Advice on Searching for Primary Sources
You will get limited results if you try to search for "primary sources" in library databases since the Library of Congress does not use that subject heading. Try searching these subject headings instead:
sources
personal narratives
documents
speeches
memoirs
diaries
documents
interviews
oral history
letters
You will get limited results searching for the word "autobiography" since the Library of Congress does not use that subject heading. Try searching for "biography" but then look to make sure that the author is also listed as a subject. That is your clue that the person is writing about him or herself, and that is a primary source.
Recommended Resources
In all three of these databases, the "GET IT" button will enable you to request the book from another library if Geneseo does not have it.
- WorldCat Local This link opens in a new windowWorldCat Local provides Web access to WorldCat.org and GLOCAT as well as other databases including ArticleFirst, GPO, Medline, ERIC, GeoRef, MLA
Digital Books
- Google Book Search Many full text books, many that just have excerpts and snippets.
- HathiTrust Digital Library This link opens in a new window HathiTrust is a massive full-text digital library comprising more than 10 million volumes contributed by more than 60 major research institutions and libraries.
- Internet Text Archive An open-access website providing full-text copies of selected books from such sources as American Libraries, Canadian Libraries, Project Gutenberg and Children's Library
