This is the home site of the Daguerreian Society, an organization "Dedicated to the history, science, and art of the daguerreotype," a 19th century mode of photography used primarily for making portrait images. The galleries include more than 40 historical daguerreotypes and 14 modern images. In addition to portraiture, the site also features some daguerreian landscapes, and each image is accompanied by a 50-word descriptive caption as well as the date, subject, and photographer information. The site also provides an index of almost 100 20th-century texts on daggeureotypes; a bibliography of more than 300 pieces of daguerrian literature; a 1,000-word history of daggeureotypes by Society member Kenneth E. Nelson; a 1,000-word description of the daguerreian process from an 1887 issue of the Scientific American; and an 1854 pamphlet that provides an illustrated tour of a daguerrian manufactory. There are also more than 30 links to related sources. For those interested in the history of photography and portrait art, this site is very informative.

This beautifully presented site features selections from Duke University's collection of photographer William Gedney's work and writings. From the mid-1950s to the 1980s, Gedney captured everyday life of people in places as diverse as Brooklyn, Kansas, India, and Europe. The site boasts more than 4,900 of his prints, workprints, and contact sheets. Photographs are arranged into 12 series: Composers; Cross Country; Europe; India; Kansas; Kentucky; New York; San Francisco; St. Joseph's School for the Deaf; The Farm; Night Series; and Miscellaneous. Each category offers a 35-50 word introduction to the series, and each image is accompanied by its title and a brief 5-10 word note on the subject matter and date taken.

Also on the site are selections from 33 of Gedney's manuscript books and notebooks, including ideas for book projects, descriptions of bookbinding methods and materials, and travel diaries. All of the writings are available in image form, and eight of the notebooks are also transcribed. Selected photographs, sketches, and dummies for nine book projects are also included, as well as a timeline of Gedney's life and work from his birth in 1932 to the San Francisco retrospective of his work in 2000. The site is keyword searchable and easy to navigate, making it an exceptional source of illustrations and images of American life, as well as an American's perspective on life in India and Europe.

This online archive of 170 photographs, selected from the National Archives and Records Administration collection, depicts the development of the American city from the early 19th century to the present. The photographs represent a wide range of urban subjects and original media; some images are photographic copies of paintings, engravings, and imprints, as well as photographs. The images are exceptional, and are grouped into six categories: Artists' Conceptions of 19th Century Cities; Skylines and Streets; City Life; Urban Transportation; The City in Turmoil; and 20th Century Art Reflecting Urban Themes. The finding aid offers a roughly 25-word caption for each item, including the photograph's title, medium, repository, artist, and date. Though the site is somewhat difficult to navigate, it is worth a visit for those interested in images depicting America's urban history.

This online photograph collection, assembled to commemorate the 50th anniversary of World War II, illustrates African-American participation in the war effort. Approximately 2.5 million African American men registered for the draft, and African-American women volunteered for the military. The 261 images in this collection, drawn from the National Archive collections of photographs from the Army Signal Corps, the Department of Navy, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, and the Office of War Information, depict African Americans in military training, in combat, and on the home front. The photographs are grouped according to the five military branches and by six subjects: Merchant Marine; Women in the Military; Training; Rest and Relaxation; Personalities; and Homefront. While the separate photograph and finding aid sites make the collection a bit complicated, the site is helpful for those who are interested in 20th century African-American history or World War II history.

This National Archives and Records Administration online archive offers selected photographs depicting Americans' activities during World War II. The 202 photographs, drawn from the Still Picture Branch of the National Archives, primarily came from the records of the Army Signal Corps, Department of the Navy, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, and the Office of War Information. They represent all aspects of wartime preparation, from military training to combat and support services, as well as the homefront activities of civilians and war agencies. They are grouped into 22 subjects, including eight regions of Europe and the Pacific in which Americans fought, and other topical categories such as: the Homefront; Rest and Recreation; Prisoners; The Holocaust; Death and Destruction; and Victory and Peace.

Images include leaders like Franklin D. Roosevelt, General Dwight Eisenhower, and Adolph Hitler, as well as posters from homefront rationing and war bond campaigns, Rosie the Riveter posters, combat photographs of invasions and scouting missions, and images of entertainers like Danny Kaye and Bing Crosby visiting the troops. Each photograph is accompanied by a 15-25 word caption with the title, photographer, location, and date the photograph was taken. This site is ideal for those interested in illustrating reports or lectures on Americans' contributions to World War II.

