New York State Library | Friends Groups
The Friends of the New York State Newspaper Project offer a free 92-page loose-leaf book entitled "The Great Railroad Strike of 1877: An Instructional Packet for Teachers and Students of Labor History in New York State and the United States of America" to New York State teachers who send their request on school letterhead to:
Friends of the New York State Newspaper Project
P.O. Box 2402 Empire Plaza Station
Albany, NY 12220.
All others may obtain copies by sending a check for $10.00.
The activities in the packet correlate with the New York State Learning Standards and Performance Indicators for the Intermediate and Commencement Levels. It is aimed at social studies and language arts teachers of grades 7, 8 and 11.
The packet uses newspaper accounts from the Albany Argus and the Buffalo Morning Express as the basis for a number of activities that will, as stated by Maryanne Malecki, the teacher who developed the packet, "enable students to experience the emotions and events as they unfolded without the filter of time and changing perspective." The packet also serves as a prototype for teachers to use in teaching about job actions at other times around the state.
The unit, made possible by a $2,500 grant from the New York State Legislature thanks to the efforts of Assemblyman John J. McEneny, draws attention to the importance of microfilming newspapers and making them available to researchers.