Newspaper Webquest
Introduction: You and a partner are reporters and editors living in southern Illinois during the Civil War. This border territory, like Newton in Across Five Aprils, is in a turmoil of conflicting feelings. Illinois is a Union state, but many people have family and friends in the South. Many local men have gone off to fight for the Union, but several, like Bill, have left to join the Confederacy.
Task: As a team, you will research, write, and edit a special edition of your newspaper that focuses on a specific battle mentioned in Across Five Aprils. In this edition of your paper, you must include at least the following: (1) a news article about the battle (including quotes from soldiers and/or officers); (2) a human interest story (local or national, not directly tied to the war); (3) a letter to the editor from a local resident, who may be for or against the war (politician, freed slave, soldier, wife, businessman, etc); and (4) graphics, such as political cartoons, maps, and/or photographs. In addition, you may want to include other articles or features (true to the time period!) common to many newspapers: (obituaries, sports, classified ads, etc.). The newspaper will be created using a Google doc. If you do the minimum you can earn at most, a C. If you do a little more, you can earn a B. To get an A, your newspaper should be full of good stories, pictures, etc. Every story, picture, map, etc. must have a live link to the url address so I can see where you got the information.
Scoring Rubric for Newspaper Project
Scoring Rubric for Newspaper Project
Process
Divide the necessary roles with your partner. You will need an overall editor as well as reporters for each article.
Decide whether you want to be pro-Union or pro-Confederacy, as this will determine the editorial position of your paper.
Pick a battle mentioned in Across Five Aprils. Use the chapter resources to begin your research.
Broaden and deepen your research through general resources and listing of primary documents on the Internet.
Write the articles.
Find the answers to who, what, when, where, why, and how as necessary. Be sure that your information is accurate - newspaper reporters always check their facts through multiple sources. Use illustrations to make your story clear and interesting to the reader. Write catchy, concise headlines. Meet your deadlines!
Edit the articles.
Publish your paper (Don't forget to share with me!) Remember that newspapers are printed in columns. You will need to use the table feature of Google docs to make the columns.
General Civil War Resources
The American Civil War: The Struggle to Preserve the Union
Map of the Union & Confederacy
Other Civil War Maps
The Valley of the Shadow Project
The American Civil War Homepage
Vermont in the Civil War
Civil War Terminology
Civil War Quotes
This Week in the Civil War
Financing the Civil War Exhibit at the Museum of American Financial History
Civil War Medicine (brief description plus extensive links with follow up information)
Primary Documents:
Newspapers
The Historical New York Times Project: The Civil War Years
Secession Era Editorials Project at Furman University (newspaper editorials leading up to the Civil War)
"A Tough Story" in the Cleveland Plain Dealer May 1861
Selected Articles-Cleveland, Ohio Newspapers 1861-65
Confederate Calvary desertion notice (1865)
Secession Era Editorials Project at Furman University (newspaper editorials leading up to the Civil War)
"A Tough Story" in the Cleveland Plain Dealer May 1861
Selected Articles-Cleveland, Ohio Newspapers 1861-65
Confederate Calvary desertion notice (1865)
Personal Memoirs by Ulysses S. Grant
Reminiscences of the Civil War by Gen. John B. Gordon
From Manassas to Appomattox by Lt. Gen. James Longstreet (CSA)
Advance and Retreat by Lt. Gen. J. B. Hood (CSA)
The Memoirs, Diary, and Life of Private Jefferson Moses, Company G, 93rd Illinois VolunteersCivil War Memories of Robert C. Cardin, Company B, 16th Tennessee Infantry
Reminiscences of the Civil War by Gen. John B. Gordon
From Manassas to Appomattox by Lt. Gen. James Longstreet (CSA)
Advance and Retreat by Lt. Gen. J. B. Hood (CSA)
The Memoirs, Diary, and Life of Private Jefferson Moses, Company G, 93rd Illinois VolunteersCivil War Memories of Robert C. Cardin, Company B, 16th Tennessee Infantry
Selected Civil War Photographs (searchable index at the Library of Congress)
Valley of the Shadow Images Search (searchable index of photos and illustrations of battles)
Images of Wartime at The American Civil War Homepage
Civil War Cartoons (examples of political cartoons; some are difficult to read)
Civil War Album (modern photographs of battlefields, maps & official reports)
Maps
Valley of the Shadow Images Search (searchable index of photos and illustrations of battles)
