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Teaching with Historic Places has developed more than 160 classroom-ready lesson plans that together range across American history. All are available on the Web. For more information on lessons plans or our program, contact TwHP. You can also view the entire collection according to location, topic, primary source, skill, U.S. History Standards, and Social Studies Standards. Pre-Contact Colonial/Revolutionary
Discover the site of a 16th-century Spanish town that was founded before Roanoke, Jamestown, and Plymouth, and learn how archeology uncovered the story of Santa Elena. (National Historic Landmark)
Learn about traditional Hopi culture and farming at Awatovi, a historic pueblo where enduring Hopi traditions and American archeological research reveal much about this important place. (National Historic Landmark)
Examine the changing lifeways of the inhabitants of this village from the 7th century to the arrival of the Spanish in the early 17th century. (National Park)
Learn about one of the nation's most important conservation laws--the Antiquities Act of 1906--and how its passage preserved important cultural sites such as Tonto National Monument, which preserves remnants of the Salado culture prior to European contact. (National Park)
Learn how transportation routes affected a local inn, how archeology revealed the inn's use over time, and how preservation efforts saved the historic site from suburban sprawl.
Learn how a battle in a tiny valley near the frontier in northern New York helped determine whether the American colonies would become an independent nation. (National Historic Landmark)
Learn how this American Revolution battle spurred colonial unity and sparked the formation of the Continental Army. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Consider the complex political and cultural differences that existed between European Americans and American Indians during the early 19th century and learn how these conflicting views ultimately affected the Creeks. (National Park)
Learn how New York's Mohawk Valley became the setting for a fierce Revolutionary War battle that pitted residents of the area, including the nations of the Iroquois Confederacy, against each other. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Learn why Moravians immigrated to the New World and how the towns they established embodied their religious beliefs.
Discover the site of a 16th-century Spanish town that was founded before Roanoke, Jamestown, and Plymouth, and learn how archeology uncovered the story of Santa Elena. (National Historic Landmark)
Walk the road where the “shot heard ‘round the world” sparked the American Revolution, and investigate how works of art both depicted and shaped our memory of these dramatic battles. (National Park)
Learn about traditional Hopi culture and farming at Awatovi, a historic pueblo where enduring Hopi traditions and American archeological research reveal much about this important place. (National Historic Landmark)
Discover how Spanish fortifications on the island of Puerto Rico helped protect Spain's expanding interests in the New World. (National Park/National Historic Landmark/UNESCO World Heritage Site) La versión en español Los Castillos del Viejo San Juan: Guardianes del Caribe
Discover why this British settlement was built and how it functioned as Great Britain and Spain each struggled to control land from Charleston to St. Augustine. (National Park)
Examine the changing lifeways of the inhabitants of this village from the 7th century to the arrival of the Spanish in the early 17th century. (National Park)
Learn how the deceptive results of this battle in the backwoods of North Carolina helped set the stage for American victory. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Learn about Independence Hall and about how the international influence of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution led to the designation of the building in which they were adopted as a World Heritage Site. (National Park/UNESCO World Heritage Site)
Examine the influence of Reverend Joseph Bellamy, a leading preacher in New England from 1740-1790, in colonial American religion, and learn about the role of religion in 18th-century life as well as the resurgence of religious fervor known as the Great Awakening.
Discover the complex culture and trading economy of the Hidatsa and Mandan tribes in North Dakota during the 18th century, as seen by anthropologists and artists. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Analyze the influences that shaped the symbolic meaning of the bell, and evaluate the various claims as to how and when it was cracked. (National Park)
Discover how early settlers survived on Maine's coastal islands despite harsh living conditions. (National Park)
Discover how Raleigh became the capital of North Carolina and how the design of the capitol building reflected state pride as well as democratic ideals. (National Historic Landmark)
Explore a group of 18th-century missions in modern San Antonio to learn about Spanish influence on native peoples and the patterns of Texas culture. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Learn about 18th-century warfare and the battle that was a turning point of the American Revolution. (National Park)
Unearth the remains of colonial America's first fully integrated ironworks, and consider what reconstruction of the site reveals about daily life for some early European settlers. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Learn about James Oglethorpe and his enduring city plan from the colonial era. (National Historic Landmark)
Learn how Spain established a New World empire based on collecting precious metals and goods from the Americas. La versión en español Las flotas españolas de 1715 y 1733: Desastres en el mar (134)
Examine New Orleans's distinctive French Quarter, a vibrant reflection of its Creole heritage, and recall the city's role in American westward expansion. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Understand why George Washington was so revered during his lifetime and beyond, and learn why it took 100 years to complete this famous monument in his honor. (National Park)
Examine continuity and change in this rural Virginia town from its founding as a Quaker agricultural community and mill town in the 18th century to today. (National Historic Landmark)
Investigate early rice plantations in Georgetown, South Carolina, to learn how rice cultivation transformed the native environment and promoted the South's dependence on a plantation economy.
