The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture

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Government worker helps Cuban refugees who have immigrated to Arkansas
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This website functions as an easy-to-maneuver and reader-friendly website for gathering information about Arkansas and its impact on American history. Entries are divided into two categories: text and media. Both include subdivisions based on alphabetical listings or gallery images (respectively) in addition to category, type, time period, race and ethnicity, and gender. The Media section offers numerous photos, maps, documents, and video and audio resources. Entries include suggested readings, related links, and media galleries, when applicable.

Some of the more useful features of the site includes a calendar describing events in Arkansas’s history on each day, as well as a photo of the day from the Arkansas gallery. An overview entry provides general information about the state for those beginning to conduct research about Arkansas, and a breadcrumb trail at the top of each page helps readers retrace their steps while visiting the site—a feature users will find very helpful.

Educators will also find more than 100 lesson plans marked by The Butler Center—when planning for topics such as the Civil War, Korean War, and who’s who in Arkansas history. Lesson plans are in PDF format.

Teachers and students will enjoy exploring how the Razorback State played a key role in U.S. history. Teachers will also find the lesson plans from the Butler Center a useful resource for classroom instruction.

The Oregon Encyclopedia

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image of an explorer overlooking an Oregon lake
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This website is a collaboration between Portland State University, the Oregon Council of Teachers of English, and the Oregon Historical Society, and is a key project of the Oregon Sesquicentennial Celebration. Beyond its basic function as a reference tool, The Oregon Encyclopedia provides lesson plans for teachers—primarily for grades 4–12. The site is divided into 17 categories, each one with several subcategories such as "biography," "event," "group," or "place." Entries include a brief history, or synopsis, of the topic with any accompanying media objects and suggested reading. Entries are arranged alphabetically or by topic with a search engine that allows searches based on category, theme, sub-theme, county, era, or region. Each week new entries are added to the hundreds currently online.

In the For Teachers section, users will find several sections. "History Minutes" contains facts about important topics related to the state. The "Oregon IQ Test" offers a short list of Oregon trivia questions. The "Permissions" and "How to Cite" pages outline the educational and fair use policies to help students navigate copyright policies. Under "Research Tools," users will find a list of annotated bibliographies, as well as the ability to conduct a live chat with an online librarian any time of day—even during the weekends.

Oregon and U.S. history teachers and students will find The Oregon Encyclopedia a useful resource for learning more about the nation's 33rd state and its role in U.S. history.

Handbook of Texas Online

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two Texas militiamen from the Civil War
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With more than 25,000 articles and 3,000 authors, this website offers students and teachers a broad scope of topics, with in-depth analysis from scholars and amateur historians across dozens of universities and historical associations. Material on the site can be accessed alphabetically, or by browsing articles using the left-hand navigation column ("title", "what", "when", "where", and "who"). In addition, the site contains three major subsections: "The Handbook of Civil War Texas," "The Texas Lighthouse Series," and "The Handbook of Texas Music." Visitors can also subscribe to the site’s RSS feed to receive a "Texas Day by Day" feature.

The Education section offers teacher resources and more than 20 lesson plans. Most of these materials are for grades four and seven (state history), but they have applications across grade levels. Lesson plans are arranged by topic, grade level, and state standards—useful for educators in Texas and across the country.

Due to the sheer volume of entries in this site, becoming familiar with the dozens of subcategories in the left-hand column is a good place to start. The search engine may also prove helpful when looking for a keyword or phrase.

Online Nevada Encyclopedia

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image of a Cornish immigrant in Nevada with child
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Online Nevada Encyclopedia (ONE) is a succinct website focusing on themes related to the state’s history, geography, politics, economy and society. Ten thematic sections, such as "Mining," "Gaming and Tourism," and "Nuclear Nevada," appear on the left side of the homepage. When clicking on a topic, a short introduction appears followed by three to 24 article subcategories (104 subsections in all.) Educators will find the "Media Gallery" helpful in these subsections; the rich imagery is one of the positive elements of this site. Suggested readings and website links can be found at the conclusion of many articles, providing meaningful connections for teachers and students.

