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English as a Second Language

Print and electronic resources for ESL students

What is a Primary Source?

A primary source is a document or artifact created during an experience or time period. They include original documents, creative works, and artifacts. Examples include:

Diaries and literary memoirs
Letters/ Correspondence
Artistic works (musical and visual arts)
News segments/transcripts
Speeches
Interviews
Editorials
Legal documents and Statistics

North America

American Memory
Library of Congress collections.

Early American Imprints
1639-1800 (Evans)
Caribbean Newspapers, Series I: 1718-1876
Caribbean newspapers from 1718-1876.
19th Century US Newspapers
Includes full-text searchable newspapers from urban and rural areas in every region of the country. Also includes newspapers published by special interest groups.
The Times (London) Digital Archive
Includes full-text page scans of every issue of The Times from 1785-2011.

Historical Statistics of the U.S.

Historical Newspapers: New York Times (1851-2016)
This historical newspaper provides genealogists, researchers and scholars with online, easily-searchable first-hand accounts and unparalleled coverage of the politics, society and events of the time.

Slavery and Anti-Slavery
A large selection of primary source materials related to the history of slavery.

Wisconsin and Beloit

Last Updated: Jul 23, 2020 12:22 PM
URL: https://guides.beloit.edu/ESL
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Subjects: English as a Second Language

Tags: English, ESL, international students, OIE