Primary Sources come in all shapes and sizes.
The illustrations below represent the major types of primary sources available at Yale. Click on the images below to learn more.
Please also keep in mind that a single primary source may be found in a variety of formats. For example, the original of a handwritten letter by George Washington might be available to researchers at the Library of Congress, but a copy of that letter might be available elsewhere as microfilm, in a published collection of documents, or in electronic form online. Additionally, some formats may be present within other formats. One example would be visual materials being present in archives or manuscripts.