Civil War
The links below are specifically for the Honor's Comp primary source project. All other students should look to start in the US History or Gale ebooks databases to get started.
Books
A few of the e-books available in the Gale e-books database:
American Civil War Reference Library
"American Civil War Reference Library" offers comprehensive and wide ranging research options on this compelling era of American history. Material in each of the three titles has been reviewed by an independent advisory board for its curriculum relevance and its accessibility to students in grades 6-12. "American Civil War: Almanac" provides in-depth background and interpretation of the era, events and topics. Subject chapters offer viewpoints, definitions, chronological coverage of battles, further reading and sidebars highlighting individuals, statistics and other attention-grabbing information. "American Civil War: Biographies" offers detailed essays on the lives of 60 individuals in two volumes. The 1,200- to 2,400-word essays are accompanied by sidebars, further reading lists, cross-references and more. Each volume includes a chronology, project suggestions, a name/subject index and more. "American Civil War: Primary Sources" offers text of 14 full or excerpted speeches, newspaper accounts, novels, poems, memoirs and other documents that reflect a wide range of viewpoints. Each entry includes background information about the subject, definitions, and details on the impact the document had on the public.
ISBN: 9780787638184
General Information
- Library of CongressIndex of all items that are digitized related to the Civil War
- National Parks Service Civil War linksLinks to web sites about the civil war.
- EyeWitness to HistoryGeneral information on the war, battles, people and events.
- Timeline of the Civil WarA timeline and other important information of the Civil War.
- University of Virginia LibraryHome to a variety of primary source material on the American Civil War, including letters, diaries and newspapers. University of Virginia Library.
- Collection of Civil War DocumentsExplore Civil War records that feature everything from personal accounts to historic writings that would shape a nation.
- SmithsonianLinks and information collected by the Smithsonian.
- PBSMaps, biographies, historical documents and related links.
Check out the Facts page. - Primary Source NexusA set of online resources indexed by topic.
- National ArchivesMilitary Records Search
https://dp.la a good first place to start when looking for primary sources. Think of the DPLA as a one stop shopping place which will direct you to libraries, museums, archives that have digital collections.
Tutorial: DPLA Search Tips
Some significant people/terms from the era that might lead to primary source materials:
- Mathew Brady, photographer
- Civil war leaders: William Tecumseh Sherman, Ulysses S. Grant, Robert E. Lee, Nathan Bedford Forest
- United States Sanitary Commission Documents
- Jefferson Davis
- Mary Chestnut
- Elijah (Elisha) Hunt Rhodes
- George Templeton Strong
Maps and Images
- American MemoryMaps of the Civil War.
- Library of CongressSelected prints and photograph of the Civil War.
- Washington PostAn interactive map to see battles and timelines of the Civil War.
- Civil War TrustA full library of Civil War Trust battle maps, animated maps, historical maps and more.
- Digital VaultsNational archive - photographs
- Library of Congress Civil War PhotographsDirect link to search for civil war photographs.
Battles of the Civil War
- Civil War BattlesDescriptions of 400 Battles provided by the National Park Services.
- History ChannelSearch the History Channel's site to find your battle, find information about the battles. Many have videos.
Digital Primary Sources
- Harper's WeeklyThe NYPL has digitized some this newspaper/magazine. It may be limited access when not in a NY library.
People
- National Park ServiceLinks to famous participants in Civil War battles.
- Home of the American Civil WarBiography infomation in relation to Civil War.
- Civil War - Duke University Digitized DocumentsOn-line archival collections featuring scanned pages and texts of the writings of women during the American Civil War. Currently includes the 1864 diary of Alice Williamson, a 16 year old girl from Gallatin, Tennessee, the papers of Rose O'Neal Greenhow, a renowned Confederate spy, and the papers of Sarah E. Thompson, a spy for the Union.
- American Slave NarrativesFrom 1936 to 1938, over 2,300 former slaves from across the American South were interviewed by writers and journalists under the aegis of the Works Progress Administration. These former slaves, most born in the last years of the slave regime or during the Civil War, provided first-hand accounts of their experiences on plantations, in cities, and on small farms.
- Civil War Letter CollectionSelection of soldiers' letters that have been digitized by the University of Washington.
People
- Valley of the ShadowTwo communities in the Civil War.
- American Civil War - VA TechManuscript collections contain letters and diaries from both Union and Confederate soldiers, homefront letters, memoirs, and contemporary research files.