Smithsonian's History Explorer Resources Related To "Middle Passage: Olaudah Equiano, Enslaved African Man"

Living in the Atlantic World 1450-1800

Fri, 20 Jul 2012 10:58:14 GMT

Students will learn how Atlantic-based trade shaped modern world history and life in America, and explore the web of maritime connections between Western Europe, western and central Africa, and the Americas that made up the Atlantic world in this section of On the Water: Stories from Maritime America, an online exhibition. Topics covered are the tobacco and sugar trades, the Middle Passage and the transatlantic slave trade, and the piracy that plagued the Caribbean Sea and North American coast during this period.

On the Water Collection Search

Mon, 14 Jan 2013 07:17:33 GMT

This interactive collection search contains objects that are featured in the exhibition On the Water: Stories from Maritime America. Representing a broad sweep of American maritime history, these objects were collected over more than a century and reflect broad patterns of technological, economic, social, and cultural change.

First Person Account: Spotswood Rice

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 17:45:31 GMT

Spotswood Rice, an African American Union soldier, threatens the Southern woman who holds his daughter as a slave.

This video is part of the Price of Freedom learning resources package for use with the Comparing Confederate and Union Troops lesson plan. It was produced to accompany the exhibition The Price of Freedom: Americans at War, by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.

The Price of Doing Business: Joseph Hawkins, American Officer on a Slave Ship

Wed, 18 Jul 2012 12:37:56 GMT

Joseph Hawkins was one of many workers aboard a slave ship in the 1700’s. Listen to a dramatic reading of his narrative, and then study the supporting primary sources to answer the discussion questions. This resource is part of a series called “Life at Sea: 1680 to 1806,” which includes five perspectives on maritime life in the colonial period and early America.

This resource includes a teacher guide, student worksheet, downloadable audio, images of supporting primary sources, and discussion questions.