Find Websites / Primary Sources - HIS 495 - Ross - LibGuides at North Carolina Wesleyan University

Primary Source Websites

Library of Congress Digital Collections: https://www.loc.gov/item/2010651358/

Behind the Veil: Documenting African American Life in the Jim Crow South A selection of 410 recorded oral history interviews chronicling African-American life during the age of legal segregation in the American South, from the 1890s to the 1950s from the Duke University Center for Document Studies
Carolina Digital Collections (UNC)
Digital Public Library of America Discover over 46,000,000 images, texts, videos, and sounds from across the United States.
Discovering American Women's History Online This database provides access to digital collections of primary sources (photos, letters, diaries, artifacts, etc.) that document the history of women in the United States.
Documenting the American South A digital publishing initiative that provides Internet access to texts, images, and audio files related to Southern history, literature, and culture.
Duke Digital Collections Digitized historic photographs, advertisements, texts & more from Duke's unique library collections. Browse over 860 collections.
Library of Congress - Digital Collections The Library of Congress Digital Collections provides free and open access through the Internet to written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music that document the American experience.
National Archives - Search
New York Public Library Digital Collections Explore 884,351 items digitized from The New York Public Library's collections. This site is a living database with new materials added every day, featuring prints, photographs, maps, manuscripts, streaming video, and more.
Southern Oral History Program Access to digitized oral history interviews from UNC.

NC Primary Source Websites

NC State Archives - Digital Collections The North Carolina Digital Collections contain over 90,000 historic and recent photographs, state government publications, manuscripts, and other resources on topics related to North Carolina. The Collections are free and full-text searchable, and bring together content from the State Archives of North Carolina and the State Library of North Carolina.
Digital NC Explore original materials from 272 libraries, museums, and archives across North Carolina.

Critically Evaluating Websites - A Checklist

Ask these questions:

Currency – When was the information published or last updated or revised? Are there links to other websites and are they current?

Relevance – Does the website address your topic and deal with your questions? Who is the intended audience? Is it at an appropriate level, or is it written for elementary students or practicing physicians?

Accuracy/Integrity – Is the information accurate? Where does it come from? Is evidence provided to support the website’s statements? Can you verify any of the information from other sources?

Authority – Who created this website? What are the author’s credentials? Is he an expert? What are his/her affiliations? Who publishes or sponsors the website? Is there a way to contact the author or webmaster?

Purpose/Objectivity/Coverage – What is the purpose of the website? Is it to inform, teach, sell, entertain, or persuade? Is the point of view objective and impartial? Is the information fact, opinion, or propaganda? Are there political, cultural, religious, or personal biases? Is it comprehensive in coverage or narrow in scope?

This is important because your GRADE depends on the quality of the information you use!

Website Evaluation Checklist
Use this list to evaluate information found on the internet.

Christmas Web Resources

Christmas, Inc.: A Brief History of the Holiday Card Posting on the JSTOR Daily website.
The Capitol Christmas Tree History of US Capitol Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony.
LOC - Today in History - December 25