The Virginia Military Institute has a number of interesting digital collections related to the Civil War era, including one that focuses on the school’s involvement in John Brown’s execution. After Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry in October 1859, VMI Superintendent Francis H. Smith wrote Virginia Governor Henry Wise and offered to send some of the […]
8
Feb
10
VMI Cadets & John Brown’s Execution – Dec. 1859
Posted by sailerd Published in Antebellum (1840-1861), Images, Letters & Diariesno comment
5
Feb
10
Lieutenant Cornelius C. Platter Diary (1864 – 1865)
Posted by sailerd Published in Civil War (1861-1865), Images, Letters & DiariesLieutenant Cornelius C. Platter’s diary (Nov. 1864 – April 1865), which is available from the Digital Library of Georgia, provides an account of his service with the 81st Ohio Infantry Volunteers as they marched through Georgia and the Carolinas with General William T. Sherman. This diary offers an interesting perspective on life as an officer […]
3
Feb
10
Help Improve the UGRR Digital Classroom
Posted by Matthew Pinsker Published in Antebellum (1840-1861), Images, Lesson Plans, Letters & DiariesJames McPherson writes in Battle Cry of Freedom (1989) that “On all issues but one, antebellum southerners stood for state’s rights and a weak federal government” (p. 78). Yet that one exception –the fugitive slave law– was a principal cause of the coming Civil War and potentially changes one’s view of the war’s meaning. White […]
3
Feb
10
Westbrook Seminary: Educating Women
Posted by sailerd Published in 19th Century (1840-1880), Images, Letters & Diaries“Westbrook Seminary: Educating Women” is an interesting digital exhibit available through Maine Memory Network, which is managed by the Maine Historical Society. One can read a student’s diary (1843-1844) as well as learn more about several students who attended Westbrook Seminary throughout the 19th century. Check out all of the digital exhibits on Maine Memory […]
2
Feb
10
Worth a Thousand Words: Photographs of Lincoln
Posted by Published in Civil War (1861-1865), Images, Lesson PlansWritten by Kaye Passmore and Amy Trenkle for the National Endowment for the Humanities, Picturing Lincoln is another Picturing America lesson plan. Using art as a medium to teach, students are asked to look at a photograph of Abraham Lincoln and make assessments. Later, students read a short biography of the president before exercising their […]
1
Feb
10
Iowa Counties Historic Atlases
Posted by sailerd Published in 19th Century (1840-1880), Images, MapsThe University of Iowa’s Digital Library contains a number of different digital projects, including “Iowa Counties Historic Atlases.” One can find almost 100 county atlases published between the late 1800s and the early 1900s. Each county atlas, such as one for Des Moines county, offers different county maps, city maps, a wide variety of illustrations, […]
