Primary Resources and Real-World Data
can I find historical speeches,
posters, and maps?
My students like real-world data and statistics for math problems, where can I find this type of information?
What are the best sources of historical documents, oral histories, and other authentic resources?
The Internet provides access to a wide range of primary resources such as letters, diaries, journals, logs, data, documents, speeches, and videos. Students can also create authentic information through collecting oral histories, conducting polls and surveys, and keeping journals.
Read Making Math/Science Meaningful for ways to create inquiry-based authentic experiences with real-world online resources.
Use the following links on this page for resources:
Remember, you can always find good resources in the news at CNN, USA Today, or other resources at Teacher Tap: News Resources. Explore authentic information resources on the Internet. Create a simple activity that would incorporate one resource into a classroom activity.
100 Milestone Document
Links to documents from the National Archives with teacher section.
Ads from the early 1900s by categories such as beauty, television, transportation, and WWII
African American Women at Duke University
Historical documents including slave letters.
American Memories from
the Library of Congress
Links to dozens of digital collections including documents, texts, photos, maps, audio, and video.
Historical documents about the presidency.
American Treasurers of the Library of Congress
Some of the most important materials from Library of Congress.
An archive of millions of public domain resources as well as the Wayback machine
AskAsia: A K12 resources of the Asia Society
Links to primary sources, maps, statistics, art, and cultural information on Asia.
Archives of Booknotes interviews.
Camp Harmony Exhibit from University of Washington Libraries
Resources on Japanese Internment camps during WW2.
Canada's Digital Collection
Lots of collections.
Information and documents.
Cybrary of the Holocaust
Explore resources on the Holocaust.
Documents and articles about document written for kids.
Digital Classroom from
Lots of resources and activities.
Links to primary sources, multimedia, and virtual exhibits.
Digital Library from the New York Public Library
Includes documents, photos, and other materials.
Documenting the American South
First-person narratives, literature, letters, and documents.
Over 2200 resources on the eugenics movement of the early 20th century.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Online documents including sounds and video.
German Propanda Archive
Explore Nazi and East German Propagand posters and other resources.
Documents from all areas of the US government.
Great Chicago Fire and The Web of Memory
Graphics, maps, and accounts of the fire.
Great Speeches from
History and Politics
Searchable archive of politically significant audio.
History of the United Kingdom: Primary Documents
Primary documents from 1000 to present.
Images from the History of Medicine
Nearly 60,000 photographs.
Lost and Found Sound from
National Public Radio
Sounds from America
Lunar Orbiter Photographic Atlas of the Moon
Photographs of the moon.
Making of America
Primary sources in American social history.
NASA Image eXchange
Search for images.
Native American Constitution and Law Digitization
Great collection of tribal documents including constitutions and codes.
Nazi and East German Propaganda Guide Page
Documents, posters and other material.
New Deal Network
Documents, speeches, and other resources.
Pulitzer Prize Photosgraphs.
Library Map Collection
Historical and current maps from around the world.
Primary Documents in American History from Library of Congress
Includes documents from 1763-1815, 1815-1860, and 1860-1877.
Free electronic books including many historical texts.
Rare Book, Manuscript,
and Special Collections Library from Duke University
Digital collections and links.
Schoenberg Center for Electronic Text and Image
Lots of text and image collections.
THOMAS: Legislative Information on the Internet
Primary sources documents on government.
Early recorded sounds.
University of Washington Libraries Digital Collection
Includes American Indians of the Pacific Northwest, Klondike Gold Rush, Great Seattle Fire, Salmon Collection. They also have collaborative projects on topics such as Washington Maps, King County, Port Townsend, and Seattle.
The starting point for everything related to the US government.
US Holocaust Memorial Museum Online Collection
Explore archives, art, artifcats, oral history, and photo collections.
Valley of the Shadow: Two Communities in the American Civil War
Explore primary documents including letters, diaries, newspapers, speeches, census, and chruch records from two communities during the Civil War.
Woman and Social Movements in the United States, 1600-2000
1440 primary documents and resources
Scroll down to the data section.
A gateway to statistics from 100 US Federal agencies
Historical Census Browser
Census date from the 1800s and 1900s.
National Geophysical Data Center from NOAA
Data on a wide range of science topics.
Real-Time Data Sites from
Links to data in many areas.
Surface Distance Between Two Points of Latitude and Longitude
Enter two coordinates and receive the flight distance. Or find distance between 326 different cities worldwide.
Statistics at the State and Local Levels
Links to state and local statistics.
Statistics from Digital Librarian
Lots of links to statistic information.
Earth and Moon Viewer
View the world in different ways.
42explore: Historical Maps
Links to map websites and activities.
- 42eXplore: Oral History
- 42eXplore: Journal Writing
- 42eXplore: Poetry
- 42explore: Polls and Surveys
- 42explore: Charts and Graphs
Repositories of Primary Sources
Links to over 5300 websites with manuscripts, archives, rare books, historical photographs, and other primary sources for the research scholar.
Yahoo: Digital Libraries and Collections
Links to digital libraries and collections.
ALA - RUSA Using Primary Sources
Ideas for using primary resources.
American Memories from
Library of Congress
Artifact and Analysis: A Teachers Guide to Interpreting
Objects and Writing History
Strategies for incorporating historical artifacts into the classroom.
Electronic texts and primary sources.
Learn to piece together the past from fragments that have survived. Explore an example, then create your own.
Edsitement Lesson Plans
Links to lots of lessons based on historical materials.
Lots of lesson and teaching ideas for working with primary resources. Explores students as historians.
Teaching with Documents
Document-based Questions and ideas for teaching.
Brainstorm ways to collect information such as surveys, oral histories, and journal writing. Design an activity that would make use of local natural or historical resources.