Answered By: Melissa Whitesell
Last Updated: Apr 26, 2017     Views: 17

A primary source  is a first-hand account of an event (diary), the actual item, document, or work (United States Constitution).

Primary sources can include
  • Interviews, diaries, letters, journals, speeches, autobiographies, and witness statements
  • Articles containing original research, data, or findings never before shared
  • Original hand-written manuscripts
  • Government documents and public records
  • Art, photographs, films, maps, fiction, and music
  • Newspaper and magazine clippings
  • Artifacts, buildings, furniture, and clothing

A secondary source is something written about the event or work (a critical essay discussing the imagery found in the short story, A Rose for Emily), a biography about a Thomas Jefferson.

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