LibGuides: HIST 4433: Health and Disease in American Culture: Primary Sources

What is a Primary Source?

Primary sources are materials that were produced during the period you are researching or by people who witnessed or were involved in events.

They include materials such as letters, diaries, speeches, company records, government documents, newspapers, films, photographs, artifacts, etc.

Recommended LMU Primary Source Collections

The following is a short list of primary resources recommended by Professor Bittel and LMU librarians. These are intended as starting points, not resources that will provide exhaustive primary sources on your topic. Consult a librarian as needed!

Popular Medicine in America, 1800-1900 This link opens in a new window
America's Historical Newspapers This link opens in a new window
Cover-to-cover full text and page images of scores of newspapers from all 50 states, covering 1690-1876. Includes: Early American Newspapers, Series I (1690-1876), Early American Newspapers, Series II (1758-1900) and Early American Newspapers, Series III (1829-1922).
American Periodicals This link opens in a new window
Full text of American magazines and journals published from colonial days to the early 20th century. Because the database contains digitized images of periodical pages, researchers can see all of the original typography, drawings, graphic elements, and article layouts exactly as they were originally published. Period covered: 1741-1940.
ProQuest Historical Newspapers This link opens in a new window
Subjects: History, African American Studies, Journalism
Description: Primary source collection from ProQuest containing full text. Includes materials from 1850-1994. Mainly focused on United States. This resource includes archives for the American Hebrew & Jewish Messenger, Los Angeles Sentinel, Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Defender, New York Amsterdam News, and Times of India.
Contents: Popular (Non-Scholarly) Articles - Newspapers; Primary Sources
Social and Cultural History: Letters and Diaries Online This link opens in a new window
More than 650,000 pages of letters, diaries, autobiographies, oral histories, and other personal narratives dating from 1675 to the present, from more than 8,000 individual writers. Particularly relevant to this course are the North American Women's Letters and Diaries and Immigrant Letters, Diaries, and Oral Histories collections.
Women and Social Movements in the United States, 1600-2000 This link opens in a new window
Subjects: Women's and Gender Studies, History
Description: Primary source collection from Alexander Street Press containing full text. Browse or search by movement name (e.g. Age of Consent, Temperance Movement, etc.)
Contents: Primary Sources
Gerritsen Women's History Collection of Aletta H. Jacobs This link opens in a new window
Oxford African American Studies Center This link opens in a new window
Women and Social Movements in the United States, 1600-2000 This link opens in a new window

History of Patent Medicine - Hagley Museum and Library
Hagley's library furthers the study of business and technology in America. The collections include individuals' papers and companies' records ranging from eighteenth-century merchants to modern telecommunications and illustrate the impact of the business system on society.
National Library of Medicine Digital Collections
Explore texts, images, videos, and maps

Archives & Special Collections, William H. Hannon Library

The Department of Archives and Special Collections houses a variety of rare and unique materials. The Department is located on the third floor of the William H. Hannon Library on the campus of Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. Use of the department's materials is by appointment only, but visitors are welcome to visit the gallery space anytime during opperating hours.

For information on making an appointment, please call 310.338.5710 or email Special.Collections@lmu.edu and refer to the hours and rules of the Department.

Non-text sources

History beyond the text : a student's guide to approaching alternative sources by edited by Sarah Barber and Corinna M. Peniston-Bird
Call Number: Main Stacks: D5 .H556 2009

How to cite primary sources

Chicago Style Manual