A paper-first reading field guide
Separate a Primary Source From Historian Interpretation
Use three linked fields: document evidence, historian reading, and remaining gap. Keep each field brief and attach the page or chapter landmark that supports it.
Keep what a historical document says distinct from the historian’s explanation of its significance. A compact three-anchor trail keeps the note useful when you return later or discuss it with someone using another edition.
Step 1
Anchor the location
Record the page or chapter before interpreting the moment. Add the current reading boundary when later knowledge could change the note.
Step 2
Document evidence
Anchor the quoted or described primary source.
Step 3
Historian reading
Paraphrase the historian’s interpretation on a separate line.
Step 4
Remaining gap
Name the inference that still connects the document to that reading.