The Civil War: An Annotated Mediagraphy

The Civil War was an important part of American history. State curriculum dictates that the topic is studied in high school American history classes and at the 8th grade level and provides strict standards and objectives that must be followed. Most history books do an excellent job of teaching the dates, facts, and people involved in the Civil War, but today’s students need more to capture their attention. By adding audio and video sources to this curriculum, the Civil War can be a topic of study that can captivate students.

The purpose of this Civil War Mediagraphy is to provide teachers with resources that provide students with images, music, sounds, information, and analytical activities that carry on where textbooks leave off. Audio and video can enrich the study of the Civil War. A textbook might include a passage that describes how a drummer helps soldiers keep time during a march, or a bugle player plays taps at a funeral for lost comrades. A CD of both of these examples can provide concrete examples that brings this to life for students. Students might read how Antietam was the bloodiest battle of the Civil War, but this knowledge only becomes significant to them when they see a DVD reenacting the battle.

These items were selected based on their historical accuracy, high interest level, format, availability, and long lasting relevance. Each resource also had at least one favorable review.

DVDs and Videos

Abraham and Mary Lincoln: a house divided. PBS Home Video, Alexandria, VA,

http://www.pbs.org . Available from Follett Library Resources, http://www.titlewave.com , VHS, 129.95, 2001.

This 3 videocassette, 360 minute focuses on the lives of Abraham and Mary Lincoln, their childhood, election, presidency issues, and Lincoln’s assassination. “Actors David Morse and Holly Hunter portray the voices of the Lincolns; David McCullough provides unifying narration; and an evocative music score charts changing moods in the subjects’ lives. This spellbinding documentary delves into the personal side of the chronically depressed, indomitable U.S. president and his wife, who suffered through the deaths of two children.”(Booklist, May 15, 2001) Special features include: interviews with the producer and cinematographer, audio descriptions, an interactive map, video interview of historians, timelines, essays, photo gallery, and a teacher’s guide. “Abraham and Mary Lincoln: a house divided offers an absorbing, intimate chronicle of the early lives of the backwoods, self-educated, homely Abe Lincoln and May Todd, a socially prominent, well-educated, pleasant looking Southern beau. This excellent entry in the American Experience series is a highly recommended complement to earlier works such as PBS’s Lincoln.”(Video Librarian, July 2001, vol. 16, issue 4)

The Civil War - A Film by Ken Burns. PBS Home Video, Alexandria, VA,

http://www.pbs.org . Available from Amazon, http://www.amazon.com ,

DVD, 97.49, 1990.

Ken Burn’s 5 DVD, 660 minute set has been given a digital facelift, sharpening image clarity, correcting color, and enriching its soundtrack with a remastered mix. It is a masterful documentary told through still photographs, music, and testimony from actual letters and diaries. “The Civil War uses all these devices to evoke atmosphere and resurrect an event that many knew only from stale history books. Using the words of old letters, eloquently read by a variety of celebrities, the stories of historians like Shelby Foote, and rare, stained photos, Burns allows the viewer to relearn and finally understand our history but to also feel and experience it.”(Dave McCoy, Amazon.com reviewer)

Civil War Combat: America’s Bloodiest Battles. A&E Television Networks,

http://www.store.aetv.com . Available from Follett Library Resources, http://www.titlewave.com , DVD, 44.95, 2000.

Hosted by Roger Mudd, this 2 disc, 200 minute DVD brings four of the most famous battles of the Civil War to life. Gettysburg, Antietam, Shiloh, and Cold Harbor are reenacted with all their brutality, horror, devastation, and desperation.

Historians offer an impartial look as they discuss military strategy and each battle’s impact on the war’s outcome. Each episode includes still photographs and dramatization accompanied by narration, letters and diary excerpts from soldiers and family members. “The combination of convincing re-enactments, intelligent commentary, and solid scripting makes this a welcome addition to any Civil War collection.”(Video Librarian, January 2001, vol. 16, issue 1)

The Civil War Minutes. Inecom, Inc., http://www.inecom.com . Available from Follett Library Resources, http://www.titlewave.com , VHS, 44.95, DVD,79.95, 2001.

