What was life like for people in the past? One way to learn more is to read or view primary sources. A primary source is firsthand information from the past. It could be a photograph, a letter, or a speech. Other things can be primary sources too. Click on a primary source below.
- Christopher Columbus's Log—Ship's Log
- 1639 Map of the Northeast—Historical Map
- Excerpts from Poor Richard's Almanack by Benjamin Franklin—Almanac
- From Abigail Adams to John Adams—Historical Letter
- Excerpts from the Canandaigua Treaty of 1794—Treaty
- Eli Whitney's Cotton Gin Patent Application—Historical Document
- From William Swain in “The Diggings” in California—Historical Letter
- Sojourner Truth—Speech
- A Civil War Image by Mathew Brady—Photograph
- Excerpts from Louisa May Alcott's Civil War Journal—Journal
- Amelia Bloomer's Petition for Suffrage—Historical Document
- Supreme Court Opinion in Brown v. Board of Education—Historical Document