Week 3 (February 2-4)

We’ll spend Tuesday (Feb. 2) finishing up the material from last week; most of our time will be spent on the West, so review the questions and explore the material from the PBS site on Indian Wars if you haven’t already.

On Thursday, we’ll begin examining the lives of working people in the late 19th century, with a particular focus on several themes:  (1) the movement to form labor unions; (2) the ethnic diversity of the American working class; and (3) the effects of economic turmoil on workers.

Most US history surveys will include a chapter about working class Americans during these years.  Digital History has several relevant chapters that cover these issues:  here, here and (to a lesser extent) here.  Digital History also neglects significant events like the depressions of the 1870s and 1880s.  These depressions are difficult to comprehend if you don’t have much of a background in economics, but they are important, and I’ll be referring back to them throughout the semester.  This site does a nice job of explaining the background of the depression and explaining some of the consequences for working people.  The Wikipedia article on the Panic of 1873 is acceptable as well.

Some questions for the week:

1. How did industrialization change the ways people worked in the late 19th century?
2. Why did so many workers try to form labor unions during the post civil war years?  What were the key organizations leading this effort, and what precisely did they want?
3. How did major episodes like the Great Railroad Strike of 1877 or the Haymarket bombing (1886) shape the fortunes of the labor movement?
4. Why did American cities become destinations for European immigrants?  How did immigration reshape American life in the late 19th century?
5. What were the causes of the Panic of 1873, and how did the depressions of the late 19th century affect orginary working people and their families?

(Document links coming soon)

Week 2 (January 26-28)

This week will cover a rather large span of material orbiting the expansion of big business throughout the nation and the expansion of American settlement throughout the trans-Mississippi West. I ordinarily spend two weeks on this material, so you should be prepared to do a somewhat greater amount of reading. If you’re following along in Digital History, this chapter on business and this chapter on the West will introduce some of the material for you.

I’m not wild about either of these chapters — especially the coverage of Indian issues, which are mostly ignored. The chapter on business is also weak.  As a consequence, you’ll find Digital History rather unhelpful for several of the questions below. I’ve placed a couple of texts on 2-hour reserve at the library, so you might consult them for additional background. You might also look at this section of Wikipedia’s article on “Indian Wars.” It’s comprehensive and accurate, with the usual array of links for hours of diversion.  I’d also recommend the article on “Trusts” — look at some of the linked terms (including the Sherman and Clayton Acts) as well as the relevant parts of the article on the history of Standard Oil.

The major questions we’ll be touching on this week will include:

1. In what major ways did American business change after the civil war?  What new industries led the way?  Who were some of the key figures in this world of industry?
2. In what ways did big business consolidate its power during these years (roughly 1865-1900)?  What were “trusts,” and why were they so controversial?
3. What was teh “Panic of 1873,” and what were its effects on the nation?
4. What were “Social Darwinism” and the “Gospel of Wealth,” and how do these ideas reflect different attitudes about the responsibilities of the wealthy toward the rest of their society?
5. What major events launched the explosion of population and economic development in the West?
6. Who migrated westward, and why?  What challenges and difficulties faced those who moved there?
7. Describe US policy toward American Indians during the past-Civil War years.  What factors led to prolonged conflict throughout the western half of the nation?
8. What role did the mythology of the West play in American culture during the late 19th century?

Some documents that we’ll examine in class:

1. William Graham Sumner explains Social Darwinism.
2. A shoe manufacturer agrees with Sumner.
3. A cartoon displaying a common elite view of the panic of 1873.
4. This sire (created for a PBS documentary on the West) a variety of useful links, including accounts (in chapter 6) of some of the Indian wars.  Peruse these documents and see what you find.

Week 1-2 (January 19-21)

Welcome to “HIST 132: The US since 1865.” The syllabus for the course is located here.

We will begin the semester by examining the end of the American Civil War and surveying the period of Reconstruction, which formally lasts through 1877.  Your reading selections should focus specifically on the years from 1865-1877.  If you examine any US history survey text, there will be a chapter covering that period of time.  If you choose to read the online Digital History text, these sections will prove most useful.

In class, our conversations will focus primarily on the following questions:

1. What factors produced the collapse of the slave system in the American South from 1863-1865?
2. What did the end of slavery mean for the nation as a whole?  What did the prospect of freedom mean for African Americans, and how did they attempt to make freedom real in the wake of legal emancipation?
3. What political problems did the U.S. have to reckon with at the end of the Civil War?  Specifically, what were the major arguments regarding the best way to re-establish the political livelihood of the former Confederate states?
4. What did Reconstruction (as implemented) actually look like?  What were its limitations and successes?
5. Why was Andrew Johnson impeached, and what did his impeachment reveal about the conflicts between Congress and the Presidency over the direction of Reconstruction?
6. What were the Reconstruction Amendments?  In what ways did they redefine citizenship rights for blacks?  In what ways did they redefine citizenship rights for women?
7. In what ways did Southern whites strive to regain their power over freedpeople?  To what degree (and for what reasons) were these efforts successful?
8. How did Reconstruction come to an end?  How was is a “revolution, but half-accomplished?”

Additional documentary resources for this week’s discussion include the following:

1. This site from PBS contains lots of useful documents related to an American Experience documentary that aired several years ago.  The documents are broken into numerous sections.  Peruse the collection, read a few, and come to class prepared to share what you learn.
2. This document from Virginia reveals a widely-held set of views among Southern blacks regarding the meaning of the Civil War and the difficulties of reconstruction.  What, to these men, is required for black liberty to survive?  Why, according to this document, do blacks deserve protection and aid?
3. Alexander Stephens, former Vice President of the CSA, expresses his hope that the feuding sections of the nation will simply kiss and make up.  Does Stephens’ hope seem reasonable?

Additional documents that will be referred to in class:

1. Henry Hammond’s “Mudsill Theory” (1858)
2. Alexander Stephens’ “Cornerstone Speech” (1861)
3. Lincoln’s second inaugural address (1864)
4. Herman Melville, “The Martyr” (1865)
5. Jourdan Anderson, “To My Old Master” (1865)