Final Test Prep

The final will cover everything from Colonial America to the Civil War.

Here is a link to help you review for the test:

Practice Questions

The test will only cover questions from: 1a, 2a, 2d, 2e, 2f, and 2g.

Homework- 11/15-16/10

Two Americas

A house divided against itself cannot stand.
I believe this government cannot endure
permanently half-slave and half-free.
-- Abraham Lincoln, 1858

By the mid-19th century, the United States began to attract a steady stream of foreign visitors. As one historian has noted: "What had been a somewhat obscure, occasionally romanticized backwater of colonial exploitation became, virtually overnight, a phenomenon to be investigated, a political and moral experiment to be judged."

No visitor to the United States left a more enduring record of his travels and observations than the French writer and political theorist Alexis de Tocqueville, whose Democracy in America, first published in 1835, remains one of the most trenchant and insightful analyses of American social and political practices. Tocqueville was far too shrewd an observer to be uncritical about the United States, but his verdict was fundamentally positive. "The government of democracy brings the notion of political rights to the level of the humblest citizens," he wrote, "just as the dissemination of wealth brings the notion of property within the reach of all the members of the community." Nonetheless, Tocqueville was only one of the first of a long line of thinkers to worry whether such rough equality could survive in the face of a growing factory system that threatened to create divisions between industrial workers and a new business elite.

Other travelers marveled at the growth and vitality of the country, where they could see "everywhere the most unequivocal proofs of prosperity and rapid progress in agriculture, commerce and great public works." But such optimistic views of the American experiment were by no means universal. One skeptic was English novelist Charles Dickens, who first visited the United States in 1841-42. "This is not the Republic I came to see," he wrote in a letter. "This is not the Republic of my imagination.... The more I think of its youth and strength, the poorer and more trifling in a thousand respects, it appears in my eyes. In everything of which it has made a boast -- excepting its education of the people, and its care for poor children -- it sinks immeasurably below the level I had placed it upon."

Dickens was not alone. America in the 19th century, as throughout its history, generated expectations and passions that often did not agree with a reality that was both more mundane and more complex. Already, its size and diversity defied easy generalization and invited contradiction: America was both a freedom-loving and slave-holding society, a nation of expansive and primitive frontiers as well as cities of growing commerce and industrialization.

Answer the following in 2 paragraphs:

How do Alexis de Tocqueville and Charles Dickens differ in their views of the U.S.?

Do you agree that "2 Americas" existed during the 1800s? Explain

Homework- 11/8-9/10

U.S.- Mexican Relations

Based on the link above, 


1. Have U.S.- Mexican relations been mostly positive or negative? Explain.


2. What could be done by the U.S. and Mexico to improve their nations' relations?


Each answer must be at least 1 paragraph.

Monday/Wednesday Class- Essay Link

Hey Monday/Wednesday Class !

Essay: Is Detroit headed in the right direction?
- 4-5 paragraphs.
- Due Monday

Here are the links for your essay assignment:
Detroit Lives- Part 1
Detroit Lives- Part 2
Detroit Lives- Part 3

Enjoy !

Review for the Test

The test will cover everything from the end of the Revolutionary War to the 1830s (Andrew Jackson).

Here is a link to help you review for the test.

Review Questions

The test will only cover questions from 

2d	Federalist Era
2e	Age of Jackson
2f	Manifest Destiny

Hope this helps !

Homework- 10/27-28

The Legacy of Indian Removal

Assessing the Legacy of Indian Removal

"The command for a removal came unexpectedly upon most of us. . . Wagons stopped at our home and the men in charge commanded us to gather what few belongings could be crowded into the wagons.We were to be taken away and leave our homes never to return. This was just the beginning of much weeping and heartaches . . . most of us had not foreseen such a move in this fashion or at this time. 
We were not prepared, but times became more horrible after the real journey was begun. Many fell by the wayside, too faint with hunger or too weak to keep up with the rest. The aged, feeble, and sick were left to perish by the wayside. A crude bed was quickly prepared for these sick and weary people. Only a bowl of water was left within reach, thus they were left to suffer and die alone." — Creek Mary Hill, recounting her grandmother's experience migrating to Oklahoma Territory

Andrew Jackson signed into law over 70 Indian removal treaties. During his presidency, more than forty thousand Indians were moved westward mostly without their consent, opening millions of acres of land to American settlers and cotton planters. Even before the Cherokees were forced to Indian Territory in 1838, the Chickasaws, Choctaws, and Creeks had already been removed from their lands. By the 1840s, the vast majority of Indians in the American south had been relocated.

In the nineteenth century, along with the southern Indian nations, the U.S. government resettled portions of at least sixty Indian tribes, totaling several hundred thousand Indians. The Oneida, Brothertons, and Mohicans were moved from New York and western Massachusetts to Wisconsin. Others like the Dakota and Lakota of Minnesota were resettled in the Dakotas and Nebraska after the Sioux "uprising" of the early 1860s. After two hundred and fifty years of settler expansion, the Lenapi, who originally lived in present-day New Jersey, ended up in Indian Territory in 1867. The Chiricahua Apaches, moved from Arizona in 1889, were among the last to be exiled from their former homes. Many of these tribes suffered "trails of tears" and untold numbers perished during their difficult journeys and while attempting to reestablish themselves in a new land.

