Fort Boonesborough State Park [KY]

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Fort Boonesborough was originally built in 1775 by Daniel Boone and his men to serve as a frontier outpost along the Kentucky River. Today, the fort has been completely reconstructed and functions as a living history museum, giving modern-day visitors a sense of what life was like for pioneers in Kentucky. In addition to the reconstructed fort, the park contains the Kentucky River Museum, which provides visitors with "insight into the lives of families who lived on the river and worked the locks and dams in the 1900s."

The park offers exhibits, tours for school groups, living history demonstrations, special school days throughout the year, and other educational and recreational events. The website offers visitor information, a photo gallery featuring 13 photographs of the park, and an events calendar.

American Civil War Center at Historic Tredegar Launches Education Web Companion

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The American Civil War Center at Historic Tredegar and the Virginia Center for Digital History (VCDH), administered through the University of Virginia, launched the American Civil War Center (ACWC) at Historic Tredegar: Educational Web Companion (Web Companion). This 18-month project is funded by a $198,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Education.

The Web Companion is an interactive teaching tool. While the Companion complements student and teacher experience at the American Civil War Center, the material also creates an online history lab where educators may analyze the Civil War with assistance from leading historians and scholars.

Nationally renowned historians Edward L. Ayers, James M. McPherson, and Gary W. Gallagher are among those featured in video clips on the site. These digital tools are used to reach educators and students nationwide and aid in the discussion of the war's causes, course, and legacies.

Each section contains rich video information concerning the Civil War and questions that may serve as discussion or writing prompts. Exhibits within the Companion include Union to Disunion, Emancipation, The War, Behind the Lines, and Legacies. Media components include: Audio, Videos, Readings, and Perspectives which introduce users to the thoughts and viewpoints of those who witnessed the Civil War firsthand and provide lectures and discussions from noted scholars. Additional components such as Insights and Archives incorporate documents, diaries, letters, and other historical resources which assist with research.

White Hall State Historic Site [KY]

Description

White Hall State Historic Site was first built in 1798 and remodeled in the 1860s. The original home was a two-story Georgian structure, but during the remodeling in the 1860s, the home was rebuilt in Italianate style and greatly enlarged. The house was home to the Clay family, including the noted emancipationist Cassius Clay and his daughter, Laura Clay, who was the first woman to be nominated by a major party for US President.

The home offers guided tours, field trip programs, and exhibits that showcase artifacts from the Clay family. The website offers a photo gallery of the home, a calendar of events, visitor information, and a history of the home.

Museum and White House of the Confederacy [VA]

Description

The Museum of the Confederacy is located in Richmond, Virginia, and is housed in the Civil War residence of Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederacy. The home serves as both a historic house museum and general museum of the Confederacy.

The museum offers a variety of exhibits that showcase the history of the Confederacy, living history programs during the summer months, and tours for adults and children. The website offers teacher resources, including lesson plans and field trip information; visitor information; and a calendar of events.

American Turning Point: The Civil War in Virginia

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American Turning Point is an online companion to a Virginia Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission exhibit examining the events and impact of the Civil War within the state of Virginia. The travel schedule may permit you to plan a field trip for your class to see the physical exhibit. If not, explore the website (or visit and use the website to reinforce the experience).

Characters gives faces to some of the people who lived through the war in Virginia, while Objects provides access to digital collections and curated items such as weapons, portraits, prints, military orders, and a pocket watch. Virginia Home Front divides the state into federal occupation, no-man's-land, Confederate Virginia, and the Confederate frontier. Each is mapped, and can be selected for additional information including personal accounts from the Civil War period.

Another section, Resources, is similarly worth exploring. The page offers links to lectures, websites, and articles on the Civil War and Civil War collections. The teacher resources largely consist of traveling trunks and outreach programming. Finally, if you're interested in the Confederate capital, consider listening to more than 10 one-minute history audio programs on Richmond.