Databases should be the FIRST place you access information as you begin your project. Information is well-researched and organized, reliable, includes multiple source types, and provides the citation to aid you in giving proper credit to your sources.
"Secondary sources were created by someone who did not experience first-hand or participate in the events or conditions you’re researching.
A secondary source interprets and analyzes primary sources. These sources are one or more steps removed from the event. Secondary sources may contain pictures, quotes or graphics of primary sources.
Some types of secondary source include: Textbooks; journal articles; histories; criticisms; commentaries; encyclopedias" (Harvard Library, 2022).
Civil Rights Movement (ADL) - Primarily focuses on the important legislation passed as a result of the Civil Rights Movement.
History Explained (NAACP) - Highlights key Civil Rights leaders, prominent legislation, and a history of American lynching.
Civil Rights Movement (History.com) - Provides a brief overview of the Jim Crow Laws, important people, notable events, and key legislation during the Civil Rights Movement.
Abolition and the Abolitionists (National Geographic) - Shares a general overview of the Abolitionist Movement, along with key figures dedicated to the cause.
Abolitionists and Free Speech (The First Amendment Encyclopedia) - Provides solid coverage of the Abolitionist Movement.
Jim Crow Laws (PBS) - Succinct explanation of the Jim Crow Laws and how they effected every aspect of life for black people in the South.
Who Was Emmitt Till? (PBS) - Describes the horrific case of Emmitt Till. Additional articles on Emmett Till are available at the bottom of the website as well.
The Underground Railroad (National Geographic) - Brief overview on the operation of the Underground Railroad.
"A primary source is a document or record containing firsthand information or original data on an event, object, person, or work of art. Primary sources are usually created by individuals who experienced the event and recorded or wrote about it. Because of this, primary sources usually reflect the viewpoint of the participant or observer." (UHV Library, 2023).
| Civil Rights Primary Sources |
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| Civil Rights Digital Library (Digital Library of Georgia) - Includes broad primary source content dedicated to the Civil Rights Movement, as well as a number of resources focusing on the people, places, and events that were significant to the Movement. |
| Civil Rights Primary Sources (National Archives) - Notable primary sources from the Civil Rights Movement. |
| The Civil Rights Movement : Primary Source Set (Library of Congress) - Newspapers, photos, videos, recordings, letters, and documents curated by the LOC from the Civil Rights Movement. Includes a brief overview of important events from the era. |
| Abolition Movement Primary Sources |
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| The Samuel J. May Anti-Slavery Collection (Cornell University Library) - Includes thousands of slavery and abolitionist materials (letters, sermons, pamphlets and more) documenting the anti-slavery struggle. |
| The Abolitionist Seminar (National Endowment for the Humanities) - 50 essential documents from the Abolitionist Movement. |
| Jim Crow Primary Sources |
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| Jim Crow and Segregation: Primary Source Set (Library of Congress) - Newspapers, political cartoons, political documents, speeches, and pictures that display the gross injustices during the Jim Crow era. Includes background information to support the primary source set. |
| Plantation to Ghetto Archives (Amistad Digital Resource) - Image, video, and document archive displaying segregation in the Jim Crow South during the years 1919-1953. |
| Jim Crow Era to the Great Depression (ProQuest) - Primary source sets organized into laws and legal cases, people and organizations, and racial intimidation and violence. |
| Underground Railroad and Slave Narrative Primary Sources |
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| The Underground Railroad and the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 (Digital Public Library of America) - Provides "resources that reveal the myriad sacrifices enslaved people made in order to gain their freedom, the effects of the Fugitive Slave Law on the lives of free African Americans, and the community that was built among abolitionists and enslaved people." |
| American Slave Narratives (Corcoran Department of History) - Includes former slave interviews describing their experiences in slavery, including how some gained their freedom. |
| North American Slave Narratives (UNC Library) - Collections of first-hand accounts from formerly enslaved people. |
