Published memoirs, letters, diaries, and collections of source documents can serve as primary sources, depending on your topic. Beyond these "first person accounts," books published at the time of your topic can reveal a great deal about the attitudes and assumptions of the time.
Try to add terms such as "sources," "personal narratives," "memoirs," or "correspondence" to your search terms to locate published sources, for example:
african americans arkansas sources | south* race relations sources |
great depression personal narratives | railroads personal narratives |
To find books by particular persons or organizations, such under that person's name as author, for example:
mcmath, sid | women's emergency committee |
caraway, hattie | southern tenant farmer's union |
Use the date limits in the UA Library Catalog and other catalogs to find books published at the time of your topic, for example:
agriculture arkansas > published between 1900 and 1930 |
race relations southern states > published between 1900 and 1930 |