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HIST 299: Historian's Craft: Find Secondary Sources

Discover CofC Libraries

The Discovery Service provides a single, unified search box for searching the holdings of the College of Charleston Libraries, including academic/scholarly journal articles, print books, e-books, newspapers, magazines, internet documents, research reports, research guides, and much more!

Secondary Sources

Secondary sources offer an analysis or a restatement of primary sources. They often attempt to describe or explain primary sources. Some secondary sources not only analyze primary sources, but also use them to argue a contention or persuade the reader to hold a certain opinion.  Secondary sources are not evidence, but rather commentary on and discussion of evidence.
Note: The definition of a secondary source may vary depending upon the discipline or context.

Examples include:

  • Historical Monographs
  • Journal articles 
  • Bibliographies (also considered tertiary)
  • Biographical works
  • Commentaries, criticisms
  • Dictionaries, Encyclopedias (also considered tertiary)
  • Magazine and newspaper articles (this distinction varies by discipline)
  • Textbooks (also considered tertiary)
  • Web site (also considered primary)

 

Digital Secondary Sources: Academic Journals and Databases

Finding and Using eBooks

Using eBooks

Learn how to use eBooks, including reading online and downloading in various platforms.

How to Use eBooks