History research resources for cadets

[UH60guy]

I have been asked to help mentor a cadet, a senior in high school, with his research paper on CAP history. I'm going to get with him Monday night but wanted to come prepared. He mentioned something about getting information from the Wing website, but didn't mention any other sources in a short phone call.

I'm throwing this out here because I know how to research, track down scholarly papers, evaluate points of view, etc... but as my recent experience was graduate degree research, I'm a little removed from what is expected of high schoolers. On top of that, I don't have school-aged children of my own, so I am unfamiliar with their capabilities in this regard.

Does anyone know where I can point him for age/skill appropriate research materials for a history paper? I should clarify this is bigger than the usual short assignment. It's supposed to have been a school-year-long project, so naturally we're just getting started.

[MSG Mac]

The late Colonel Louisa Morse published a series of historical monographs that maybe available  on the CAP History site. Also Hero's Next Door may be available.

[MisterCD]

What exactly are they looking for in terms of information?

I've posted a few items I have either researched and published myself or digitized here that will be of assistance:
http://www.scribd.com/collections/4159367/Civil-Air-Patrol-Documents

Should they want CAP oral histories, I have them listed here: http://www.scribd.com/collections/4277193/Civil-Air-Patrol-Oral-Historie

When in OHWG I digitized the Morse books, found here: http://www.ohwg.cap.gov/wing-historian/capuniformsandinsignia1941-1982bycollouisasmorse

Send me a PM should the cadet narrow their research topic options.

[UH60guy]

Thanks for the tips! Glad to have something to point him to when he does his research.

I just want to make sure he's tracking the "Excellence" core value and that he uses more than one Wing website and Wikipedia. This should be very helpful.

[AdAstra]

Colonel Morse's comprehensive series focused (in great detail) on the evolution of CAP uniforms and insignia. They are probably not what a high-schooler thinks of as "history" --- people, dates, events, places. The CAP Historical Monograph series, overseen by Colonels Hopper and Morse, is also esoteric and concentrated on specific topics (Air Medals, Duck Club, etc.). Hero Next Door and Flying Minute Men, easily available on eBay and Amazon, were commercial glosses of CAP history. And don't cover the last 40 years of our history! I like the personal anecdotes of WWII CAP members collected in From Maine to Mexico.

The student's first stop should be CAPP 50-5, Introduction to Civil Air Patrol. It's free, the most readily available publication, and recently updated. The first three chapters give a broad overview of CAP's history, and provide a good framework for further research. He/she can choose an area of interest from that framework, and concentrate research accordingly.

[MisterCD]

CAPP 50-5 is a starting point, yes, but unfortunately at times the information is of questionable accuracy. This too is another document that the national history program needs to rewrite almost in its entirety. My advice is for your cadet to determine what they want to focus on in terms of a topic. If "CAP in general," it would be ideal to narrow this down in regards to "time, space, and topic" then locate the requisite primary source material.

The bulk of published secondary literature on the organization revolves around the World War II period of CAP. The near complete dearth of information about the corporation from 1970 to the present would be an ideal starting point for your cadet. Topics here are numerous and there are primary resources available of a digital nature to draw from.