Week 14: The Civil War

Our final week explores the Civil War and its legacy. We will discuss the events of the war, its immediate aftermath, and recent commemoration.

Reading: Clark, Chap. 6

Points of Entry:

The Civil War:

http://www.pbs.org/civilwar/

Civil War Battlefields:

http://www.civilwar.org/

Reconstruction Era:

http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/reconstruction/index.html

Questions:

Could the Civil War have been avoided? What would the U.S. look like if compromise was reached?

What would the U.S. look like if Reconstruction was fulfilled and not ended in 1877?

What does recent commemoration of the Civil War say about its legacy?

Week 13: The Great Divergence

This week we will explore the local, regional, and global undercurrents shaping the "Great Divergence" on the eve of the Civil War. Topics include social reform movements, the revolutions of 1848, and abolitionism.

Readings: David Walker's Appeal

Points of Entry:

The Appeal online -

http://docsouth.unc.edu/nc/walker/menu.html

Revolutions of 1848 -

http://www.age-of-the-sage.org/history/1848/revolution_of_1848.html

Abolitionist Movement -

http://www.cerritos.edu/soliver/American%20Identities/Black%20abolitionists/black_abolitionists.htm

Questions for Discussion:

What is the relationship between global events and the coming of the Civil War?

How did social reform movements shape the "great divergence?"

week 12: Global Migrations and the U.S.(1840-1860)

Week 12: Global Migrations and the U.S.(1840-1860)

This week we'll explore the great immigrant and emigrant migrations that shaped Antebellum America and the West. We will also look at the impacts of the Gold Rush and Mexican-American War.

Points of Entry:

Gold Rush -

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/goldrush/

Mexican-American War -

http://www.pbs.org/kera/usmexicanwar/index_flash.html

Overland Migration Trails -

http://overlandtrails.lib.byu.edu/trailmap.html

Irish Immigration -

http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/irish-immigrants.htm

Questions for discussion:

How did the Mexican-American War shape sectional divisions in the U.S.?

What is the relationship between the Gold Rush and the Civil War?

Taylor (chap. 19)

Clark (chap. 6)

Week 11: Manifest Destiny (1840-1860)

This week we will explore the relationship between westward expansion, slavery and American identity. We will also discuss the wars against Mexico.

Readings: Cherokee Removal (chaps. 3-5)

Clark, (chap.5)

Points of Entry:

Panic of 1837

http://www.thehistorybox.com/ny_city/panics/panics_article5a.htm

Manifest Destiny -

http://www.civics-online.org/library/formatted/texts/manifest_destiny.html

U.S.-Mexican War -

http://www.pbs.org/kera/usmexicanwar/prelude/md_introduction.html

The Alamo -

http://www.thealamo.org/main/index.php

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/alamo/

Antebellum Period -

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/aaohtml/exhibit/aopart2.html

Questions for discussion:

How did westward expansion shape the increasing divide between North and South?

How were the southern and northern economies linked?

Was there a national culture that brought together North and South?

Week 10: Defining Citizenship (1828-1840)

This week we will explore how the early U.S. defined and understood citizenship. This period experienced both an expansion and retraction of how citizenship came to be understood. We will also explore the Second Great Awakening and its impact on U.S. identity.

Readings - The Cherokee Removal A Brief History with Documents (intro.; chaps. 1-2) 100 pp.

Clark (chap. 5) 42 pp

Points of Entry:

Thomas Jefferson and Early U.S. Scientific Inquiry:

http://www.ansp.org/museum/jefferson/

Lewis and Clark Expedition and Early Expansion:

http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/lewisandclark/lewisandclark.html

http://lewisandclarkjournals.unl.edu/

http://publications.newberry.org/frontiertoheartland/

Early U.S. Immigration:

http://ocp.hul.harvard.edu/immigration/

19th Century Children:

http://www.merrycoz.org/CHILDREN.HTM

Sunday School Books:

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/sundayschool/

Trail of Tears National Historic Trail:

http://www.nps.gov/trte/

Questions for Discussion:

How do you think citizenship was defined in the early American Republic? Was it becoming more democratic or exclusive?

How did U.S. identity change during this period?

What are the legacies of the Trail of Tears?

How does looking at children's literature and Sunday School books (see links above) give us a window into U.S. identity?

Week 9: Early U.S. Domestic and Foreign Policy (1812-1828)

This week we explore the early battles over the early identity of the United States. During this period local and national elites--as well as individual families and households--negotiated the course of political-economic and cultural development.

Readings:

Clark, chaps. 2-4

Points of Entry:

Monroe Doctrine

http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/monroe.asp

Early U.S. material culture:

Wisconsin Decorative Arts Database : Search Results

Early U.S. images:

Picture Collection Online

Louisiana Purchase:

Louisiana Purchase

Questions for discussion:

The early American republic was largely agrarian. However, there were many proponents of a national, centralized economy based on industrial development. Which shaped early U.S. identity--coastal cities and early factories or farming?

What was the relationship between the "Old West" and slavery?

What role did Native American societies play during this period?

What role do you think women played during these years?

Self-evaluation

Your 1-2 page self-evaluation is due Friday (10/29). Here are some guiding questions:

So far, what has been the most important thing you’ve learned in class?

What has been the most difficult historical trend or reading that you’ve encountered?

What important questions remain unanswered for you?

What classroom activities or assignments have been the most effective in helping you learn this semester? Why?