The Northeast branch of the National Archives provides access to historic documents from the states of New York, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Massachusetts, in addition to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Research can be conducted at two main locations in Boston, Massachusetts, and New York City, as well as within a microfilm research area in Pittsfield, Massacusetts (Silvio O. Conte National Records Center, 10 Conte Drive).

The Boston-area archives holds documents from 1780 to present pertaining to the states of Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, and Massachusetts. Records include, but are not limited to, census and naturalization records, Dawes Commission final cards of the Five Civilized Tribes, Chinese Exclusion cases, and passenger arrival lists.

Topics of emphasis within the collection include port commerce, desegregation, War of 1812, the Amistad case, naval stations, lighthouses, the Chinese Exclusion Act, MIT and Harvard World War II research projects, and arms manufacturing. With so much information at your fingertips, a pre-visit look through the available finding aids may be a wise time investment.

Interested in researching military records or conducting genealogical research? Access a listing of upcoming genealogical workshops. All workshops are free, but require advance registration.

Earn PD points by attending five free, monthly Thursday night programs for educators, or attend other in-service teaching with document programs. Access the calendar to plan which events to attend. Large groups can request that workshops be conducted at their own location.

In the Boston area? Plan a free, hands-on archival field trip for your class, be it kindergarten or high school. Programs are customizable, designed to meet state curriculum standards, and include a behind-the-scenes tour. Example programs address the 54th Mass. Colored Regiment, the Revolutionary War, Eleanor Roosevelt and Marian Anderson, the Constitution, and migration and immigration. Please schedule ahead. The site is handicap-accessible and contains a lunchroom.

The phone and fax numbers to the left are for the Boston/Waltham location.

The New York City location holds documents from 1695 through the 1990s pertaining to New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Online finding aids are an excellent way of determining whether or not the archives may have the type of documents which you desire.

The archives offers an extensive series of public programs, including tours conducted upon request, open houses, and workshops. Workshop topics can include census records, Chinese Americans, customs records, maritime history, Civil War prize cases, and more.

Attend free professional development workshops appropriate for teachers (including home school teachers) and administrators.

Consider ordering a free CD correlating the contents of Our Documents to New Jersey and New York educational standards.

You can also schedule K-12 field trips complete with hands-on research and tours of the archives' facility.

The Northeast archives hosts a collection of online exhibits, ranging in topic from the real life von Trapp family to the Slocum tragedy.

Finally, download packets consisting of documents, transcriptions, related questions and activities, and information on how the topic relates to the standards. Teachable Texts is upgraded regularly.

If you happen to be looking for federal primary sources from Ohio, Indiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, or Illinois, a good spot to check is the Chicago office of the National Archives and Records Administration. Records available include bankruptcy records, Chinese Exclusion case files from Chicago and St. Paul, Michigan and Illinois Selective Service System Name Index records, and naturalization records. Other topics represented in the collections include, but aren't limited to, African American history, Depression era history, disasters, espionage, and maritime history.

Consider looking through the site's finding aids to get a sense of the collections available on location.

When visiting, be ready with an official photo ID and willingness to fill out a short form concerning your interests. Leave your pens behind (pencils are permitted), and prepare to leave your belongings in a locker or in your car.

Looking for more directed opportunities? Check out the archives' upcoming events. If you teach in Illinois or Indiana, you may even be eligible for continuing education credit.

In addition to the aforementioned public programs, there are workshops designed specifically for teachers. Find them (and more opportunities) under the Workshops heading.

Archivists are ready and willing to help your students define their research topics and select appropriate primary sources, for National History Day projects or other endeavors.

The National Archives and Records Administration: Rocky Mountain Region offers access to federal photographs, paper documents, architectural drawings, and maps created in Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming, and Montana between 1847 and the 1990s, as well as to archival materials from North and South Dakota created after 1972. Topics represented include homesteading, Indian agencies, reclamation projects, mining, naturalizations, the World War II homefront, territorial court records, railroads, bankruptcy, genealogy, and national parks, among others.

With so many topics, how can you find what you need? Luckily, the region offers a list of online finding guides, specific to their holdings.

In addition, the region offers tours of the facilities, presentations of their holdings and services to students, and internship opportunities. Tours and presentations require appointments, and presentations can be made at the Lakewood, Colorado, facility or elsewhere. Availability of presentations made anywhere other than the main facility is subject to travel budget considerations.