This National Archives and Records Administration site features 196 photographs that document westward migration and the development of America's western frontier. These photographs were drawn from the records of federal bureaus and offices, such as the Bureau of Land Management, Indian Affairs, Weather, Fish and Wildlife Service, Corps of Engineers, and the Forest Service. Featured images, taken between 1861 and 1912, capture special events and everyday life on the frontier, from Native American peoples and villages, to military maneuvers, to laborers and businessmen at work. A 15-25 word caption, the name of the photographer, and date (if available) accompany each photograph. Listings are arranged by subject and chronologically under each subject. An index lists the photographs by state. For those exploring the history of the American West, this is an ideal resource for illustrations.

This online archive features images of photographs taken by women that represent the holdings of the Women in Photography Archives located in Arcata, CA. Most of the photographs in the collection are the work of women photographers who were active between 1850 and 1997 and had some connection with the American West, particularly California.

The archive contains 17 separate collections, arranged according to four main themes: Community, Identity, Spirituality, and Locality. Each of these categories features relevant essays composed by art historians, curators, and artists. As a whole, the site offers the works and biographies of approximately 180 artists and photographers.

For educators, the site also offers a comprehensive eight-week syllabus that covers the website's four main themes.

Although navigating the website can take some getting used to, it is worth the effort. The site is a valuable resource for often lesser-know perspectives on the American West.

Focusing on 19th-century American maritime history and westward expansion, this collection of more than 160 documents from the Mystic Seaport Museum and Library provides diverse materials to explore themes such as the California Gold Rush, whaling, maritime business, migration and immigration, women's role in the West, and interactions between European migrants and native inhabitants. This Ameritech Award-winning site includes more than 25 photographs, more than 20 letters, logbooks from ships, published travel narratives, paintings, maps, and nautical charts. Provides four essays published previously in a Mystic Seaport publication, including an 1866 newspaper essay assessing Honolulu as a whaling port by youthful journalist Mark Twain.

The site is searchable by subject, name, title, and keyword, and includes an annotated bibliography of hundreds of documents in the Seaport's collections, and of 65 secondary sources. Valuable for those studying the American West, maritime history, business history, and the history of coastal and island localities.

Of historical interest primarily for specialists who deal with the history of the United States space program, this site is the online companion to the PBS special of the same name. It includes a full transcript of the broadcast program, as well as several fascinating features. Visitors can access six panoramic photographs taken by various astronauts on the moon, as well as eight audio files of noted astronauts (including Buzz Aldrin discussing the Apollo 11 mission and Jim Lovell discussing the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission). Each audio file lasts approximately one to two minutes, and includes a transcript. Of particular interest is the essay by Eugene Cernan, the last U.S. astronaut to walk on the moon, and a 3,000-word essay on the origins of the moon, written by a noted astronomer. The personal stories may be of value as primary sources, but otherwise the site has limited historical value.

A collection of 18 essays and 90 photographs on the history of Old West Durham—one of the oldest neighborhoods within Durham, NC—which began as a traveler's rest stop prior to the city's establishment in the 1850s as a railroad town. Traces the neighborhood's numerous incarnations as a hangout for "the shiftless of society" in the mid-19th century to a factory town following the establishment of Erwin Mills in 1892 to the site for Duke University's west campus in the 1920s. A period of rapid decline occurred in the 1970s and 1980s, followed by its present-day renaissance as a neighborhood community.

The site includes seven Works Progress Administration oral histories from 1938, ranging from 1,000 to 3,000 words each, of people living in the mill village; seven newspaper articles from 1913 about the growing "suburb"; a 3,400-word essay on the history of the cotton mill and mill village; a 4,000-word reminiscence of a child growing up in the neighborhood during the 1950s and 1960s; and a 550-word essay on "Preservation North Carolina," an organization interested in preserving industrial heritage sites. The Old West Durham Neighborhood Association was formed in 1995 with the credo "Diversity, Harmony, Community." A well-designed local history presentation useful to those studying urban history and labor history.