Mr. Carnes' History Class

The American Civil War was responsible for the taking of more lives than all other American wars combined.  It pitted brother against brother, father against son and friends against friends.  It happened at over 10,000 separate locations across the nation. It ushered in more changes than any other event from Lexington and Concord to the attacks of 9/11. It left hundreds of silent artillery pieces guarded by thousands of bronze statues scattered across the country. It has been the subject of more books than any other topic in U.S. History. It still haunts the murky waters of our harbors and the back roads of our mountains. It still remains a catalyst for lawsuits and boycotts.  Yet, no central, definitive monument or memorial exists to this most searing event in U.S. History. Imagine that that is all about to change...

The President of the United States has decided that a Civil War memorial will be built on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.  The President has secretly called you together as young historians and architects to design a Civil War Memorial for the 21st Century.  In his next State of the Union Message he wants to unveil a dramatic blueprint that will receive widespread national support.  He needs a newfound vision that will transcend century-old hatreds and bitterness.  He is asking for a vision that will speak to those who fought and died, and what those that fought the war and lived through it believed it should mean.  He is asking for a design that will convey and commemorate the importance of this 19th Century event to 21st Century Americans and visitors from around the world.

Using your knowledge of the Civil War, research primary sources from the 1860's in search of a common vision for what the war should mean and artifacts that would convey such a vision. Then, research past Civil War memorials and current monuments (Vietnam, FDR, Oklahoma, etc) for effective ways that events have been commemorated. Finally, design a Civil War memorial for the 21st Century.  Your final product will include a blueprint, an artist's model or rendering, a detailed description, and a 300-500 word argument for why your design best captures the meaning of the Civil War in a way that will receive overwhelming support.  Each group will also make a brief presentation to the class which will be followed by a class vote on the best design.

Remember, I expect equal participation from everyone in the group.  Please keep the noise level down while working.  Let's make this a fun learning experience.

1. Choose roles from the list below (I will assign you to a group of five):

A. Group Leader/Presenter (Responsible for "A" data sheets; motivates, organizes; presents final product.)

B. Artist/Designer ("B" data sheets; produces model or artist's rendering.)

C. Draftsman/Designer ("C" data sheets; produces blueprint.)

D. Technical Writer ("D" data sheets; produces detailed description.)

E. Persuasive Writer ("E" data sheets; writes persuasive essay.)

2. Research primary sources on the internet (starting with suggested websites) to find out why Americans said they were fighting, how they felt about the war, and what they hoped the war would mean. Fill out appropriate data collection sheets. Print out and highlight especially good examples. Either keep your findings on a hard copy or type them on the Primary Source Document.  

A. Lincoln, Davis, and other top elected officials. Abraham Lincoln's 2nd Inaugural Address

B. Northern officers and soldiers. http://www.jayandmolly.com/ballouletter.shtml

C. Southern officers and soldiers. Letters from Augusta County, Virginia

D. Women of the time and noncombatants. http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/women/cwdocs.html#diaries

E. African Americans, both slave and free. http://vi.uh.edu/pages/mintz/35.htm

3. Locate Civil War artifacts that might be useful in your design of a Civil War memorial. Fill out appropriate data collection sheets. Print out and highlight especially good resources. Either keep your findings on a hard copy or type them on the Artifact Worksheet.

A. Photographs, paintings, drawings, etc. http://www.multimedialibrary.com/FramesML/index.html

B. Sculpture. http://www.famousuus.com/bios/robert_gould_shaw.htm

C. Poetry, prose, songs, etc. http://www.bartleby.com/142/110.html

D. Official documents, maps, casualty lists, etc. http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/

E. Military artifacts; i.e. artillery, guns, ships, etc. http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/

4. Study examples of Civil War monuments and other memorials to get ideas about what has been done in the past. Fill out appropriate data collection sheets. Print out and highlight especially good resources. Either keep your findings on a hard copy or type them on the Monuments Worksheet.

A. Civil War Memorials. http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/cemeteries.htm

B. Other war memorials, esp. Vietnam and WWII. http://thewall-usa.com/

C. Recent Memorials, esp. Oklahoma City and FDR. http://www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/

D. The "Great Man" Model, esp. Lincoln. http://www.nps.gov/linc/

E. Other memorials, esp. Civil Rights, Holocaust Museum, etc. http://www.mlkmemorial.org/

5. Individually, sketch ideas based on your research. Fill out the sketch paper in your data collection packet.

6. Meet as a group. Share your individual ideas. Come up with a joint proposal that will be the basis for your group's project.

7. Produce the blueprint, artist's rendering, detailed description, and persuasive argument.

8. Present your proposal to the class.

This project is worth a total of 200 pts. Even though you are working in a group, each student will receive an individual score.

Student Name:

Final Grade ___

(1-Unsatisfactory; 2-Poor; 3-Satisfactory; 4-Good; 5-Excellent.)

Part A: Data Collection Sheets (75 pts.)

Primary Sources: ____ x 3 =____

Artifacts: ____ x 3 =____

Monuments: ____ x 3 =____

Preliminary Sketch: ____x 6 =____

Part B: Meeting/Finalized Design (50 pts.)

Meeting: ____x 5 =____

Final Design: ____x 5 =____

Part C: Presentations/FinalProduct (75 pts.)

____x 15 =____

Even these many years later, the Civil War resonates with importance. Your effort to design and describe a memorial that captures the meaning of the war to 21st Century Americans will hopefully have highlighted the deep divisions that existed then and to some extent still exist today in the American people. By understanding these different interpretations you will have gone a long ways toward bridging them.