We The Teachers: Recent Episodes
Teaching American History
We The Teachers is a bi-weekly podcast featuring Teaching American History scholars discussing American history with a focus on primary documents.
The Ashbrook Center and TeachingAmericanHistory.org seek to provide high-quality content-focused programs, resources, and courses for teachers of American History, Government, Civics, and related subjects. Students, citizens, and anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the American experience can also benefit from our resources, which include podcasts, a vast documents library, monthly webinars, and in-person seminars.
TAH's last Documents in Detail episode for the 21-22 school year, focusing in a document that is both a piece of Congressional history, and an event that shaped policy, "The Revolt of 1910 Against Speaker Joseph Cannon."
This program took place at 7pm ET on Wednesday, 18 May 2022, and featured Dr. John Moser as moderator; Dr. Joseph Postell, the volume editor; and Dr. Sarah Burns.
Our last Saturday Webinar for the 21-22 school year took place on 14 May 2022. It was also the final episode in our five-episode series on the Populists and Progressives. Download Dr. Jason Jividen's volume here, and access the focus readings for Saturday's program.
- Dr. Chris Burkett - Ashland University
- Dr. Jason Jividen - St. Vincent College
- Dr. John Moser - Ashland University
Suggested Readings:
- Theodore Roosevelt's "New Nationalism" speech
- FDR's Commonwealth Club Address
- LBJ's "Great Society" speech
- Barack Obama's Second Inaugural Address
Learn more at tah.org
Our Documents in Detail webinar for April 20th, 2022 focused on Daniel Patrick Moynihan's "The Negro Family: The Case for National Action." This document is drawn from our Slavery and Its Consequences Core Documents Collection, which you can download free as a PDF.
Scholars
- Dr. John Moser, Ashland University
- Dr. Peter Myers, University of Wisconsin Eau-Claire
- Dr. David Tucker, The Ashbrook Center
TAH's Saturday Webinar for 2 April 2022, and the fourth in our Populists and Progressives series for Spring 2022. This episode focused on the changing views on and understandings of democracy, republicanism, and the structural and legal limits placed on government, through the lens of the populists and progressives.
Download your free copy of our Populists and Progressive Core Documents Collection here!
Panelists:
- Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Scott Yenor, Boise State
- John Dinan, Wake Forest
Suggested Readings:
- The New Nationalism , Theodore Roosevelt, 31 AUG 1910
- The Right of the People to Rule, Theodore Roosevelt, 20 MAR 1912
- "The Constitution a Reactionary Document," J. Allen Smith, 31 DEC 1907
Learn more at tah.org
Our Documents in Detail webinar for March 16th, 2022 focused on Harry Truman's Farewell Address. This document is drawn from our Cold War Core Documents Collection, which you can download free as a PDF.
Scholars
- Dr. John Moser, Ashland University
- Dr. David Hadley
- Dr. David Krugler, University of Wisconsin-Platteville
Learn more at tah.org
TAH.org's webinar from 5 March 2022, about the role and evolution of parties and candidate during the age of the Populists and Progressives.
Panelists:
- Dr. Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Dr. David Krugler, University of Wisconsin-Platteville
- Dr. Eric Sands, Berry College
Suggested Readings:
- Wanted - A Party, Woodrow Wilson, 1 SEP 1886
- Plunkitt of Tammany Hall, George Washington Plunkitt, 1905
- "The Right of the People to Rule," Theodore Roosevelt, 20 March 1912
- The Progressive Party Platform, 7 August 1912
Our Documents in Detail webinar for February 16th, 2022 focused on FDR's "Four Freedoms" speech. This document is drawn from our World War 2 Core Documents Collection, which you can download free as a PDF.
Scholars
- Dr. John Moser, Ashland University
- Dr. Jennifer Keene, Chapman University
- Dr. David Krugler, University of Wisconsin-Platteville
Our second Populists & Progressives webinar, focusing on their ideas about how the government should be active in economic affairs, to what extent, and for what reasons. This program took place on 5 February 2022 at 11am ET.
Panelists:
- Dr. Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Dr. Jennifer Keene, Chapman University
- Dr. John Moser, Ashland University
Suggested Readings:
- "The Inheritance of Property," Richard Ely, 31 July 1891
- A Call to Action, James Weaver, 31 DEC 1892
- Christianity and the Social Crisis, Walter Rauschenbusch, 31 DEC 1907
- "Why Women Should Vote," Jane Addams, 31 JAN 1910
See the full show page here.
