American
History of the Discovery and Pre-Colonial Period
The Columbus
Landfall Home Page
Illustrates the possible places that Columbus visited on his first
journey to the Americas. Includes articles which examine the various theories
as to where he actually landed.
Columbus and the
Age of Discovery
Over 1,100 full-text articles and reports related to Columbus and
the explorations from Europe to the "New World". A bit difficult to use
due to its arrangement. Try starting with the Hypertext Index of Articles,
then go into "For public use. (Reprint Permission Granted.)" Then explore
the entries, arranged alphabetically. Has many articles in the Spanish
language.
1492
Exhibit
The story of Columbus and his voyages to the New World, made available
from the Library of Congress.
American History of the Colonial
Period
The
17th and 18th Centuries
"Designed to help high school teachers of American history bring
their students to a greater understanding of the role religion has played
in the development of the United States." Nice collection of links to information
resources.
Religion
and the Founding of the American Republic
Over 200 early American books, manuscripts, letters, prints, paintings,
artifacts, and music from the Library of Congress' collections and loans
from other institutions.
William
Penn
An examination of the person who founded as a "Holy Experiment",
the state of Pennsylvania, and concluded the "Great treaty" with the Delaware
(American Indians).
Puritanism
& Colonial Period: to 1700
Resources for a literature course include several important documents
of the Great Awakening.
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Web de Anza
From the University of Oregon, a study of the Spanish Exploration
and Colonization of "Alta California" 1774-1776.
Blach
Junior High de Anza Web Pages
A collection of web pages commemorating the expedition of California
made during the late 1700's.
de
Anza Expedition Resources
Especially for teachers, some resources to use while studying de
Anza.
The Rise of American Democratic
Ideas
English Bill
of Rights
Complete text of the 1689 English law: An Act Declaring the Rights
and Liberties of the Subject and Settling the Succession of the Crown.
Eighteenth
Century Resources -- History
Another major collection of links to the most famous people of
the Enlightenment.
Liberty Library
of Constitutional Classics
The following is a list, many with links to the actual full text,
of classic books and other works on constitutional government.
The
Age of Enlightenment: Paintings
The Enlightenment produced its own style of painting, and you can
see some examples at this web site.
Rousseau,
Jean-Jacques: The Social Contract
One of the major writings of the Enlightenment, which affected
the American system of government.
Voltaire:
A Treatise on Toleration
Another of the major writings of the Enlightenment, which affected
the American system of government.
Magna
Carta and Its American Legacy
The National Archives and Records Administration offers this excellent
explanation of the Magna Carta as it relates to U.S. laws and democratic
ideas. Also as a link to the text of the Magna Carta.
Historical
Documents of Great Britain
Collection of primary source historical documents from the British
Isles, from the earliest times through the present: Magna Carta, parliamentary
addresses, political statements by thinkers and leaders, philosophical
writings, and more.
The Glorious
Revolution Era (1675-1692)
Outlines the events and people in the U.S. during the Glorious
Revolution that was occurring in England.
St. Thomas
More
Biographical and philosophical information on St. Thomas More,
of England. This information is taken from the Catholic Encyclopedia on
the Web.
Declaring Independence and The Constitution
Declaring
Independence
The time-line and background on the American Declaration of Independence
from Great Britain are presented here, with images and explanation of the
key people and their contributions to this historic document.
The
Signers of the Constitution
Exhibition with information about the signers of the Constitution.
Visit the US Archives at http://www.archives.gov
About the Constitution
of the United States
Article from the Library of Congress: "The Constitution defines
the fundamental law of the United States federal government, setting forth
the three principal branches of the federal government, outlining their
jurisdictions, and propounding the basic rights of U.S. citizens."
Search The Constitution
and Other Historical Documents
Allows searching of The U.S. Constitution, Federalist Papers, Declaration
of Independence, and other early U.S. historical documents.
Documents
from the Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention
The Continental Congress Broadside Collection (253 titles) and
the Constitutional Convention Broadside Collection (21 titles) contain
274 documents relating to the work of Congress and the drafting and ratification
of the Constitution, plus similar primary sources.
Intelligence
in the War of Independence
The Central Intelligence Agency has made a special presentation
available on how spying (military intelligence) played a part in the U.S.