This boxed package emphasizes the Confederate and Union experience. Each five-to-eight minute episode reveals little known facts and stories about major Confederate participants in the war. You will discover why few photographs exist of Robert E. Lee, get an eyewitness account of J.E.B. Stuart’s death, learn how John Morgan’s Raiders ended up in a Pittsburgh jail, and find out how Stonewall Jackson got his name. “Geared more toward the hobbyist than the historian, this series focuses on the human element of war, reminding us that the men involved had names and families, and that their loss was felt by others.”(Video Librarian, March 2002, vol. 17, issue 2)

BOOKS ON TAPE

The Civil War in the American West. By Alvin M. Josephy. Available from Books On

Tape, http://www.booksontape.com , Cassette Tape, 48.00, 1993.

Alvin M. Josephy’s Civil War history is contained on 12 tapes that totals 18 hours in this unabridged edition. The Civil War was not only fought in the East but also from the western reaches of the Mississippi Valley to the Pacific Ocean. This aspect of the war had been virtually ignored until Josephy documented a Confederate army penetrating as far west as Tucson and Santa Fe before being stopped by Union troops. He tells of the bloody fighting on the ridges and prairies of the border states of Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas, and the Indian Territory where a Cherokee leader was the last Confederate general to surrender two months after Appomattox. Read by Dick Estell, “Alvin Josephy tells a story no one has been able to before...and he does it with his usual insight and art.”(Ken Burns)

Dead March: a Civil War Mystery. By Ann McMillan. Available from Books On Tape,

http://www.booksontape.com , Cassette Tape, 28.00, 1999.

Dead March takes place during the spring of 1861. The War Between the States is in its early stages, yet Richmond, Virginia, is not free of violent death. Two women from opposite ends of society discover the murdered body of a young slave women. A silk scarf that is left with her body leads to suspects from every level of Richmond society and to more deaths. Narcissa Powers, a young white widow, and Judah Daniel, a free black herbalist and conjure women, investigate the deaths. “This highly auspicious debut is marked by McMillan’s first-rate mystery plot and by her penetrating analysis of the era’s Southern culture.”(Publishers Weekly)

CD and CD-ROM

The Civil War: Its Music and Its Sounds. Available from Polygram Records and

Amazon, http://www.amazon.com , CD, 21.99, 1990.

Frederick Fennell and the Eastman Wind Ensemble fill this two disc set with reproductions of the band music of the Civil War with authentic instruments and actual arrangements from the period. It also features fife and drum music used by the troops, songs of the period sung by a male chorus accompanied by a lone banjo, and narration which introduces several segments by giving background on the music and a brief history of the war. “This recording is not only fascinating to listen to, but also should be a part of every musician’s collection. It is the most complete and accurate recording of its kind; and paints a masterwork picture of what it was like to experience the Civil War through sound and narration.”(Cliff Dodson, Amazon reviewer)

Multimedia Collections: Civil War. By Paul Gardner and Jamie Wu Liu. Available from

Teacher Created Materials, Inc., http://www.teachercreated.com , CD-ROM, 19.99, 2001.

This CD-ROM provides a collection of digital photos, clip art, sounds, and

audio/video clips. It save time and take the hassle out of finding multimedia resources for slide shows, worksheets, displays, reports, and art projects. A 48-page User's Guide includes thumbnails of all images plus listings of all video and audio clips on the CD-ROM. “Whether used for a student’s written report or multimedia presentation, to enhance an instructional lesson, or to stimulate students’ critical thinking, you will discover that the resource materials on the multimedia CD will help enrich your learning experience.”(Gardner and Wu Liu)

Gettysburg: multimedia battle simulation. Swfte International, Ltd., Available from

Turner Interactive: +1 (404) 885 7972, fax +1 (404) 885 6997. CD-ROM, 69.95,

1994.

Gettysburg Multimedia Battle Simulation recreates the Battle of Gettysburg, the pivotal point of the Civil War. The user directs the marches, issues orders to troops to engage the enemy, entrench in key positions, and bombard the strongholds. You can be Meade or Lee against a simulator that takes into account all the variables that affect the outcome of a battle: terrain, morale, stamina, ammunition, and aim. To make the battle more challenging, Gettysburg is historically accurate so factors that hindered soldiers in the 1860’s such as poor communication or slow moving artillery are reflected in the play. It provides the hands-on activity that students need to make an abstract historical event concrete. Shelby Foote, a noted Civil War author and expert, lends his distinct voice to all narrations. The game can be played with historical accuracy or allows for free play and student creativity. Speeds of slow, medium, fast, and turbo can be chosen. Pop up screens that list troops, casualties, combat deaths, field notes, and battle summaries can be used. Students can access video clips of the Gettysburg Address, Lee’s Address, historically accurate information on rifles and artillery, summaries for each day, and even segments of the making of the movie, Gettysburg. “If you have a passion for American history, this disc is worth including in your multimedia library. It is a well produced, interactive history lesson.”(Wired Magazine, September 1994, issue 2.09)

Website

The American Civil War. Dakota State University. Madison, South Dakota.

http://www.homepages.dsu.edu/jankej/civilwar/civilwar.htm , 2001.

