Study Methods of History

Noah Webster, in his 1828 dictionary, defined history as "a narrative of events in the order in
which they happened with their causes and effects."
History is more than a series of events. It is a record of events. It is also an attempt to understand
these events so that we can know what people did and why. It is more than just a list of facts that
make history alive.
Think of this in terms of buying your first car. You want the best car for the best price since you
have a very limited budget. You begin by collecting information about a number of different cars,
new and used. You research details of their price, reliability as they get older, the kinds of safety
features like crash rating, gas mileage, and the cost to insure it.
After you have gathered all that information, you classify it into specific categories. You then
analyze the data you accumulated and come to a conclusion about what vehicle best fits your
needs in the price range you can afford.
Historians will also use a system of methods to provide an accurate story of people and events
from the past. They spend hours searching through the written material of past societies for clues
about previous ways of life. They read, research, and write about the history of the human race
and the interactions between people.

Objectives

Identify the sources historians use to gather information about past events.

List the skills necessary to write about the information you have collected.

Understand how your perspective can influence what you write and how you report
events.

Vocabulary
historical method
primary source
secondary source

the steps historians use in their study of history

a document that was produced during the same time period as the
historical subject being studied
a document produced some time after the historical subject of study
took place

Historical Clues
You can think of the record of events as footprints. Imagine finding a set of sticky fruit-punch
footprints in the kitchen. By carefully looking at them, you can learn quite a bit about what
happened. The fruit punch is not yet dry, so you can tell that they are recent. They are small, so
you can guess that a very small person, probably a child, left the footprints. They first lead to the
cookie jar, so you assume that the person leaving them wanted some cookies. They then lead to
the refrigerator. Some fruit-punch handprints tell you that the refrigerator door was opened. They
then lead to the dining room, where they disappear into the carpet.
The footprints can answer the questions of when (recently), where (the kitchen, cookie jar,
refrigerator), and who (a child). They can even tell you the order of events. Other questions are
left unanswered. For example, we don't know why. Was the child hungry? Bored? Was the child
getting the cookies for himself or someone else? What was the significance of getting the
cookies? What, exactly, happened at the refrigerator? It is the job of the historian to turn the
footprints into a meaningful story that can provide the answer to most or all of these questions.
Historians attempt to answer who, what, when, where, and why questions of history. They use a
variety of methods in their research of history. There are general steps that most historians agree
upon and use in their study. These steps are known as the historical method. The following is a
list of common steps used in this method:

collection of data

classification of data

analysis of data

interpretation of data

synthesis of data

reporting conclusions

Let's take a brief look at each of these steps.

Collection of Data
In order to write any story of the past, the historian must rely upon evidence, or data, which he or
she obtains from different sources. The two main types of sources are primary and secondary.
What is a primary source? A primary source is a document or data that is from the same time as
the historical subject being studied. Primary source data often includes firsthand or eyewitness
accounts of the event being studied. In addition, artifacts, such as physical objects from the
historical event or period studied, are considered primary sources. Primary sources are important
because they provide raw materials that can be analyzed and interpreted. Examples of primary

sources are diaries, letters, artifacts, oral histories, and eyewitness accounts. A primary source
artifact is pictured below.
What is the best definition of a secondary source? A secondary source is evidence or data written
sometime after the event being studied occurred. Someone who has studied primary sources and
shared their conclusions often writes secondary sources. Secondary sources are important
because they give analyses and interpretations that have been made by other authors.
For example, the Magna Carta document is a primary source for studying the conflict between
England's king and his feudal barons in the thirteenth century.
However, an author named Sidney Pointer published a book in 1950, The Reign of King John,
about this same historical period. His book is a secondary source because it was written some
time after the event actually happened.
Although historians prefer to have a good supply of primary sources, both types of sources are
necessary in historical study.
The historian gathers his evidence from whatever sources he can. Archaeological ruins, archives,
museums, and libraries are some of the best sources of material. Libraries tend to have more
secondary sources; archives, museums, and ancient ruins usually contain primary source
material. Four different types of evidence are:

material remains, such as bones, tools, weapons, and pottery

oral traditions, such as myths, legends, and songs

pictorial data, such as drawings and maps

written records, such as old manuscripts, treaties, diaries, books,

magazines, and newspapers

The most important tool used by the historian is data. After data is collected, the historian
categorizes it. In general, there are two main categories used to classify data: archaeological
remains and written records. Archaeological remains might be grouped into tools, weapons,
jewelry, and clothing, for example. Written records can include maps, legal documents, and
stories.

Analyzing and Interpreting Data

Imagine it's the first day of school, and a friend comes to you saying she saw your boyfriend
talking to a very pretty new girl. Maybe your blood starts to boil. But before you get upset about
the episode and make a fool of yourself, you decide to investigate the situation thoroughly first.
It's a good thing, too; she turns out to be his cousin who has just moved here.
This is the life of a historian. She reads information about the past, but before she jumps to the
wrong conclusion, she thoroughly researches every possible detail.

Analysis of data. Once historians have collected their data and classified it, they are ready to
analyze it. When data is analyzed, it is tested in order to determine the genuineness of the source.
Historians must judge the quality of their data. They must decide if the data is authentic,
accurate, reliable, and complete. This analysis is called external criticism. It tests the source
against other facts and data, and against "outside information."
History has been misdirected through the centuries by unreliable evidence. This false evidence
may consist of forged documents, inaccurate copies, mutilated fragments, and human error. As
historians search and find more data, the amount of false evidence is reduced, and a more
accurate story can be told.
Interpretation of data. The next step in the historical method is called interpretation. In this step,
the historian tries to determine the author's meaning and the accuracy of his work. This
interpretation is called internal criticism. It tests accuracy within the work, studying it in
relationship to no other data. The author's meaning and the accuracy of their work can be
determined in these four ways:

studying the language in which it is written

studying other reliable evidence that covers the same subject matter

finding out who wrote it

determining whether the writer had any reason to make a false

statement

The last is the most difficult part of the historical method because the historian is trying to
determine an author's purpose for writing a particular document. Trying to determine a person's
motive is difficult enough; trying to do it over a period of thousands or even hundreds of years is
a challenging and time-consuming task.

Synthesis and Reporting of Data

Historians must have certain qualities of character. Of primary importance is the quality of
accuracy. The historian must be patient, determined, moral, and honest. If the historian is not
accurate, his writing cannot be relied upon. Because not all of the facts can ever be discovered,
the historian must re-create some events that he believes probably happened.
In the example presented earlier about purchasing a car, you might hear from four different
people that four different makes of automobiles are the best ones to buy. These opinions are
biased for one reason or the other. The historian, like you, has to be careful not to fall into this
sort of trap.
This very delicate process requires a great deal of work. The historian must try to avoid writing
from a prejudiced viewpoint and must attempt as much as possible to present the facts as they
happened. However, the more complex the events studied and the wider spread in time and space
from his own, the greater are the demands made upon the historian's judgment.