3 websites that identify historical places near you

Historical Marker Database
One of the most overlooked parts of any roadside is the historical marker. People drive past them every day without ever taking the time to stop and read them and you may not even realize how many you pass in a single day. This website, the Historical Marker Database, helps you to identify their location and their significance. You can locate markers by category, by state/province, and even by country. If you want to find markers in your area, then go to this site. If you want to know the history behind the markers then this is the site for you. A project idea could be to have students locate, photograph, and write about the historical markers in their town using the Historical Marker Database. 

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Historic Places
Historic Places is a new website that provides the location of over 100,000 historic structures throughout North America. Unlike the Historic Marker Database, this site's focus is on buildings, battlefields, archaeological sites, ships, and statues. You can navigate the site by event, by location, by category, or use their interactive map. The site is still new so a few of their features may still be under construction. Historic Places is a great tool for discovering the history near where you live or when you are planning a  vacation.

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History Pin
History Pin is an online collection of photographs, videos, audio files, and text that have been shared by people from around the world. Their tag line is "a global community collaborating around history." Users can post their documents or search a map to find things in their area or search by collection, channel, and project. One of my favorite features is their tours and collections section which contains documents all centered around specific topics or events.History Pin is a great resource for educators as well as anyone who loves history.

Explore the National Archives through social media

The National Archives is a fantastic resource for learning about our nation. Their collection of historic documents, photographs, film, recordings and other materials is no less than the history of our nation. The internet has made accessing their records so much easier but did you know the National Archives is also a participant in social media? You can visit their Facebook page or follow them on Twitter but they don't limit themselves to these two social media giants. Below are links with brief descriptions of what you will find in their other social media ventures.

Flickr
The National Archives on Flickr has over 12,000 pictures arranged into over 200 photo sets. Their extensive collection features historical images, documents, and political cartoons.

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You Tube
The National Archives You Tube channel contains over 1000 videos with all sorts of topics. There are old news reels, debates, and many other types of educational videos to explore.

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Pinterest
The National Archives Pinterest page contains  44 boards that are overflowing with great images, teachers resources and other great educational material.

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Tumblr
Overall, the National Archives has twelve Tumblr pages which you can discover here. The main Tumblr page of the National Archives reports on the news and current activities of the Archives.

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My favorite National Archives on Tumblr is Our Presidents which features photographs and information from past U.S. Presidents.

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Another great Our Presidents resource can be found here at their Pinterest page. With over 1000 pins on 67 boards, it is an excellent resource for Presidential history.

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Google +
If you are a fan of Google+ then why not try out the National Archives Google+ page which has both news and historical information.

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Wikispaces
The National Archives also have a site through Wikispaces. Their page has pictures, documents and other historical records covering 13 major topics including the Revolution, Civil War and immigration.

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Blogs
The National Archives boasts 13 blogs that range from Black History to declassified military documents.

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History Pin
The National Archives History Pin page currently has over 1000 images on 18 collections and 9 tours.

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Storify
Finally there is the National Archives at Storify which currently has 7 stories.

Two user created history sites

History Pin is an online collection of photographs, videos, audio files, and text that have been shared by people from around the world. Their tag line is "a global community collaborating around history." Users can post their documents or search a map to find things in their area or search by collection, channel, and project. One of my favorite features is their tours and collections section which contains documents all centered around specific topics or events.History Pin is a great resource for educators as well as anyone who loves history.

Timelines is a site where history meets social media. The website itself is very useful by categorizing key historical events in several ways. You can browse the site by era, type of event (ie; war), or by date. They have a neat page where you simply select a date and the events that occurred on that date appear. Almost everything you find on Timelines is created by their community and registered users can record events and contribute descriptions, photos, videos and links related to events. Unlike a wiki, the site is built to display various (and potentially conflicting) descriptions of the same event from many different contributors which is always important when trying to understand historical events. Timelines is a great site because it allows you to report and discover history with your friends, colleagues, and students.

History, Congress, and Funny laws

We humans are such creatures of habit. We tend to eat at the same restaurants, shop at the same stores, and visit the same websites. I am certainly guilty of being overly "brand loyal." My blog has really opened my eyes to how many amazing websites are out there on the world wide web. I really hope you have found some of the websites I share to be both useful and interesting.

First on the agenda is Congress.org. This website provides daily coverage of issues being discussed by Congress. It provides news and information while making it easy for citizens to find out how their elected officials are voting. If you are unhappy with the direction of our country then start visiting this site and become a more active citizen.

Next is History Pin, an online collection of photographs, videos, audio files, and text that have been shared by people from around the world. Their tag line is "a global community collaborating around history." Users can post their documents or search a map to find things in their area or search by collection, channel, and project. This site is great for educators as well as anyone interested in history.

Last is the lighter side of the law from Lawyers.com. This collection has pages of dumb criminals, kooky court cases, and crazy laws that are sure to entertain. No matter how you feel about Lawyers, you will most likely enjoy these stories from the funny side of the law.