Revolutionary War.
De Tocqueville:
The Federal Constitution
A chapter from the great commentary, Democracy In America, by Alexis
de Tocqueville, the French writer who visited America shortly after its
founding.
U.S.
Historic Documents 1750-1800
Historic Documents from the United States from 1750-1800, at the
University of Kansas Electronic Library.
The
American Revolution
This site is a great resourse for the Revolutionary War.
Revolutionary War
Links to many of the causes which led to the Revolutionary War.
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The Charters
of Freedom
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From the National Archives, an exhibition of Declaration of Independence,
the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. Although there is no substitute
for an actual visit, this exhibit will allow you to study the documents
in detail. In addition, this exhibit will permit you to examine the Letter
of Transmittal and pages two and three of the Constitution, which are only
rarely displayed.
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Delegates
to the Constitutional Convention (The Founding Fathers)
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This is a set of short biographies, with articles on each of the Founding
Fathers who were delegates to the Constitutional Convention.
The General 19th Century Information
Resources
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American
Memory at the Library of Congress: 1800- 1850
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The collections here cover the first half of the Nineteenth Century.
They include many photographs and images.
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American
Memory at the Library of Congress: 1850-1900
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The collections here cover the second half of the Nineteenth Century.
They include many photographs and images.
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Images
of African-Americans From the 19th Century
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The N.Y. Public Library has made this collection of images available.
Search by subject or keyword.
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The Making of America
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Making of America (MOA) is a digital library of primary sources in
American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction.
The collection is particularly strong in the subject areas of education,
psychology, American history, sociology, religion, and science and technology.
It contains approximately 1,600 books and 50,000 journal articles from
the 19th century, a major endeavor in preservation and electronic access
to historical texts.
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From Revolution to Reconstruction
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Online texts in American History, with links to many primary sources.
Very useful to see what was actually written or stated.
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U.S.
Historic Documents
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Historic Documents from the United States, at the University of Kansas
Electronic Library.
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A History of American
Agriculture: 1776-1990
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Chart following eleven major themes of agricultural history in the
U.S., decade by decade. Click on the theme/decade to see what major events
and developments happened. Provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
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North American
Slave Narratives, Beginnings to 1920
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"Documents the individual and collective story of the African American
struggle for freedom and human rights in the eighteenth, nineteenth and
early twentieth centuries. When completed, it will include all the narratives
of fugitive and former slaves published in broadsides, pamphlets, or book
form in English up to 1920 and many of the biographies of former slaves
published in English before 1920."
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Documenting the American
South
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Most information about nineteenth-century America comes from Northerners.
This database presents primary source materials documenting the cultural
history of the American South from the viewpoint of Southerners. It offers
diaries, autobiographies, travel accounts, titles on slavery and regional
literature drawn from the splendid Southern holdings of the UNC--CH Academic
Affairs Library.
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A Digitized
Library of Southern Literature: Beginnings to 1920
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Full-text of literature from the American South is linked from this
page, which includes an essay to introduce it, "Literature in the American
South ( From Encyclopedia of Southern Culture.")
Before the Civil War and Resources
and General Resources
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Lewis
and Clark
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From the University of Virginia, the journals of Lewis and Clark are
presented.
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Lewis and Clark
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PBS presentation of Lewis and Clark.
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Franklin Institute
Hotlists
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This is a nice place to search for a wide variety of topics including
Lewis and Clark, the Oregon Trail, Thomas Jefferson, the Salem Witchcraft
Trials, the Civil War, the Great Depression, the Vietnam War, and much
more.
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Nineteenth
Century Resources
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A Gopher site with a large number of links to full-text documents related
to people and events of the Nineteenth Century.
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Antebellum Richmond
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Links that describe life in Richmond, Virginia, during the time just
prior to the Civil War. Includes descriptions of various areas of life
during slavery in this city of the Old South.
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Civil War and Related Resources
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American
Memory at the Library of Congress: Civil War
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The collections here cover the second half of the Nineteenth Century.
They include many photographs and images from the Civil War.
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The U. S. Civil War
Center
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A clearinghouse of Web Pages (at the Louisiana State University) related
to the U.S. Civil War (1861-1865). A lot of information is available here.
