Primary
US National Archives

Nara: Prologue Magazine: Women Soldiers of the Civil War

For Students 9th - 10th
Prologue Magazine provides a pictorial essay and background information on the role of women during the Civil War.
Handout
Civil War Home

Home of the American Civil War: Women in Uniform in the Civil War

For Students 9th - 10th
Read about the women who actually fought during the Civil War and what provoked them to do this. From the Civil War Society's "Encyclopedia of the Civil War."
Website
Other

American Women in Uniform: Civil War Women: Women Were There

For Students 3rd - 8th
Use this site to find out the roles women had during the Civil War. Also read some remarkable stories of women who were actually on the battlefield.
Website
University of North Carolina

University of North Carolina: The Civil War Day by Day

For Students 9th - 10th
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...
Lesson Plan
PBS

Civil War: In the Classroom: Civil War Letters [Pdf]

For Teachers 9th - 10th
A lesson plan using letters from soldiers and civilians in the Civil War to gain a greater understanding of this time in U.S. history.
Primary
Library of Congress

Loc: Photographs of Women During the Civil War

For Students 9th - 10th
Many pictures of women at different locations during the Civil War.
Handout
Civil War Home

Home of the American Civil War: Civil War Nurses

For Students 9th - 10th
This site tells the story of the women nurses during the Civil War, including Dorothea Dix and Clara Barton. From "Civil War Nurse" edited by John R. Brumgardt.
Article
A&E Television

Secret Agents in Hoop Skirts: Women Spies of the Civil War

For Students 9th - 10th
Find out more about Rose O'Neal Greenhow and three other female informants who played a significant role in America's bloodiest conflict, the Civil War.
Article
Scholastic

Scholastic: New York Times Upfront: The Civil War: Ten Things You Should Know

For Students 9th - 10th
Article written on the 150th anniversary of Fort Sumter, the beginning of the American Civil War, in which the author presents little known Civil War facts about topics such as, Americans during that time, slavery, new technologies,...
Website
TexasHistory.com

Texas history.com: The Home Front: Life in Texas During the Civil War

For Students 9th - 10th
Looks at what life was like in Texas during the Civil War. Discusses the issue of slavery, military conscription, frontier defense, the role of women, the role of slaves, how the blockade affected exports to the South, and the...
Article
A&E Television

History.com: How Black Women Fought for Civil War Pensions and Benefits

For Students 9th - 10th
In a time when military pensions were a large part of the federal budget, Black women faced unique challenges in securing compensation. Widows of Civil War soldiers could begin applying to the Bureau of Pensions during the war, and one...
Handout
National Women's Hall of Fame

National Women's Hall of Fame: Women of the Hall: Mary Edwards Walker

For Students 9th - 10th
Read a brief life history on the first woman to receive the Medal of Honor for her bravery in the Civil War, physician Mary Walker.
Graphic
Digital Public Library of America

Dpla: Activism in the Us

For Students 9th - 10th
American sociopolitical activism became especially prominent during the period of societal upheaval which began during the 1950s. The African American civil rights movement led the way, soon followed by a substantial anti-war movement...
Website
Duke University

Sallie Bingham Center for Women's History and Culture: Civil War Women

For Students 9th - 10th
An absolute find in your search for information on women's roles during the Civil War. Resources too numerous to list-- find diaries, letters, documents, and photographs. Of particular note, see the Carrie Berry Diary: "passages from the...
Handout
Civil War Home

Home of the American Civil War: Benjamin Butler's New Orleans "Woman's Order"

For Students 9th - 10th
How did women display their distaste and anger about the Union occupation of New Orleans? Read about how their behavior forced Gen. Butler's to issue orders on how they should be treated. From "Historical Times Encyclopedia of the Civil...
Handout
American Battlefield Trust

American Battlefield Trust: Civil War Biography: Sarah Rosetta Wakeman: Private

For Students 9th - 10th
Brief biographical profile on Private Sarah Rosetta Wakeman, who disguised herself as a man to fight in the Civil War.
Website
Virginia Historical Society

Virginia Historical Society: Home Front: How Did Slaves Support the Confederacy?

For Students 9th - 10th
Read about the different roles that slaves and freed blacks took on in Virginia during the Civil War. They provided labor while the white men were away fighting and they helped with the military efforts. Many took the opportunity to...
Website
New York Public Library

In Motion: African American Migration Experience: Western Migration: To Kansas

For Students 9th - 10th
From the extensive site about African-American migrations, this part of the site focuses on Exodusters and African-Americans who moved to Kansas after the Civil War. Read first-person accounts and see photographs of these hardy...
Article
A&E Television

History.com: Elizabeth Blackwell Fought Sexism to Save Civil War Soldiers

For Students 9th - 10th
Elizabeth Blackwell was the first woman in America to earn a medical degree, and used her talents to support Union troops on the front lines of the Civil War. But she was never given the credit she deserved.(Video 1:00)
Handout
American Battlefield Trust

American Battlefield Trust: Civil War Biography: Albert Cashier Aka Jennie Hodgers: Private

For Students 9th - 10th
A biographical profile of Albert Cashier aka Jennie Hodgers, who, disguised as a man, fought with the Union army.
Handout
National Women’s History Museum

National Women's History Museum: Harriet Tubman

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn about Harriet Tubman, the first African American woman to serve in the military who escaped enslavement and helped others reach freedom During the Civil War.
Handout
Other

Student Historical Journal 1984 1985: Women's Rights Before the Civil War [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
Read an overview of the pre-Civil War women's rights movement in a student essay in an historical journal from Loyola University. Find out about specific activists prominent during this time period and learn about their attempts to...
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: The Northern Homefront

For Students 5th - 8th
The military-industrial complex thrived in the North during the Civil War, but read about how inflation affected the ordinary worker. See how the role of women expanded to fill in for men who were away fighting. Women also had an impact...
Unit Plan
Texas Education Agency

Texas Gateway: The American Civil Rights Movement: An Overview

For Students 9th - 10th
Given primary and secondary resources, students will be able to trace the historical development of the civil rights movement in the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries, and describe the roles of political organizations that promoted civil...