| HOW TO THINK ABOUT SOURCES AND "READ" THEM |
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You cannot rely on just one primary source to give you accurate information. Knowing about the different sources and what they can tell you will help you piece together your narrative. This section discusses guidelines about how to use primary source effectively, find relationships between them, and how use several sources to piece evidence together that will answer questions about your historical topic. Gather As you look through and gather different types of books, articles, and documents you will notice patterns of information. Is the information consistent? Is it different, and if so how? Group like sources together, such as multiple census records, photographs, different types of maps, a variety of newspaper articles so you know where to find them if you need to. Start making notes about what information is similar or contradictory. Continue to revisit your sources as you acquire new ones. This will keep questions fresh in your mind and keep you familiar with what information you already have. The gathering process will allow you to refine your thesis as you start to uncover relationships between different sources. Keep your eyes open to items that may reveal new information, confirm facts, and especially those that appear contradictory. Try not to jump to conclusions based on one or two sources of information. Gather as many different sources as possible on your topic before analyzing the outcome. [Back to Top] Analyze Analysis is all about questions, questions, questions. As you gather your sources you will be reading or skimming them and probably already making some preliminary analysis. Look at where your information is coming from; is if from an official document, are your sources personal letters or diaries, is the information from the society page of a newspaper, is it tainted by political, advertising or marketing spin? Ask the questions about: who made the document, what is the source and its contents, where did your source come from, when the document was created, why the source was created or published, and how it was presented? |
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For an example, the 1870 census from St. Paul, Minnesota is shown to break down the basic questions. Used in the early biography of Joseph Sturtevant it ultimately raised more questions than answers. • Who: The Peck/Sturtevant family is the focus in this 1870 census record. It indicates William Peck, his wife Jemima, and Jemima’s children from her previous marriage, Samuel, Joseph, Florence, and Lydia Sturtevant. The census information also provides details on the people boarding in the same household. • What: The record is an official government census document. It provides detailed information on individuals including name, age, sex, race, occupation, and place of birth. • Where: The census was taken by a Mr. Cleveland in Ward 2, St. Paul, Ramsey County, Minnesota. • When: The census information was gathered on an unknown day in July, 1870. • Why: Taken as part of a national census that has been conducted every decade since 1790. • How: The census taker visited every house in his district asking a series of questions about each inhabitant of a household. See the following sections to discover how this census record could be used to uncover a variety of different answers depending on the questions asked. |
| [Back to Top] Reveal Clues Good sources typically stimulate new questions. Based on the who, what, where, when, why, and how questions, are there particular answers that stand out? Are those answers leading you to new clues and questions? If so, the source you are questioning could be significant to your research. As your detective work progresses every clue brings you one step closer to answering your initial questions. Pay attention to what these clues are telling you. Are you finding leads to additional sources? Are they confirming or denying previous research? Have you developed new theories or directions after reviewing a source? Write down any new sources, directions, questions, or theories you might have as you uncover new clues. |
| Clues from the 1870 Minnesota census reveal interesting facts about Joseph Sturtevant. Initially the census confirms family relationships (including Joe’s stepfather William Peck) family member’s ages, and places of birth. But when examined carefully with knowledge gained from other source, the most significant clue puts Joseph in a particular place in time, totally contradicting previous biographies about him. This contradiction then inspires new research to be done in St. Paul, Minnesota to try and find references to Joe and his family. In which part of St. Paul is Ward 2 located? Can a specific address for the boarding house be found? Can the house be located and does it still stand? Where did Joe and his brother Samuel work? How long had they lived in St. Paul? What was the city of St. Paul like in 1870? From this one document a whole series of new questions and directions can develop. But how can this one source be used in combination with others? |
| [Back to Top] Relationships Finding relationships between sources becomes easier as you gain familiarity with different types of sources. Certain documents will provide similar information such as census records and vital records; city directories with maps and deeds; vital records and obituaries with cemetery information. Using documents together can help you create a better interpretation of a particular date or fact, and the more sources you collect to confirm your thesis, the more certain you can be in your research and interpretation. The wonderful byproduct of examining multiple sources is that you will come away with a much richer understanding of the person, place, or thing you are studying, rather than just a simple answer to your question. Revisit Types of Sources to examine what documents correspond to your particular query. For example, you are trying to find out when a couple married. If you do not have easy access to an index of marriage records, what documents could you used together to help you narrow down a time period and find a marriage certificate? • Census Records |
| First gathering new information from St. Paul, Minnesota secondary sources will help me get a better feel for the town and the people that will allow me to ask better questions of the new sources. Next I need to uncover sources that are related to the information in the census. Using clues from the census, I believe that researching some of the sources below can help me answer some of my new questions that in turn will uncover more. City directories to locate an address and might include the men's occupations. Addresses can typically be found in city or county directories along with the names of other household members, occupations, and job site addresses. Because the directories were published nearly every year, it might be possible to track the Peck/Sturtevant's residence over several years and approximate when they arrived in St. Paul. Deeds. The census suggests that William Peck owned the house his family lived in. Finding a deed might provide more information about when the family moved to St. Paul and give a specific property description to locate the house. Maps. Once an address, property description or lot number is known you can pinpoint the area of the city where the family lived It might also be possible to locate an insurance map to provide more information about the building. Photographs from the local historical society or library might have photographs of the house the family lived in, what the neighborhood was like, and with some luck, might even uncover some photographs of the family. |
| [Back to Top] Interpretation This is where all your hard work and creativity can finally come together. Every person’s topic and project is different because it depends on what questions are asked, what you find interesting or important during research, and how you analyze and interpret your findings. Continue to gather, analyze, find clues, and make connections with sources until you are comfortable you have covered your topic as thoroughly as possible. Along with good research practices comes a sense of confidence, a broad understanding of with your topic, and a natural chronology will most likely have developed along the way. But where do you take it from here? This section does not tackle the topic of how to write about an historical subject, but it does present some questions that you might want to consider before diving into the writing process. Think about what you want your final historical project to accomplish and how you want to present it because it might change how you interpret your research. See Sharing Your Research for presentation ideas. • Look back at your initial questions. Have you answered them or have your conclusions gone in a different direction than expected? If the direction ended up very different, maybe you can discuss your process. • Think about what you have learned from the sources and what you found to be the most important or unique information. Does your topic uncover new material and come to conclusion different than others you have read? If it is controversial in nature, you might want to present it in a sensitive manner. • Are you writing a research paper, giving a walking tour, or preparing a small exhibit? Your method of presentation might force you to change your final interpretation of the topic. Depending on your method different approaches need to be considered due to time or space. People are only willing to stay on their feet and pay attention for a certain period of time. How do you edit your walking tour to give your patrons the greatest impact in the shortest period of time? An exhibit cannot include the same level of detail as a research paper, how can you make the artifacts communicate instead of words? • Were photographs, artifacts, or other visual items uncovered during your research? What do those objects represent and how can they be used effectively in your final presentation? Do they communicate a message that might be more powerful than words? How best can you use them to present your message? • If your topic is controversial or political in nature, do you want to demonstrate multiple points of view or only one perspective? If only one perspective is provided do you make it clear that it is one of many viewpoints? • Consider your target audience. Are the people of a particular ethnic or religious background? Are they from one age group or a mix? Are you targeting a local, regional, or national audience? Is the group a public or academic audience? Asking questions about the types of people you want to present your research to might alter the way you write, what content is included, or what details are presented. [Back to Top] |
