Smithsonian's History Explorer Resources Related To "Two Perspectives on the Battle of Little Bighorn and Greasy Grass"

Western Indian Wars

Tue, 17 Jul 2012 18:11:33 GMT

In the decades following the Civil War, the U.S. Army fought dozens of engagements with Indians in the West. This website explores Federal Indian policies and conflicts that arose as Americans flooded west into the Great Plains. Through the use of images and objects from the Museum's collections, students will learn about: Sitting Bull, George Custer and the Battle of Little Bighorn; the massacre at Wounded Knee; the resistance of Geronimo and the Chiricahua Apache; buffalo soldiers; and the realities of life on Indian Reservations. A non-flash version of the site is available: Western Indian Wars.

Keeping History: Plains Indian Ledger Drawings Homepage

Tue, 20 Nov 2012 14:56:07 GMT

The drawings included in this online exhibition are first-person records of military conflicts, cultural life, and "Americanization." The website shares an American Indian perspective on westward expansion through primary sources. In the late 19th century, life was changing rapidly for the Natives who lived on the northern and southern plains. Native men developed a way of recording history through drawings on paper, often called "ledger drawings," in a mixture symbolic and representational illustration styles.

Treasures of American History: National Challenges

Wed, 07 Nov 2012 14:56:27 GMT

In this section of the online exhibition Treasures of American History, students will learn that by understanding the challenges of the past, they can draw lessons and inspiration for confronting new challenges in the present and future. The topics discussed in this section are: the American Revolution; slavery; westward expansion; the Civil War, women's suffrage, the Great Depression and World War II, the Civil Rights movement and AIDS. A Spanish version of the exhibition is available on the exhibition's homepage.

Tracking the Buffalo: You Be The Historian

Tue, 20 Nov 2012 14:57:44 GMT

What can we learn by studying a buffalo hide painting? In this activity, students will learn about the culture of the Plains Indians by determining the meaning of stories told on a buffalo hide painting and compare their interpretations to that of a Smithsonian historian. This activity is meant to help students learn more about Native American culture by analyzing and learning from objects; a guiding student worksheet is included. It is included in the website Tracking the Buffalo: Stories From a Buffalo Hide Painting.

An Army for the Nation, 1866-1914

Wed, 11 Jul 2012 14:09:17 GMT

In this online exhibition, students will learn how West Point graduates influenced the development of the United States both domestically and abroad between the Civil War and the beginning of the Twentieth Century. After the Civil War, the United States Army was kept small in size while its main responsibilities were fighting Indians in the West, maintaining order in labor disputes and performing ceremonial functions. In the late 1800s, West Point graduates played important roles in the Spanish-American and Philippine Wars and were vital to the success of engineering projects such as the building of the Panama Canal and the reshaping of Washington, D.C. An Army for the Nation is part of the online exhibition, West Point in the Making of America.