HIST 2301.165

U.S. History Since 1877

Fall 2009 — MWF 1:00–1:50 — HH150

Prof. Mark Stoll

135 Holden Hall

Telephone: 742-3744

Office hours: Monday 10:30-12:30 & by appointment

Course Website: http://courses.ttu.edu/mstoll/ E-mail: mark.stoll@ttu.edu

This course surveys the history of the United States from Reconstruction to the present. It focuses on the major social, intellectual, political, cultural, and religious trends and events that shaped the American nation.

Exams: There will be three in-class midterm exams and a cumulative final. These tests will consist of short-answer, objective, and essay questions that will require a firm and accurate knowledge of the facts and the ability to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate information. Exam questions will be drawn from assigned reading, lectures, and other class materials.

Reading: The required books for the course are:

· Hugh Brogan, The Penguin History of the USA, 2nd ed.

· Erik Larson, The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America
CLICK HERE FOR STUDY QUESTIONS

· Adam Cohen, Nothing to Fear: FDR's Inner Circle and the Hundred Days That Created Modern America
CLICK HERE FOR STUDY QUESTIONS

· Robert Stone, Prime Green: Remembering the Sixties
CLICK HERE FOR STUDY QUESTIONS

· Jim Mann, The Rebellion of Ronald Reagan: A History of the End of the Cold War
CLICK HERE FOR STUDY QUESTIONS

Grading: In the calculation of students’ final grades, the three midterm exams count 22% each, and the final 34% of the final grade

Attendance and make-up policy: Class attendance is required. Roll will be taken each class. Each absence over two causes the final grade to drop 1 point. Students with a perfect attendance record receive a bonus of 3 points on their final grade average. Students who miss exams may make them up. Students must take any make-up work on the last day of classes. It is the students’ responsibility to arrange their schedules to accommodate this, since there will be no exceptions. It is undoubtedly in students’ interest to take exams on the date they are scheduled.

Map quiz: As Peter Heylyn noted in 1652, “Historie without Geographie like a dead carkasse hath neither life nor motion at all.” Nineteenth-century historian Jules Michelet agreed: “Without a geographical basis, the people, the makers of history, seem to be walking on air, as in those Chinese pictures where the ground is wanting.” Because geography shapes and influences history, students must know the basic facts of U.S. geography. All students will be required to pass a map quiz. This test will require students to locate, on an outline map of the U.S., 20 of the features named on the following list. A passing score is 80%. The test will be taken on an outline map on Monday, September 14. Students will have opportunities to retake the map quiz if they fail, but must pass by October 9. Students must be able to locate the following on an outline map:

All 50 states by name	Appalachian Mountains	Washington, D.C.
Canada	Rocky Mountains	New York City
Mexico	Sierra Nevada	Philadelphia
Pacific Ocean	Cascade Range	Boston
Gulf of Mexico	All 5 Great Lakes by name	Atlanta
Atlantic Ocean	Great Salt Lake	Chicago
St. Lawrence River	Puget Sound	New Orleans
Hudson River	Great Basin	St. Louis
Ohio River	Great Plains	Denver
Mississippi River	Chesapeake Bay	Santa Fe
Missouri River	Florida Keys	Salt Lake City
Columbia River	Cape Cod	Los Angeles
Colorado River (AZ, etc.)	Cape Canaveral	San Francisco
Rio Grande	Long Island	Seattle

For purposes of study and convenience, a blank map like the one used for the test is attached to the syllabus and is also available online if you wish to print out more copies. CLICK HERE FOR A BLANK MAP.

Note: These geographical features can be found on most maps and atlases. The political and physical maps of the United States in the on-line Encyclopaedia Britannica (available from the Texas Tech Library Website [select “Databases”]) contain almost all of them. Search for “United States” and click on “Maps.” You might also try Google Maps and similar sites for any you have trouble finding.

COURSE SCHEDULE

Reading: By the first exam, read Brogan, chapters 17–18, and all of Larson.

8/28 Introduction

8/31 1876: State of the Union

9/2 Indians, Ranchers, and Farmers

9/4 Indians, Ranchers, and Farmers, cont.

9/7 Labor Day—No Class

9/9 Rise of American industrial power

9/11 American workers and the challenge of the working class

9/14 Map Quiz! Immigrants arrive in huge numbers

9/16 America becomes an urban nation

9/18 America becomes an urban nation, cont.