The Garden City Telegram

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Vet search

Published 1/31/2012 in Commentary

New program would enhance lessons about state's history.

Kansas furnished more troops, per capita, to the Union Army during the Civil War than any other state.

And many of those Civil War veterans chose to settle down in Kansas once the war ended.

Now, more than a century and a half after the war's start, students in Kansas are being urged to track down details on those war veterans. Their searches would lead them to the state's cemeteries as part of a project called "Sleeping Heroes: The Impact of Civil War Veterans on Kansas Communities."

In part to recognize the 150th anniversary of the Civil War (1861 to 1865), the Kansas Historical Society planned the educational program to encourage students to document information about contributions of the state's Civil War veterans.

The idea came from a project in 2006 in Glasco that saw students locate graves of 83 Civil War veterans buried in the small town's cemetery.

Likewise, the new project calls for middle-school students and their teachers to search for Civil War veterans buried in local cemeteries, and explore the background of those vets as part of a study of their communities and the war.

Information gathered would go into an online database, which also would give students an opportunity to build research skills while learning more about local history — and help them develop a new appreciation for their communities and how they evolved over time.

Along with learning about their ancestors and connecting with others in their communities, the "Sleeping Heroes" initiative presents a positive "sweat equity" opportunity. When students are asked to do more than simply read a textbook on a topic, they gain more from the experience.

Organizers even believe the effort could slow the exodus of young people from rural parts of the state.

Short of that benefit, the project would be an educational way for students to help chronicle history that should be passed from generation to generation. As part of that, students would see how patriotism drove so many Kansans to serve in a time of war.

Kansas schools should be eager to enlist students in such a compelling project.

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