History

Historians define Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary sources differently depending on the context surrounding their usage, their mode of creation, and their disciplinary focus. As a rule of thumb, definitions relate to how close the source is to the original event.

Some guidelines to follow when identifying sources:

• Primary Sources
  • Record first-person accounts of events (diaries, interviews)
  • Present raw data or statistics from their own research
  • Share pioneering research or ideas that influence a new direction in the discipline (seminal text)
• Secondary Sources
  • Relay second-person accounts of events (historiography)
  • Include supplementary information gathered from many other authors
  • Analyze the thoughts or research of other authors
  • May include scholarly (peer-reviewed) source materials
• Tertiary Sources
  • Summarize first- and second- person accounts of events (encyclopedias, dictionaries)
  • Present an overview of information
  • Includes most reference texts

ArchiveGrid includes over 5 million records describing archival materials; bringing together information about historical documents, personal papers, family histories, and more. With over 1,000 different archival institutions represented, ArchiveGrid helps researchers looking for primary source materials held in archives, libraries, museums and historical societies.

Use state land records to discover:

• the history of property ownership,
• how street names changed over time, and
• when a family home was purchased.  

Each state has different methods for providing this type of information. To search land records outside of Maryland, search for

• "land records",

• "state land records", or

• "official land records for _____County".  

Choose sites that are linked directly to a government institution or website (.gov), or search the state government homepage for contact information for the Clerk's office or records office.