Gerald Prokopowicz of the Lincoln Museum outlines Lincoln's experiences as a captain in the Black Hawk War and the general ineffectiveness of militia in Lincoln's day.
To view this clip, select "Abraham Lincoln's Militia Service in the Black Hawk War" under "Abraham Lincoln's Biography Video."
Smithsonian curators Candace Green and Emil Her Many Horses outline the nature of Lakota winter counts, pictorial documents which identified each year by an important event, and discuss what may be learned from these today.
In this presentation, students will discover how modes of transportation have changed over time and how those changes have affected North Carolinians.
In this presentation, students explore the fascinating history and contemporary culture of North Carolina's American Indian communities.
Professor John Smolenski describes the French and Indian War (or Seven-Year War), looking at its significance in North American history and its neglect in popular memory and understanding.
Professor William Wagner considers the actual significance of the Lewis and Clark Expedition to and in U.S. history. He seeks to remove the voyage from obscuring popular myths and into the realm of historical fact, while also looking at how popular understanding of the Expedition has changed over time.
Professor Caroline Cox reviews the life of Pocahontas, focusing on the difficulties in understanding Pocahontas's life from her own perspective and removing her life from the mythologies that have grown up around it.
Dr. Steven Mintz narrates a general overview of U.S. history, beginning with colonialism and the American Revolution. The presentation focuses on the themes of freedom and equality and the struggle by minorities for both.
To watch this video, scroll to "Flash Movies." From there, select "An Overview of American History."
An overview of the history of Catholic missions in California, from their establishment during imperial Spain's colonization of the region through the push for their restoration and preservation in the 1800s. The presentation places an emphasis on the changing role and popular perceptions of the missions and on their effects on Native American populations.
To listen to this lecture, scroll to "The California Mission as Symbol and Myth," and select "Listen to Broadcast."
The Southwest branch of the National Archives provides access to documents—such as letters, photographs, architectural drawings, and maps—which originated from federal agencies and courts. Documents on the premises date from the 1800s to late 1900s; and were created in Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana.
Areas of collection emphasis include Native American removal, westward expansion, Chinese exclusion, segregation, repatriation, the World Wars, economic history, oil, the Civil War, slavery, and the U.S. space program.
Groups and classes are welcome to visit—with advance notice—for activities such as research, tours, internships, exhibit viewing, lectures, learning to teach history with primary sources, and genealogy workshops.
Educators may be interested in available professional development workshops on archival holdings and using primary sources. If the workshop does not take place at the archives, travel expenses may require payment.
You may also want to check the main page for links to the latest annual K-12 education newsletters.
If you are looking for a way to bring the archives into your classroom, rather than taking your class to Fort Worth, several digital options are available. For one, you could make use of student activities, such as an examination of historical U.S. census documents. You can also explore lesson plans on the domestic slave trade or illegal Chinese immigration, created by teachers; or you can even submit you own, inspired by the archives' sources. Finally, you might consider scheduling a roughly hour-long distance learning program. Available topics vary, but all programs are document-based and provided free of charge.
Interested in art? Looking for more lesson plans? Consider taking some time to explore Art and Archives, a collaboration between the Southwest branch of the National Archives and the Sid Richardson Museum. The website defines primary and secondary sources, offers art and archival vocabulary lists, and contains a collection of lesson plans which utilize art to think about history. Topics include Lewis and Clark, westward expansion, the Louisiana Purchase, cowboys, Wounded Knee, and black soldiers in the Civil War. These lesson plans are generally for middle and high school students. However, a version of the Louisiana Purchase lesson plan is listed for grade five.