Our Documents in Detail webinar for January 19nd, 2022 focused on Frederick Douglass' "Half Slave-Half Free" speech. This document is drawn from our Reconstruction Core Documents Collection, which you can download free as a PDF.
Scholars
- Dr. John Moser, Ashland University
- Dr. Peter Myers, University of Wisconsin Eau-Claire
- Dr. Scott Yenor, Boise State University
Following our "American Presidency" five-episode webinar series for Fall 2021, we are presenting five episodes, from January through May 2022, about the Populists and Progressives. Our first, aired live on 8 January 2022, at 11am ET, and was titled "What is a Progressive?"
Panelists:
- Dr. Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Dr. Jason Jividen, Saint Vincent College
- Dr. David Alvis, Wofford College
Suggested Readings:
- Charles Merriam, “Recent Tendencies” (1903)
- Herbert Croly, excerpt from The Promise of American Life (1909)
- Progressive Party Platform (1912)
- Woodrow Wilson, “What is Progress?” (1913)
- Frank Goodnow, “The American Conception of Liberty” (1916)
Learn more here.
Our Documents in Detail webinar for December 15th, 2021 focused on Texas v. Johnson. This document was drawn from our Free Speech: Court Cases Core Documents Collection, which you can download free as a PDF.
Scholars
- Dr. David Krugler, University of Wisconsin-Platteville
- Dr. Joe Fornieri, Rochester Institute of Technology
- Dr. David Tucker, The Ashbrook Center
Ashbrook/TAH held a special webinar on Wednesday, 8 December about 10 little-known American heroes of the Second World War, all recipients of the Medal of Honor. Take some time to consider their sacrifices and character as you remember the 80th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, and America's involvement in the war.
You can download a copy of the slideshow used in the program here.
Suggested readings and movies are listed below.
- Band of Brothers, Stephen Ambrose
- D-Day: June 6, 1944: The Climactic Battle of World War 2, Stephen Ambrose
- Citizen Soldiers, Stephen Ambrose
- Brotherhood of Heroes: The Marines at Peleliu, 1944, Bill Sloan
- Letters from Iwo Jima
- Flags of our Fathers
- D-Day: The Total Story (DVD documentary; includes interviews with Walt Ehlers)
Our last Saturday Webinar for Fall 2021, and the capstone episode of our American Presidency series, during which we discussed the Modern Presidency - its powers, the expectations placed on the office, how it has evolved to this point, and how this squares with the Constitution.
Panelists:
- Jeremy Gypton, Teacher Programs Manager, TAH.org
- Dr. Jeremy Bailey, University of Oklahoma
- Dr. Jordan Cash, Baylor University
Suggested Readings:
- Madison on the Removal Power and his letter to Pendleton James Madison, 1789
- Humphrey’s Executor v. U.S. 1935
- Brownlow Committee Report 1937
- The Presidency in 1960, John F. Kennedy, 1960
- McGover-Fraser Commission Report, 1971
Books Mentioned During the Program:
- Presidential Power and the Modern Presidents: The Politics of Leadership from Roosevelt to Reagan
- The Hidden-Hand Presidency: Eisenhower as Leader
Our Documents in Detail webinar for November 17th, 2021 focused on Judith Sargent Murray's 1790 "On the Equality of the Sexes." This document is drawn from our Gender and Equality Core Documents Collection, which you can download free as a PDF.
Scholars:
- Dr. John Moser, Ashland University
- Dr. Sarah Morgan Smith
- Dr. Cara Rogers, Ashland University
The fourth episode in our Fall 2021 American Presidency webinar series took place on 6 November 2021, from 11am-12:15pm Eastern Time. In this episode we discussed the interactions between and evolution of the balance of power between the presidency and the courts, especially the United States Supreme Court.
Learn more here.
Our Documents in Detail webinar for October 20th, 2021 focused on Abraham Lincoln's 1854 Peoria Speech, given in response to repeal of the Missouri Compromise. This document was drawn from our Causes of the Civil War Core Documents Collection, which you can download free as a PDF.
This one-hour program will air live at 7pm ET. All attendees of the live show will receive a printable certificate for continuing education, and will be able to ask questions of our panelists via Zoom's Q&A function.
Scholars
- Dr. John Moser, Ashland University
- Dr. Dan Monroe, Millikin University
- Dr. Jason Stevens, Ashland University
The third episode in the Fall 2021 American Presidency Saturday Webinar series, in which our scholars examined the president's emergency, war and foreign policy powers. The program aired live on Saturday, 2 OCT 21 from 11am-12:15pm ET.
