Library Guides: Religious Studies Graduate Students: Find Primary Sources

Subject Subheadings for Primary Sources

To find primary sources, search the online catalog
using either a KEYWORD search or a SUBJECT search

These subheadings will point you in the direction of primary sources: texts, manuscripts, Papal documents, early works, pastoral letters and charges, sources, hymns, correspondence, creeds, doctrines.

This comprehensive list suggests and defines other subheadings that may help you find primary sources.

Suggested KEYWORD strategy:
Your Topic AND (memoirs OR diaries OR letters OR correspondence)

Example
Leningrad AND manuscripts
Russia AND (narratives OR sources)

You can also do SUBJECT searches in the catalog. Once you have identified the main Subject Heading, look for subheadings that describe primary sources (e.g., Sources, Personal narratives)

Example
Roesch Library: Soviet Union -- History -- Revolution, 1917-1921 -- Personal narratives

OhioLINK: Russia -- Politics and government -- 1855-1881 -- Sources

Online Catalogs

University of Dayton catalog: Holdings of Roesch Library, Marian Library, University Archives and Special Collections, U.S. Catholic Special Collection, Law Library

eCommons: Access to the University Libraries' digital collections.

University of Dayton Archives Catalog: Access to UD's archival finding aids from the Marian Library, University Archives and Special Collections, and the U.S. Catholic Special Collection.

OhioLINK catalog: Holdings from the participating academic libraries of the OhioLINK consortium

WorldCat: Holdings from participating libraries (academic, public, special, and more) from across the United States, Canada, and other parts of the world.

ArchiveGrid: Includes over four million records from over 1,000 archival repositories. Much of the content is the same as WorldCat, but it may help you streamline your search for archival records.

Primary Source Databases

Acta Sanctorum
A principal source for research into the societies and cultures of early Christian and medieval Europe. The database contains the text of works published by Socit des Bollandistes from 1643 to 1940.
Bible in English
Contains twenty-one versions of the Bible in full text, from the 10th to the 20th centuries: The editions were chosen specifically to meet the needs of scholars.
Catholic News Archive
Contains thousands of newspaper pages, from different cities, over multiple years.
Catholic Research Resources Alliance Portal
Provides global, freely available access to rare, unique and/or uncommon materials in libraries, seminaries, special collections and archives.
Digital Library of the Catholic Reformation
Contains theological writings, biblical commentaries, confessional documents, social and political works, sermons, letters, polemical treatises, and other key documents from the religious and social upheavals of the 16th and 17th centuries.
Loeb Classical Library
Greek and Latin classics with up-to-date texts and English translations.
Patrologia Latina
Electronic version of Patrologia Latina, published between 1844 and 1865. Also comprises the works of the Church Fathers from 200 AD to 1216 AD.

More Databases

New York Times Historical
The contents of the New York Times from 1851 to 2007. Individual articles and entire pages of the paper can be viewed, printed and saved as PDF files.
Early American Imprints, Series I: Evans, 1639-1800
Contains information about life in 17th and 18th century American, including agriculture, foreign affairs, diplomacy, literature, music, religion, the Revolutionary War, and witchcraft.
Early English Books Online
Full text of nearly every work printed in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and British North America from the beginning of printing in England (1473) through 1700.
American Periodical Series Online
Contains pages of over 1,100 historic American magazines, journals, and newspapers covering the literature, science, religion, arts, & history of the time from 1741 to 1900.
Sabin Americana: History of the Americas, 1500–1926
Collection of primary sources from 1500-1926, including pamphlets, tracts, memoirs, correspondence, broadsides and more, which focus on American history and culture.
British Periodicals Online
Full-text of the periodical press in Britain from its origins in the seventeenth century through to the Victorian age of periodicals and beyond with coverage dates of 1680s to 1930s.
Making of the Modern World
A multilingual collection of primary sources focused on historical economics, political science, & sociology of Europe. Contains books, journals, political pamphlets and broadsides, government publications, & proclamations.