Question

Which of the following situations describes a historian using a primary source to learn about u.s president George Washington

Answer 1

A. A historian watches a play about George Washington.

B. A historian reads a biography about George Washington.

C. A historian reads a modern poem about George Washington.

D. A historian reads a letter written by George Washington.

Answer 2

Maybe while we wait for the questioner to provide the options, we can do a little general discussion here about what it means to use a primary source. Primary sources are things that come from persons directly involved in the events or lives being studied. So, any diary entries or letters of George Washington himself would count as primary sources. So would any official proclamations or letters or government documents that came from Washington's pen as president. Or the testimony of contemporaries of his who lived or worked with him would also count as primary source accounts.

So if you're looking for a historian's use of primary sources, look for the ways in which he's using historical material directly connected to the life of the person being studied. In fact, if you were able to look at a set of the false teeth George Washington wore, that would be a primary source too. They have a set at the Mount Vernon home/museum. And by looking at those actual dentures, you'd see they weren't made out of wood like the old (false) story says!