Lightning Lessons
Discover the African Burial Ground National Monument (Lightning Lesson 3)Dig through centuries of Manhattan concrete to uncover a Colonial cemetery in this lesson plan about the African Diaspora, spirituality, and how we honor our origins. (National Park) African Americans and the War of 1812 on Tangier Island
Follow 19th-century travelers as they cross the treacherous Allegheny Mountains using an innovative inclined railway. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Consider the complex political and cultural differences that existed between European Americans and American Indians during the early 19th century and learn how these conflicting views ultimately affected the Creeks. (National Park)
Assess the importance of America's early canal system and its economic and social effects. (National Park)
Evaluate several centuries of dramatic changes to an adobe ranch house and its surroundings in suburban Long Beach to analyze the interaction between Spanish and Anglo culture in California.
Inspect Commodore Stephen Decatur's home near the White House, a gathering place for the politically ambitious, and learn why the naval hero felt compelled to fight a fateful duel. (National Historic Landmark)
Discover how Spanish fortifications on the island of Puerto Rico helped protect Spain's expanding interests in the New World. (National Park/National Historic Landmark/UNESCO World Heritage Site) La versión en español Los Castillos del Viejo San Juan: Guardianes del Caribe
Learn how these remote passes in the mountains influenced the course of the westward expansion of the United States. (National Park/Raton Pass is a National Historic Landmark.)
Meet John Marshall, who led the U.S. Supreme Court from obscurity and weakness to prominence and power in the early 19th century. (National Historic Landmark)
Explore how Hopewell functioned as a productive work unit and how work defined social relationships in this early National period community. (National Park)
Learn about Independence Hall and about how the international influence of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution led to the designation of the building in which they were adopted as a World Heritage Site. (National Park/UNESCO World Heritage Site)
Learn how the 1804-1806 expedition effectively opened the Northwest to the influence of the United States, established relations with numerous American Indian nations, and gathered useful scientific documentation about the West. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Discover how early settlers survived on Maine's coastal islands despite harsh living conditions. (National Park)
Meet the people and learn of events that influenced the development of Abraham Lincoln's character and personality as a youth on the Indiana frontier. (National Park/National Historic Landmark) Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial: Where Man and Memory Intersect (144) Discover the power of place in honoring President Lincoln's origins and consider how the nation uses memorial structures and landscapes to express respect for its heroes and to celebrate anniversaries. (National Park)
Tour the world's longest cave, a geological wonder, and assess the ways it has been used and preserved as a historic resource. (National Park/UNESCO World Heritage Site)
Follow this president to the White House and Lindenwald in the rough-and-tumble world of early 19th century politics. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Visit the Madisons' plantation home and their world of social prominence, and explore some contemporary views of slavery. (National Historic Landmark)
Learn about Free Frank McWorter and how archeology can help tell the story of the interracial town he founded in the years before the Civil War.
Assess the importance of America's early canal system and its economic and social effects. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Enter The Octagon of Washington, DC, to discover how a historic brick house offered grandeur and stability to the new capital of the United States in the early 19th century. (National Historic Landmark)
Learn how the British bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore led to the writing of “The Star-Spangled Banner” and how Key’s song became a powerful symbol for Americans.(National Park) Learn how a classroom teacher uses this lesson.
