Menarche, or the onset of menstruation, generated much advice and many attempts to manage girls' bodies in a public w
Museum Artifacts

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/28/2010
During the Civil War, Libby Prison held over 125,000 men, mostly Union officers. This knife, fork, and plate was issued to prisoner of war Colonel John S. Crocker, 93rd Infantry Regiment, New York Volunteers, by the commandant of Libby Prison, Richmond, Virginia, and used by him at Libby and

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/28/2010
Built by contract with John Ericsson at Green Point, Long Island, and launched January 30, 1862, the USS Monitor saw its first naval action at Hampton Roads, Virginia, on March 9, 1862. Despite the CSS Virginia being almost twice its size, with ten guns, the Monitor wit

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
6/10/2009
United States Mint, Philadelphia. Obverse: Young head of Liberty, facing right; date below. Reverse: Eagle, facing left; denomination below. The piece was designed by George T. Morgan, and, while no more successful than any of his other designs, stands in marked contrast to them. Because of the y

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/22/2010
General Robert E. Lee’s first invasion of the North culminated in the Battle of Antietam, the bloodiest single-day battle in American history.

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/22/2010
The Confederate battle flag, known as the “Stars and Bars,” was born of necessity at the Battle of Bull Run. Amid the smoke and general chaos of battle, it was hard to distinguish the Confederate "Stars and Bars" from the U.S. national flag, the "Stars and Stripes.” General Pierre T. Beaure

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/28/2010
This lighter, smaller-caliber Navy model was popular with ranking army officers, including General George McClellan.

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
6/10/2009
This one-cent piece from 1974 is perfectly normal-except for one thing. It was struck in aluminum rather than bronze. Lincoln's bust graces the obverse, just as it has done for over ninety-five years.
And the Lincoln Memorial appears on the reverse, just as it has since the closing years o

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/23/2010
These two minie balls from opposing sides met head-on during fierce fighting at the Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia, in December 1862.

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/15/2010
Resolution to raise troops, Massachusetts, April 23, 1778.

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/30/2010
At the Battle of Gettysburg, the Union saw the value of securing a rocky outcropping called Little Round Top. Strong Vincent seized the opportunity, taking the boulder and yelling to his men, “Don’t give an inch.” As he uttered the words a bullet tore through his thigh and lodged