Fantastic Find: The Gilder Lehrman Institute - History by Era

Since so many of my ancestors were farmers I decided to take a look at the agricultural movement later known as the Grange which began in 1867 with the formation of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry.

[“I feed you all!” lithograph by American Oleograph Co., Milwaukee, ca. 1875. 

Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division]

A Google search on the topic turned up History by Era at the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History's website. Here's what their Editor, Carol Berkin, says about it:

We believe that “History by Era” is a unique web resource. The web is filled with useful material for the historian and the history lover, but the sites that offer this material often present it randomly, without a coherent narrative or an interpretive overview. “History by Era,” however, has been carefully designed to provide the reader with a framework that organizes the rich resources it offers. It does this by providing coherent coverage of the full sweep of American history, bibliographies, a wealth of primary sources, and, most importantly, highly readable interpretive essays by the most renowned scholars in the country. 

“History by Era” is not an online textbook. From the beginning, we set ourselves the task of providing the reader with a far richer texture than a textbook can offer. At its core, “History by Era” is a collection of fifty individual essays written by some of the most distinguished scholars of our day. It thus speaks to the reader not in one voice, but in fifty different, unique voices as each of these renowned scholars interprets the important developments, people, events, and ideas of a particular era.

While the basic information is free to all comers, I paid $25 for full access to all the Filder Lehrman Institute's content. It's my understanding that teachers and students can use their material free through their Affiliate School Program.

I'm always glad to find sources that help me understand how my ancestors lived and History by Era looks to be a great find!

And I'll get back to the Grange Movement in a future post, I promise.

© 2014 Copyright, Christine Manczuk, All Rights Reserved.