Learn about James Oglethorpe and his enduring city plan from the colonial era. (National Historic Landmark)
Learn about the multifaceted intellect of Thomas Jefferson and how he fused his abilities as an architect, educational and political theorist, and politician to create a revolutionary new setting for higher education in the new American republic. (National Historic Landmark/UNESCO World Heritage Site)
Understand the factors that contributed both to the forced removal of the Cherokees off their homelands and to painful divisions within the tribe. (The Trail of Tears is a National Historic Trail./The Major Ridge House and John Ross House are National Historic Landmarks.) Learn how a classroom teacher uses this lesson.
Understand why George Washington was so revered during his lifetime and beyond, and learn why it took 100 years to complete this famous monument in his honor. (National Park)
Examine continuity and change in this rural Virginia town from its founding as a Quaker agricultural community and mill town in the 18th century to today. (National Historic Landmark)
Learn about the significance of this small island off the coast of Virginia in the Chesapeake Bay, and its connection to the War of 1812. Consider the impact of war on the U.S.'s African American community and their contributions during wartime. Allegheny Portage Railroad: Developing Transportation Technology (23) When Rice Was King (3)
Investigate early rice plantations in Georgetown, South Carolina, to learn how rice cultivation transformed the native environment and promoted the South's dependence on a plantation economy. Lightning Lessons African Americans and the War of 1812 on Tangier IslandLearn about the significance of this small island off the coast of Virginia in the Chesapeake Bay, and its connection to the War of 1812. Consider the impact of war on the U.S.'s African American community and their contributions during wartime.
Discover how Adeline Hornbek, single mother of four, defied traditional gender roles to become the owner of a successful ranch under the Homestead Act. (National Park)
Examine conditions of the Civil War's most notorious prison, and learn how inmates were able to cope. (National Park) Learn how a classroom teacher uses this lesson.
Understand how battlefield medical care developed during the Civil War, particularly in the Union Army. (National Historic Landmark)
Discover how the Battle of Glorieta Pass ended the Confederacy's dream of expanding westward to the Pacific Ocean. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Learn how the Civil War created fierce conflicts among American Indian nations who had been moved across the Mississippi River.
Use one of the Civil War's key early battles to understand the conflicts that faced border states such as Kentucky during and after the war. (National Historic Landmark)
Understand the violence of the Civil War through the eyes of young women whose homes were in the midst of an important battle and continuing conflict.
Recall one of the Civil War's bloodiest battles, which raged through the rocky cedar glades of Tennessee, as told in eyewitness and personal accounts. (National Park)
Learn how technology applied to textile mills revolutionized industry, in turn affecting mill architecture, city planning, and transportation. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Evaluate several centuries of dramatic changes to an adobe ranch house and its surroundings in suburban Long Beach to analyze the interaction between Spanish and Anglo culture in California.
Learn why this home in Fredericksburg, Virginia, was a center of military activity, and consider the impact the war had on those whose property became part of the battlefield. (National Park)
Examine how geography and boosterism influenced the placement of rail lines, which then stimulated the growth of towns such as Chattanooga. Learn how a classroom teacher uses this lesson.
Trace the course of this Civil War battle and consider the wrenching personal choices that were made by soldiers on each side. (National Park) Learn how a classroom teacher uses this lesson.
Follow Barton's remarkable career as a leader of charitable causes, from caring for the wounded on Civil War battlefields to founding the American Red Cross. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Learn about the life of the Confederate guards at the Florence Stockade Civil War prison camp and discover how archeology revealed much of this information.
Learn about traditional Hopi culture and farming at Awatovi, a historic pueblo where enduring Hopi traditions and American archeological research reveal much about this important place. (National Historic Landmark)
Learn how three buildings restored and maintained by the U.S. General Services Administration illustrate the important role the federal government played and continues to play in communities across the country.
Study personal accounts of soldiers who fought in the first battle of the Civil War, and discover how the day set the tone for the many bloody battles to come. (National Park) Learn how a classroom teacher uses this lesson.
