Primary Source Learning Collage One

Designer: PrimarySourceLearning.org staff

Understanding Goal

History has a relationship with memory.

Investigative Question

How do we know if there is a significant difference between what happened and how we remember what happened?

All of the six primary source images in this collage show an important part of American history: discovery, colonization, independence, diversity, women's rights, and the presidency. The primary sources also suggest something about how the memory of those events has changed over time. This tension between what actually happened and how we remember the history raises important questions for students of history. Why do we remember certain aspects of American history? How do today's holidays and artifacts from the past shape the history that is remembered? How can we as historians bridge these gaps between history and memory?

Discovery

Did Columbus really discover America? If not, then who did? What were the real effects of the "discovery" of the Americas? How is that different than the way it is generally remembered?

[Ships of Christopher Columbus at sea] / N.C. Wyeth, 1927.
Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs
Prints and Photographs Reading Room
DIGITAL ID: (color film copy slide) cph 3f03751
(color film copy transparency) cph 3g02030

Colonization

Is there a difference between "discovery" and "conquest" when talking about Europeans in the new world? How do the words we use to describe history affect our memory? Who colonized America, and what were their intentions for coming over?

[Nova et accuratissima totius terrarum orbis tabula].
Library of Congress, American Memory
Map Collections
DIGITAL ID: g3200 ct000270

Independence

What are some symbols of American independence? Where do you think these symbols came from? How did the United States achieve its independence from Britain?

Washington's Personal Copy of the Declaration of Independence
Library of Congress, Exhibits
American Treasures of the Library of Congress, Top Treasures

Presidency

Which Presidents do we remember the most commonly? What do we remember most about George Washington? What other factors contributed to American independence, besides Washington? Why has he become a symbol for independence?

Gutzon Borglum and supt. inspecting work on face [nose] of Washington, Mt. Rushmore, S.D.
Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs
DIGITAL ID: (digital file from b&w film copy neg.) cph 3b11262

Diversity

What do we remember about the origins of America's diversity? Take for example, the civil rights movement. What and who do we remember from the movement?

Louis Armstrong, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing left, playing trumpet
Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Collection
DIGITAL ID: (b&w film copy neg.) cph 3c27236

Women's Rights

What do we remember about the women's movements for suffrage? What about later movements for equality? Can we learn anything from studying the role of women before they achieved this political and social equality? What does Rosie's image here suggest about her?

Cover illustration for the Saturday Evening Post showing a woman "Rosie" in overalls, face mask and goggles, eating a sandwich with a pneumatic riveter resting on her lap
Library of Congress, American Memory
American Women
DIGITAL ID: (color film copy transparency) cph 3g05602
(b&w film copy neg.) cph 3b22417