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Interpreting Primary and Secondary Sources

Example Thumbnails Diaries Newspapers Publications Electronic Records Audiovisual Official Documents Photographs

Images

Is this image ... Primary?     or     Secondary?

Images can be powerful primary sources because they visually depict a moment in time. However, it is important to question the perspective of the person creating the images. The subjects can be posed or altered to convey a particular point of view, so the user must attempt to determine the original purpose for creating an image.

image example image

Move your mouse over the image to learn more about this image.

State police officer and injured student during University of Maryland riots, May 1, 1970.

Baltimore News American Photograph Collection, Box 356, Folder 35, Item 15