Panelists:
- Dr. Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Dr. Sarah Burns, Rochester Institute of Technology
- Dr. Stephen Knott, United States Naval War College
Suggested Readings:
- Helvidius-Pacificus Debate
- Lincoln’s Special Message to Congress
- War Powers Act and Nixon’s Veto
- 2001 John Yoo Memorandum on Presidential Authority
Learn more at tah.org/programs
Our Documents in Detail webinar for September 22nd, 2021 focused on Albert Beveridge’s “March of the Flag” speech from 1898. This document is drawn from our Westward Expansion Core Documents Collection.
Scholars
- Dr. David Krugler, University of Wisconsin-Platteville
- Dr. Will Atto, University of Dallas
- Dr. David Tucker, The Ashbrook Center
Learn more here.
Part 2 of our Fall 2021 series on the American Presidency, which aired live at 11am ET on Saturday, 11 SEP 21. This 75-minute webinar featured a discussion between scholars about the relationship between Congress and the President.
Scholars:
- Dr. Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Dr. David Alvis, Wofford College
- Dr. Joe Postell, Hillsdale College
Suggested Readings:
- Federalist 51, 1788
- On the Source of Executive Power, 1913, 1916
- FDR’s First Inaugural, 1933
- Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v Sawyer, 1952
Our final episode in this three-part special podcast series commemorating the 20th anniversary of the September 11th terror attacks, in which Michael Hurley, former CIA Officer and member of the 9/11 Commission, describes and offers insights about the fallout of the attacks on American policy and life.
Suggested Additional Readings:
- When Government Writes History, Ernest May, 2005
- 9/11 Commission Report
- Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001, Steve Coll
In observance of the 20th anniversary of the September 11th attacks, TeachingAmericanHistory interviewed Michael Hurley, former CIA officer and member of the 9/11 Commission, to talk about the causes of the attacks, September 11th itself, and the fallout of that day.
In this episode Michael discussed the day itself, with insight into the immediate reactions by various government agencies and individuals, along with some personal anecdotes.
In observance of the 20th anniversary of the September 11th attacks, TeachingAmericanHistory interviewed Michael Hurley, former CIA officer and member of the 9/11 Commission, to talk about the causes of the attacks, September 11th itself, and the fallout of that day.
In this episode Michael discussed the causes, long and short-term, of the September 11th terror attacks.
https://youtu.be/RyzktkmH0vE
Our first Saturday Webinar for the 21-22 school year, and the first in our five-episode Fall 2021 series about the American Presidency took place on 21 AUG 21. This first episode examined the "Executive Power" granted to the president in the Constitution, and what it means, how it's been understood over the years, and how it has evolved.
This free webinar aired live on Saturday, 21 August 2021 at 11am Eastern Time, for 75 minutes. Access the archives of this episode on our YouTube channel and We The Teachers podcast.
Suggested readings, drawn from TAH.org's American Presidency Core Documents Collection:
- Selections from The Federalist
- Cato IV, 1787
- Remarks on the Removal Power, James Madison, 1789
- Speeches on the Removal Power, Henry Clay, 1833, 1834
- Letter to Albert Hodges, Abraham Lincoln, 1864
Scholars:
- Dr. Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Dr. Jeremy Bailey, University of Oklahoma
- Dr. Ben Kleinerman, Baylor University
Our first Documents in Detail webinar for the 21-22 school year took place on Wednesday, 18 August, at 7pm ET, and focused on the “List of Prints to Illustrate British Cruelties.” Part of a volume assembled for use by Ben Franklin in France in 1779, the never-published work was intended to illustrate atrocities committed by the British against the American colonists. Despite that fact that it was not used, it provides an interesting inside view on how the protracted war actually undermined British efforts.
Learn more here.
From 17 March 2021, this program consists of a discussion between Drs. Jeff Sikkenga and Chris Burkett, both of Ashland University, about James Madison's impact on the the creation of the Constitution, and its understanding since.
TAH.org's special webinar for 13 March 2021, about the ideas, agreement, and disagreements between Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison. This is the first in our summer 'bridge' podcasts, which will be published in June and July, while our two regular series are on hiatus.
Our final Documents in Detail episode for the 2020-21 school year, and our last in our 'Selections from the 50 Core Documents' series, in this episode we looked into Frederick Douglass' 1876 oration on Abraham Lincoln, providing us an inside view of the great abolitionist's thoughts on Lincoln as a man, and the man's legacy. This program aired place live on 12 May at 7pm Eastern Time.