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Civil War Home Page
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The American Civil War Homepage at the University of Kentucky gathers
together in one place hypertext links to the most useful identified
electronic files about the American Civil War (1861-1865).
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Rare
Map Collection - American Civil War
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The University of Georgia offers an excellent collection of over 30
historic maps related to the U.S. Civil War battlefields and locations.
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Maps
and Exhibits: The American Civil War
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Includes a big collection of battle maps listed by state and date.
Also has a yearly timeline of major events and battles. Lots of other information
too. Explore!
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Slavery Abolition
Resources
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A comprehensive set of links related to the study of the Abolitionist
movement, and the surrounding historical period.
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Selected Civil War
Photographs,1861-1865
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The famed Brady photos from the Library of Congress, contains 1,118
photographs. Most of the images were made under the supervision of Mathew
B. Brady, and include scenes of military personnel, preparations for battle,
and battle after-effects. The collection also includes portraits of both
Confederate and Union officers, and a selection of enlisted men.
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Civil War
in Pennsylvania and Virginia
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The Valley of the Shadow: Living the Civil War in Pennsylvania and
Virginia. A hypertext portrayal of communities on two opposite sides of
the War. Many, many documents of those times are available here.
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Lincoln's
First Inaugural Address
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The national upheaval of secession was a grim reality at Abraham Lincoln's
inauguration. Jefferson Davis had been inaugurated as the President of
the Confederacy two weeks earlier. The former Illinois Congressman had
arrived in Washington by a secret route to avoid danger, and his movements
were guarded by General Winfield Scott's soldiers.
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Making of America
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A digital library documenting American social history between 1850
- 1877 will be selected, scanned, and made available. When this project
is completed approximately 5,000 volumes with imprints will be available.
Many are now offered as scanned images (not searchable test).
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The History Net
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Commercial organization with several online magazines devoted to history,
and in particular, past wars (WWI, WWI, Vietnam, etc.). Features eyewitness
accounts!
General Post-Civil War and Industrial
Revolution Resources
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African-American
Women Writers
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"A digital collection of some 52 published works by 19th-century black
women writers. A part of the Digital Schomburg, this collection provides
access to the thought, perspectives and creative abilities of black women
as captured in books and pamphlets published prior to 1920. Key-word-searchable."
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Panoramic
Maps, 1847-1921
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From the Library of Congress: "The panoramic map was a popular cartographic
form used to depict U.S. and Canadian cities and towns during the late
nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Known also as bird's-eye views,
perspective maps, and aero views, panoramic maps are nonphotographic representations
of cities portrayed as if viewed from above at an oblique angle."
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Taking the
Long View: Panoramic Photographs, ca. 1851-1991.
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From the Library of Congress: About 4,000 panoramic views of American
main streets, landscapes, bathing beauties, disasters, and other events.
Broad topics: cities and towns, scenic views, group portraits, schools,
fairs and expositions, agriculture, industry, engineering work, military
activities, transportation, and sports.
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Woman Studies
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Links
to Famous Women
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These are links to distinguished woman of past and present with an
alphabetical search engine, and links to related women studies sites.
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20th Century: 1930-1939
Decade
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New Deal Network
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Information about Roosevelt's program dealing with the Great Depression.
Includes a very wide variety of resources relating to the 1930s, as affected
by the New Deal.
New Deal Cultural
Programs: Experiments in Cultural Democracy
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"Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal cultural programs marked the
U.S. government's first big, direct investment in cultural development.
In many ways, they present a mirror image of today's federal policy picture...."
This is a very good, brief outline of those programs.
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Herbert
Hoover: Thirty-First President, 1929-1933
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Son of a Quaker blacksmith, Herbert Clark Hoover brought to the Presidency
an unparalleled reputation for public service as an engineer, administrator,
and humanitarian.
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More Information
On Herbert Hoover
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Thirty-First President, 1929-1933. Includes sections on: Presidential
Election Results, Cabinet Members, Notable Internet Biographies, Historical
Documents, etc.
