primary sources

Finding Primary Sources on the Web: More Info

• Use a search engine

  Each search engine searches differently. For information on searching see:

  • The Best Search Engines
    http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/SearchEngines.html
  • Search Engines Features Chart
    http://www.searchengineshowdown.com/features/

  To find specific terms (people, events, places) related to your topic:

  • Speak with your teacher or librarian
  • Consult an encyclopedia such as the Columbia Encyclopedia

  Examples of some Google searches:

  • To find web sites dealing with Treaty of Westphalia, search for the phrase in quotations "treaty of westphalia." This search retrieves sites such as the Avalon Project's Treaty of Westphalia as well as 6,000 other sites containing the phrase.
  • To find web sites dealing with the potato famine in Ireland during the 1840s, search for the phrase in quotations "irish famine." This search retrieves sites such as Views of the Famine.

Image: First page of Lewis F. Allen's First appearance, in 1832, of the cholera in Buffalo. Courtesy of Cornell University Library's New York State Historical Literature.