primary sources

Spotlight On: Civil War Preservation Trust

The Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT) is “America’s largest non-profit organization (501-C3) devoted to the preservation of our nation’s endangered Civil War battlefields. The Trust also promotes educational programs and heritage tourism initiatives to inform the public of the war’s history and the fundamental conflicts that sparked it” (from their “About Us” page).

There are many different resources on their site that help bring Civil War battles into the 21st century.  In additional to historical images and maps, several key battles have animated videos depicting troop movements (here is the one for the Battle of Fredericksburg).  The website provides statistics for each battle, including casualties, the names of commanding officers, etc.  There are also virtual tours of historic battlefields, photos of these sites as they appear today, bibliographies of recommended readings, information on historical markers, and the steps for becoming a member.  Of course, since their primary focus is on preservation, you can also find information on preservation attempts (from their online newsletter called “Dispatches from the Front“).

Spotlight On: Library Primary Source Databases

If you are interested in learning more about the Civil War, or even doing a thesis project, there are a number of database resources available to UCA students through the library portal (requiring that you sign in with your username and password), providing unique primary sources not available elsewhere on the web.  I’ve listed below the resources most pertinent to our course:

  • The American Civil War Online: This is “a diverse collection of searchable databases designed to promote the creative study of all aspects of the Civil War. Equally useful for teaching and research, the resource offers a range of contemporary perspectives on the war and American society. In addition to letters, diaries, posters, photographs, and cartoons, The American Civil War Online includes a wealth of compiled data on soldiers, regiments, and battles.”  It includes databases like “American Civil War: Letters and Diaries,” “The American Civil War Research Database,” and “Images of the Civil War.”
  • The New York Times, 1851-2009: This was a leading newspaper in the nineteenth century that ran many articles relevant to the Civil War and sectional crisis.
  • Arkansas Newspapers (Historical): This is for on-campus access only.
  • American Periodicals Series Online: Periodicals are a general term for magazines and newspapers, and this site includes such publications as William Lloyd Garrison’s The Liberator.
  • North American Women’s Letters and Diaries: This includes thousands of primary sources, including some from the Civil War era.