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Voices
from the Dust Bowl
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This collection consists of audio recordings, photographs, manuscript
materials, publications, and ephemera generated during two separate documentation
trips to California farm labor camps in 1940-41, sponsored by the Archive
of American Folk Song. Includes "The
Migrant Experience" an informative essay about life in farm labor camps.
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Social Security History
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Exceptionally well presented collection of information on the history
of the Social Security program and Social Security Administration. A mix
of general-interest material and items that may appeal primarily to scholars.
Graphics and photos abound, and there are sound and video clips.
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The
Day of the Black Blizzard
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One of the most devastating events of the Thirties was the Dust Bowl.
This story tells how it happened to some of the people who lived then.
At this link to Discovery you can search this database.
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Color Photographs
From 1938-1944
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These two collections consist of the color photographs produced by
a pair of government photography units within the Farm Security Administration
(FSA) and the Office of War Information(OWI) between 1939 and 1945. Provided
by the Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress.
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Voices
from the Thirties
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These life histories were written by the staff of the Folklore Project
of the U.S. Work Projects Administration (WPA) from 1936-1940. See also:
Voices
from the Thirties: An Introduction to the WPA Life Histories Collection
This Library of Congress collection includes 2,900 documents representing
the work of over 300 writers from 24 states.
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The Federal
Writers' Project
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"During the Great Depression of the 1930s, as many as one out of four
Americans could not find jobs. The Works Progress Administration (WPA),
put 8,500,000 jobless to work, mostly on projects that required manual
labor. Countless bridges, highways and parks were constructed or repaired."
Some workers were writers who interviewed interesting Americans, and them
wrote about them.
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Washington
as It Was: Photographs by Theodor Horydczak, 1923-1959
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From the mid 1920s through the 1950s, this collection(about 14,350
photographs online) documents the architecture and social life of the Washington
metropolitan area in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s. Includes a special presentation:
Discovering
Theodor Horydczak's Washington.
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General American National Government
Resources
Federal
Government Resources on the Web
Information on many government agencies and departments are available
from this website provided by the University of Michigan Documents Center.
Excellent starting place for research on any area of the U.S. government.
Use this link for a search of Federal Government information.
U.S. Government Information
Sources
Access to federal government information organized by the National
Technology Transfer Center. Click on the branch of government your agency
or organization is part of, and follow the pathway to the website. You
may also search by the name of the agency with their search engine.
Ben's Guide to Government
Find out all about the U.S. Government at this "master site" designes
especially for people of all age groups.
Biographical Directory of
the U.S. Congress
Brief background data is available on all members of the House
and Senate. Search by name. Includes all members who have served, going
back to the Continental Congress. Tip: Try a search on "Bidwell, John".
The Presidency
The White House
The Web Page of the Office of the President of the United States.
American
President Web Resources
Collection of links organized by the president's name. Leads to
Web pages related to each president.
Grolier
Online: The American Presidency
Encyclopedia articles about the presidency and the presidents for
various grade levels.
The
Presidents of the United States of America
From the White House, a series of articles on the Presidents of
the U.S., including inaugural addresses and quotations. Also has links
to additional resources on each president.
Presidents of the United
States
The Internet Public Library has an excellent collection of links
to information about all U.S. Presdients. Just click on a presidential
link, and his special page will be brought up. Then click on: Election
Results, Cabinet Members, Presidency Highlights, Internet Biographies,
Historical Documents, Media Resources, Fast Facts, or Other Internet Resources
for information in those areas.
The
Presidential Record
This collection of information about U.S. Presidents is provided
by the Public Broadcasting service, to accompany their PBS Television series:
The Presidents. See sections:" Snap Shot, The Era, Domestic Policy, Foerign
policy, and Presidential Politics-- in order to get a feel for their work,
life and times.
Inaugural Addresses of the
Presidents
This collection is being published in commemoration of theBicentennial
Presidential Inauguration that was observed on January 20,1989. Dedicated
to the institution of the Presidency and the democraticprocess that represents
the peaceful and orderly transfer of poweraccording to the will of the
people.
Portraits
of the Presidents and First Ladies
A set of 156 portraits of presidents and first ladies, and several
of the forty-one presidents also appear in military settings or informal
surroundings. Popular subjects, such as images of inaugurations and the
White House, are included, as are such perennial favorites as Abraham Lincoln
with Sojourner Truth, Calvin Coolidge at a baseball game, Warren G. Harding
with his lively dog Laddie, and Dwight D. Eisenhower with American paratroopers
in England.
