[Free Registration/Login Required] Were American housewives of the 1950's as happy as images depict them? This resource examines the women of the era closer to find out.

Photographic essay recalls some of the best technological advances of the 1950s in cooking, personal hygiene, radio, laundry, television, transportation, and more.

Learn about the myths and realities of women's lives during the 1950s.

A good review of the culture of the 1950s including a look at big business at the time, the affluent society, and the beginnings of youthful rebellion.

In the 1950s, financial prosperity allowed young Americans to participate in a shared culture of rock and roll music, movies, and television.

Find links to primary sources in the Eisenhower Presidential Library that refer to women who were in federal service or political office during the Eisenhower administration.

In February 1950, Senator Joseph R. McCarthy had charged that the Department of State knowingly harbored Communists. Hearings on McCarthy's accusations were held under the chairmanship of Senator Millard Tydings of Maryland. The...

[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart is an activity examining pictures of 1950's life and culture. Students are to examine different advertisements of the 1950's, movie posters and pictures. Students will record observations...

[Free Registration/Login Required] This is an interactive Venn Diagram activity that allows students to compare and contrast the era of the 1950s with the era of the 1920s.

A brief look at American life and politics in the 1950s with an increase in consumerism and fear of the Soviet Union.

Learn about the Rosenberg trial, HUAC, and Joseph McCarthy.

This is an introduction to Act I of "A Raisin in the Sun" by Lorraine Hansberry which focuses on "how the social, educational, and political climate of the 1950s affected African Americans' quest for 'The American Dream.'" It features...

This lesson focuses on the Southern Gothic short story "A Good Man is Hard to Find" by Flannery O'Connor which is set in the South in the 1950's and reflects the changes brought about by the court case Brown vs. Board of Education to...

This introduction to contemporary drama focuses on the elements or characteristics of drama and the theme of the American Dream. It features the play A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry, which is set in the 1950s.

This article from a history periodical looks at advertising aimed at women in the 1950s. After refuting conclusions made in a study in the 1970s that claimed that women in the 1950s were little more than domestic workers in their home,...

The decade of the 1950s was kown for conformity. There was an undercurrent of rebellion, especially among younger Americans. Read about the Beat Generation, alternative literature, rebellion in art, and treatment of those who were not...

The advent of increased television programming helped create a national popular culture. Read about the many kinds of television programs offered in the 1950s.

This is an informational article about how Martin Luther King Jr. worked toward changing America in the 1950s and 1960s. It includes a short bio of Dr. King and a reading purpose: As you read, take notes on the problems that African...

A quick comprehension check over the "Great Society" of the 1950s.

Some background information that sheds light on how suburbia wasn't paradise for everyone especially women and African Americans in the 1950s and 60s.

Discover the numbers behind poverty in America in the 1950s. Read about those who were in poverty, where they lived, and find out if things have improved over the decades. [pdf]

The play "Fences" explores the complex relationships of a 1950s middle-class, African American family and how they deal with issues of financial hardship, infidelity, and insecurities. Selected (7) reading passages (grades 7-11) to pair...

Dozens of audio clips of New Orleans-style jazz music from different time periods: 1920s and 1930s, 1940s and 1950s, and the year 2000.

[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart focuses on the Civil Rights Movement and leaders of the 1950's and the 1960's.