This megasite brings together resources for teaching U.S. and world history from the far corners of the web. Most of these websites boast large collections of primary sources from the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian, the National Archives and Records Administration, and prominent universities. There are more than 600 websites listed for U.S. history alone, divided by time period and topic: Business & Work, Ethnic Groups, Famous People, Government, Movements, States & Regions, Wars, and Other Social Studies. While most of these websites are either primary source archives (for example, History of the American West, 1860-1920) or virtual exhibits, many offer lesson plans and ready-made student activities, such as EDSITEment, created by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

A good place to begin is the (Subject Map), which lists resources by sub-topic, including African Americans (67 resources), Women's History (37 resources), and Natural Disasters (16 resources). Each resource is accompanied by a brief annotation that facilitates quick browsing.

[SUBSCRIPTION REQUIRED] Electronic database that provides access to back issues of more than 100 scholarly journals in the arts and sciences, including 15 history (including the American Historical Review and the Journal of American History), 13 economics, 9 anthropology, and 12 political science journals. The keyword/author/title search engine with sortable findings is user-friendly. The site maintains an annual "moving wall" for posting journal articles, so that articles are available from the first volume published through issues published from two to five years prior to the current year. For example, the American Historical Review issues are available through the 2003 issues, and in one year the 2004 issues will be posted to the site. Ideal for student and scholar searches for secondary source material. Note that this service is only available through subscribing libraries. Members of certain scholarly societies may also subscribe for a fee.

The deaths of William Robinson and two other black men on the British colony of Salt Spring Island (British Columbia) between 1867 and December 1868--attributed by an all-white jury to an aboriginal man--are examined in this site, which offers inquests, trial records, newspaper accounts, diary entries, maps, private correspondence, and artists's depictions and reconstructions. Through these hundreds of images and documents--which together constitute a social history of ethnically and racially-mixed Salt Spring Island--students may pursue explanations for Robinson's murder, and, more broadly, relations among white colonists, black settlers, and aboriginal peoples. Also gives four links and a 39-title bibliography for further research. A "teacher's guide" is available upon request. The authors are affiliated with the history department at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada. Useful for student-teacher explorations into race relations in 19th-century Canada.

This archive of thousands of photographs, paintings, maps, and other primary documents on the history and culture of the trails of the American West brings together the "western trails" collections of the six libraries and institutions. The main features are exhibits and search function, but the site also offers some limited teaching resources. "Trails through Time Exhibits" features 10 exhibits on Native American, explorer, military, settlement, freight, cattle, railroad, tourism, health, and population trails. Each exhibit has a short essay, images, and links to related exhibitions and websites. "Western Trail Collections" allows the visitor to browse through 10 pre-selected categories or conduct a keyword search by creator, title, subject, or date.

The teaching section, "Trails for Teachers," offers one lesson plan for grades 1-6, two plans for grades 6-8, and two multi-grade level plans, all utilizing the collection's materials. Subjects include such diverse topics as ranch life and the early history of Jews in Colorado. A useful resource for researching the history and culture of the American West and for a basic introduction to the various movements in and across the West.

For historians researching New Jersey, this site's main interest will be its "state archives." "Catalog" provides access to nearly 200 pre-established searches on the archive's manuscript series, genealogical holdings, business and corporate records, cultural resources, and maps. Topics include military conflicts, society and economics, transportation, public works agencies, and photographic collections, as well as state, county, municipal, and federal government records. The other major feature consists of eight image collections with themes that include New Jersey Civil War soldiers, Spanish-American War Infantry Officers, Spanish-American War Naval Officers, Gettysburg Monuments, and views of the Morris Canal. The archives site also includes a searchable index of New Jersey Supreme Court cases, a transcription of New Jersey's 1776 constitution, and a table summarizing the holdings of the state archives. This site is a useful aid for researching the history and culture of New Jersey.

This archive affords access to the local history material and collections in more than 45 Michigan libraries, including photographs, family papers, oral histories, public reports, notices, and documents. More than 3,000 items are available, on a wide range of subjects that include architecture, automobiles, churches, cities and towns, commerce and business, factories and industry, families, farming, geography and landscapes, housing, schools, and sports and recreation. The time period of the material is primarily from the post-Civil War era to the early 20th century. The material can be browsed by subject or institution and a keyword search is also available. A useful site for researching the cultural history of Michigan and its localities.

Poster art shaped and reflected the nature of total war in the first half of the twentieth century, and remains a rich primary source for examining the political, military, social, and cultural history of World War I and World War II. This website provides a database of close to 6,000 of these posters. Posters from the U.S. constitute the bulk of the collection, followed by posters from Great Britain, and then France, Czechoslovakia, the Soviet Union, Italy, and Germany.

Descriptions are keyword searchable, and there are also categories for browsing. Fifteen posters under "Civilian participation" represent one of the key components of "total war": full participation of citizens both at the front and at home. Posters can be used to examine the ways in which citizens on the "home front" were drawn into the war effort, as well as messages about gender and class. Other subjects include organizations, war-related social groups, and individual political leaders.

After property qualifications for voting were eliminated in the 1830s, the American electorate expanded from 1.5 million to 2.4 million. As abolition, the extension of slavery, the Mexican War, and the Dred Scott decision dominated the national debate, songs, parades, and barbecues became increasingly important campaign tools to reach out to new voters. This type of political material culture is highlighted through this website, presenting 1,200 documents, more than 650 images, 100 songs, and interactive country-wide Presidential election maps for all six Presidential elections between 1840 and 1860. Detailed contextual information is available on a wide range of subjects, such as political campaigns, political parties, and major national events. Five short videos by well-known scholars address political culture, the second party system, politics as popular entertainment, and women's roles in antebellum politics. The detailed lesson plan in the "Teacher's Podium" challenges students to assess changing campaign strategies through song lyrics.

This archive offers more than 26 million pages of documents related to research, manufacturing, marketing, advertising, and sales of cigarettes. It was designed to provide free access to documents produced in States Attorney General reimbursement lawsuits against the tobacco industry. This site consist of links to databases that contain images of documents from the files of Philip Morris Incorporated, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, Brown and Williamson Tobacco Corporation, Lorillard Tobacco Company, The Tobacco Institute, Inc., and The Council for Tobacco Research. Each company website is separately maintained and provides users with detailed instructions on how to view and print documents. Among the millions of documents, users will find print ads, marketing materials from the early 1900s, correspondence, reports, periodicals, and numerous scientific research studies. Those interested in tobacco use among racial or ethnic groups and women, the health risks of tobacco, and tobacco issues in the media will find this site very informative.

Presents more than 500 primary documents relating to the 1839–1842 revolt of enslaved Africans aboard the schooner Amistad, their legal struggles in the United States, and the multifaceted cultural and social dimensions of the case. The site features a searchable library that contains 32 items from personal papers, 33 legal decisions and arguments, and 18 selections from the popular media, including pamphlets, journal articles, reports, a playbill, and a poem.

In addition, 100 government publications, 28 images, 11 maps and nautical charts, and 310 newspaper articles and editorials are available. The website provides suggestions for using these materials in the classroom, a timeline, links to other resources, and a "living the history" component that encourages user feedback and participation. This visually attractive, well-conceived site provides a wealth of materials for students of slavery, race, politics, and print culture in antebellum America.