Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Britain in the New World: The Growth of the Tobacco Trade

For Students 5th - 8th
Many colonists came to Jamestown to find gold. Read about what finally brought money into the colony, and what John Rolfe's role was in that. Read about who the workers were who provided the labor for this new money source.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: 54 40 or Fight

For Students 5th - 8th
See how James Polk's plan to claim the Oregon Territory, which had been shared with Great Britain since 1818, led him to victory with the slogan, Fifty-four forty or fight. Read about the settlers who traveled the Oregon Trail and why...
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: The Rush of Immigrants

For Students 5th - 8th
Read about the new wave of immigrants who came to America in the late 19th century. See differences between these groups of immigrants and those who came earlier. Find out where immigrants settled, and read about those who did not...
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: The Sickened Economy

For Students 5th - 8th
The U.S. economy in the 1970s staggered and fell in the 1970s. Read about the reasons for the depressed economy marked by high inflation and high unemployment.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Finding Oneself

For Students 5th - 8th
A good description of the decade of the '70s, the "Me" decade. Read about the fashions, hairstyles, therapies, and fads that made this decade somewhat absurd.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Independence Hall

For Students 9th - 10th
Brief history of the "birthplace of the United States", with construction details, and a location map.
Activity
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: General Nathanael Greene

For Students 9th - 10th
An exhaustive biography of Nathanael Greene which contains not only biographical information, but also much information about the War in the South and military strategy. A great resource.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: The Reagan Years

For Students 5th - 8th
A brief overview of the decade of the 1980s dominated by the presidency of Ronald Reagan.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: A Time of Maiaise

For Students 5th - 8th
The decade of the 1970s brought a great deal of pessimism to the American public. Read about problems with the economy, foreign affairs, and the environment.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Shaping a New America

For Students 5th - 8th
A brief overview of the protest movements in the 1960s and 1970s.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Politics From Camelot to Watergate

For Students 5th - 8th
A brief overview of the state of the United States between the election of 1960 and 1968. See how a nation full of enthusiasm and confidence could become so divided in eight short years.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: The Antiwar Movement

For Students 5th - 8th
As the Vietnam War dragged on, antiwar sentiment grew. Read about the increasing antiwar movement, the demonstrations by antiwar supporters, and the violence used to break up the demonstrations.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: A New Civil Rights Movement

For Students 5th - 8th
A very brief overview of the inception of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s, its successes and failures into the 1960s, and a prediction of despair in the 1970s.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Suburban Growth

For Students 5th - 8th
Find out how many veterans returning from World War II were able to realize the American Dream of home ownership, and see how this resulted in the growth of suburban areas across the nation.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: The 1950s: Happy Days

For Students 5th - 8th
A brief look at American life and politics in the 1950s with an increase in consumerism and fear of the Soviet Union.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Domestic Challenges

For Students 5th - 8th
The American soldiers returning from World War I had a huge impact on the economy. Read about President Truman's domestic policies and find out about the surprise of the election of 1948.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: The Korean War

For Students 5th - 8th
A quick overview of the Korean War, its causes, outcome, and its role in the Cold War.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Middle Colonies: The Ideas of Benjamin Franklin

For Students 5th - 8th
A brief biography of Benjamin Franklin covering his career as a printer, philanthropist, inventor, and public servant.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Social and Cultural Effects of the Depression

For Students 5th - 8th
Read about how the fabric of the nation was changed during the Great Depression. See how the institutions of life--marriage, birth rates, education, public health--all saw disruption because of the compromised economy.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Radio Fever

For Students 5th - 8th
Radio created a mass entertainment culture that could bridge the gap between those in California and those in New York. Read about the advent of radio stations, and the companies that owned them. See why the federal government had to...
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: The Invention of the Teenager

For Students 5th - 8th
It's hard to believe that there was not a phase known as adolescence until the 1920s. See how child labor laws and the automobile combined to spawn the teenager.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: The Decade That Roared

For Students 5th - 8th
A very brief overview of the decade between the end of World War I and the Great Depression.
Handout
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Over There

For Students 5th - 8th
Read about the difference it made when the United States finally entered World War I. Find out about the impact of the American Expeditionary Force, and the major battles in which they fought.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Farewell to Isolation

For Students 5th - 8th
President Wilson's claim, "he kept us out of war," did not last. Read about the increasing number of reasons for American to declare war against Germany. See why war was finally declared in April, 1917.