Coal Mining in the Gilded Age and Progressive Era

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Logo, Coal Mining in the Guilded Age and Progressive Era
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This collection about coal mining in the 19th century consists of 17 separate pages, mostly containing primary source material, produced between 1869 and 1904, about coal mining and mining disasters. Material includes a 600-word essay on the dangers of coal mining, an account of an 1869 cave-in, Stephen Crane's 1894 article, "In the Depths of a Coal Mine," eight photographs of coal miners from 1904, and a 30-page account of labor violence written by a Pinkerton agent in 1894.

A page about mining machinery offers four study questions for student visitors. The site will be useful for those studying 19th-century coal mining and labor issues.

Child Labor in America, 1908-1912: Photographs of Lewis W. Hine

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Image for Child Labor in America, 1908-1912: Photographs of Lewis W. Hine
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Furnishes 64 photographs taken by Lewis W. Hine (1874–1940) between 1908 and 1912. Images document American children working in mills, mines, streets, and factories, and as "newsies," seafood workers, fruit pickers, and salesmen. The website also includes photographs of immigrant families and children's "pastimes and vices."

Original captions by Hine—one of the most influential photographers in American history—call attention to exploitative and unhealthy conditions for laboring children. A background essay introduces Hine and the history of child labor in the United States. This is a valuable collection for studying documentary photography, urban history, labor history, and the social history of the Progressive era.

Bisbee Deportation of 1917

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Logo, Bisbee Deportation of 1917
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In 1917, a labor dispute between copper mining companies and workers in Bisbee, Arizona, escalated into vigilante action against suspected members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). This site provides primary and secondary sources on the strike and subsequent deportation of over 1000 striking miners from Bisbee. It offers a roughly 500-word essay on the incident's historical context, and provides online access to materials such as personal narratives, witness interviews, government reports, newspaper articles, correspondence, and images selected from the University of Arizona Library, the Arizona Historical Society, and the Sharlot Hall Museum in Prescott, Arizona. There are 26 mining and deportation photographs, three maps, 19 IWW publications with color images of the covers, and six images of IWW stickers on the site, along with a bibliography of 34 scholarly works, 11 of which offer links to online, full-text versions. The site provides a partial finding aid that lists items with links to the document texts featured on the site. The site is ideal for studying labor action and labor/management relations in the early 20th century.

Inside an American Factory: Films of the Westinghouse Works, 1904

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Photo, Westinghouse Works factory
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This exhibit includes 21 "actuality" films from the Library's Westinghouse Works Collection. Actuality films were motion pictures that were produced on flip cards, also known as mutoscopes. These films, made by the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company in 1904, were intended to showcase the company's operations and feature the Westinghouse Air Brake Company, the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company, and the Westinghouse Machine Company. They were shown daily in the Westinghouse Auditorium at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis. Brief (roughly 500-word) descriptive narratives accompany each film, along with three to five photographs of factory exteriors and interiors and male and female workers performing their duties. A timeline traces the history of the Westinghouse companies from the birth of founder George Westinghouse in 1846 to Westinghouse's last patent, awarded four years after his death in 1918. Another link offers a Wilmerding News article, dated September 2, 1904, about life in Wilmerding, Pennsylvania, "the ideal home town," where the Westinghouse Air Brake factory was located. A bibliography of 18 scholarly works on Westinghouse and manufacturing in America is also included. The easily-navigable site is keyword searchable and can be browsed by subject. It is a good resource for information on labor and manufacturing in early 20th-century America, as well as on early film.

Vincentian Postcards

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Postcard, After the Attack: Consolation, c. 1915, DePaul University Library
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The Community of the Sisters of Charity, an order of the Congregation of the Mission founded by St. Vincent De Paul and dedicated to teaching and nursing, was founded in the U.S. in 1809 by St. Elizabeth Seton (1774-1821). This collection of 580 postcards "documents the spirituality and mission of the Vincentians" and includes images of institutions such as hospitals, churches, and seminaries in many U.S. states including California, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Maryland, and Massachusetts. "Spanning 200 years, these postcards reflect the heritage of the religious orders, the growth of social institutions, advancements in technology, and changes in urban environments." Visitors can browse the full collection or use advanced and simple searches to locate images of particular interest. Full bibliographic information accompanies each image. This archive is of interest to anyone researching the history of religious institutions in 19th- and 20th-century America.

Musicians Local No. 627 and the Mutual Musicians Foundation

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Photo, Singing Novelty Orchestra, c. 1920s, Musicians Local. . . site
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Kansas City's Local 627, one of several African American musicians' unions affiliated with the American Federation of Musicians, was founded in 1917. This website traces its history over the course of the 20th century. This history is divided into nine chronological sections, including introduction to the roots of Kansas City jazz style, early jazz bands, bigger bands and a new headquarters for the organization, jazz during World War II, the thriving music scene in the 1950s, the merger with Local 34, and the efforts of the Mutual Musicians Foundation to promote jazz in the 1960s and 1970s.

