Other
American Artifacts: The Imaginative Inventor
Just for fun. A website with a list of strange inventions by would-be entrepreneurs. Click on any to see a picture and description of the device.
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of the American Indian: Great Masters of Mexican Folk Art
Explore Mexican Folk Art by looking at different types of material and what they are used to make. Choose from clay, metal, leather, paper, plant fibers, stone, wood, and more.
PBS
Pbs: Scientific American Frontiers: Unearthing Secret America
The fun part of history is finding the clues that unlock the secrets of the past. This is the companion site to the TV show with Alan Alda that features archeological discoveries. Students will find interesting lessons from the past on...
Other
Denver Art Museum: Northwest Coast Indian Carving
Explore in detail two examples of the carving and painting style of the Native Americans of the Northwest Coast: an ocean-going canoe and a bentwood box, which was used for storage. Read about materials that Native craftspeople used and...
Other
The Museum of the American Revolution: Museum
An online site for a museum that is preserving artifacts from the American Revolution.
Texas A&M University
Center for the Study of the First Americans: Cactus Hill Site, Virginia
Pictures of the Cactus Hill paleo-Indian site in Virginia show the site itself and artifacts from the pre-Clovis and Clovis periods of time. There is no commentary about the pictures other than a caption.
PBS
Pbs Teachers: Scientific American: Dead Men's Tales: Undisturbed Find
Emulate the work of archeologists by creating and excavating an archeological find. Record the exact location and position of every dig artifact to maintain the coherency of the find.
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: Treasures of Am. History: Western Expansion
Shown are images and descriptions of artifacts that express the challenges that the migrants, Mexicans, and Indians shared in their quest for westward expansion in the United States during the 1800s.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Edsit Ement: Traces: Historic Archaeology
Excellent lesson plans that challenge students to consider every day uses for artifacts. Site provides an analysis worksheet that will help students consider the importance of artifacts in understanding historical people. Links to sites...
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Discovering the Past/ an Introduction to Archaeology
This is a good, solid, but concise introduction to what archaeology is, how a site is set up, what one uses artifacts for, and how to approach a site. It is written for the teacher's newsletter from Colonial Williamsburg.
American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History: Piecing Together the Puzzle of History
A brief introduction for students to the field of archaeology.
Library of Congress
Loc: American Treasures: Artifacts of Assassination
This site describes the articles in Abraham Lincoln's pockets the evening he was assassinated. Includes a photograph of the items. Also included are newspaper clippings about the assassination and the playbill from Ford's Theater.
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: America's History in the Making: Museum Curator
As part of the larger unit, America's History in the Making, from Annenberg Learner, this interactive allows students to be curators of their own mini-museum by choosing artifacts that fit a topic of their choice under the general theme...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Tenement Museum: Your Story, Our Story
This online museum features a digital archive. Students, and anyone around the United States, are encouraged to upload images of family objects and their stories. American immigration and migration are the foci for this archive.
University of California
The Bancroft Library: Oroville Chinese Temple
Digitized collection of artifacts from a Chinese temple built in 1863 and serving a populace of 10,000.
Arizona State University
Southwest Culture Through Art: Unit and Lessons
This unit on Southwest American culture planned for sixth graders features six lesson plans on the following subjects: small group collage, exploring concepts, artifacts, pottery, petroglyph rock art pins, and architecture. (Click on...
Library of Congress
Loc: Exploring the Early Americas: Columbus and the Taino
An on-line exhibit displaying copies of Columbus' journals, other writings about his voyages and findings, as well as information and artifacts of the Taino, the Native Americans Columbus encountered on San Salvador.
Library of Congress
Loc: Global Gateway: Meeting of Frontiers
From cossacks to cowboys, this Library of Congress special online collection looks at American westward exploration and expansion, and Russia's eastward reach into and conquest of Siberia. Includes historical information and timelines,...
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Learning Lab: Hispanic Heritage Teaching Resources
This site is your link to teaching resources about Hispanic heritage. Choose from topics such as Musica del Pueblo, Mexican America, Latino Voices in American Art, or many others. Explore links to interactive exhibits, lesson plans, and...
Other
Kentucky Historical Society: Kentucky Military Treasures
A collection of personal stories, illustrated with artifacts, documents, and photographs, that exemplifies the military experiences of Kentuckians in America's wars, beginning with the War of 1812. Requires Adobe Flash.
Other
Sfu Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology: Hola Canada
An extraordinary collection of resources relating to the ancient heritage of Latin America. Includes detailed information and images of artifacts, educator resources, and much more.
Virginia History Series
Virginia History Series: Indians of Virginia [Pdf]
Amazing visual presentation about the history of Indians in Virginia. included in this comprehensive slideshow are startling pictures and maps tracing the Native American culture from prehistoric times through the 1600's.
Other
Museum of the Fur Trade: Traders, Trappers, and Indians
The French were the premier fur traders in the 18th century, but many groups besides the French were involved also. Find extensive information and artifacts about the fur trade, what was traded, who the traders were, and how the trade...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Edsit Ement: Mapping the Past
Students will examine European world maps from the Middle Ages, the Age of Discovery, and the period of New World exploration. They will then look at maps that record the early exploration of the American West and collect present-day...