Examine how changing military technology and U.S. budget debates influenced the development of Fort Hancock and the U.S. coastal defense system. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Follow Admiral Farragut's attack on Fort Morgan and Mobile Bay, and consider the human reaction to technologies such as ironclads and underwater mines. (National Historic Landmark)
Discover why Fort Pickens was so valuable to both the Union and Confederacy, and follow the actions of the military commanders faced with crucial decisions. (National Park)
Discover how Spanish fortifications on the island of Puerto Rico helped protect Spain's expanding interests in the New World. (National Park/National Historic Landmark/UNESCO World Heritage Site) La versión en español Los Castillos del Viejo San Juan: Guardianes del Caribe
Understand the magnitude of the struggle involved in securing equal educational opportunities for African Americans and examine how Prudence Crandall challenged the prevailing attitude toward educating African Americans in New England prior to the Civil War. (Little Rock Central High School is a National Park and National Historic Landmark/Prudence Crandall Museum is a National Historic Landmark) Learn how a classroom teacher uses this lesson.
Learn how these remote passes in the mountains influenced the course of the westward expansion of the United States. (National Park/Raton Pass is a National Historic Landmark.)
Understand the ways in which ranchos in northern New Mexico provide evidence of the ability of Hispano culture to adapt to new influences while still maintaining its traditional character.
"The Honor of Your Company is Requested": Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Ball at the Patent Office (143)
Attend President Abraham Lincoln’s second inaugural ball and explore how American citizens celebrate their leaders taking office. (National Historic Landmark)
Follow Frederick Douglass on his journey from life as a slave to that of a respected statesman and investigate how three homes reflect the different phases of his life. (Wye House, the Nathan and Polly Johnson House, and Cedar Hill are National Historic Landmarks. Cedar Hill and the Nathan and Polly Johnson House are each a resource of a National Park.)
Learn how Abraham Lincoln's belief in freedom and democracy, his eloquence, and the support of family and community propelled him to the White House and uplifted him through the turbulent Civil War. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Understand the experience of early Asian immigrants and the obstacles they encountered as they struggled to make a living and find a place in American society. (Locke is a National Historic Landmark)
Learn why a family home in upstate New York became the site for the creation of one of the most important documents in the history of American women. (National Park)
Tour the world's longest cave, a geological wonder, and assess the ways it has been used and preserved as a historic resource. (National Park/UNESCO World Heritage Site)
Follow this president to the White House and Lindenwald in the rough-and-tumble world of early 19th century politics. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Examine how the advent of industrialization in 19th-century America impacted the workforce in New England's Blackstone River Valley. (Mechanics Hall is included in the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor.)
Explore the country's first large-scale designed landscape open to the public that spawned the development of other rural cemeteries, public parks, and designed suburbs.
Learn about Free Frank McWorter and how archeology can help tell the story of the interracial town he founded in the years before the Civil War.
Learn about the history of Camp Chase in Columbus, Ohio, and about the federal government's policies guiding the marking of POW graves during and after the Civil War.
Compare two images of St. Louis's handsome Courthouse--as a gathering place for pioneers heading west and as a dramatic focus for Dred Scott's heroic efforts to free his family from slavery. (National Park)
Learn how an obscure settlement created during Mormon expansion grew into a well-known and prosperous American city, and consider factors that hinder or contribute to the evolution of early settlements into permanent communities, towns, and cities.
Meet Captain Edward Penniman, and learn about 19th-century whaling in southeastern Massachusetts and how the whaling industry impacted Penniman's family and life. (National Park)
Learn about James Oglethorpe and his enduring city plan from the colonial era. (National Historic Landmark)
Understand how newly developed technologies affected two military engagements and one tiny town in Mississippi during the Civil War. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Understand the importance of the Mississippi to both the North and South during the Civil War, and the differences between a siege and a regular battle. (National Historic Landmark)
Explore early Lincoln, Nebraska, to visit the historic Kennard House and to learn about how this grand building set the tone for a new capital city
Learn how veteran soldiers adapted to the technological changes that had increased the deadliness of the battlefield, and understand the cost of the Civil War in human terms.
Discover the personal experiences of Americans in a nation divided politically on the issue of slavery through the early life of Ulysses S. Grant, who lived on a Missouri farm with his wife Julia Dent Grant and her slave-holding family in the 1850s. (National Park)
Examine continuity and change in this rural Virginia town from its founding as a Quaker agricultural community and mill town in the 18th century to today. (National Historic Landmark)
Discover the Mary Ann Shadd Cary House (Lightning Lesson 1)
Discover how Adeline Hornbek, single mother of four, defied traditional gender roles to become the owner of a successful ranch under the Homestead Act. (National Park)
Understand the "servant" experience in early 20th-century America, as well as the pros and cons for women working in factories versus domestic service.
