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

Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
10/22/2008
Steve Richard Nicosia (b. 1955) played for eight seasons on four different teams, ending his career in 1985. As a rookie, Nicosia used this catcher's mask when he caught during Game Seven of the 1979 World Series. Later in his career, he set a San Francisco Giants record with eight consecutive hi

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
9/1/2010
This crumpled piece of exterior sheathing was recovered from the debris pile of the World Trade Center after the building collapsed following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
4/22/2010
The Environmental Movement
This button depicts the ecology symbol, a small letter “e” inside the larger letter “O,” the letters standing for “environment” and “organism.” Cartoonist Ron Cobb invented the symbol in 1969. The ecology symbol appeared in a g

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/17/2010
In 1855 Secretary of War Jefferson Davis was instrumental in the creation of two regiments of cavalry. It was recommended that the cavalry have a distinctive hat; it is sometimes called the Jeff Davis hat. It also was referred to as the Hardee hat, after William Joseph Hardee, an officer of the 2

Grade Range:
5-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/28/2010
The LeMat revolver was a favorite of famous high-ranking Confederate officers, such as J. E. B. Stuart.

Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
10/27/2008
Though anchored in local Roman Catholic traditions, many of the religious beliefs and symbols of Mexican Americans have roots in indigenous notions about the soul and our universe. Between October 31st and November 2nd, Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is celebrated with family, decoratin

Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
9/3/2008
The Soviet launch of the Sputnik satellite in late 1957 sparked interest in the United States in science education even among elementary school children. In 1958, King Seeley Thermos produced this imaginative box evoking space travel and landings on distant moons and planets. Children provided a

Grade Range:
6-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
10/27/2008
This is an anatomical model of a woman, complete with removable parts. The kit includes a clear plastic body or shell, a "complete" skeleton, "all vital organs," and a round plastic display stand. The kit was designed as an educational tool to teach basic anatomy. The intructions explain how to a

Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Date Posted:
12/31/2009
As the “Millennium Bug” gained media attention, some businesses used the hype to market special millennium foods. From cars to breakfast cereal, companies like the Figueroa Brothers, Inc., cashed in on the Y2K name. This bottle once contained Y2K Millennium Meltdown ¿R-U-Ready? hot sauce, a

Grade Range:
K-12
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts
Date Posted:
4/7/2016
This cotton miner’s cap has a leather brim with a leather lamp bracket holding a carbide lamp. A small union pin that reads “United Mine Works of America 2 1934, Working Button” is attached to the side of the cap. Before head protection became mandatory in industrial workplaces, miner’s c