Once again it's that time of year. About a decade ago when I first started teaching, I spent quite a few late nights blasting my way through lecture prep and scouring the web for resources and information. (The interweb was still steam powered then).
So, for those of you in the middle of it now, I post here some helpful sites that might give you a leg up. Of course, this only represents of fraction of what's out there.
The Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division
Contains thousands of images dating back hundreds of years. Many are high resolution.
The Beinecke Rare Book and Map Collection, Yale University
Do a keyword search of "photographs, textual documents, illuminated manuscripts, maps, works of art, and books from the Beinecke's collections."
Internet Archive
Browse for original documents, audio, and movies. The collection of films on here is amazing.
Map Central, Bedford/St Martins
This site is a little dated, but the maps for teaching are quite good.
Harvard Digital Maps Collection
". . . one of the oldest and largest collections of cartographic materials in the United States with over 500,000 items. Resources range from 16th century globes to modern maps and geographic information systems (GIS) layers. A selection of our materials has been digitally imaged and is offered both as true picture images and georeferenced copies."
Norman B. Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library
Like the above, "dedicated to the creative educational use of its cartographic holdings, which extend from the 15th century to the present."
W. W. Norton's Make History Site
Some publishers lock there on-line content. Not so with Norton. Access loads of maps, images, websites, and original documents.
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
This is "a nonprofit organization supporting the study and love of American history through a wide range of programs and resources for students, teachers, scholars, and history enthusiasts throughout the nation." Access material for teachers and students. The site contains wonderfully useful teaching tools.
American Experience on-line
If you have a high-speed connection in your classroom, you can view full episodes of American Experience.
Historical Society's Resources for Teachers
We created this a few years back. It includes links for environmental history, American, and world history.
Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers, Library of Congress
"Search America's historic newspapers pages from 1836-1922 or use the U.S. Newspaper Directory to find information about American newspapers published between 1690-present."
American Religion and Culture On-line Resources
I created this site for a course I teach on the topic.