Discover how the first arboretum in the United States became part of the burgeoning urban park movement in the second half of the 19th century. (National Historic Landmark)
Explore the natural wonders of this once remote area in Utah and learn how it became a popular tourist destination in the early 20th century and finally a national park. (National Park/Includes Bryce Canyon Lodge, a National Historic Landmark)
Evaluate several centuries of dramatic changes to an adobe ranch house and its surroundings in suburban Long Beach to analyze the interaction between Spanish and Anglo culture in California.
Discover how and why industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie chose libraries to be among his greatest benefactions to the U.S., and assess the impact of libraries on American society.
Compare the Spanish and Anglo influences on settlements along the Texas-Mexico border region of the Rio Grande. (National Park)
Examine how geography and boosterism influenced the placement of rail lines, which then stimulated the growth of towns such as Chattanooga. Learn how a classroom teacher uses this lesson.
Learn about the life and work of the sculptor, Daniel Chester French, and about the important role public sculpture played in turn-of-the-20th century America. (National Historic Landmark)
Examine the history of this "city-within-a-city," a self-supporting African-American community that prospered from the late 19th century until the 1930s.
Learn about a famous landscape artist and his efforts to promote conservation and an appreciation for the native plant life of the United States.
Follow Barton's remarkable career as a leader of charitable causes, from caring for the wounded on Civil War battlefields to founding the American Red Cross. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Learn how a tradition of outlawry developed in Kansas and how people in Coffeyville fought back.
Discover the science and early history of hydroelectric power at the historic Minidoka Powerplant, where rural electrification and irrigation changed the lives of early 20th century homesteaders.
Learn about Frederick Law Olmsted and his philosophy about parks and cities as well as city life during the Industrial Revolution. (Includes Arnold Arboretum,a National Historic Landmark)
Learn how three buildings restored and maintained by the U.S. General Services Administration illustrate the important role the federal government played and continues to play in communities across the country.
Examine how changing military technology and U.S. budget debates influenced the development of Fort Hancock and the U.S. coastal defense system. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Discover how Spanish fortifications on the island of Puerto Rico helped protect Spain's expanding interests in the New World. (National Park/National Historic Landmark/UNESCO World Heritage Site) La versión en español Los Castillos del Viejo San Juan: Guardianes del Caribe
Analyze how this local landmark came to symbolize the commercial prosperity of a western town in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Examine this one-room school in Nebraska and consider the important role it played in the community during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. (National Park)
Trace the evolution of this Maryland site from a chapter of the Chautauqua movement, to an amusement park, to a national park. (National Park)
Examine how the discovery of gold in the Canada's remote Klondike region touched off the last great gold rush, creating an economic boom that changed the city of Seattle forever. (National Park/Includes Pioneer Building, a National Historic Landmark) See also Skagway: Gateway to the Klondike (75) another lesson plan on the discovery of gold in the Klondike.
