Civil War photograph lessons & activities The Mathew Brady Bunch New Technologies and New Uses Using Sources: Civil War Photography Technology & Tricks What Do You See? Civil War Photojournalism: A Record of War The Civil War Through a Child’s Eye Teaching Now: Integrating Literacy, History & Geography Teaching Now: Using Primary Sources with 21st-Century Learners Collection Connections teaching strategies & activities Abraham Lincoln Papers … [Read more...]
Today in History: Alcatraz Island
Today in History–August 11–the Library of Congress features Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay. On this date in 1934 a group of federal prisoners arrived at the newly opened Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary, designed as a high-security, escape-proof fortress. Before that, the island had been used to house military prisoners. Alcatraz is an English version of the Spanish name—Isla de los Alcatraces (Isle of the Pelicans)—given by Juan Manuel de Ayala following his 1775 exploration. Later, it was … [Read more...]
Today in History: Anarchist Emma Goldman
Today in History–February 11–the Library of Congress features anarchist and feminist Emma Goldman, who was arrested on this date in 1916 right before she was to give a lecture on family planning. A Russian immigrant, Goldman joined the labor movement after working in a New York garment factory. Later she would embrace anarchism--the political belief that all forms of government authority are undesirable and unnecessary. Learn more about this staunch advocate for individual rights by visiting … [Read more...]
Learning from the Source: Civil War Prison Experiences
While researching resources for the November 10 Today in History: Henry Wirz & Andersonville Prison post, I discovered numerous teaching ideas related to Civil War prisons and prisoners contained in various collection connection sections. Below you will find those ideas along with a few more. We encourage you to share your primary source teaching resources and strategies related to this topic as well. Civil War: First-Person Narratives of the American South, 1860-1920 This collection … [Read more...]
Today in History: Henry Wirz & Andersonville Prison
Today in History–November 9–the Library of Congress features Confederate officer Henry Wirz, executed as a war criminal on this day in 1865. Wirz was the commanding officer in charge of the Confederate prison at Andersonville, Georgia, also known as Camp Sumter. Learn more about Banneker by visiting the Today in History section, then follow the links below to access more primary sources and teaching ideas about Wirz, Andersonville and other prisons, and the Civil War. Henry Wriz image … [Read more...]