When researching a topic for a term paper or for personal interest, there is sometimes a requirement or desire to look at primary sources relating to the subject. Material in the collections at the Enoch Pratt Free Library/State Library Resource Center(SLRC) can help interested researchers.
The definition of primary source materials is not always a straightforward one. While some researchers believe when and why the document was created determines its eligibility as a primary source, others hold that how the document is used classifies whether or not it is a primary source. Primary sources at the State Library Resource Center:
For more information on library research and the use of historic library materials, consult our Guide to Library Research.
Using the above description, researchers will find many valuable primary sources in the Library. While a large majority of these are reference items and have to stay in the Library, they are available for public use.
Each Subject Department of SLRC contains some material that may be classified as primary sources. The links that follow provide lists of identified primary sources on sample historic events housed in a number of SLRC Subject Departments.
Sinking of the Titanic, April 14-15, 1912
Charles Lindbergh's Transatlantic Flight, May 20-21, 1927
Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941
Thurgood Marshall
Civil War in Maryland
World War II in Maryland
Contact us through our Ask A Librarian Service, call (410) 396-5430, or write:
Enoch Pratt Free Library
State Library Resource Center
400 Cathedral Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
Or, if you are outside of Maryland, contact your local library.
© Enoch Pratt Free Library, Baltimore, Maryland.
