Civil War and Reconstruction

Biography

Elizabeth Keckley

Born into slavery, Elizabeth Keckley’s story is one of perseverance and ingenuity in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.
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Lesson Plan

Fannie Lou Hamer and Social Activism

This lesson provides an insight into the rhetoric and social action of Fannie Lou Hamer. By focusing on three speeches through her career, students will better be able to understand how Hamer was an agent of change.
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Lesson Plan

Songs of Protest

In this lesson, students will explore how or if music reflects society and furthers the goals of activism and protest.
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Biography

Dorothea Dix

Dorothea Dix was an early 19th century activist who drastically changed the medical field during her lifetime.
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Biography

Ann Pamela Cunningham

Ann Pamela Cunningham was an early leader in historic preservation and is often credited with saving President George Washington’s estate Mount Vernon.
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Biography

Sarah Josepha Hale

Sarah Josepha Hale is best known for creating the nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” Her influence can also be seen in historic sites and a national holiday still widely celebrated today.
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Biography

Harriet Beecher Stowe

Abolitionist author, Harriet Beecher Stowe rose to fame in 1851 with the publication of her best-selling book, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, which highlighted the evils of slavery, angered the slaveholding South.
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