Primary and Secondary Sources

Historical Question: Who was present at the signing of the Declaration of Independence? Which is the better source?

• Hollywood movie about the American Revolution made in 2001.

• Book written by a famous historian who is an expert on the American Revolution, published in 1999.

What type of source is a Hollywood movie about the American Revolution?

• Primary

• Secondary

What type of source is a book written by a famous historian who is an expert on the American Revolution, published in 1999.

• Primary

• Secondary

Historical Question: What was slavery like in South Carolina? Which is the better source?

• Interview with former slave in 1936. The interviewer is a black man collecting oral histories for the Federal Writers' Project.

• Interview with former slave in 1936. The interviewer is a white woman collecting oral histories for the Federal Writers' Project.

What type of source is an interview with a former slave in 1936?

• Primary

• Secondary

Historical Question: What was the layout of the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz? Which is the better source?

• Interview with 80 year old Holocaust survivor in 1985.

• Map of concentration camp found in Nazi files.

What type of source is an interview with an 80 year old Holocaust survivor?

• Primary

• Secondary

What type of source is a map of a concentration camp found in Nazi files?

• Primary

• Secondary

Historical Question: What happened at the Battle of Little Bighorn? Which is the better source?

• High School history textbook from 1985.

• Newspaper account from the day after the battle in June 1876.

What type of source is a High School history textbook?

• Primary

• Secondary