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20th Century History Resources

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America from the Great Depression to World War II: Photographs from the FSA and OWI, ca. 1935-1945

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/fsowhome.html

"The images in the Farm Security Administration-Office of War Information Collection are among the most famous documentary photographs ever produced. Created by a group of U.S. government photographers, the images show Americans in every part of the nation. In the early years, the project emphasized rural life and the negative impact of the Great Depression, farm mechanization, and the Dust Bowl. In later years, the photographers turned their attention to the mobilization effort for World War II. The core of the collection consists of about 164,000 black-and-white photographs. This release provides access to over 112,000 of these images; future additions will expand the black-and-white offering. The FSA-OWI photographers also produced about 1600 color photographs during the latter days of the project."

Author: Library of Congress (lcweb@loc.gov)

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

America in the 1930s

http://xroads.virginia.edu/~1930s/home_1.html

"The 1930s in America were a time of unparalleled contradiction and complexity. Encapsulated loosely on one end by Black Tuesday of the Great Depression and on the other end by the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the years between 1929 and 1941 were characterized by what Terry Cooney calls 'Balancing Acts,' a dance between big government and various regional movements, with the depths of the Depression and the height of the Modern Age thrown in for good measure. Despite its cultural richness, the 1930s remain nearly invisible in contemporary discussions of America's artistic, cultural, political, economic, and social development. This site is an attempt to shed light on that decade and emphasize its importance in American thought and culture. We have elected to view the 1930s through the lenses of its films, radio programs, literature, journalism, museums, exhibitions, architecture, art, and other forms of cultural expression. "

Author: American Studies, University of Virginia (asgrp@virginia.edu)

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Social Sciences--Ethnicity, Culture, and Race--United States Culture

Keywords: 1930s; Great Depression; American History; United States History

Architecture and Interior Design for 20th Century America (1935-1955)

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/gschtml/gotthome.html

"This Gottscho-Schleisner Collection is comprised of over 29,000 images primarily of architectural subjects, including interiors and exteriors of homes, stores, offices, factories, historic buildings, and other structures. Subjects are concentrated chiefly in the northeastern United States, especially the New York City area, and Florida. Included are the homes of notable Americans, such as Raymond Loewy, and of several U.S. presidents, as well as color images of the 1939-40 New York World's Fair. Many of the photographs were commissioned by architects, designers, owners and architectural publications, and document important achievements in American 20th-century architecture and interior design."

Author: Library of Congress (lcweb@loc.gov)

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--Fine Arts--Architecture

Arts & Humanities--Fine Arts--Design

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

A Biography of America

http://www.learner.org/biographyofamerica/

A companion Web site to the video series of the same name, this covers site covers the history of the United States from pre-Columbian civilizations to the present. The series is divided into 26 programs.
"For each program you'll find an interactive feature related to the subject or the time period of the program. In addition, you'll find a listing of key events of the period, a map relevant to the period, the transcript of the video program, and a "Webography" - a set of annotated web links.

Author: Annenberg/CPB Project and WGBH Educational Foundation

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Keywords: Colonization; Colonial; Slavery; Native America; Civil War; Government; Theodore Wilson; Woodrow Wilson; Westward Expansionns;

Broadcasting in Chicago, 1921-1989

http://www.mcs.net/~richsam/

Online museum highlighting the history of TV and radio broadcasting in Chicago; emphasis on the NBC studios at the Merchandise Mart.

Author: Rich Samuels (richsam@mcs.net)

Subjects:

Entertainment & Leisure--Radio

Entertainment & Leisure--Television

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Keywords: Museum

By the People, for the People: Posters of the WPA

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/wpaposters/wpahome.html

This site contains a collection of over 900 posters produced by the Work Projects Administration during FDR's New Deal. Topics range from health and safety to World War II.

Author:

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--Fine Arts--Graphic Arts

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--Wars--World War II

Keywords: Posters; WPA

Dining Through the Decades

http://www.leitesculinaria.com/features/dining.html

An entertaining overview on popular trends in American cuisine from the 1900s through the 1990s. Includes recipes from each decade.

Author: David Leite (david@leitesculinaria.com)

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Social Sciences--Ethnicity, Culture, and Race--United States Culture

Social Sciences--Customs, Etiquette, Folklore

Keywords: Food; Cuisine; Culinary

Documents from the Women's Liberation Movement

http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/wlm/

"The materials in this on-line archival collection document various aspects of the Women's Liberation Movement in the United States, and focus specifically on the radical origins of this movement during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Items range from radical theoretical writings to humourous plays to the minutes of an actual grassroots group. The items in this on-line collection are scanned and transcribed from original documents held in Duke's Special Collections Library. We are making these documents available on-line in order to support current teaching and research interests related to this period in U.S. history."

Author: Duke University, Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library (special-collections@duke.edu)

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Social Sciences--Gender & Sexuality--Women--Feminism

Social Sciences--Gender & Sexuality--Women--Women's History

Foreign Relations of the United States

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ho/frus/

"The Foreign Relations of the United States series presents the official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions and significant diplomatic activity." Select volumes from the Nixon, Johnson, and Kennedy administrations are available online.

Author: United States Department of State (doswork@uic.edu)

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Harlem Renaissance

http://www.fatherryan.org/harlemrenaissance/

This site portrays the "Harlem Renaissance as a cultural movement that allowed African-Americans to show their creative abilities to the world." It includes visual, theater, music and performing arts displays. Contains links to other Harlem Renaissance sites.