Time
Line of Presidents and First Ladies
Each president and first lady is listed chronologically according
to the president's term(s) in office. There are also links to their pictures,
when available.
Voices
of American Presidents
Hear Real Audio and MP3 recordings of the presidents of the Twentieth
Century.
Presidential
Libraries
From the National Archives, a digital collection of materials documenting
actions, lives, and times of the U.S. presidents. You will have to use
the links on the page to go to various collections. For background, see
the essay "An Overview of the Presidential Libraries".
Imperial
Presidency
Brief definition and examples of the meaning of the term: Imperial
Presidency.
The
Imperial Presidency's New Vestments
Lengthy essay about how the office of the President has expanded
its powers beyond what the Constitution allows.
Global Interventionism
and a New Imperial Presidency
Overview of a policy paper, with link to the full report, produced
by the conservative political think tank, the Cato Institute.
The U.S. Senate and House of Representatives
THOMAS
U.S. Senate and House of Representatives legislative information
provided by the Library of Congress. Find out about current and past lawmaking,
and future laws being considered. Be sure to scroll down the entire page
to see all that is available.
The U.S. Senate
The official U.S. Senate website. Check on the work of individual
senators, creation of laws in the Senate, and how the Senate operates--
plus other useful information.
The U.S. House Of Representatives
Listing of all information available with regards to the U.S. House
of Representatives. Just about anything you might want to know about our
country's laws and the legislative process is available here.
Project Vote Smart
Information on elected officials and those running for public office
at the state and national level.
Biographical Directory of
the U.S. Congress
Brief background data is available on all members of the House
and Senate. Search by name. Includes all members who have served, going
back to the Continental Congress. Tip: Try a search on "Bidwell, John".
Congressional Operations:
Educational Resources
A series of informative reports on how Congress operates, its organization,
and history is offered here. Mostly focuses on the House of Representatives.
Politics and
Political Parties
A collection of links to information about political parties, politicians,
elections and related matters (CHS Library links).
The Nation's Courts and the Law
FindLaw
Knowing the law helps understand government, and vice versa. This
site organizes useful links to resources where you can find vast amounts
of information about laws on certain subjects. You
may go directly to find lots of information on "Supreme Court Cases By
Year" Here! (That way you can see the cases that were decided for
any given year. Very helpful. Good place to start looking!)
Recent U.S. Supreme
Court Decisions (Since 1990)
The United States Supreme Court decides on the interpretation of
laws passed by Congress. This site allows access to many of the decisions
made since 1990. Also includes information about the Court, and links to
selected Historic Supreme Court Decisions.
U.S. Supreme
Court Cases
Search the FindLaw database for many U.S. Supreme Court opinions
on cases that are not covered by the recent and historic databases. Fills
some of the gap between 1975-1990. If you didn't find it there, try here.
Historic File
of U.S.Supreme Court Decisions
Contains the full text of 7,407 U.S. Supreme Court Decisions from
1937 to 1975. Decisions can be read on your browser's screens. Most are
very large and may take a while to download.
U.S.
Supreme Court Cases
USSC+, a commercial database provider allows online access to its
collection of over 5,000 U.S. Supreme Court decisions. You will need to
select the type of search (e.g., by Citation, Parties, Docket, Word or
Phrase) at the top of the screen.
U.S. Constitution
and Related Court Cases
FindLaw's excellent set of resources with annotations from the
Congressional Research Service Library of Congress with links to cited
Supreme Court Cases.
The United States Code
Search this database for the full text of the laws of the land.
Or, if it is easier for you, use the Table
of Contents at the bottom of the site to see laws according to their
subject.
Laws and Legal
Information By Subject
Cornell University's links can be accessed through a set of topic
categories, and an alphabetical listing of topics, and a searchable index.
Just start with the general subject area, and follow the pathways to more
specific topics.
General Source
Social Science
History Resources
This site lists resources by grade level. For the Eighth
Grade it includes the years from Colonial America and the birth of our
nation through the early 1900's.
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