Images of Wartime at The American Civil War Homepage
Civil War Cartoons (examples of political cartoons; some are difficult to read)
Civil War Album (modern photographs of battlefields, maps & official reports)
Maps
Civil War Maps (searchable index of historical maps at the Library of Congress)
Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection (alphabetical listing of U.S. National Parks & Monuments)
Rare Civil War Map Collection at the University of Georgia Libraries
Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection (alphabetical listing of U.S. National Parks & Monuments)
Rare Civil War Map Collection at the University of Georgia Libraries
Documenting the American South (collection of electronic texts at UNC Chapel Hill)
Documentary Records at The American Civil War Homepage (public and private documents)
Digital Library and Archives at Virginia Tech (scroll down below photo for listing of documents)
Civil War Navies: Official Records (telegrams and reports about the battle at Hampton Roads)
The Official Records of the War of the Rebellion (Commanders' After Action Reports)
Confederate States of America Documents (The Avalon Project at Yale Law School)
Civil War Women On-line Archival Collections at Duke University
Clipart (modern clipart as well as historical line drawings)
Documentary Records at The American Civil War Homepage (public and private documents)
Digital Library and Archives at Virginia Tech (scroll down below photo for listing of documents)
Civil War Navies: Official Records (telegrams and reports about the battle at Hampton Roads)
The Official Records of the War of the Rebellion (Commanders' After Action Reports)
Confederate States of America Documents (The Avalon Project at Yale Law School)
Civil War Women On-line Archival Collections at Duke University
Clipart (modern clipart as well as historical line drawings)
The Constitution of the Confederate States of America (1861)
Comparison of USA vs. CSA Constitutions
South Carolina Declaration of Secession ( Dec. 24, 1860)
Texas Ordinance of Secession (Feb. 2, 1861)
Mississippi Declaration of Secession (?)
Comparison of USA vs. CSA Constitutions
South Carolina Declaration of Secession ( Dec. 24, 1860)
Texas Ordinance of Secession (Feb. 2, 1861)
Mississippi Declaration of Secession (?)
The links below are intended to be starting places for independent research, not an inclusive look at the Civil War. Where possible, I have tried to include multiple links for some information to provide a balance of viewpoints, as well as to prepare for those inevitable days when particular websites are down. Items marked (2) have a second link to another website. Battle names follow those used in the text, which in general uses Union names.
Chapters 1-6
"Jethro listened with fascination to the new names of men and places. He heard admiration voiced for a brilliant young officer named McClellan, who had been put in top command of the army in the East. He became aware of such names as Seward and Chase; he knew who Senator Sumner was and old Thad Stevens, what such names as Wendell Phillips and Henry Ward Beecher stood for, what roles were being played by Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee."
Ulysses S. Grant
Battle of Fort Henry
Battle of Fort Donelson
General Albert Sidney Johnston (CSA)
Battle of Pea Ridge
Battle of Shiloh (Pittsburgh Landing) (2)
General William Tecumseh Sherman (memoirs of)
Battle of Fort Henry
Battle of Fort Donelson
General Albert Sidney Johnston (CSA)
Battle of Pea Ridge
Battle of Shiloh (Pittsburgh Landing) (2)
General William Tecumseh Sherman (memoirs of)
Chapters 7-9
General P. G. T Beauregard (CSA)
General Don Carlos Buell
Battle of Corinth
General John Pope
General Philip Sheridan
Battle of Antietam
Battle of Fredricksburg
Battle of Stones River
The Draft in the Civil War and Draft Riots
Desertion of Eb and Court Martial Records
Letter of Pardon from President Lincoln
Chapter 10
Battle of Chancellorsville (2)
General Joseph "Fighting Joe" Hooker
General Ambrose Burnside
General William "Old Rosy" Rosecrans
General Braxton Bragg (CSA)
General Pemberton (CSA)
Admiral Foote
General George Meade
Battle of Gettysburg (2)
Battle of Vicksburg (2)
President Lincoln writes "The Father of Waters again goes unvexed to the Sea."
Chapter 11
Battle of SpotsylvaniaBattle of Chickamauga (2)
Emancipation Proclamation
General James Longstreet (CSA)
General George Thomas "The Rock of Chickamauga"
Battle of Logan's Crossroads (2)
General Alexander McCook
General Thomas Crittenden
Gettysburg Address Exhibit and Plain Text Version
Lincoln's Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction (Dec. 8, 1863)
General Henry Halleck
Horace Greeley
Battle of the Wilderness (2)
Chapter 12
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