primary sources

• 
• SOURCE: The Metropole
  12/14/2021
  

  Introducing “Disciplining The Nation”

  by Matt Guariglia and Charlotte Rosen

  "Rooted in racial slavery, settler colonialism, and U.S. empire, policing and incarceration in the United States were slowly and meticulously built over time for the purpose of subordinating, punishing, and exploiting populations –and historians have the documents to prove it."

• 
• 12/12/2021
  

  Are Historians Too Credulous of the Single Culprit Explanation of the Reichstag Fire?

  by Benjamin Carter Hett

  Did Marinus van der Lubbe act alone in setting the Reichstag Fire? Historians who accept that theory – including giants in the field like Richard J. Evans – should recognize conflicts of interest in the sources supporting it and dig in to newly available archives to make sure. 

• 
• SOURCE: Virginia Tech
  12/6/2021
  

  New Website to Offer View of Uncensored GI Opinion about World War 2

  "So much of what we know about the everyday experiences of Americans who served in the war comes from such sources as letters that were censored, memories recorded later, or films,” says historian Edward Gitre of the American Soldier in World War II Project. 

• 
• SOURCE: WBUR
  11/29/2021
  

  What Can 19th Century Whaling Diaries Tell Us About Climate Change?

  Whaling ships' logbooks contain detailed navigational notes and descriptions of wind and weather, which can help construct a picture of climate patterns on distant stretches of ocean. 

• 
• SOURCE: Black Perspectives
  11/4/2021
  

  Expanding the Digital Black Atlantic

  by Roopika Risam

  Scholars who are bringing digital humanities work to the study of the African diaspora and the connections between Black people in Europe, Africa and the Americas are also mindful of the need to avoid perpetuating the gaps and omissions about historical Black experiences that characterize traditional archives.

• 
• SOURCE: Philadelphia Tribune
  11/1/2021
  

  African American Museum in Georgia Honors Forgotten History

  "It all goes back to when I was a child growing up in White Plains," said Mamie Hillman, executive director of the museum. "I always wanted to know — how did I enter into history?"

• 
• SOURCE: KUT
  10/28/2021
  

  Structural Racism Hinders Efforts to Preserve History of Texas "Freedom Colonies"

  Dr. Andrea Roberts of the Texas Freedom Colonies Project says that the history of Black settlements during Reconstruction and Jim Crow is hindered by rules about what sites qualify as "historic."  

• 
• SOURCE: The New Yorker
  11/1/2021
  

  The Most Ambitious Diary in History

  by Benjamin Anastas

  The playwright and classicist Claude Fredericks kept 65,000 pages of a journal, likely the longest record of one American life ever kept. Is it valuable as a documentary record, or as a demonstration of the self-mythologizing work of the diarist? 

• 
• SOURCE: Forward
  10/7/2021
  

  Anne Frank's Complete Manuscripts Available Online for First Time

  "In addition to providing historical context, the digitized edition delves into the material details of the manuscripts, from the writing materials Frank used to the annotations and photographs she added to her diary."

• 
• SOURCE: Atlanta Journal-Constitution
  10/1/2021
  

  Scientists Decipher Marie Antoinette's Redacted Love Notes

  “It’s always exciting when you discover that you can know more about the past than you thought you could,” said historian Rebecca L. Spang, who studies the French Revolution at Indiana University and was not involved in the study.

• 
• SOURCE: Smithsonian
  8/16/2021
  

  What an Englishwoman’s Letters Reveal About Life in Britain During the American Revolution

  by Julie Flavell

  "Jane was convinced that her husband had embarked on a humanitarian errand. She believed the British war machine that carried him to New York was not intended to drive the Americans to desperation, but to force them to the negotiating table."

• 
• SOURCE: Perspectives on History
  7/6/2021
  

  You are Only as Good as Your Sources

  by Bobby Cervantes

  Can researchers reexamine the boundary between journalism and historiography while maintaining the integrity of both? A researcher with a background in both explains how. 

• 
• SOURCE: Washington Post
  6/28/2021
  

  A Maryland Attic Hid a Priceless Trove of Black History. Historians and Activists Saved it from Auction

  The discovery of a trove of documents related to the slavery-related business of a Maryland family was just the beginning, as historians and activists had to raise money to buy them to keep them as a community history resource. 

• 
• SOURCE: The Atlantic
  6/8/2021
  

  To Find the History of African American Women, Look to Their Handiwork

  by Tiya Miles

  "To discover the past lives of those for whom the historical record is abysmally thin, I’ve found that we must expand the materials we use as sources of information."

• 
• SOURCE: UChicago News
  5/25/2021
  

  The Hidden History Of “Guerrilla Television”: UChicago Scholars Preserve Decades-Old Videos

  Technological innovation in the 1960s allowed more people to shoot video and push for community-based television. University of Chicago scholars are working to digitize and preserve "guerrilla television." 

• 
• SOURCE: New York Times
  5/25/2021
  

  A Lost Brontë Library Surfaces

  "A trove of Brontë family manuscripts — all but unseen for a century — will be auctioned by Sotheby’s as part of what the auction house is billing as the sale of a legendary “lost library” of British literature treasures."

• 
• 5/23/2021
  

  The Ethics of the "N-Word" in the Classroom

  by Alan Singer

  Neither censorious expungement nor free speech absolutism offer good practical guidelines for teaching historical sources that include racial slurs. A professor of history education explains his approach. 

• 
• SOURCE: Perspectives on History
  5/20/2021
  

  Colorizing Photos From the Past: The Ethics of Making History

  by Tara Tran

  Digital technology allows historians to change images, raising a host of ethical dilemmas. 

• 
• SOURCE: Perspectives on History
  5/17/2021
  

  Keeping it Real: Historians in the Deepfake Era

  by Abe Gibson

  "Deepfake" videos threaten to undermine the integrity of primary sources, particularly for researchers and students of recent history. Historians need to be ready to question, verify, or push back against deceptive videos.

• 
• SOURCE: The Atlantic
  5/4/2021
  

  The Game Is Changing for Historians of Black America

  by William Sturkey

  "Active racism, exclusion, and environmental injustice have systematically destroyed or buried whole sections of Black history. Many of those who gripe about “erasing history” of Confederate monuments and other symbols in the South have no idea how much history has already been erased." Digital newspaper databases and genealogical tools are a key tool for reconstructing the record of Black history.