Searching for Primary Sources in OneSearch and Databases

Searching for Primary Sources in OneSearch

From the library homepage, you can use OneSearch to help you find primary sources:

  • Enter a keyword that describes your topic. It is best to use nouns—the name of an event, person or thing you are looking for. Examples: Burning Man, Maya Miller, Comstock Lode, Basque culture.
  • When you get a list of results, choose formats that are relevant to your research from the Resource Type filter. Choose Show More to see a complete list.

Screenshot of Research Type selections are shown, with Show More highlighted in red.          More options are shown and images, archival material / manuscripts, and audio are selected.      

Relevant resource types might include the following formats, among others:

  • Archival Material / Manuscripts
  • Collection
  • Datasets
  • Government Documents
  • Images
  • Maps
  • Videos

When finished, click Apply Filters. This will filter your results to only show those types of content.

Searching for Primary Sources in Databases

From the library homepage, you can use the AZ Databases link Links to an external site. to help you find primary sources:

  • Select the AZ Databases link and choose Primary Sources from the All Database Types drop-down menu.
  • Choose a database from the list of Primary Source databases and use that database to search for your topic. 

Screenshot of AZ Databases page. The All Databases Type dropdown menu is open and Primary Sources is selected.