University of Virginia
Hearts at Home: Southern Women in the Civil War
Uses primary sources to document the role of Southern women in the Civil War.
Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech: Special Collections: American Civil War Manuscript Guides
A large repository of letters and diaries from both Union and Confederate soldiers, homefront letters, memoirs, and contemporary research files. Includes materials from the war years, 1861-1865, as well as materials from later periods...
CommonLit
Common Lit: Reconstruction
CommonLit.org is a wonderful resource to use in a Language Arts classroom. Each text is accompanied by guided reading questions, assessment questions, and discussion questions. In addition, students can click on words to see the...
US Government Publishing Office
Ben's Guide to u.s. Government: Emancipation Proclamation 1863
Ben's Guide is a fun way to present U.S. Government to students grades K-12. This site presents a brief overview of the Emancipation Proclamation. Includes the transcript of the document. Links to related sites are available.
Other
The Lincoln Institute: Mr. Lincoln and Friends
Experience Abraham Lincoln's life, career, character and beliefs in this collection of short essays. The perfect book for history buffs and anyone who wants to learn more about Abraham Lincoln "by littles".
Smithsonian Institution
Civil War at Smithsonian: Weapons
Examples of many of the weapons used in the Civil War are included in this exhibit from the Smithsonian Institution. Find rifles, swords, pistols, and hand grenades along with descriptions of who used them and how they were manufactured....
US National Archives
Nara: American Originals: 54th Regiment Casualty List
An interesting webpage in that it contains a brief summary of the history of the Regiment as well as the Casualty List from the assault on Fort Wagner and two historic photos.
University of Maryland
Voices of Democracy: Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address (19 November 1863)
Resource features the full text of the Gettysburg address along with an essay offering critical analyses, lesson plans for high school teachers, and many other learning materials.
Center For Civic Education
Center for Civic Education: Abraham Lincoln and Executive Power
This instructional activity traces the rise of Abraham Lincoln from his humble beginnings to the presidency of the United States. You will examine Lincoln's ideas and decisions regarding slavery and the use of the presidential power to...
University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina: The Civil War Day by Day
These primary sources offer a glimpse into the mentality of those living in the South during the Civil War. Included are pictures, letters from soldiers, letters from women on the homefront, and reactions to the Confederate surrender and...
NOAA
Noaa: National Marine Sanctuaries: Uss Alligator
A website dedicated to the engineering marvel, USS Alligator. Read a history and find blueprints of this innovative submarine. Use the topics on the left to navigate the site. From the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Library of Congress
Loc: Learning Page: Civil War Soldiers' Stories
Included here are primary source documents that tell the story of Civil War soldiers in their own words. These historic documents tell why men and boys joined so enthusiastically, and what trials and suffering were endured.
Library of Congress
Loc: Learning Page: African American Soldiers During the Civil War
This resource provides an overview of the African American soldiers who fought during the Civil War.
Schools of California Online Resources for Education
Score: Not Just a Man's War: Diary of Carrie Berry
The text of diary entries written by Carrie Berry, a 10 year old girl living in Atlanta, Georgia during the Civil War. Her diary gives details of both the course of the war as she knows it, and her daily life. From the Center For...
University of Virginia
University of Virginia: The Blue Hotel
This University of Virginia Library site provides the text of Stephen Crane's "The Blue Hotel".
Harp Week
The End of Slavery: The Creation of the 13th Amendment
What a wonderful resource for researching the attempts to solve the issue of slavery prior to the Civil War, and the eventual ratification of the 13th Amendment. Find a timeline of legislation limiting the spread of slavery from 1787...
iCivics
I Civics: Civil Rights
Use this library of mini-lessons to teach students about the early days of the expansion of slavery in the United States through the momentous 1950s and 60s and into the modern Civil Rights Movement.
CommonLit
Common Lit: "The Gettysburg Address" by President Abraham Lincoln
This speech was given in 1863 after the Union and Confederate armies had been at war for more than three years and several hundred thousand Americans had already died. Thousands of Union soldiers died at the Battle of Gettysburg alone. A...
Other
The University of Southern Mississippi: Rarebooks Digital Collection
The Rare Book Digital Collection contains a selection of rare books from the Special Collections at The University of Southern Mississippi. Click on the icon to view the scanned pages of the selected book. Also includes speeches, House...
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: The Fourteenth Amendment Part Ii
In this video segment from The Supreme Court, learn about the 1883 Supreme Court decision that marked the end of federal protections for individuals in states and the beginning of Jim Crow segregation.
Other
Ithaca College:project Look Sharp: Media Construction of Presidential Campaigns
[Free Registration/Login Required] Provides a multi-unit curriculum kit on presidential campaigns that incorporates media literacy. Downloads include teacher guides, student handouts, media documents, visual and audio materials, and more.
US National Archives
Nara: Teaching With Documents: Black Soldiers in the Civil War
This comprehensive site from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) describes the history of the participation of colored troops in the Civil War and government efforts to research and compile records about them....
Other
Civil War in South Carolina: Fort Sumter, April 12 14, 1861
This is a description of the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter. Included are a map and General Beauregard's report on the attack.
Other
On Deck: Submarines in the Civil War
The Hunley wasn't the only submarine used in the Civil War. Read this comprehensive look at the research into underwater warfare and the results of that research.