Are All Firsthand Accounts Equally Reliable?

Absolutely not.

Let’s start by defining what firsthand accounts are, and then I’ll explain. Firsthand or first-person accounts are narratives or stories from someone who lived through the experience or was an eyewitness. They provide personal insights and emotional responses to the events. They often include details that help us understand the circumstances surrounding an incident and are the closest thing historians have to allow them to make direct observations. But can you trust these sources to give a complete and truthful report of what happened?

Of course not. Some are always going to be better than others. They were created by imperfect humans with imperfect memories, who couldn’t possibly see and experience everything. Plus, just like us, the writers had a variety of values, biases, and objectives that dictated what they wrote down.

I’ve written three books that I based on first-person accounts. Here are a few of the problems I encountered.

● Incorrect names because a person is confused with another member of their family.

● Memories dimmed by years. “It was John. No, no. It was Ralph.”

● Journals filled with trivial information instead of the facts and opinions about events that I hoped for. Trivial details provide color, but stories need substance.

● Gaps in the narrative, presumably because it would show the writer or someone close to them in an embarrassing light. Given what else the journal contains, it’s hard to believe these omissions weren’t intentional.

● Sketchy references to situations and practices that were probably well understood at the time, but left me guessing about what the writer was talking about.

● And eyewitness accounts corrupted over time by hearing others recount what they remember of the experience. “It was one dog, not two.” You might call this memory by consensus rather than a true firsthand account.

Don’t get me wrong. First-person sources are priceless. They often include little details and emotions that bring the mundane to life and contain information unavailable elsewhere. But they have their limitations, so if you can find more than one of these sources covering the same time and place, you’ll definitely be better off.