This Civil War web site, constructed by Professor Janke at Dakota State University provides a great deal of information about the Civil War and links to much more information. The site includes the follow topics: Archives, Libraries, and Institutes,

The Armies, Army & Home Life, Art, Artillery, Battles, Battlefields, and Historic Sites, Bibliographies, Books and Book dealers, The British Connection, Bugle Calls,

Canadians in the Civil War, Cavalry, Cities and Regions, Black Troops, Commercial Resources, The Confederacy, Diaries, Letters, and Memoirs, Discussion Groups,

Documents and Records, Fiction, Flags, Genealogy, Generals, Gettysburg, History, Lincoln, Magazines, Maps, Medicine and Hospitals, Money, Movies, Museums, Music, Native Americans in the Civil War, The Navies, Organizations, People, Photographs and Images - Old and New, Poetry, Prisons and Prisoners, Railroads, Reconstruction, Re-enactors (Living History), Regimental Histories, Slavery and Emancipation, Small Arms, Stamps, States in the Civil War, Sutlers' Stores, Tours, Seminars, and Courses, Uniforms, Web Rings, and Women in the Civil War.

The major strength of this site is with the variety of topics, links, and data bases, every student should be able to find a topic that interest them or one that will be helpful for their project. There are hundreds of pictures, illustrations, maps and other graphics. Students can find hands-on activities and materials or just browse and read until they have all the information they need. The site appears to be continually updated. The most recent date I found was March 20, 2003. The site does have some weakness. There are so many links it would be hard to check each one out to evaluate it for its credibility and authenticity. Another weakness is some of the links are already unavailable when clicked upon. These links should be updated or removed from the site. But overall, this is an excellent educational resource to be used in studying the Civil War. Today’s students greatly enjoy using the internet to do research, probably even more than traditional sources. It increases student motivation, time on task, and student performance. It is a tool that should be widely used in the classroom and media center.

Books

Blashfield, Jean F. Women at the Front: Their Changing Roles in the Civil War. New

York: FranklinWatts, A Division of Grolier Publishing, 1997.

Women at the Front is the story of women and the great changes that came to them from their participation in and suffering through the Civil War. It includes more than the title implies since it discusses not only female nurses, spies, soldiers, and camp followers but also the suffering and sacrifices of the women left at home to manage farms and plantations and support their families during the war years.

Jean F. Blashfield has told the stories of brave women. This gives much needed attention to a population that is ignored in many Civil War accounts. Women played a vital role in this war. This account will draw female students into a part of history that they find male dominated and uninteresting. “The good-size type and many reproductions of period engravings, photographs, and paintings, as well as photos of artifacts, give the book an inviting look.”(Booklist, January 1, 1998, v.94) A list of major events of the war, the index, and list of more information that includes books, videos, CD-ROMS, and internet sites make this a convenient research tool. The author’s previous work of developing three encyclopedias for young people, writing educational material about space for NASA, and her work with Awesome Almanacs add to her credibility and the books authenticity. It is a “useful material for many library collections.”(Booklist)

Brill, Marlene Targ. Diary of a Drummer Boy. Illustrations by Michael Garland.

Brookfield, Connecticut: The Millbrook Press, 1998.

The Diary of a Drummer Boy tells the true story of 12-year-old Orion Howe who joined the Union army as a drummer for the Fifty-fifth Illinois Regiment in 1861. In this fictional diary, Orion tells of his experience, his quiet life at home; his army training of eat, sleep, drill, drill, drill; his observations of wartime discomfort, disease, and death; his hour of glory when wounded in the leg he still managed to deliver a message to General Sherman; and his return home.

This historical fiction account is an important work that should be part of every Civil War collection for teens. It depicts the concrete, day to day existence of the war. It also gives the unique view point of one of their peers. Students will more easily able to identify with this book compared to others depicting only adult characters. Even though this is a work of fiction, the author read old newspapers, books, journals, and letters about Howe and the war. This fact plus the 24 item bibliography increases the author’s credibility and the book’s authenticity. The book’s afterward provides information about Orion’s life after the war up to his receiving the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1896. The full-page illustrations are colorful and appealing. “The book will serve well as a lively, vivid introduction to the Civil War.”(Booklist, March 1, 1998, vol. 94)

MARC Record

010 ## $a 0780634896

020 ## $c For sale ($129.95)

040 ## $a Follett Library Resources

082 10 $a 973.7 ABR

100 10 $a Gruben, David and Geoffrey C. Ward.

