This assignment requires researching a monument on the U.S. Naval Academy grounds.  Sometimes specific monuments are assigned and sometimes you can choose any monument or memorial on the yard.  The project includes a physical description, the significance, and personal reaction to it.  Sometimes you are supposed to ask for other people's opinions as well.

INFORMATION ABOUT THE MONUMENT

The most important book to check initially is called Monument Survey, Legacy Project 878, USNA.  The call number is V415.M4U52 and there are 3 copies available.  One copy is on the book cases directly behind the Reference Desk.  One copy is on the main Reference shelves, and the last copy is in Special Collections.  None of them can be checked out.

The Monument Survey book has the most detailed information on the all the monuments around the yard and it is critical for you to look at it.  Some of the descriptions refer to articles or additional sources of information.

INFORMATION ABOUT THE U. S. NAVAL ACADEMY

There is some information on the monuments and how they ended up here in general books on the history of USNA.  One good one is Jack Sweetman's The U. S. Naval Academy: An Illustrated History.  The call number for this is V415.L1S94, and when you look for it, you will see that all the other books on USNA are also in the V415 call number section.

You should browse the V415 section of stacks to look in individual books for additional information on your monument.  There are some copies in the Reference collection and more copies in the stacks on the 3^rd floor.

SPECIAL COLLECTIONS AND ARCHIVES

The Division of Special Collections and Archives of Nimitz Library is located on the 3^rd floor and a lot of unique material about the Naval Academy, including the monuments, is kept there.  The librarians will bring you any material they have on your monument, and you should be prepared to go through a folder of miscellaneous clippings or articles.

INFORMATION ON THE PERSON OR EVENT

You probably will need to get more information on the person or incident that your monument commemorates.  You can usually do this pretty easily by reading an overview article in a Reference set on historical events or famous Americans.  Click here to see a list of possible Reference sources. Searching the Library's catalog may show that there are books on the person or event which you could check out.  Or you may be able to find this kind of information on the Internet.  Let a librarian direct you to appropriate background sources for learning more about the person or event.

NEWSPAPER AND MAGAZINE ARTICLES

There may be newspaper or magazine coverage of the event your monument commemorates at the time it happened.  There also may be press coverage of the dedication or renovation of the monument years later.  The name of the local Annapolis newspaper is the The Capital or Evening Capital and our electronic access is fairly complete since 1942, with scattered online access to earlier years.  The Library has this newspaper back to 1884 on microfilm. 

Sometimes stories about the monuments at the Academy make it to the Washington Post, which is online since 1987, but on microfilm back to 1877.

The USNA Alumni Association magazine, called Shipmate, may have an article on your monument since that would be of interest to graduates.  Shipmate began in 1938 and has no electronic access.

To see if any other history magazine has an article on your monument or the person or event commemorated, check the database called America: History and Life.

EFFECTIVENESS OF THE MONUMENT

Lastly, after researching your monument, you should return to it and take a few minutes to think about what it means to you and how or why you do or don't like it.  Every one is part of the Naval Academy history and memory in some way.

NEED MORE HELP?

Ask a Reference librarian for further suggestions or contact the History Librarian.

Return to History Tip Sheets Page.

Comments or suggestions?
URL: http://www.usna.edu/Library/History/Monument.html
Last updated: 21 July 2008