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Stony Brook University

History of Black Power Movements in 20th Century America

Finding Primary Sources

For more information, see the online guide to PRIMARY SOURCES.

To find primary sources at Stony Brook, use STARS, the Library Catalog. 

You can include various words in your search that will help you locate primary source material.  A good general word to include would be SOURCES.

For example, if you are looking for primary sources on slavery, you can do a KEYWORD ANYWHERE search in STARS for salvery and sources.

Also try these Library of Congress subject headings that are often used for primary sources:

  • Archives
  • Correspondence
  • Diaries
  • Interviews
  • Personal narratives

Stony Brook Special Collections & University Archives

Special Collections and University Archives select, acquire, preserve and provide access to rare, valuable, and scarce primary and secondary materials  in a variety of formats in support of the educational and research endeavors of Stony Brook University's students, faculty, and staff.

The department also extends its services to researchers in the wider geographic region, nationally, and internationally. 

The collection includes: books, manuscripts, and maps dating from the 15th century; the University Archives; audio/visual materials;  and a digital repository. All are welcome to explore the library's unique collections.

Audio and Visual Resources

There are an increasing number of excelent web sites that have audio-visual proimary source material.

Internet Archive - Probably the best overall collection of audio-visual material that could be used for primary sources. The Archive currently contains almost 400,000 moving images and nearly 700,000 audio items, along with software and other material.

YouTube - Great resource for finding speeches and hidtoric news items, as well as musical and cinematic trasures.

Library Databases - Historical Newspapers

LIBRARY DATABASES -- CURRENT NEWSPAPERS