilization, & Conquest includes monographs, periodicals, & other materials documenting European policies & their effects in Africa.
- (6) European Literature, 1790-1840: The Corvey Collection includes English, French & German titles including fiction, short prose, dramatic works, poetry & more, with a focus on difficult-to-find works by historically neglected writers.
- (7) Mapping the World: Maps & Travel Literature includes battle and boundary maps, fictional travel narratives, guidebooks, pamphlets, trail and road maps, and more.
- (8) Photography: The World through the Lens, includes photos & publications about photography.
- (9) Religion, Reform, and Society includes periodicals, monographs, family papers, society records, and other religious publications.
- (10-11) Science, Technology & Medicine: 1780-1925, parts 1-2 include journals, books & other documents.
- (12) Women: Transnational Networks includes journals, books, manuscripts, & other materials, mostly from the U.S. & U.K., but with some other countries as well.
This archive is cross-searchable with other collections via Gale Primary Sources. Coverage: 19th century, contains primary sources. Full text.
- Victorian Women Writers Project This link opens in a new window
This link opens in a new window
Access transcriptions of 19th century works by lesser-known British women writers and other women writing in English. This collection includes poetry, novels, children's books, political pamphlets, religious tracts, histories and more. Coverage: 19th century, contains primary sources. Full text. - American Periodicals Series Online 1740-1900 This link opens in a new windowAccess over 1,500 periodicals that first began publishing between 1740 and 1900, including special interest and general magazines, literary and professional journals, children's and women's magazines; 89 journals published between 1740 and 1800 offer insights into America's transition from colonial times to independence; and 118 periodicals published during the Civil War (1861-1865) and Reconstruction (1865-1877) eras; and many other historically-significant periodicals. Coverage: 1740-1900, contains primary sources. Full text.
- Emily Dickinson's Correspondences This link opens in a new windowAccess poems and letters from Emily Dickinson's correspondence with her sister-in-law and primary confidante, Susan Dickinson. Each text is presented with a digitized scan of the holograph manuscript, which has a zoom functionality as well as a special light-box feature that allows users to view and compare related documents. Users may search by date, genre, manuscript features, and full text. Coverage: 1850s to 1880s, contains primary sources. Full text.
- Cambridge Edition of the Works of Ben Jonson This link opens in a new windowContains documents related to the life and work of Renaissance writer Ben Jonson. Includes major works, letters, diaries, music scores, and contextual documents.
