Site Search | Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History

81,959 items

Guided Readings

Guided Readings: Manifest Destiny

Economics, Geography, Government and Civics

9, 10, 11, 12

Reading 1: Our manifest destiny [is] to overspread the continent allotted by Providence for the free development of our yearly multiplying millions. John L. O'Sullivan, 1845 Reading 2: Texas has been absorbed into the Union as the...

Guided Readings

Guided Readings: World War II

Economics, Government and Civics, World History

Reading 1 It seems to be unfortunately true that the epidemic of world lawlessness is spreading. When an epidemic of physical disease starts to spread, the community approves and joins in a quarantine of the patients in order to...

Guided Readings

Guided Readings: The Atomic Bomb

Government and Civics, Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, World History

9, 10, 11, 12

Reading 1 Nuclear bombs cannot possible remain a "secret weapon" at the exclusive disposal of this country for more than a few years. The scientific facts on which their construction is based are well known to scientists of other...

Classroom Resources

Infographic: "Bookending" the Twentieth Century

Economics, Geography, Government and Civics

9, 10, 11, 12

View this infographic as a downloadable PDF.

Classroom Resources

Statistics: The Growth of Cities

Economics, Geography, Science, Technology, Engineering and Math

9, 10, 11, 12

Urban Growth Number of Cities 1860 1900 100,000-499,999 7 32 500,000 or more 2 6 Percent of Total Population 1860 1900 100,000-499,999 4% 8% 500,000 or more 4% 11% Questions for Discussion What factors contributed to the growth of...

Classroom Resources

Statistics: Education in America, 1860-1950

Economics, Government and Civics, Literature

9, 10, 11, 12

Resources Invested in Education Spending on Education Spending Per Child 15-19 Percentage of GNP 1860 $60 $5.33 1.4 1900 $503 $20.53 2.9 Improvements in Education % Illiteracy 10 or older High School Graduates College Enrollment Total...

Classroom Resources

Statistics: Slaves and Slaveholdings

Economics

6, 7, 8

Slaveholding, 1860 Non-slaveholders 76.1 percent 1-9 slaves 17.2 percent 10-99 6.6 percent over 100 0.1 percent Distribution of Slaves Number of slaves held 0 1-6 7-39 40+ Percent of white families 75 15 9 1 Percent of slaves held 0...

Classroom Resources

Infographic: North-South Comparisons before the Civil War

Economics, Geography, Government and Civics

9, 10, 11, 12

Download this infographic as an image.

Classroom Resources

Infographic: Casualties and Costs of the Civil War

Economics, Government and Civics, World History

9, 10, 11, 12

View this infographic as a PDF.

Classroom Resources

Infographic: Differences between Federalists and Antifederalists

Economics, Government and Civics

9, 10, 11, 12

The differences between the Federalists and the Antifederalists are vast and at times complex. Federalists’ beliefs could be better described as nationalist. The Federalists were instrumental in 1787 in shaping the new US Constitution...