1. How does Jackson's legacy of Indian removal affect his own legacy as president?

2. How could Indian removal have been handled differently? Could there have been a compromise? Explain.

Each answer must be at least 1 paragraph.

Homework- 10/25/10

After the War of 1812 ended with the Treaty of Ghent, an important battle still occurred in Louisiana.

The Battle of New Orleans

Read the article from the link above and answer the following:

1. Who fought in the battle? Which groups?
2. How did Andrew Jackson make a name for himself during the battle?
3. Why was the Battle of New Orleans so important?

Each answer must be at least a paragraph.

Extra Credit

During our lesson on pioneers, an interesting side conversation developed. Some students began expressing their desire to leave Queens. So that gave me an idea for this extra credit.

Answer the following question in 2 paragraphs for +5 on the next test:

Where would you want to move to? Why

(or if you don't want to leave Queens)

Why do you want to stay in Queens? Is there anywhere else you would consider moving to?

Deadline: Friday, Oct. 22

Homework- 10/20-21

In light of our present financial crisis, it's interesting to read what Thomas Jefferson said in 1802:

"If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the people of all property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their Fathers conquered...I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies... The issuing power should be taken from the banks and restored to the people, to whom it properly belongs."


Do you agree or disagree with Jefferson's quote?


Explain your opinion in 2 paragraphs.


Anything less than 2 paragraphs will receive no credit.

Homework- 10/18-19

The Pioneer Way of Life in America


Pioneer life spread across the vast wilderness in less than 3 centuries. The first landings from Europe were in Massachusetts and Virginia and continued pushing ever westward into the new frontier. All different people from all walks of life were pioneers. There were trappers, hunter, miners, frontier soldiers and the pioneer farmers. Some pioneers were adventurous and on the go while others carved themselves out farms and homes in the wilderness. No matter what kind of pioneer he or she was, they had to rely on themselves and the land to stay alive. It's amazing how ingenious these people were. They took advantage of the plentiful wild game and fruits, nuts, plants and trees growing in the wilderness. They built their homes and furniture by splitting trees. They tapped syrup from the trees in the spring to make maple syrup. Salt was obtained by boiling the water of saline springs. 

Their way of life was filled with work and chores. The women crafted household goods such as pails and dippers out of the gourds that grew around them. They made soap from wood ash and molded candles from tallow. Clothes were made from wool and linen and animal skins that were tanned. They hunted for game, worked in the fields and split rails to make fences. They also had to take care of their livestock. The children worked just a hard as their parents. The girls mended clothes, baked, made soup and candles, pounded dried corn to make cornmeal and helped their mothers. The boys learned to fell timber and split wood for the fire. They hauled water from a nearby stream, hoed in the fields and helped their fathers with other chores. It was both the boy's and girl's responsibility to chase animals such as deer, squirrels and rabbits from the cornfield. Winter was hard on the pioneer family. In extremely cold weather they stayed in their cabins, sitting around the fire to keep warm. Food was monotonous since there were no fresh vegetables or fruits available. But the pioneers were a strong people and usually weathered the winter successfully. 


Since there were no drug stores, the pioneers had to learn to make their own medicines. Herbs were used for healing many ailments. Boneset was used to lower a fever, and pennyroyal was used to purify the blood. Cherry root horseradish and witch hazel were made into syrups and salves, while a chest cold was helped by rubbing the chest with goose grease and then a mustard plaster was applied. Pioneer families were normally large, and usually there was always a young child in the family. They needed large families to help out on their homesteads. Neighbors were pretty much essential and were valued on the frontier. House- raising, log rolling, barn- raising and hunts were a community affair.When we look back at these rugged pioneer people, it's hard to believe that they survived! But they did, and they paved the way for future generations to form our land to become what it is today.

Would Americans today have what it takes to be pioneers? 

Explain in 2 paragraphs.

Web Quest (a.k.a Extra Credit )

Complete the following to receive +10 on the last test:

- Find an interesting or effective Youtube video about the Articles of Confederation.
- In your comment, include the link to the video and a 1 paragraph explanation about why the video is interesting or effective.

Homework- 10/4-5/10

Select 2 amendments from the U.S. Bill of Rights and explain the importance of each one.

Answer in at least 2 paragraphs. 

Review for the Test

I'm sorry that we ran out of time for our review.

The test will cover everything from the discovery of America to the end of the Revolutionary War.

Here is a link to help you review for the test.
http://www.regentsprep.org/regents/core/questions/topics.cfm?Course=USHG
The test will only cover questions from 1a: Geography and 2a: Colonial Era.

Hope this helps !

Homework- 9/27/10

British Perspective on the American Revolution

Click on the link above to get the article.

Does the professor make a convincing argument? Explain why or why not.

Answers must be at least 2 paragraphs.

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