America on the Move, Part Two: Creating Stories Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 05/19/2008 - 15:55
Description

Smithsonian National Museum of American History curators share secrets of how they develop the individual stories presented in exhibitions such as "America on the Move." They then help students who are creating their own family stories by analyzing objects, documents, and other resources. This presentation continues from the presentation "America on the Move, Part One: Migrations, Immigrations, and How We Got Here."

To view this electronic field trip, select "America on the Move, Part Two: Creating Stories" under the heading "Electronic Field Trips."

Long Island Museum of American Art, History, and Carriages [NY]

Description

The Long Island Museum of American Art, History, and Carriages allows visitors the chance to learn about three unique subjects. Through recreated period rooms and permanent and traveling exhibits, visitors can explore Long Island history and its relation to natural history; in the art galleries, they can view pieces from the early 1800s to the present day; and, in the 10 carriage galleries, they can compare almost 100 carriages. Visitors may also walk through the grounds and the historic structures on-site, dating from the late 18th through the late 19th century.

The museum offers exhibits and tours and educational programs for school groups.

Santa Fe Trail Center Museum and Research Library [KS]

Description

The Santa Fe Trail Center interprets the historic transportation route known as the Santa Fe Trail. This regional museum and library preserves artifacts and manuscripts related to the blending of the major cultures along the Trail and enhances understanding of the continued development of the Trail. The center presents interrelated interpretive exhibits, learning programs, and resource materials to engage the public in learning about its past.

The center offers exhibits, school tours, and research library access.

Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum [IN]

Description

The Museum exhibits over 120 cars ranging from 1894 to 1999 and automotive displays on three floors. The museum has the most extensive collection of Auburn, Cord, and Duesenberg automobiles in the world, and features the largest exhibit of Duesenberg automobiles on public display in the world.

The museum offers exhibits, tours, research library access, educational programs, and recreational and educational events.

North Carolina Transportation Museum

Description

Visitors to the Museum discover the people and machines that have moved North Carolina. Located on the site of Southern Railway's former steam locomotive repair facility Spencer Shops, this is where locomotives that hauled Southern's passenger trains and freight trains filled with North Carolina furniture, textiles, tobacco, and produce were serviced from 1896 to the late 1970s. Up to 3,000 people once worked here but today visitors can see an authentic train depot, antique automobiles, and a roundhouse with 25 locomotives.

A second website for the museum, operated by the Friends of the Museum, can be found here.

The site offers a short film, exhibits, tours, train rides, educational programs, and recreational and educational events.

California State Railroad Museum

Description

The California State Railroad Museum in Old Sacramento is a tribute to the role of the "iron horse" in connecting California to the rest of the nation. The museum features 21 restored locomotives and cars, some dating back to 1862. There is a full-scale diorama of an 1860s construction site high in the Sierra Nevada as well as a bridge elevated 24 feet above the museum floor.

The museum offers exhibits, train rides, a short film, tours, research library access, educational programs, and recreational and educational events.

Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village [MI]

Description

The Henry Ford Museum presents U.S. ideas and inventions. Exhibit topics include agriculture; clockwork; automobiles; Presidential limousines; furnishings; manufacturing; jewelry; home appliances; R. Buckminster Fuller's Dymaxion House, a 1940s house of the future; aviation; human rights within the United States; silver; pewter; transportation; and 20th-century generations. Collection highlights include Abraham Lincoln's chair from Ford's Theatre, one of George Washington's camp beds, a replica of the Wright brothers' Flyer, the limousine in which John F. Kennedy was assassinated, a Gothic steam engine, and the Goldenrod. The Goldenrod broke world land speed records in 1965. The 80-acre Greenfield Village incorporates 83 historic structures. District themes include the railway, an 1880s working farm, Thomas Alva Edison, home life between the 17th and 20th centuries, historic skills, and the Model T Ford.

The museum offers exhibits, three curriculum-based guided activity programs, one curriculum-based dramatic presentation, and cafes. The village offers exhibits, interactive activities, the opportunity to ride historic vehicles, eight curriculum-based dramatic presentations, a self-guided activity for students, restaurants, and a food stall. The site also offers teacher workshops, a teacher fellow program, summer camps, Scout programs, and a youth mentorship program. Wheelchairs and electric scooters are available for use on site. The village is closed between January and mid-April. The website offers virtual exhibits, teacher's guides, student exploration guides, suggested pre- and post-visit activities, a club for teachers, and audio tour downloads.