HISTORICAL STUDIES 1301

U.S. History to the Civil War

UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT DALLAS, SPRING 2006

INSTRUCTOR: Dana Turner; office: Jonsson 5.410D; office hours: M 11:00-12:00 p.m., W 1:00-2:00 p.m., and by arrangement;
email: dke022000@utdallas.edu

DESCRIPTION: This course examines American history through the Civil War. This is a survey course; consequently, it focuses on
breadth, not depth. Through lecture, classroom discussion, and course readings students will learn basic terminology and themes
relating to early American history. The course will highlight two general themes: first, that there was a multiplicity of peoples who
participated in the formation of the United States; second, that ideas and values profoundly shaped the development of this country
and impacted its citizens in various ways.

OBJECTIVES : Students will learn basic terminology and themes of early American history through lecture, classroom discussion,
and course readings. Although the class will be primarily a lecture course, periodic in-class discussions will focus on developing
critical thinking skills.

REQUIREMENTS AND EVALUATION: Readings will consist of excerpts from a textbook and selections from books.
• Tindall & Shi’s America: A Narrative History, volume one, (6th ed., 2003) will be the main textbook. Only certain
selections from this book will be required reading. The other texts are Charles W. Akers’s Abigail Adams: An American
Woman (2d. ed., 2000), Thomas Paine’s Common Sense (1776), Frederick Douglass’s Narrative of the Life of
Frederick Douglass (1845), and Randolph B. Campbell’s Sam Houston and the American Southwest (2d ed., 2002).
Additional articles and primary sources may be assigned.
• Grades will be assigned on a 100 point scale, with letter grade equivalents as follows:
A+: 99-97; A: 96-93; A- : 92-90. Likewise for Bs, Cs, and Ds. F: 59 and below.
• Final grades are based on two unannounced quizzes (10% total), two midterm exams (30% each), and a final (30%).
Students must bring their own bluebooks and their UTD Comet Card to each exam.
• Students are expected to attend class regularly, arrive to class punctually, and participate in class.
• Excellent attendance will be rewarded in that students with two or less un-excused absences will qualify to drop their
lowest quiz grade.
• Do not miss an exam for any reason other than a documented medical, family, or personal emergency. For those who
miss an exam because of a documented emergency there will be one make-up administered shortly after the originally
scheduled exam; see the instructor as soon as possible for information on the make-up. Likewise for quizzes.
• Students needing special accommodations should present appropriate documentation to the instructor and make
arrangements with him as soon as possible.

ACADEMIC CONDUCT: The college experience should cultivate honesty, integrity, civility, critical thinking, and open discussion.
Please make this class—and each of your classes—an experience which develops your strength of character. Cheating, falsifying
academic documents, plagiarism, tardiness, and disruptive behavior are not tolerated. Students observing these problems should
report them to the instructor. Read the student handbook for the university’s policy on academic conduct. Students found to be
involved in academic dishonesty will be immediately reported to the dean’s office with the instructor’s strongest recommendation
that the student fail the class. Furthermore, turn off all cell phones, pagers, and other personal communication devices upon
entering the classroom. Lectures are copyrighted material and may not be recorded without the written consent of the instructor.
According to university policy, course-related e-mail correspondence may be carried on only via UTD e-mail accounts.

SYLLABUS : The course will consist of several topical sections focusing on different conceptual units of American history. The
course schedule may change at the discretion of the instructor. Be sure to keep pace with the assigned readings. Read the
textbook on weekly basis. Students must finish reading each of the other books by the first class of the week during which it is
scheduled to be completed. Students should note that the reading load for the first three weeks is rather light; however, the reading
load will increase to a healthy level shortly afterward. Students are responsible for all material discussed during lectures and are
encouraged to meet with the instructor or the teaching assistant to discuss the material further.

WEEK 1 (Week of Jan. 9) Assignment: Purchase the required books.

Topics: Introduction; the study of history; New World Textbook: pp. 5-22.
origins; pre-Columbian America.
WEEK 2 (Week of Jan. 16) WEEK 12 (Week of Mar. 27)
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day: The university will be Topics: The Western Frontier; the Texas question; the
closed on Monday. Mexican War.
Topics: Columbian Exchange & Ecological Imperialism; Reading: Finish reading Sam Houston & the American
the Age of Discovery; Spain and France in the New Southwest. Possible quiz on Sam Houston.
World. Textbook: pp.530-567.
Textbook: pp. 22-42.
WEEK 13 (Week of Apr. 3)
WEEK 3 (Week of Jan. 23) Topics: The shaping of the American character; the
Topics: Origins of English colonial empire; Puritan New evolution of slavery in America.
England; Middle Atlantic colonies; the colonial South. Textbook: pp. 492-528; 573-597.
Textbook: pp. 44-96.
WEEK 14 (Week of Apr. 10)
WEEK 4 (Week of Jan. 30) Topics: Sectionalism, abolitionism, and the coming of
Topics: Early colonies; early slave trade; the colonial the Civil War; Abraham Lincoln.
way of life; colonial governance. Reading: Read Frederick Douglass’s Narrative of the
Textbook: pp. 98-148; 151-163. Life of Frederick Douglass. Possible quiz on
Douglass’s autobiography.
WEEK 5 (Week of Feb. 6) Textbook: pp. 601-608; 611-653.
Topics: The colonial wars.
Textbook: pp. 168-180. WEEK 15 (Week of Apr. 17)
EXAM: in-class exam on Friday, Feb. 10. Topics: The Civil War; interpreting the Civil War.
Textbook: pp. 655-710.
WEEK 6 (Week of Feb. 13)
Topics: The coming of the Revolution; America’s War WEEK 16 (Week of Apr. 24)
for Independence. Monday: Last class of the semester.
Reading: Read Thomas Paine’s Common Sense. Topics: Open
Possible quiz on Common Sense. Begin reading
Akers’s Abigail Adams. FINAL EXAM: in-class final exam on Wednesday, April 26
Textbook: pp. 182-218; skim 225-249. @ 11:00 a.m.

Week 7 (Week of Feb. 20)

Topics: Nation-making and the Constitution; Republican
Motherhood; interpreting the Revolution.
Textbook: pp. 249-263; 265-294.

WEEK 8 (Week of Feb. 27)

Topics: The Federalists and the Jeffersonians; the
Jeffersonian Revolution.
Reading: Finish reading Abigail Adams; possible quiz
on Abigail Adams.
Textbook: pp. 296-336.

WEEK 9 (Week of Mar. 6)

SPRING BREAK

WEEK 10 (Week of Mar. 13)

Topics: The Early Republic; the Era of Good Feelings;
John Marshall and the Supreme Court.
Textbook: pp. 338-372; 379-390; 394-399.

WEEK 11 (Week of Mar. 20)

Topics: The Jacksonian era; American westward
expansion.
Reading: After exam, begin reading Sam Houston & the
American Southwest.
Textbook: pp. 399-408; skim 410-442.
EXAM: in-class exam on Monday, March 20.