Upon entering each section, visitors are greeted by a video presentation of photographs of prominent Kansas City musicians and newspaper articles documenting their accomplishments, accompanied by a jazz soundtrack. In addition to explanatory text introducing musicians and prominent events in Kansas City history, each section also includes roughly 20 photographs, as well as a few songs of the era, which can be listened to using RealPlayer. Useful for those interested in Kansas City history or in U.S. music culture in the 20th century more generally.

Communism in Washington State--History and Memory Project

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Woodcut, "Gag Rule," From "Voice of Action"
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A small but well-constructed site on the activities and influence of the Communist Party (CP) in Washington State, where the CP had more significance than in most other areas of the U.S. The site contains 21 video excerpts of oral history interviews with five current members who describe experiences from the late 1930s to the present. Topics include the role of the CP in 1930s labor organizing, relations with the Soviet Union, the Red Scare that began in 1947, and anti-racism activity in the 1960s. Additional subjects cover relations with the New Left, plans for revitalization, methods of recruitment, and growing up in a Communist family. The site also offers nine essays totaling 25,000 words, accompanied by more than 200 images, that provide a narrative history of the movement. Users will also find 30 woodcut illustrations from two radical 1930s journals and an annotated timeline. This will provide a good introduction to radical politics on a local level.

Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States, 1992-2001

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Photo, Bush paying respects to Reagan, June 11 2004, Public Papers of the...
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Digitized versions of 20 volumes of Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States, spanning from 1992 to 2004, are presented on this website.

Materials include papers and speeches issued by the Office of the Press Secretary during the terms of William J. Clinton (17 volumes, 1993–2001), in addition to two volumes pertaining to George H. W. Bush for 1992, and four volumes for George W. Bush (January 20–June 30, 2004). The documents, including addresses, statements, letters, and interviews with the press, are compiled by the Office of the Federal Register and published in chronological order.

Also included are appendices with daily schedules and meetings, nominations to the Senate, proclamations, executive orders, and photographic portfolios. Users may access multiple volumes by keyword searches and separate volumes by title of document, type, subject matter, and personal names.

Civil Rights Movement Veterans

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Photo, March to Montgomery, 1965
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This site celebrates the commitment and efforts of veterans of the Civil Rights Movement. Introduction provides an overview of the website and the Movement.

Veterans Roll Call provides biographies (in some cases, autobiographies) of more than 500 veterans. It includes dates of activity, organizational affiliation, states they worked in, home states, contact information, and personal essays (of lengths ranging from one sentence to full essays). In Memory records the names of men, women, and children killed during the Civil Rights Movement, as well as names of veterans who have died. The Speakers List lists men and women who are available to speak or answer email inquiries.

Photo Album features more than 15 photo essays on subjects including sit-ins, the Freedom Riders, and the March on Washington. Photo annotations link to more information on the events depicted. Other resources including Civil Rights Movement posters, album covers, and pins, as well as photographs organized by photographer.

History & Timeline lists events by year, from 1951 to 1968. Some events include short descriptions; all include recommendations for print and online resources on the events.

Articles gathers together more than 50 documents by Civil Rights Movement veterans, some contemporary to events and some written later. Visitors can also download samples of literacy tests from Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana and view segregation laws. Documents archives contemporary documents created by CORE, NAACP, SCLC, SNCC, SSOC, and other organizations. Documents include newsletters, maps, plans, reports, minutes, government reports, and more. Also see Letters from the Field for more than 40 letters by Civil Rights Movement participants.

Our Stories includes interviews, stories, and other recollections from more than 80 veterans, while Our Thoughts includes more than 40 retrospective articles by veterans. Discussions preserves more than 20 online and transcribed discussions looking back on the Civil Rights Movement (most are modern, but they also include a 1956 discussion with Rosa Parks).

In addition, the website includes poetry by veterans, related links organized by topic, and a bibliography featuring age-specific book lists.

With the interviews, autobiographies, photos, documents, and discussions, the site includes a wealth of primary sources, and would be invaluable for any student researching the human side of the Civil Rights Movement.

War Relocation Authority Camps in Arizona, 1942-1946

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Photo, Transportation, 1942
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Note: Unpublished because annotation does not seem to match website. Larger parent website also already covered at http://teachinghistory.org/history-content/website-reviews/23319.

This exhibit by an art student begins with 11 color postcard-like recreations of original black-and-white photographs documenting life in the Poston (AZ) War Relocation Center, where more than 17,000 Japanese-Americans were interned between 1942 and 1945 by the U.S. military. An accompanying essay provides background information and a brochure describes the Poston Monument. In addition, viewers can access six pages from "an Internment Camp's High School Yearbook," and additional legal documents, memoirs, newspaper and journal articles, a timeline, and book excerpts through links to 26 related documents and 40 websites. An important site on the internment experience.