ImagesOUTSIDE THE U OF M
History Day in MinnesotaWhat are secondary Sources ?
Secondary sources usually
analyze or interpret an event
are one step removed from the focus or main event
offer an outside perspective by someone not present during the event
are published as scholarly articles or books
are based on some examination of primary sources
list references to primary sources or at least mention personal names, document titles and other information that help you identify primary sources
They are usually listed in catalogs or indexes databases. Generally, books are listed in catalogs, while articles are listed in indexes. See examples below
For a very helpful Web site with good examples of types of sources, visit
Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Sources ( James Cook University)
CATALOGS
Search for Books using Catalogs
MNCAT, the U of M Libraries Catalog
The catalog can be used to find books written by scholars on historical topics. Most of the material you discover through the catalog will be a secondary source. Use the subject keyword SOURCES in combination with your topic keywords, for example,
Catalogs to Materials in Other Libraries are listed on the BooksAndMore page.
INDEXES
The two indexes below can be searched simultaneously or separately. They are especially helpful because the abstract will tell you how many sources were used in the research for the article, and whether the author consulted primary sources.
America History & Life { 
Access for the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities only. }
The major index to articles published in the field of North American (United States and Canadian) history. AHL also includes a self-guided feature, ClioNotes, which will lead students through a chronological list of topics. Note: America: History and Life includes book reviews. If you don't want to look at book reviews you can use the Advanced Search to limit your results to Document Type: Article.
Historical Abstracts { Access for the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities only. }
The major index to articles published in the field of world history (for the period 1450 to the present). Historical Abstracts includes a self-guided feature, ClioNotes, which will lead students through a regional and chronological list of topics. Historical Abstracts is also an ABC Clio database so the screens will look similar to the ones for America: History and Life. However, Historical Abstracts does not have book reviews.
Other Resources
There are many other useful databases for history. You can find the currently available recommended indexes on these pages:History Subject Pages and choose the history focus that best fits your topic.
Think about what other disciplines cover your topic. For example, science, women's studies, urban studies, political science, etc. Set the SUBJECTS page on that discipline to get a list of article indexes that cover that discipline.
Ask a Librarian
Once you've worked through some of the basic steps, you may have questions or need more resources or strategies. Ask at the Reference Desk, first floor of Wilson Library. They may have good suggestions for keywords, different indexes to search, or other web sites to consult for your specific topic. Be prepared to tell the librarian your exact topic and briefly say what you've already looked at. For example, rather than just saying "I'm working on my history day project," you might say, "I'm researching how Sacagawea was instrumental in helping Lewis and Clark on their journey through the Northwest. I have searched in MNCAT and in America: History and Life and I found three articles, but only two are helpful. Can you suggest anything else that I might look try?"
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