Reading a Cartoon: Massive Resistance
What do the objects in this 1954 editorial cartoon stand for?
Mapping the Past
A map can tell you more than east, west, north, and south.
Encyclopedia Virginia
Looking for an extensive collection of sources on Virginia history? Here’s a valuable resource for any teacher or student of U.S. history.
American Turning Point: The Civil War in Virginia
Meet Virginians from the 1860s, and learn about their lives.
Massive Resistance Political Cartoons
Watch J. Douglas Smith discuss the Massive Resistance policy enacted by U.S. Senator, Harry F. Byrd, Sr., in 1956.
John Smith Map
Watch Smithsonian curator Barbara Clark Smith discuss John Smith’s Map of Virginia published in London in 1612.
Bland County History Archives
Looking for proof that students can handle extensive local history projects? You’ve found it.
Creating a More Perfect Union: 1861-1865
Interested in teaching about the Civil War from a maritime perspective?
Union or Secession: Virginians Decide
Trace Virginia’s route to secession in the Civil War with more than 200 primary sources.
Virginia Memory
Are you a Virginia educator teaching VA state history? My your task easy! Explore the Library of Virginia’s 70 collections of digitized primary sources.
Charters for Colonies
To legally exist, English colonies needed charters from the monarchy. Answer these questions about colonies and charters.
Yo, Ho, Ho and a . . . Bushel of Oysters?
Shellfish pirates stole from the rich to feed themselves—and make a little money on the side.
Massive Resistance through Political Cartoons
Watch 4th-graders analyze cartoons about Virginia and Brown v. Board of Education.
Civil War Peace Offers
Olive branches from the North? Did the United States ever negotiate possible Union troop withdrawal in order to gain support from regions within the Confederacy?
Reston Collection Images
Explore the planned community of Reston, VA. Gain a better sense of the town that has become a burgeoning suburb.
The Story of Virginia
State standards require you to teach VA history? Worry not! This site covers Virginia history from prehistoric times to the present.
U.S. Marine Corps
Why are the Marines known as “America’s 911 Force”? Explore this division of the armed services.
"Join or Die"
Think the “Join or Die” snake first appeared during the American Revolution? Think again!
Race and Place
Discover connections between race and place in this archive documenting the effects of Jim Crow on a Virginia town.
Using Maps as Primary Sources
A 4th-grade teacher shows strategies for encouraging and supporting student analysis of maps.
Virtual Jamestown
Experience firsthand accounts of Jamestown and colonial history, dating from 1570 through 1720.
Valley of the Shadow: Two Communities in the American Civil War
Take a closer look at the Civil War with this extensive database that offers a comparison of two Shenandoah Valley counties—Augusta County, VA and Franklin County, PA.
Thomas Jefferson Digital Archive
Peruse more than 1,700 texts written by or to Thomas Jefferson—from correspondence to books and papers.
Geography of Slavery in America
Provides transcriptions and images of more than 4,000 newspaper advertisements for runaway slaves and indentured servants between 1736 and 1803.