The American Revolution - Lighting Freedom's Flame
About this resource
- Appropriate grades
- 4, 8, and 10–11
- Subjects
- social studies (African Americans, American Indians, civics and government, North Carolina, United States history, women)
- Provider
- National Park Service
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The National Park Service is celebrating the 225th anniversary of the Revolutionary War through 2008. Their goal is to “enhance public understanding of the various meanings and enduring legacy of the Revolution.” This website provides information on both historic and National Park Service destinations that pertain to the Revolutionary War period. Guilford Courthouse National Military Park, Moores Creek National Battlefield, Tryon Palace, Brunswick Town State Historic Site, Historic Hillsborough, and Old Salem are highlighted for the state of North Carolina.
The Revolutionary Learning section of the website is designed for teachers, students, and researchers to learn more about the Revolutionary War period. Educator resources include a teacher's manual and field trip opportunities. Moores Creek National Battlefield teacher's manual covers African Americans and women in the Revolution, militias, weapons and supplies, the Battle of Moores Creek Bridge, and reviews for both 4th and 8th grades. Guilford Courthouse National Military Park has a lesson plan in which “students will practice skills using and evaluating primary sources from the 18th and 19th centuries and in analyzing judgments and decisions made by historical figures.” The student section has articles relating to primary and secondary source materials and how to use them. Researchers will find information relating to the southern campaigns of the Revolutionary War.
A timeline of events beginning with the lead-in to the war in 1763 and ending with the aftermath in 1783 has links to the parks where events from that time occurred. The “Revolution Day by Day” section allows students to choose a year and see what happened in a specific month and date of that year.
Students can learn more about the key players of the Revolution in the “Participants” section of the site. George Washington, Thomas Paine, and John Adams are recognizable names, but there is information on lesser known figures such as Salem Poor, a hero of the Battle of Bunker Hill and Haym Salomon, a Polish-born Jewish immigrant who helped to finance the war.
There are fascinating stories from the Revolutionary period and the National Park Service relates some of them on this site. Read about the role privateers had in the American Revolution, the consequences of the War for Indian nations, or what liberty and equality meant to black Americans.
It is important to note that although the American Revolution happened two centuries ago, it is still having an impact today. Read the article “All Men Are Created Equal: the Power of an Idea” to see how it still resonates today. This would be a really good topic to discuss with students and see what examples they can think of.