245 04 $a Abraham and Mary Lincoln videorecording: a house divided.

$c PBS Home Video

246 30 $a Abraham and Mary Lincoln $h [videorecording]

260 ## $a Alexandria, Virg. : $b Follett Library Resources, $c 2001.

300 ## $a 3 videocassettes (360 min.) :

530 ## $a Originally produced as three episodes of: American Experience, closed captioned.

538 ## $a VHS.

520 ## $a Discusses the lives and relationship of Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd Lincoln.

650 #0 $a Lincoln, Abraham. 1809-1865 -- Anecdotes.

650 #0 $a Lincoln, Mary Todd. 1818-1882 -- Fiction.

650 #0 $a Presidents -- United States -- Biography.

650 #0 $a Presidents’ spouses -- United States -- Biography.

650 #1 $a Video recordings.

710 2# $a PBS Home Video.

710 2# $a Follett Library Resources.

Lesson Plan (Courtesy of PBS)

The film Abraham and Mary Lincoln: A House Divided offer insights into topics in American history including women's rights, slavery, abolition, politics and partisanship, the growth of the industrial economy, and the Civil War. You can use part or all of the film, or delve into the rich resources available on the following links to learn more, either in a classroom or on your own.

The following activities are grouped into 3 parts, corresponding with sections of the film, and within each part into 4 categories: history, economics, geography, and civics.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3
Use with the first two hours of the film, "Part One: Ambition" and "Part Two: We Are Elected"

Economics
Using what you learned from the film about the backgrounds of Mary Todd and Abraham Lincoln, briefly describe the economic situation in which each person grew up. Why might the difference in the two families' wealth have made it less likely that Todd and Lincoln would have married? Why, do you think, did this potential problem not stand in the way of their marriage?

Geography
1. Review the three maps showing the nation's changing policies toward slavery in the territories between 1820 and 1854. (a) What were the three acts of Congress that marked these changing policies, and when did they take place? (b) How did the last of these acts undo the compromise achieved in the first one?

2. Using a photocopy of a map of the United States, label the following locations. Next to each label, briefly explain its importance in events leading to the Civil War.

· Kansas Territory

· Illinois

· Washington, D.C.

· Richmond, Virginia

· Harpers Ferry, Virginia

· Fort Sumter, South Carolina

Civics
1. After viewing the film and reviewing the Encyclopedia Britannica entry on the Lincoln-Douglas debates, conduct your own version of these debates on slavery in the territories. A team of two or three people should portray Lincoln, a second two- or three-person team should portray Douglas, and the rest of the class should act as the audience. The persons representing Lincoln and Douglas can learn about their characters' speaking styles and obtain quotes for use in the debate by reading parts of the actual debates. Set a time limit for the debate, which should consist of an initial statement by one group of debaters, a reply by the other debaters, and a final statement by the first speakers. At the end of the debate, have the class comment on whether the actors accurately portrayed Lincoln's and Douglas's views.

2. Read about Antebellum Women's Rights and Literary Women Then select one of the women discussed in these essays and prepare an oral presentation on her. Your presentation should cover her early life and education, the issues she believed in, and her major accomplishments. Illustrate your presentation by creating a poster using a photocopy of the person's portrait.

History
Read the excerpts from Angelina Grimké, Frederick Douglass, and Harriet Jacobs. How do these passages show that religion was used both to support slavery and to attack it?

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3
Use with the second two hours of the film, "Part Three: Shattered" and "Part Four: The Dearest of All Things"

Economics
Compared to the Southern states, the Northern states had a larger population (21.5 million, compared to 9 million), more factories (110,100, compared to 20,600), larger bank deposits ($207 million, compared to $47 million), and more horses (4.2 million, compared to 1.7 million). Using this data, create four pie charts showing what proportion of the United States' total of each of these four resources belonged to the North and to the South.