NARA's Rocky Mountain Region branch is dedicated to providing professional development opportunities for educators. With advance notice, the archives provides three workshops—"Using Online Resources of the National Archives," "Hands-On History: Incorporating Primary Sources in the Classroom," and "Finding Primary Source Documents at the Rocky Mountain Regional Archives." All workshops are free. However, off-site workshops outside of the Denver metro area may require payment of travel and expense fees.

Archivists are also available to assist in student research for National History Day projects and other undertakings.

The archives is currently creating primary source document lessons for each of its constituent states. Each lesson includes one or more primary sources, background information on the source, suggested teaching activities, and a description of the document's relationship to national and state standards. Lessons are available in CD and .PDF formats.

The Museum of Design interprets all aspects and forms of design, from architecture to fashion.

The museum offers exhibits, lectures, self-guided and guided tours for school groups, and occasional recreational and educational events.

The Yakima Valley Museum's 65,000-square-foot facility offers historical exhibits on the Yakima Valley—its natural history, American Indian culture, pioneer life, early city life, and the roots and development of the Valley's fruit industry. The museum also houses a collection of horse-drawn vehicles, from stagecoach to hearse; an historical exhibit and reconstruction of the Washington, DC, office of former Yakima resident and environmentalist, Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas; and a changing schedule of special exhibitions. A special set of exhibits, the Children's Underground, provides hands-on activities that complement the core museum exhibitions; and visitors can eat and drink in a functioning replica of a late 1930s Art Deco soda fountain.

The Museum also owns and operates the restored 1898 H.M. Gilbert homeplace, which is available for tours.

The museum offers exhibits, research library access, guided tours for student groups, cultural trunks for rent, performances, and other recreational and educational events.

The American Museum of Fly Fishing maintains the world's largest collection of angling and angling-related items, numbering in the thousands. Its collections and exhibits thoroughly document the evolution of fly fishing as a sport, art form, craft, and industry in the U.S. and abroad, dating as far back as the 16th century. Rods, reels, flies, tackle, art, photographs, manuscripts, and books form the major portions of the Museum's collections.

The museum offers exhibits and occasional recreational and educational events.

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum presents the history of country music through its permanent exhibit, "Sing Me Back Home," showcasing both the music and the artifacts behind and surrounding it—costumes, lyrics sheets, musical instruments. It also hosts traveling and changing exhibits and programs and performances.

The museum offers exhibits, tours and in-museum workshops for school groups, curriculum guides, and educational and recreational events.

Strong National Museum of Play houses the National Toy Hall of Fame, the National Center for the History of Electronic Games, and the world's largest collection of toys, dolls, games, and other items that celebrate play. Visitors may explore both interactive exhibits designed for children and display exhibits preserving and presenting the history of play. History-relevant exhibits for children include One History Place and TimeLab, which explore U.S. history and pop culture history, respectively.

The museum offers exhibits and a range of educational programs, including standards-based tours for student groups and orientation programs for educators.

The Louisiana State Museum - Patterson is the official state aviation and cypress sawmill industry museum and houses two important collections documenting state history.

The Wedell-Williams Aviation Collection focuses on the legacy of Louisiana aviation pioneers Jimmie Wedell and Harry Williams who formed an air service in Patterson in 1928. Both men became nationally prominent during what was known as the Golden Age of Aviation. Although both Wedell and Williams perished in plane crashes, their legacy lives on in the memorabilia and planes on display.

The Patterson Cypress Sawmill Collection documents the history of the cypress lumber industry in Louisiana. Lumbering became the state's first significant manufacturing industry. As a result, cypress lumber harvested and milled in Louisiana was shipped in mass quantities across the United States. The town of Patterson was once home to the largest cypress sawmill in the world, owned by Frank B. Williams, and in 1997 the Louisiana State Legislature designated Patterson as the cypress capitol of Louisiana. The exhibit features a variety of artifacts, photographs, and film that tell the story of this important regional industry.

In addition, the museum also has a changing exhibit gallery that highlights other aspects of Louisiana's culture and history, and provides school tours and accompanying enhanced curriculum guides.

The Museum interprets the turn-of-the-century Tampa Bay Hotel, an 1891 railroad resort, and the lifestyles of America's Gilded Age. Through educational exhibits and events, the museum takes visitors back to the late Victorian period, the beginnings of Florida's tourist industry, and the early years of the city of Tampa. This Victorian palace features Moorish revival architecture, European furniture, and art treasures of the original railroad resort.

The museum offers exhibits, tours, educational programs, and occasional recreational and educational events.