Other
Images Canada Picturing Canadian Culture
This resource contains 150 images, which provide a glimpse into pioneer life, during the late 18th and early 20th century, in the Canadian West. Each photograph is complete with a description.
Bullock Texas State History Museum
Bullock Museum: Frontier Folk
Listen in to the campfire stories of the people who embody Texas. Find out why Texas was the place to be for so many people.
University of Wisconsin
University of Wisconsin: Wisconsin Pioneer Experience
Collection of primary source journals, letters, etc. on pioneer life in Wisconsin.
PBS
Wnet: Thirteen: Texas Ranch House
What was it like to be a cowboy in 1867? Visit the Cooke Ranch and explore a cowboy's working and dwelling quarters. Play the interactive games to learn about the many aspects of daily life in the American West. (Click "Interactive...
Other
Oregon California Trails Association: Historic Trails Learning Center
Information portal for the organization that oversees the preservation of the Oregon Trail, the California Trail, the Santa Fe Trail, the Applegate Trail, and the Mormon Trail.
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Primary Source Set: Cross Cultural Colonial Conflicts
A collection of primary sources which explores cross-cultural conflicts during the Colonial period of United States history.
Alberta Online Encyclopedia
Alberta Online Encyclopedia: The Land of Opportunity: Heritage Trails
This is a collection of audio and text files that describes Alberta's early history as the west is opened for settlement. Included are the stories about the great migration of immigrants from all over Europe, Asia and North America who...
Other
Texas Beyond History: Texas and the Western Frontier
Read about the expansion of the frontier in and around Texas during the middle of the nineteenth century as the Civil War was coming to an end.
Bartleby
Bartleby.com: Colonists/pamphlets of Land Companies
Describes an early descriptive writing form, the land pamphlet. Explains that these pamphlets were a form of travel narrative, written by those familiar with the land. The pamphlets were issued by the Virginia Company, the Masachusetts...
Texas Public Broadcasting
Texas Pbs: Texas Our Texas: The Land and Its Early People: Prehistory 1519
Learn how the four different regions with their diverse geographical features make Texas' environment quite varied and unique, and how this influenced early settlers in the state.
Texas Public Broadcasting
Texas Pbs: Texas Our Texas: Mexican Rule 1821 1835
Learn about how Mexico worked with the empresarios to bring settlers who would develop Texas for the Mexican government during the years of 1821 and 1835.
Read Works
Read Works: The First Americans
[Free Registration/Login Required] Intended to support early elementary students' reading comprehension, the importance of Native Americans is discussed in this informational text. Visual cues are provided to support the passage and...
Read Works
Read Works: The Old Stone House
[Free Registration/Login Required] Intended to support elementary students' reading comprehension, historical information is provided. The significance of "The Old Stone House" during the Battle of Brooklyn in the American Revolution is...
Library of Congress
Loc: Merica's Story: Oregon Territory
Read about the settling of Oregon country and how westward expansion prompted Congress to make it a territory.
Curated OER
National Park Service: California National Historic Trail
This site from the National Parks Service gives a brief history, and description of the California trail system which was used by settlers moving to California during the 1849 Gold Rush days.
Other
Kings Landing Historical Settlement
Kings Landing Historical Settlement reflects life in the 19th century. Learn about the Loyalists who escaped the American Revolution and the hardships they faced working to establish their homes in New Brunswick.
Other
Upper Canada Village
Ever want to know what life in Canada was like back in the 1860's? Well, look no further than this site! Information can be found on topics such as: daily life, communication, manufacturing, religion and more. Also be sure to check out...
Alabama Learning Exchange
Alex: Settling the West: Westward Expansion
During this instructional activity, students will have the opportunity to experience the westward expansion through literature and the Internet. By creating a brochure and a slideshow presentation, students will become aware of the...
Louisiana Department of Education
Louisiana Doe: Louisiana Believes: Social Studies: Grade 4: The Transcontinental Railroad
This sample task contains a set of primary and authentic source documents about the Transcontinental Railroad and the migration of settlers to the West.
Ohio State University
Osu History Teaching Institute: Homestead Act of 1862
Through the use of primary sources, 4th graders will understand the main concepts of the Homestead Act and use that information to write a letter to a relative explaining why they moved to Ohio.
Other
County of Peterborough: Lang Pioneer Village Museum
Visit this early pioneer village that features restored buildings constructed between 1820 and 1899. Explore the interactive map of the settlement. View artifacts from the period and several video clips that provide a picture of life...
ClassFlow
Class Flow: Revolutionary War
[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart reviews prominent events from the Revolutionary Era as well as famous individuals from the time.
ClassFlow
Class Flow: How Landforms Affect Settlers' Choices
[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart has students engage in a research project looking at how geographical features affected the colonists' settling of the New World. Web links to aid the research process are included. An...