Geography
Read about the Battle of Fredericksburg. Now prepare an oral presentation on a different Civil War battle of your choice. You can find helpful summaries of Civil War battles on the Web site of the National Park Service and in other sources. In your presentation, explain briefly when the battle was fought, how many soldiers fought on each side, who the commanding officers were, and what the outcome of the battle was. Also explain why the battle occurred when it did. For example, was it part of a Confederate invasion of the North, or a Union attempt to take control of the Mississippi River? Your presentation must include a map of the battlefield; you may use a photocopy or printout of an existing map or draw one yourself. Your presentation should explain how the natural features of the battlefield (such as high or low ground, forests, and so on) affected the battle.

Civics
1. Read the excerpts from three newspapers on the start of the war. (a) For each of the three excerpts, write one sentence that summarizes the argument it is making. (b) Choose one of the three excerpts and imagine that you read it in today's newspaper. Write a letter to the editor explaining whether you agree with the article and why. Be sure to provide support for your opinion.

2. (a) Using a dictionary or encyclopedia, define "habeas corpus" in your own words. (b) Read the articles about Confederate spy Rose O'Neal Greenhow. Where in Greenhow's letter to Secretary Seward does she refer to the issue of habeas corpus (though she does not use that term)? (c) Lincoln received heavy criticism, from Northerners as well as Southerners, for his decision to suspend habeas corpus. Do you think the government should be permitted to restrict civil liberties during wartime? Explain your position.

History
1. Read the excerpt from George Fitzhugh's book defending slavery and the description of what slavery's supporters called "wage slavery." (a) To what group does Fitzhugh compare slaves? (b) What is his point in making this comparison? (c) In what ways was this comparison misleading?

2. Have a volunteer read Frances Harper's poem, The Slave Mother, to the class. At the end of every sentence, the reader should stop and ask a member of the class to summarize the stanza in his or her own words. Then, everyone should answer the following questions: (a) What is the subject of the poem? (b) What does the statement "he is not hers" mean?

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3
Use with the final two hours of the film, "Part Five: This Frightful War" and "Part Six: Blind With Weeping"

Economics
1. In what way were the "total war" tactics employed by the Union army, in which soldiers deliberately destroyed civilian property, a form of economic warfare?

2. Hold a class debate on whether the use of total war tactics can ever be morally justified. First, select a group of students to serve as judges of the debate. Then divide the rest of the class into two equally sized groups, one to defend total war tactics and one to oppose them. Each member of both groups must write a one-sentence explanation of why total war can, or cannot, ever be justified; in the first part of the debate, team members should read their statements aloud. In the second part of the debate, a member of one team should ask a question that a member of the other team must answer; the answering team then asks a question, and so on. After this question-and-answer period, the judges should explain which arguments they found most convincing.

Issues that one or both sides might want to consider in forming and defending their positions include: Does the morality of total war tactics depend on the cause for which the side that uses them is fighting? Are total war tactics more morally acceptable if it could be proved that they would help shorten the war and thus reduce the total number of casualties? Does a government have a higher obligation to protect the lives of its own soldiers than the lives of enemy civilians?

Geography
The Emancipation Proclamation and the Thirteenth Amendment were only first steps in dealing with racial injustice in this nation, in part because that injustice was not confined to the South. Find out more about the difficult lives of slaves in the South and about heroic African American Regiments in the war. Then read the Charles Mackay excerpt, We Are of Another Race. How does this excerpt help explain why the issue of racial injustice would continue to be a serious problem for the United States, in both Northern and Southern states, even after slavery had been abolished?

Civics
1. Read about African American Regiments and then visit the National Archives' Web site on the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, one of the best-known units of black soldiers that fought in the Civil War. Imagine that you are a member of this unit and write a letter to a friend or relative explaining why you volunteered. Before you write, consider how the feelings of black soldiers who volunteered for black units like the 54th might have differed from the feelings of white soldiers who volunteered to fight for the Union. Also consider how the feelings of black and white volunteers may have been alike.

2. Review the events listed in the timeline of presidential elections. (a) How many major candidates competed in 1864, as compared to 1860? (b) How did the number of major candidates in 1860 contribute to Lincoln's victory that year? (c) How did the number of major candidates in 1864 make Lincoln's task of winning re-election more difficult?

History
1. Look at the Camera Goes to War gallery and learn more about the people behind the lens. Then visit the Library of Congress's site of selected Civil War photographs and browse some of the photographs. After viewing at least a dozen of the photographs, select the one that you found most interesting or meaningful. Print the photograph and write a caption explaining when and where it was taken, what it shows, and why you selected it.

Doug Peachey

Media Specialist

Arsenal Technical High School

March 21, 2003