Learn about some of the practical problems of constructing roads in difficult terrain and about the added challenge of building in such a way as to enhance, rather than damage, fragile and beautiful places such as Glacier National Park. (National Park/National Historic Landmark/Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site)
Visit the home of the only man to serve the country both as president and chief justice, and meet the rest of his public service-oriented family. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Tour Edison's West Orange complex where his creative combination of research, production, and marketing revolutionized the business of invention. (National Park)
Iolani Palace: A Hawaiian Place of History, Power, and Prestige (161)
Explore the palace, a symbol of independence, where the last Hawaiian monarchs lived and fought for Native sovereignty in the face of European and American colonization. (National Historic Landmark) Iron Hill School: An African-American One-Room School (58) Discover how an early 20th-century philanthropist reformed Delaware's education system for African-American children. Learn how a group of determined women selected Lafayette Park, across from the White House, to demonstrate for their right to vote, providing a First Amendment model for many others. (National Park/National Historic Landmark) Learn about the United States Lifesaving Service daring rescues to save imperiled lives from the "Graveyard of the Atlantic." (National Park) Understand the experience of early Asian immigrants and the obstacles they encountered as they struggled to make a living and find a place in American society. (Locke is a National Historic Landmark) Consider how simple, functional cabins, like those built by the Finns in Idaho, became symbols in American politics and folklore. Discover how the Bureau of Reclamation transformed the arid valley of the Rio Grande by constructing Elephant Butte Dam and the Rio Grande irrigation project and examine some of the problems encountered along the way. Learn about the evolution of a system to honor and care for U.S. veterans beginning with the creation of soldiers' homes and national cemeteries during and after the Civil War. (National Historic Landmark) Learn about two historic lighthouses that illustrate how technological advancements contributed to maritime safety and about the isolated, often routine, but sometimes heroic lives led by their keepers.(Navesink Light Station is a National Historic Landmark.) Enter a historic company town and descend deep into the copper mines of Michigan's Keweenaw Peninsula, where labor unrest upset an industry and changed a community in the early 20th century. (National Park/National Historic Landmark) Learn about the history of Camp Chase in Columbus, Ohio, and about the federal government's policies guiding the marking of POW graves during and after the Civil War. Learn how an obscure settlement created during Mormon expansion grew into a well-known and prosperous American city, and consider factors that hinder or contribute to the evolution of early settlements into permanent communities, towns, and cities. Meet Captain Edward Penniman, and learn about 19th-century whaling in southeastern Massachusetts and how the whaling industry impacted Penniman's family and life. (National Park) Discover how community activism and a partnership between a white businessman and a leading black educator built 5,000 schools for African American students in the early 20th century. Determine how environmental management, technology, and the actions of 19th-century industrialists contributed to a disaster in Pennsylvania that shocked the nation. (National Park) Meet one of America's premier artists, a creator of public monuments, and evaluate the importance of art and sculpture in society. (National Park/National Historic Landmark) Learn how a classroom teacher uses this lesson. Join the stampede for gold when over 100,000 prospectors set out for the Klondike. (National Park/National Historic Landmark) See also Gold Fever! Seattle Outfits the Klondike Gold Rush (55), another lesson plan on the discovery of gold in the Klondike. Learn how a classroom teacher uses this lesson. Understand how Springwood was the keystone in Franklin Delano Roosevelt's public as well as private life by playing host to some very dramatic events in American history. (National Park) Examine the circumstances under which Theodore Roosevelt first became President of the United States and how his policies and actions modernized the presidency. (National Park) Examine the complex and often dangerous daily routines at the Thurmond train depot, and learn how rail workers were immortalized by some of the people they served. (National Park) Learn about one of the nation's most important conservation laws--the Antiquities Act of 1906--and how its passage preserved important cultural sites such as Tonto National Monument, which preserves remnants of the Salado culture prior to European contact. (National Park) Examine the historic places associated with two of America's most famous 20th century business people. (National Historic Landmarks) Discover how the Vanderbilts became one of the wealthiest families in America and how their lifestyle influenced business, culture, architecture, and society in ways that still affect us today. (National Park) Examine continuity and change in this rural Virginia town from its founding as a Quaker agricultural community and mill town in the 18th century to today. (National Historic Landmark) View the world through an artist's eye and learn how an important art movement was established in America. (National Park) Examine the inextricable connections binding railroads, North Dakota wheat fields, and Minnesota flour mills during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. (National Park/Includes Pillsbury A Mill, a National Historic Landmark) Examine Wilson's struggle to achieve lasting world peace following World War I. (National Historic Landmark) Discover how immigrant cigar makers in this section of Tampa, Florida, adapted to life in the U.S. in the late 19th and early 20th century while maintaining their ethnic identity. (National Historic Landmark)
Meet Dr. Manassa T. Pope, an African-American doctor and entrepreneur in the early 20th century, and learn about his efforts to gain civil rights well before the modern Civil Rights Movement.
Welcome to historic Arthurdale, West Virginia, a New Deal village built from the ground-up for coal miners and their families during the Great Depression.
