Cultivating Historical Inquiry: Students Explore the Power of Archives

Upper School students in my Hands-On History class visited the Moravian University Archives and the archives at Lafayette College to gain firsthand experience with primary source research. At the Moravian Archives, archivist Tom McCullough guided students through an activity in which they analyzed a range of historical documents to determine their date and context. Students then toured the vaults to observe how archival materials are stored and organized.

At the Lafayette College Archives, co-director Ana Ramirez Luhrs introduced students to a selection of the College’s holdings. Highlights included the Marquis de Lafayette’s sword and a Sumerian cuneiform clay tablet. This immersive experience offered students a meaningful connection to the past and a deeper understanding of the work historians and archivists do.

By engaging directly with original sources, students not only deepened their historical knowledge but also developed essential critical thinking skills—learning to question, interpret, and contextualize the records that shape our understanding of the world.