Author: Maame Kanbi, Kim Ferriman, Rebecca Jacobs (hcompsci@fatherryan.org)

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--Fine Arts--Drama & Performance (Theater & Stagecraft)

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Social Sciences--Ethnicity, Culture, and Race--African/African-American

Keywords: visual arts; theater; theatre

History and Politics Out Loud

http://www.hpol.org/

This is "a collection of invaluable audio materials some available for the first time on this website capturing significant political and historical events and personalities of the twentieth century. The materials range from formal addresses delivered in public settings to private telephone conversations conducted from the innermost recesses of the White House." Contains audio from: Johnson, Nixon, Churchill, the 3 Kennedys, Clinton, Khrushchev and FDR, among others.

Author: National Endowment for the Arts, Jerry Goldman (j-goldman@nwu.edu)

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Law, Government & Political Science--Political Science--Politics

Keywords: Spoken Word; Speeches; Nixon Tapes

Image Archive on the American Eugenics Movement

http://vector.cshl.org/eugenics/

This site is a collaborative effort of several archives to make available the records of the American Eugenics Movement. "Virtual exhibits (using the Flash Player plugin) introduce the key events, persons, and social conditions that contributed to the development of eugenics." The archives is searchable.

Author: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Science & Technology--Life Sciences--Genetics

Social Sciences--Sociology

JFK-Dallas, November 22, 1963

http://www.dallasnews.com/jfk/

Provides news stories, personal perspectives, maps and photographs, and audio and video relating to U.S. President John F. Kennedy's 1963 assassination.

Author:

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--Historical Documents

Keywords: Kennedy; Assassination; President; Oswald; Dallas

The Literature & Culture of the American 1950s

http://dept.english.upenn.edu/~afilreis/50s/home.html

This searchable site features an extensive, roughly alphabetical list of links and readings on the American 1950s, and links to Cold War sites.

Author: Alan Filreis (afilreis@english.upenn.edu)

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Arts & Humanities--Literature--Literature by Time Period

Social Sciences--Ethnicity, Culture, and Race--United States Culture

Keywords: Cold War; 1950s; American Literature; American Studies

NationalIssues.com

http://www.nationalissues.com/

"nationalissues.com is a non-partisan, issue-oriented research web site that provides information to individuals, voters and students who are interested in truly understanding the major issues facing our nation today. Designed to be an efficient resource for people short on time, nationalissues.com presents summary information on each topic as well as a compilation of experts' views on each of the issues... nationalissues.com gathers the best articles and research fromleading think tanks, news sources, advocacy groups and individual policy analysts and presents the information in one easily accessible site."

Author: nationalissues.com

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Law, Government & Political Science--Government--US Federal Government

Law, Government & Political Science--Political Science--Politics

Keywords: National Issues; Political Issues; Controversy; Controversies; Social Security; Taxes; Gun Control; Foreign Policy

The 1920's: The Roaring Twenties

http://www.louisville.edu/~kprayb01/1920s.html

An extensive collection of information about the 1920's in the U.S., including a timeline of events, information on business leaders, sports, the arts, science and the humanities, news and politics.

Author: Kevin Rayburn (kprayb01@homer.louisville.edu)

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

The Psychedelic '60's

http://www.lib.virginia.edu/exhibits/sixties/index.html

Produced by the University of Virignia Library, this resour ce offers a wealth of historical information on 1960's America. Site focuses on "literary tradition and social change" with narratives and images of the Vietnam War, Beat poets, rock music, civil rights movement, Woodstock and more.

Author: The Universtiy of Virginia

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Some Enchanted Evenings: American Picture Palaces

http://xroads.virginia.edu/~CAP/PALACE/

This site explores the history of American movie houses through out the first half of the 20th century.

Author: American Studies at the University of Virginia

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Keywords: cinema; picture houses; movies

Top Economic Events of the Twentieth Century

http://www.dismal.com/top25/introduction.asp

A look at 25 events that have most influenced the current U.S. economic environment and its mood of confident prosperity. Each event is the subject of an article by a contributing economist reflecting on the economic shape of modern times. Some the top events include: the Interstate Highway System, the Birth Control Pill, and the Federal Reserve Act.

Author: Dismal Sciences, Inc

Subjects:

Business & Economics--Economics

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Keywords: Economy; U.S. Economy; Macroeconomics

20th Century American History

http://www.liberty.edu/resources/library/public/as/history/american/20th.htm

This website breaks down the 20th century by decade and provides links to accounts of important events, people and cultural phenomena from that decade. Particular attention is paid to the role of the United States' Presidents for the each time period.

Author: Liberty University Library (jmdull@liberty.edu)

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Keywords: decades; presidents

U.S. Society, Values and Politics

http://usinfo.state.gov/usa/socval.htm

Contains bibliographies and links to legislation and sources on American Literature, Women's Rights and Resources, Disability, Federal Elections, and journal articles in Russian, Arabic, Spanish, French and Portuguese. Searchable archives and links to Federal legislation on line.

Author: Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State (contact@usia.gov)

Subjects:

Arts & Humanities--History--North America--United States--20th Century History

Social Sciences--Ethnicity, Culture, and Race--United States Culture

Keywords: Disabilities; Race; Women's Issues

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