Civil War resources
The Civil War was a pivotal moment in American history, testing our commitment to the principle of union. In Tennessee, the war devastated cities and farmland, divided communities and families, mobilized both white and black populations, and transformed the economy and the landscape.
Welcome to the Civil War portal of the TPS-TN Web site. Here you will find all our Civil War-related resources and links, brought together in one place to assist educators and the interested public.
These resources are meant to accompany the Civil War Sesquicentennial commemoration, which kicked off in November 2010 and will continue into 2015, with events and activities all over Tennessee. We will be adding new resources to this page throughout this period.
Contents:
Lesson plans and ideas
Primary source sets
Content resources
Tools
Other Civil War resources
Gallery of Tennessee Civil War images
Lesson Plans & Ideas
"Geographic Politics - The Road to Secession in Tennessee"
- 9th-12th grade Geography, Geology, Government, History
- Worksheets
- PowerPoint
- Created by Robert Clark, Paulette Elementary School (Union County)
"A House Divided: The Civil War Home Front in Tennessee"
- 5th & 8th grade Social Studies and Language Arts
- Created by Rebecca Byrd, New Center Elementary School (Sevier County)
"Civil War Communications: The Role of the Telegraph on the Battlefield"
- 6th-8th grade Career and Technical Education – Technology Engineering
- Created by Perry F. Louden, Jr., Rockvale Middle School (Rutherford County)
"Views on the Emancipation Proclamation"
- 8th grade Social Studies, Language Arts
"The Emancipation Proclamation and Its Connections to the Thirteenth Amendment"
- 8th grade Social Studies, Language Arts
"The Case of the Moved Body"
- Exploring Civil War photography
- High School English, Visual Arts History
"Railroads in Tennessee"
- High School Technology – Engineering, World Geography, Economics, and U.S. History
- Lesson idea from August 2010 newsletter (bottom of p. 2)
July 2011 newsletter
- Theme: Civil War – Divided Tennessee
July 2010 newsletter
- Theme: Civil War – Home Front in Tennessee
"David Glasgow Farragut & the Battle for Mobile Bay"
- 5th & 8th grade Social Studies, high school World Geography
- Lesson idea from November 2009 newsletter (top of p. 3)
"Battle of Nashville 1864"
- 3rd-8th (particularly 3rd-5th) grade Social Studies, Math
Civil War lesson plans from the Library of Congress
Primary source sets
"Underground Railroad"
"Civil War homefront in Tennessee"
"Prelude to the Civil War in Tennessee"
Content resources
"Women and the Civil War"
- 5-page introductory essay on the different roles that women played during the Civil War and how the war impacted their lives, with images, links, and bibliography
"A 'Terrible Reality': Alexander Gardner's Photographs of the Dead"
- 6-page introductory essay on Civil War photographer Alexander Gardner's use of pictures to convey the real human cost of the war, with images, links, and bibliography
"Divided Tennessee: The Coming of the Civil War"
- 4-page introductory essay on the political and social divisions among Tennesseans regarding secession, with images, links, and bibliography
"The Home Front During the Civil War"
- 5-page introductory essay on the experience of civilians on the home front, with images, links, and bibliography
"Emancipation During and After the Civil War"
- 4-page introductory essay on emancipation, with images, links, and bibliography
"Hope Within a Wilderness of Suffering: The Transition from Slavery to Freedom During the Civil War and Reconstruction in Tennessee"
- 13-page essay on the impact of emancipation in Tennessee
- Courtesy of the NEH-funded Tennessee 4 Me Web site produced by the Tennessee State Museum
"Prelude to the Civil War in Tennessee"
- 1-hour Webcast including lecture, PowerPoint, primary source images, and discussion on the situation leading up to war in Tennessee
- Click on the link above and sign in to receive professional development credit.
- See related Primary Source Set above.
"Civil War in Tennessee"
- Overview of the war in Tennessee from the Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture
Tools
Civil War Links
- Top Ten: 1-page listing of most useful Civil War-related links for educators
- Comprehensive version: 5-page listing of collections, teacher materials, online exhibitions, and other search options for Civil War-related links
Celebrating Abraham Lincoln Online
- This PDF provides important links and search terms for researching Abraham Lincoln using Library of Congress primary source collections and exhibitions, teacher materials, and search term ideas.
Other Civil War resources
Gallery of Tennessee Civil War Images
Last updated on: 05/2/12 09:46 am