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HY 201 - History of the United States

Definitions and Examples

Primary sources are original materials, such as first-hand accounts, events, or works of literature or art, that have not been interpreted by anyone other than their creators. Common types of primary sources are diaries, letters, manuscripts, journals, interviews, memoirs, autobiographies, oral history interviews, speeches, organizational records, business records, documents produced by government agencies, newspapers, and many more.  These sources do not generally describe or analyze other documents but are usually created by those who have witnessed what they are describing.

Watch the following video for more information on understanding primary sources.