Secondary Sources are secondhand sources. They were created by historians who drew their information from primary sources. The most typical types of secondary sources are books and academic journal articles.
Historians find some of their best books by browsing the shelves. Open the document below for a guide to browsing the Gorgas Library for history books:
You will also be able to find journal articles about religious history in some of the general journal collections.
You will also be able to find scholarly articles about the history of science in some of the general journal collections.
Reference books consist of encyclopedias and dictionaries that offer concise essays about specific topics. I recommend using these tools for three reasons:
(You can also use Wikipedia to find keywords and discover other sources, but please avoid using wikipedia essays as sources in your paper!)
Here are several reference book collections that are good for history topics:
For information about specific historical figures, try these collections: