Landmarks of the Underground Railroad: From Christiana to Harper's Ferry

Description

During this workshop, "site visits integrated with documentary evidence will push participants to broaden their understanding of what did - and did not - constitute an Underground Railroad escape. Participants will discover that fugitives and the northerners who protected them were often as likely to fight as flee when confronted by slave catchers in the 1850s. Study of two nearby historic sites, Christiana, Pennsylvania, and Harpers Ferry, West Virginia will provide new insights into the aggressive operations of the Railroad and help frame the story of the coming of the Civil War. By the end of the workshop teachers will draft lesson plans that incorporate both episodes and offer a fresh approach to the study of the Underground Railroad."

Contact name
Mellen, Elaine
Contact email
Registration Deadline
Sponsoring Organization
National Endowment for the Humanities
Phone number
1 717-245-1521
Target Audience
Kindergarten through Twelfth Grade
Start Date
Duration
Six days
End Date

Shaping the Constitution: A View From Mount Vernon 1783-1789

Description

This workshop will explore the history of Mount Vernon, the development of the Constitution, and the life of George Washington, looking particularly at how Mount Vernon served as a center for discussion of the issues and ideas that would lead to creation of the Constitution. Lectures, discussions, Powerpoint presentations, readings, tours of Mount Vernon and other sites, pedagogical sessions, and curriculum development will be included in the workshop.

Contact name
Scott, Marianne
Registration Deadline
Sponsoring Organization
National Endowment for the Humanities
Phone number
1 703-894-1776
Target Audience
Kindergarten through Twelfth Grade
Start Date
Contact Title
Education Programs Coordinator
Duration
Five days
End Date

Shaping the Constitution: A View From Mount Vernon 1783-1789

Description

This workshop will explore the history of Mount Vernon, the development of the Constitution, and the life of George Washington, looking particularly at how Mount Vernon served as a center for discussion of the issues and ideas that would lead to creation of the Constitution. Lectures, discussions, Powerpoint presentations, readings, tours of Mount Vernon and other sites, pedagogical sessions, and curriculum development will be included in the workshop.

Contact name
Scott, Marianne
Registration Deadline
Sponsoring Organization
National Endowment for the Humanities
Phone number
1 703-894-1776
Target Audience
Kindergarten through Twelfth Grade
Start Date
Contact Title
Education Programs Coordinator
Duration
Five days
End Date

Not Just a Scenic Road: The Blue Ridge Parkway and Its History

Description

This workshop will explore the history of the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Appalachia region, through lectures, exploration of teaching resources and curriculum development, trips to cultural resources along the parkway, and free exploration.

Contact name
Specht, Neva Jean
Contact email
Registration Deadline
Sponsoring Organization
National Endowment for the Humanities
Phone number
1 828-262-6879
Target Audience
Kindergarten through Twelfth Grade
Start Date
Duration
Six days
End Date

Not Just a Scenic Road: The Blue Ridge Parkway and Its History

Description

This workshop will explore the history of the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Appalachia region, through lectures, exploration of teaching resources and curriculum development, trips to cultural resources along the parkway, and free exploration.

Contact name
Specht, Neva Jean
Contact email
Registration Deadline
Sponsoring Organization
National Endowment for the Humanities
Phone number
1 828-262-6879
Target Audience
Kindergarten through Twelfth Grade
Start Date
Duration
Six days
End Date

Acton State Historic Site [TX]

Description

Acton State Historic Site is Texas's smallest historic site with a total of .01 acres. The site is the burial ground of Elizabeth Crockett, second wife of Davy Crockett, who married him in Tennessee in 1815. She died Jan. 31, 1860. Because Crockett fought for Texas and died at the Alamo, his heirs were eligible for a land grant, but Mrs. Crockett did not claim her grant until 1853. By that time all choice land was claimed and she had to give a surveyor half of her land for locating a tract for her gravesite. The monument was erected at Acton Cemetery by Legislative appropriation in 1911.

The site is open to the public.

Website does not specify any interpretive services available at the site.

Fort Fred Steele State Historic Site [WY]

Description

Fort Fred Steele was established on June 20, 1868 and occupied until August 7, 1886 by soldiers who were sent by the U.S. Government to guard against attack from Indians. The construction of the Transcontinental Union Pacific Railroad across southern Wyoming 1867–1869, in turn, brought the cattlemen, sheepherders, loggers, tie hacks, miners, and merchants who changed the wasteland into Wyoming Territory. Colonel Richard I. Dodge, who selected this site on the west bank of the North Platte River, named the fort for Major General Frederick Steele, 20th U.S. Infantry, a Civil War hero.

The site is open to the public.

Website does not specify any interpretive services available at the site.

Elkhorn State Park [MT]

Description

During its heyday in the 1880s, the mining town of Elkhorn swelled to a population of 2,500. The boom ended in 1890 with the drop in silver prices and residents moved to other areas. They left behind two impressive structures, Fraternity Hall and Gillian Hall, which have been preserved as outstanding examples of frontier architecture.

The site is open to the public.

Website does not specify any interpretive services at the site.

Independence Rock State Historic Site [WY]

Description

Independence Rock stands 6,028 feet above sea level. The tallest point of the rock is 136 feet above the surrounding terrain. If one were to walk around the base of this rock, the distance covered would be more than a mile, or 5,900 feet. Windblown sand and silt have grooved the rock and polished it to a high gloss in a process called "windfaceting." It is because of this smoother surface that the pioneers were able to easily carve their names into the rock. It was the names carved in stone here that caused Father Peter J. DeSmet to appropriately name this place "The Register of the Desert" in 1840. Register Cliff and Names Hill also contain names left by the pioneers.

The site is open to the public.

Website does not specify any interpretive services beyond signage available at the site.

Fort Mandan and Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center [ND]

Description

The Lewis and Clark Expedition arrived at the Mandan-Hidatsa Indian villages on the Upper Missouri River on October 25, 1804. They found the Mandan people very hospitable and decided to remain at this wintering site until the spring thaw when they would resume their up-river journey. On November 3, William Clark made a simple entry in his journal, "We commence building our cabins." These cabins formed part of an enclosure that was christened Fort Mandan in honor of their hosts. As it turned out, Fort Mandan was occupied longer than any of the three winter posts used by the expedition. Reconstructed Fort Mandan rests in the riparian forests of the Missouri River. The refurnished rooms of this full-size replica depict the equipage of the Lewis and Clark Expeditio. On-site interpreters provide programs and year-round tours of Lewis and Clark's 1804–1805 wintering post. The Interpretive Center provides an overview of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, with special emphasis on the time spent at Fort Mandan. The displays include Native American artifacts, a buffalo robe visitors will be able to try on, as well as a "cradle-board" much like the one Sakakawea may have used to carry her baby. An authentic wood canoe carved from the trunk of a large cottonwood tree demonstrates the winter preparations the Expedition made while at Fort Mandan.

The site offers exhibits, tours, and occasional recreational and educational events.