As COVID-19 deaths spiked in 2020, Suzanne Firstenberg’s public art installation "In America: How could this happen…"
Museum Artifacts
Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
11/6/2008
Before the famous California gold rush, several important strikes were made in the East: in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. The earliest took place in Mecklenburg County, N.C., in 1799, where a nugget weighing several pounds was discovered. Its finder used it as a doorstop until some
Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
9/3/2008
This tortoiseshell woman's hair comb dates from the 19th century. A precursor to plastics, tortoiseshell and horn were common materials used in combs since they could be made soft and moldable by heating. As they cooled, they would harden and keep their new shape.
Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts
Date Posted:
4/7/2016
The National Cash Register Company produced this Model 421 cash register around 1914. The register was used in a Marshall Field & Company department store. The register has three columns of keys for entering numbers, and a fourth column of function keys. The operating crank is on the right si
Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
9/2/2020
This yellow, floral patterned tea length patterned dress was worn by Minnijean Brown during the Spingarn Award Ceremony in 1958. The Spingarn Medal is a gold medal that has been awarded annually since 1915 by the NAACP. According to the NAACP, the purpose is “to call the attention of the American
Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
9/3/2020
Mr. Lee only wore these slippers in his home or with his traditional Chinese clothes on special occasions. The slipper sole was thick, flat, inelastic, and shorter than the upper sole to give enough spring for walking. For much of his early life, the Chinese New Year was Lee’s only day of rest fro
Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
2/3/2011
To control the form of war messages, the government created the U.S. Office of War Information in June 1942. OWI sought to review and approve the design and distribution of government posters. Posters such as this one and their messages were seen as "war graphics," combining the sophisticated sty
Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/22/2010
Uniform and hat of soldiers of the 1st Regiment of U.S. Sharpshooters, better known as Berdan's Sharpshooters. Mustered in 1861, this unit was commanded by Colonel Hiram Berdan.
Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/23/2010
The kepi is similar to the forage cap. It was copied from the French officer's hat. The crown could be colored, usually for the branch of service of the wearer. The kepi was shorter than the forage cap, and was not very popular because it did not protect from the rain or sun.
Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
1/27/2009
Although some know of the banjo's use by African Americans, the popular consciousness of the banjo has been dominated by images of white Southern musicians and urban folk singers. But the story is more complex. The banjo migrated from Africa to America in the hands and memories of slaves. Through
Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
11/13/2008
This cloth banner celebrates the electoral victory of Thomas Jefferson over John Adams in the presidential election of 1800. The banner is believed to be one of the earliest surviving textiles carrying partisan imagery, created at the dawn of the first American party system in which power passed
