MMW Primary Sources: Home

Introduction

Thinking About Primary Sources

Primary sources provide the perspectives of individuals or the community, evidence of customs and dress, societal knowledge and beliefs, and many other contextual clues about how people interact with the world around them. They will help you answer your research question or provide information about your topic based on the observations and inferences you make when studying them.

A primary source is unlikely to address your topic in its entirety. Instead, it will likely provide one piece of information that, when combined with others, can be used to support your writing by providing data, an argument you can engage with, or background information.

Historical Primary Sources Description Table
The Historical Primary Sources Table will help you think about a type of primary source, what information it might provide, and where you might locate it.

Using a Primary Source

What type of information does your source provide infographic description

Accessing Electronic Resources?

You can access thousands of e-journals, e-books, databases, and more through UC San Diego Library.

For on-campus access, make sure that you are connected to the UCSD-Protected wifi.

To access library resources from off-campus:

Option 1: Connect through UC Library Search

Option 2: Sign in at a Publisher or Resource Site

Look for 'Sign in Through My Institution' or 'Access via OpenAthens'.
Select 'University of California San Diego' and choose OpenAthens Federation if prompted.

Option 3: Connect through Campus VPN

Download and open the VPN AnyConnect
Select "2- Step-Secured - all thru UCSD" when prompted for connection type
Approve your sign-in through Duo

For help with troubleshooting, visit our Connect to Library Resources page.