"GETTYSBURG: THE SOLDIERS’ BATTLE" ACTIVITY
CIVIL WAR TIME LINE

 

ADDITIONAL ACTIVITY: TIME LINE

PURPOSE: It is difficult for students to place the Civil War within the context of American history. It is also a challenge for students to picture how 19th century life differed from life today. The purpose of this exercise is twofold:

  1. To help the students identify the Civil War in relation to other events;
  2. To point out inventions commonplace in our daily lives that did not exist during the Civil War.

MATERIALS: Rulers and graph paper are needed.

PROCEDURE: Here are some suggestions for different grade levels:

  1. Give students Historic Events list and dates. Have them place these on a time line dating from the year 1775 to the year 2000. Standard size graph paper works very well on a scale of one square to every five years. Regular paper can be used on a scale of one inch to every 25 years.
  2. After the first suggestion has been completed, give students Inventions list and dates to insert along the same time line. Ask "What inventions were present at the time of the Civil War? Which were not?"
  3. Give students both lists in scrambled order without the dates and ask them to place the events and inventions in chronological order.
  4. Ask the students to take the time line home, discuss it with their families, and determine the birth dates of various relatives and ancestors. Approximate dates will do fine for distant predecessors. Have the students put their own birth date on the time line as well.

 

HISTORIC EVENTS

American Revolution - 1775-1783

Declaration of Independence adopted - 1776

George Washington elected President - 1789

Abraham Lincoln is born - 1809

Abraham Lincoln elected President - 1860

American Civil War - 1861-1865

Battle of Gettysburg - 1863

United States enters World War I - 1917

United States enters World War II - 1941

Alaska becomes a state - 1957

Man lands on the moon - 1969

Vietnam conflict ends - 1975

Your Birthday - ??

Persian Gulf War - 1991

War in Iraq - 2003

INVENTIONS

First U.S. Locomotive - 1830

First book on baseball - 1834

Photography - 1835

Kerosene Lamp - 1859

Telephone - 1876

Electric Light - 1879

Coca Cola - 1886

Zipper - 1891

Henry Ford’s first car - 1896

Wright Brother’s flight - 1903

First World Series - 1903

Television - 1923

The Frisbee - 1950

Personal Computers - 1976

Compact Disks - 1979
 

 

"Gettysburg: The Soldiers’ Battle" Pre-broadcast Activities

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