Examine military maps and photos to better understand why an isolated battle on a remote island in Alaska alarmed the nation. (National Historic Landmark)
Discover the important role these tiny Pacific islands played in World War II.(National Historic Landmark)
Visit JFK's birthplace and consider the effects of culture and community in shaping character and personality. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Explore the natural wonders of this once remote area in Utah and learn how it became a popular tourist destination in the early 20th century and finally a national park. (National Park/Includes Bryce Canyon Lodge, a National Historic Landmark)
Inspect a recreational demonstration area (RDA) in western Maryland, created as part of a Great Depression government relief program. (National Park)
Compare the Spanish and Anglo influences on settlements along the Texas-Mexico border region of the Rio Grande. (National Park)
Examine the history of this "city-within-a-city," a self-supporting African-American community that prospered from the late 19th century until the 1930s.
Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park: Where the Wright Brothers Conquered the Air (111)
Discover the early influences that inspired the Wright brothers as inventors and the importance of the Wright Cycle Company Complex where they developed the key mechanical skills that profoundly impacted their invention of the airplane. (National Park/The Wright Cycle Company building is a National Historic Landmark)
Discover the science and early history of hydroelectric power at the historic Minidoka Powerplant, where rural electrification and irrigation changed the lives of early 20th century homesteaders.
Learn about traditional Hopi culture and farming at Awatovi, a historic pueblo where enduring Hopi traditions and American archeological research reveal much about this important place. (National Historic Landmark)
Learn how three buildings restored and maintained by the U.S. General Services Administration illustrate the important role the federal government played and continues to play in communities across the country.
Examine how Roosevelt's activities at home reflected her interest in humanitarianism, as epitomized by her leadership in the creation of the UN's Declaration of Human Rights. (National Park)
Learn about the vital role played by naval aviators delivering aircraft to combat-bound units in the Pacific during WWII, and the women workers on the home front who helped in one of U.S. history's greatest industrial feats. (National Park)
Trace the evolution of this Maryland site from a chapter of the Chautauqua movement, to an amusement park, to a national park. (National Park)
Learn why the building of Hoover Dam was a triumph for the Bureau of Reclamation and how it came to symbolize what American industry and American workers could accomplish, even in the depths of the Great Depression. (National Historic Landmark)
Learn why the life of the 33rd U.S. President serves as an example of civic duty and explore the town that helped form his character. (National Park/Includes Harry S Truman Historic District, a National Historic Landmark)
Follow President Hoover from his boyhood days to his role as administrator of the Belgian Relief Commission during World War I. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)Iolani Palace: A Hawaiian Place of History, Power, and Prestige (161) Explore the palace, a symbol of independence, where the last Hawaiian monarchs lived and fought for Native sovereignty in the face of European and American colonization. (National Historic Landmark) Discover how an early 20th-century philanthropist reformed Delaware's education system for African-American children. Explore both how tungsten was mined and used at the turn of the 20th century and also how archeologists piece the past together from artifacts and other archeological evidence. (National Park) Meet Bill Keys, a self-reliant 20th-century homesteader whose ingenuity allowed him to thrive in the inhospitable California desert. (National Park) Discover how a small town in a remote U.S. territory played a large role in defending the United States and its allies during World War II. (National Historic Landmark) Learn how a group of determined women selected Lafayette Park, across from the White House, to demonstrate for their right to vote, providing a First Amendment model for many others. (National Park/National Historic Landmark) Analyze the influences that shaped the symbolic meaning of the bell, and evaluate the various claims as to how and when it was cracked. (National Park) Learn how the United States mobilized a massive construction effort to build a large merchant fleet to serve in war and peace. (The SS Red Oak Victory is part of a National Park. The SS Jeremiah O'Brien and the SS Lane Victory are National Historic Landmarks.) Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial: Where Man and Memory Intersect (144) Discover the power of place in honoring President Lincoln's origins and consider how the nation uses memorial structures and landscapes to express respect for its heroes and to celebrate anniversaries. (National Park) Discover how the Bureau of Reclamation transformed the arid valley of the Rio Grande by constructing Elephant Butte Dam and the Rio Grande irrigation project and examine some of the problems encountered along the way. Tour the world's longest cave, a geological wonder, and assess the ways it has been used and preserved as a historic resource. (National Park/UNESCO World Heritage Site) Learn about Mary McLeod Bethune and how she and the organization she founded promoted political and social change for African American women. (National Park) Learn about two historic lighthouses that illustrate how technological advancements contributed to maritime safety and about the isolated, often routine, but sometimes heroic lives led by their keepers. (Navesink Light Station is a National Historic Landmark.) Enter a historic company town and descend deep into the copper mines of Michigan's Keweenaw Peninsula, where labor unrest upset an industry and changed a community in the early 20th century. (National Park/National Historic Landmark) Learn how an obscure settlement created during Mormon expansion grew into a well-known and prosperous American city, and consider factors that hinder or contribute to the evolution of early settlements into permanent communities, towns, and cities. Learn about the causes and effects of a famous silk industry strike and how it affected those who were involved. (The Pietro Botto House is a National Historic Landmark. Paterson Great Falls National Historic Park is a National Park.) Trace the course of the Japanese surprise attack on the U.S. Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor, and consider the significance of the sunken USS Arizona as a war memorial. (National Park/National Historic Landmark) Follow the highways of the 1920s and 1930s, exploring the whimsical, extravagant architecture that came with American auto culture. Learn how the British bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore led to the writing of “The Star-Spangled Banner” and how Key’s song became a powerful symbol for Americans.(National Park) Learn how a classroom teacher uses this lesson. Discover how community activism and a partnership between a white businessman and a leading black educator built 5,000 schools for African American students in the early 20th century. Investigate sharecropping as a way of life in upland Georgia during the early 20th century and examine the efforts of one farm owner to diversify as market fluctuation and urbanization threatened that life. Understand how Springwood was the keystone in Franklin Delano Roosevelt's public as well as private life by playing host to some very dramatic events in American history. (National Park) Learn how the expansion of military air power in the first half of the 20th century led to the establishment of the United States Air Force and the Air Force Academy. (National Historic Landmark) Learn what led the U.S. government to confine nearly 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry to relocation centers in remote areas of the country during World War II. (Manzanar is a National Park and National Historic Landmark. Rohwer is a National Historic Landmark.) Meet activist Alice Paul and visit the headquarters of her National Woman's Party in Washington, DC, to learn about how American women organized to increase their political rights in the 20th century. (National Historic Landmark) Discover why the Wright Brothers chose the Outer Banks of North Carolina to conduct their flight experiments, how they achieved controlled powered flight in 1903, and how their accomplishments have been commemorated. (National Park) Lightning Lessons
Trace the paths an African American cavalry officer took in his life and chart the one he took during World War I, riding horseback from his historic Ohio home to confront racism in Washington, DC.
History and science collide in this lesson about a total solar eclipse event that brought the world's leading astronomers to historic Wadesboro, North Carolina, in May 1900.
Play ball! This lesson uses the Daytona Beach ballpark where Jackie Robinson broke baseball's color barrier to explore racism and sports in American history.
Cross the security fences, pass the checkpoints, and discover this Cold War missile defense facility that defended a city and helped grow Alaska's economy.
Discover how NASA, private industry, and research institutions across the country cooperated to develop and implement the complex technology that enabled man to land on the moon. (National Historic Landmark)
Learn how transportation routes affected a local inn, how archeology revealed the inn's use over time, and how preservation efforts saved the historic site from suburban sprawl.
Visit JFK's birthplace and consider the effects of culture and community in shaping character and personality. (National Park/National Historic Landmark)
Learn about the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case that declared segregation in public schools unconstitutional. (Monroe Elementary School [now Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site] is a unit of the National Park Service/Robert Russa Moton High School, Sumner and Monroe Elementary Schools, Howard High School, and John Philip Sousa Middle School are National Historic Landmarks.)
Discover a historic campus in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, where an American military officer's boarding school experiment brought American Indian children from across the continent at the turn of the century. (National Historic Landmark)
Lightning Lessons
Discover the African Burial Ground National Monument (Lightning Lesson 3) Dig through centuries of Manhattan concrete to uncover a Colonial cemetery in this lesson plan about the African Diaspora, spirituality, and how we honor our origins. (National Park) Discover the Jackie Robinson Ballpark (Lightning Lesson 5) Can a ballgame change the world? At City Island Ballpark, discover evidence of racial segregation, the power of pop culture, and the courage of Player 42. (National Historic Landmark) |
Last updated: April 10, 2019