1. What are the main historic events(hit five) that took place in 8th Grade US History that helped shape the United States up to 1877?(10 points)-Chapters 1-4
Christopher Columbus –looking for shorter route to India and discovered America; basically started the migration to North America
Revolutionary War-war between Great Britain and 13 colonies; free from Britain’s rule, gave us our independence, so we could start to flourish
Civil War-war against North and South; end of Slavery, but split nation into Union and Confederate states
Louisiana Purchase-purchase from the French; doubled size of the US, has supplied lots of resources and has benefitted US
Constitution-set up 3 branches of government; judicial, executive and legislative; created checks and balances system
2. How did the US change during the late 1800's and early 1900's?(10 points)-Chapters 5-8
More people started to settle out west in the Great Plains. Railroads played a big part in this. Farmers moved to the west for land and cattle movements became bigger. Others moved the plains for a fresh start, and the gold rush also had an impact. We had many confrontations with Native Americans in this period of time and we handled them in a negative way. The Industrial Revolution led to more inventions and more factories. More immigrants that worked for little pay and took people’s jobs. Cities expanded, but left many people in poor conditions, very unsanitary. African Americans were segregated from the whites, and segregation was very popular.
3. What impact did the Progressives have on the United States?(10 points)-Ch. 9
This period brought about a lot of change in the United States. During this period we passed many laws and worked to help out the common man. They helped set up the 8 hour work day and other things that benefitted workers. Labor unions were strengthened; they helped legalize strikes and boycotts, and helped with workers’ rights. They also helped out businesses by passing antitrust laws, such as the Sherman and Clayton Antitrust Acts, which made monopolies illegal. Not only this, but they worked on preventing extreme child labor in the factories, and they worked to better the conditions in the factories. By doing this, they were able to improve food standards with the Pure Food and Drug Act and Meat Inspection Act. Four Amendments were passed; the 16th, 17th, 18th, and 19th amendments. The 16th created the income tax, the 17th gave the power to elect senators to the people, the 18th prohibited the manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages, and the 19th amendment gave women the right to vote. Overall the Progressives brought about a lot of change in the United States, and many of their achievements are still important today.
4. Describe US Foreign Policy in the late 1800's and early 1900's and be able to give examples.(10 points)-Ch. 10
The US foreign policy in the late 1800’s was basically to keep to ourselves and to remain that way. The US practiced Old Diplomacy. We were isolationists; we acted alone in foreign affairs instead of working with other nations. We didn’t want to become involved in foreign wars or situations. We were noninterventionists; we didn’t want to intervene in any of Europe’s affairs. We were passive and reactive, so we waited on events to occur and then we acted accordingly. We didn’t want to get involved in anything that didn’t have to do with us. We then started shifting to New diplomacy. We became more imperialistic, we started to build a stronger and better navy and army, we became interventionists. So we basically became really involved in other countries' affairs. Through this we also developed strong nationalism; pride and confidence in our country. We used Roosevelt's Big Stick Diplomacy, especially in the Caribbean, where we would use our military power to get what we wanted. We used Wilson's Missionary Diplomacy where we didn't recognize any country that was undemocratic and hostile towards the United States, this one however was not a very successful foreign policy. In conclusion, the United States practiced Old Diplomacy and then we started to practice New Diplomacy. We also used other types of diplomacy, but overall the New Diplomacy was most successful.
5. What impact did World War I have on the United States?(10 points)-Ch. 11
At the beginning of WWI the United States was neutral and helped out both sides of the war, both Germany and Great Britain. We were then dragged into the war, but shortly after we entered the war came to an end. The Treaty of Versailles was introduced and in the treaty there was lots of punishment for Germany. The United States however, never signed it. Wilson proposed his fourteen points which he wanted to be the treaty for the war, but it wasn’t as popular as the Treaty of Versailles. The US thought that signing the treaty would get us involved in foreign wars and affairs, which we didn’t want. President Wilson presented his fourteen points which included creating a league of nations. The United States however decided not to join when Harding was elected president. After the war we went back to being isolationists, which was proposed by Harding. To conclude WWI we went back to isolationism, and we tried to stay out of foreign wars.
6. What positive and negative impact did the 1920's have on the United States?(20 points)-Ch. 12-13
Some positive impacts were: new inventions, planes, automobiles, and a “new woman” with the flapper, who recreated the basic woman. Women also got the right to vote in 1920. More types of entertainment were introduced such as jazz bands, listening to radios, broadways, and dancing the Charleston. During Hoover’s presidency lots of dams were built, Al Capone was prosecuted, and the Reconstruction Finance Corporation was formed which created jobs for people who were unemployed. African Americas started to “express themselves” especially in Harlem, NY which was the Cultural Center for African Americans.
Some negative impacts were the Prohibition, when alcohol was banned, which then lead to the illegal sale of alcohol and therefor formed gangs. Gangs were responsible for a lot of the crime of the time period, and Al Capone was in power of one of the biggest gangs. The stock market crash was also a negative impact. Too many goods were produced, which caused inflation; people were also buying on margin which contributed to the crash. Due to the crash many people lost a lot if not all of their money and lead to them becoming depressed and even suicidal. Lots of suicides occurred during the Great Depression.
In conclusion, many positive and negative things had an impact on the 1920’s. However, we have overcome the negative and the positive are still having an impact today.
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