Compare Two Accounts of One Event

Read what different sources agree on and what they leave uncertain.

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Identify who made each source and what it actually says. Agreement on a detail can support that detail, but a source's opinion is not automatically shared by everyone.

Worked example

A dated ticket can support the date printed on it. A visitor's letter may describe a personal reaction. Those sources answer different parts of a historical question.

A historical object and a dated contemporary record both lead into interpretation. The interpretation must distinguish observed evidence from additional claims. — An object or contemporary record can be evidence; interpreting it requires context and a clear research question.

Would you believe it?

a personal letter can be evidence about both an event and its writer. Ada's letter gives a date clue and also tells us what caught her attention. The same page can help with different questions, as long as we keep its limits clear.

An Exhibition, Two Fictional Sources

Source A is a poster: 'Town exhibition opens June 12, 1912, at 10 a.m.' Source B is Ada's letter dated June 13, 1912: 'Yesterday was opening day. I arrived just after lunch. I liked the model train best, but I did not visit every room.' These sources were written for this exercise and are not real historical documents.

Question 1 Which detail is supported by both sources? Everyone loved the exhibition The exhibition opened on June 12 Exactly 100 people visited

Question 2 Which source records a visitor's personal reaction? The poster's opening hours The poster's title Ada's letter

Question 3 Can Ada's letter prove that every visitor enjoyed the model train? No; it describes Ada's response Yes; letters always speak for everyone Yes; a model train guarantees enjoyment

Question 4 What does the poster support directly? The doors definitely opened exactly on time The advertised opening time was 10 a.m. Every display was complete by 9 a.m.

Question 5 Which additional source would best help estimate attendance? A drawing of the model train A list of paint colors A visitor-count record for the exhibition

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