Viewers can easily access the virtual galleries, as well as maps that highlight popular destinations and topics of interest, from the homepage or content entries. Alphabetical indices list authors, content, and media, and exhibit galleries offer more information on people and topics in Nevada.

ONE, a project of Nevada Humanities, gives a clear representation of this state. Utilizing the website as a resource will help students understand the diversity of Nevada.

Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture

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musicians at the Grand Ol' Opry
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The Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture contains more than 1,500 entries related to both state and national historical themes. In Categories, users can access entries, images, video, audio, and interactive resources from 38 separate thematic subjects (note: not all categories contain each type of resource). In addition, users can also access each item type by selecting the corresponding links in the navigation menu at the top of the page. A list of popular entries and images is also found at the bottom of the page.

The most dynamic aspects of the site are its visual sources and interactive files that can be used in the classroom. Each encyclopedia entry offers specific information about an event, place, or significant person—with any corresponding video, audio, or image linked within the entry page. Users looking at specific themes should search under the "Categories" page, but should be mindful that some categories offer more resources because they are broad in nature. For example, "Civil War" contains three entries specific to the war, along with two videos and an interactive display—whereas "Music" and "Military," more general themes, contain over 100 entries each. Search within the individual tabs to locate additional information.

Created as a collaboration between the Tennessee Historical Society and the University of Tennessee Press, the site achieves its goal: providing a resource for the field of education and the general public.

HistoryLink [WA]

Description

HistoryLink is an online encyclopedia of history relevant to the state of Washington.

The website offers cybertours, slideshows, videos, lesson plans, and an extensive collection of links.

No physical site for visitation.

KnowLA: Encyclopedia of Louisiana

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Launched in 2010 as a resource for history and culture in the state by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, this website is still a work in progress. Nonetheless, it is an attractive website that provides information on six main topics: Louisiana art, architecture, history, literature, music, and folklife.

The main historical content can be easily accessed through the "Categories" and "Time Periods" sections in the navigation menu under the site header. Aside from the aforementioned six topics, content on the site is also categorized by 12 time periods. By clicking on a specific category, such as "Louisiana History," users will find three subsections: entries, images, and media. U.S. and Louisiana history teachers will find more than 250 entries in each of the six categories, arranged alphabetically per section. Viewers can also access these entries, over 1,100 images, and more than 200 media items by historical time period or region of the state.

Future plans include lesson plans and personal accounts that would allow students to collect images, record notes, and create original slideshows and stories. A tutorial at the top of the "About" page describes both current and anticipated ways to access information and use the site.

Teachers will find KnowLA a useful site for incorporating Louisiana history and culture into their history curriculum. Users will discover that Louisiana's influential role in U.S., Caribbean, and Atlantic history is worth further exploration.

Puerto Rico Encyclopedia/Enciclopedia de Puerto Rico

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Visitors to this site will find more than 1,000 images and dozens of videos about the history and culture of Puerto Rico. The work of dozens of scholars and contributors, the Puerto Rico Encyclopedia reflects the diverse nature of the island: a U.S. territory, a key location for trade in the Caribbean, a Spanish-speaking entity with its own distinct culture, and a part of a larger Atlantic world. Funded by an endowment from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Fundación Angel Ramos, the site is a key product from the Fundación Puertorriqueña de las Humanidades. It provides users with all content in both English and Spanish. Educators will find the site easy to navigate and conveniently categorized by themes; within each topic, appropriate subtopics provide an in-depth examination of Puerto Rican culture and history. Of particular interest to U.S. History teachers are the images and information found under History and Archeology. Here, teachers and students can explore a chronological narrative of the island's history and role at specific moments in U.S. and Atlantic history. Other sections worth exploring are Archeology (for its focus on Native American culture), Puerto Rican Diaspora (for its look at Puerto Ricans in the U.S.), and Government (for a detailed history on Puerto Rico's unique status as a free and associated US territory). Educators in other social science courses will also find valuable information related to music, population, health, education, and local government. In all, 15 sections and 71 subsections provide a thorough examination of Puerto Rico. The Puerto Rico Encyclopedia's bilingual presentation also makes it a good site for integrating Hispanic culture into the U.S. History curriculum, as well as helping to bridge curriculum for English Language Learners (ELLs) in the classroom.