Secondary sources are documents or manuscripts that are/were created some time after the event occurred, or within a short time thereafter where the information is/was supplied by a person who was not an eyewitness to the event. This type of source is something found in historical books about certain families, emails we may receive from other family members and even some vital records. That’s not to say a specific type of vital record is only a secondary source, but we’ll cover that in a minute.

A secondary source can also be a person who actually is/was an eyewitness to the event, but recalls and shares the information a significant time period later. An eyewitness, in this case, is considered a secondary source because as people age the mind often tends to add or subtract from actual facts.

Some records contain both primary and secondary sources. For instance, Marriage and Death certificates amy contain both types of sources. In looking at a Marriage certifcate, we often find the names and places of birth of the parents to those being married; that is secondary source information because they were supplied by the parent’s children, who could not have been eyewitness to the events. On the othe side of the coin, the names along with the dates and places of birth (if included) of the couple applying for the certificate are considered primary sources, because those data are/were supplied by the people to whom they refer.

The same principles can be applied to a Death certificate. In the case, the primary source information is the name of the deceased, the death date and the cause of death. Other primary information may include the place and date of the burial. These facts are primary because they are prepared soon after the events occur and are provided by medical professionals and mortuary personel. The secondary source information found on a Death certifcate includes the date and place of birth (if provided) for the deceased along with other information that may or may not be provided, such as names of parents, spouse and perhaps places of birth for each of them. All of these details are secondary because they were provided by someone other than the deceased (i.e. a child or spouse, cousin or friend) significantly later than the events recorded. (That is making one presumption, and that is the birth and death of the deceased were not just days or months apart but rather years.)

It is acceptable to use secondary sources as viable sources for doing genealogy. However, where it is at all possible, be certain to back that information up with reliable primary sources.

Source: Library of Congress