Spotlight on Elementary Education

History has been shaped and influenced by the out come of ancient trials—such as the Trial of Socrates in 399B.C.—to Rosenberg Trial in the 1950s. This site offers a comprehensive look at 50 prominent court trials throughout history and its resources can be used to give young learners an introduction to the history of the modern judicial system.

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Website Reviews

Find quality websites & primary sources
Freedom Riders

Meet the American men and women who traveled the South in the name of black/ [...] »

Black Past
Glass negative, Scene from The Green Pastures, 1930, NYPL Digital Gallery

Begin your exploration of African American history with this web portal, [...] »

Department of Transportation: Digital Special Collections
Figure .2232(c) - Two Wheel Landing With Vertical Reactions-Nose Up

Read up on early 20th-century train and airplane accidents, among other [...] »

History Quiz

Test your history knowledge
A Hoax Provokes Folks: Why Lie?

Peruse the news, but beware hot air? Examine famous U.S. hoaxes.

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A-mouldering in the Grave

"John Brown's Body" keeps reappearing. What do you know about the song?

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Advice for Beachgoers

Long before sunblock, boogie boards, or bikinis...did ladies wear corsets to [...] »

Beyond the Textbook

Question textbook narratives
Rise of the Automobile
Photo, Model A Ford in front of antique gas pumps, August 4, 2007, Flickr

Americans today take cars for granted. How did they change American life? [...] »

Panic of 1873
Panic as a Health Officer Cleaning the Streets

Beginning in Europe, the Panic of 1873 quickly spread to the United States [...] »

Slavery
Photo, "An ex-slave," 1897, New York Public Library Digital Gallery

What was it like to be a slave in 19th-century America? Accounts contrast. [...] »

National Resources

Federal teaching resources
U.S. House of Representatives, Office of the Clerk

A comprehensive current and historical look at this legislative body and its [...] »

U.S. Navy

Who defends our seas, and how do they do it? Explore primary sources and [...] »

Federal Judiciary

Can’t tell an affadavit from an acquittal? Learn the legal lingo.

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Ask a Historian

Are There Instances of Raids Similar to the Boston Tea Party?
re-enactment, Chestertown, Maryland tea party

From South Carolina to Maine, colonists protested the Tea Act of 1773.

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