Scholars:
- Dr. John Moser, Ashland University
- Dr. Joe Fornieri, Rochester Institute of Technology
- Dr. Peter Myers, University of Wisconsin Eau-Claire
Read the document here.
The last in our 'Remember the Ladies' webinar series for Spring 2021, broadcast live on 1 May 21.
Learn more here.
Our April episode of Documents in Detail, focused on Abraham Lincoln’s Resolution Submitting the 13th Amendment to the States, and was attended by over 160 people.
Panelists:
- Dr. John Moser, Ashland University
- Dr. Elizabeth Amato, Gardner-Webb University
- Dr. Andrew Lang, Mississippi State University
Learn more at TAH.org.
Our webinar for 10 April 2021, about American social and political reformer, Fannie Lou Hamer. Access the documents mentioned and books suggested during the program here.
Our Documents in Detail webinar for 17 March 2021 focused on Abraham Lincoln's Final Emancipation Proclamation. Released on 1 January 1863, it legally freed all slaves in states and areas still in rebellion, and paved the way for permanent abolition of the institution of slavery.
Learn more here.
Dr. John Moser of Ashland University discusses three of our newest Core Documents Collections with the scholar editors who assembled them. Learn about what it took to put these volumes together, and where you can get your copies.
- Dr. Jeff Sikkenga - Supreme Court Cases
- Dr. Ken Masugi - Religious Liberty Court Cases
- Dr. Joe Fornieri - Free Speech
The fourth in our 'Remember the Ladies' series of Saturday Webinars for Spring 2021, focusing on the suffrage movement leader. Learn more at the episode's home page.
TAH has published almost 20 Core Documents collections over the last few years - all of which are available for free download as PDFs - each assembled by one of our graduate faculty members. We recently conducted a roundtable discussion of four editors, facilitated by Dr. John Moser. You can listen to this 68-minute discussion of the volumes, and our political history, in this special episode. Scholar bios and volume links are below.
- Dr. John Moser - The Great Depression and New Deal
- Dr. Jeremy Bailey - The American Presidency
- Dr. Joseph Postell - Congress
- Dr. Eric Sands - Political Parties
Our Documents in Detail webinar for 17 February 2021 focused on Confederate States of America Alexander Stephens' 1861 "Cornerstone" speech, in which he explained the real reasons for Southern secession, confederation, and choice for war against the Union.
Learn more here.
Ida B. Wells was a journalist, educator, and early Civil Rights leader, making her mark in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. Born into slavery (and freed by the Emancipation Proclamation at only a few months' age), she went on to co-own a newspaper for which she also wrote, investigating and spotlighting racial violence and segregation.
We focused on Wells' life and work during our Saturday Webinar on 6 FEB 21, held from 11am ET - 12:15 ET.
Access the original readings here.
On 27 JAN 2021 Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, Professor of Political Science at Ashland University, discussed early American history with Dr. Lynne Cheney, author of the new book "The Virginia Dynasty: Four Presidents and the Creation of the American Nation." In this one-hour discussion they talked about the early American Republic and the impact of the personalities and policies on our history.
Our first DiD webinar for 2021, which aired live on 20 JAN 21, was about Andrew Jackson's message explaining his veto of the National Bank bill.
See the document here, and access the archive page (with YouTube recording) here.
In commemoration of Martin Luther King, jr. Day, 2021, Teaching American History presented this one-hour webinar about the ideas and legacy of Frederick Douglass, America's greatest abolitionist, and certainly one of its greatest civil rights leaders.
You can access our collection of Frederick Douglass documents here.
Our first SatWeb for 2021, and also the first in our Spring '21 series, "Remember the Ladies," this time focusing on Sarah and Angelina Grimke, the 19th Century American social activists and abolitionists. Read the recommended documents here.
The last Documents in Detail webinar for 2020, which aired live on 16 DEC 2020, and focused on John C. Calhoun's "Fort Hill Address," which laid the foundation for some of the arguments for the protection of slavery and secession in later decades.
Our panelists were:
- Dr. John Moser, Ashland University
- Dr. John Dinan, Wake Forest University
- Dr. Lauren Hall, Rochester Institute of Technology
Learn more about our Documents in Detail webinars here.
To mark the 79th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Dr. Jeff Sikkenga and Dr. John Moser talked about the attack and America's ensuing entry into World War 2.
TAH.org partnered with the Missouri Humanities Council to present two special webinars about the role of religion and the American church in reform movements. The second, took place on 8 DEC 2020 at 7pm CT, and focused on the role of religion in the post-WW2 Civil Rights Movement. The program consisted of a conversation between Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center and professor of Political Science at Ashland University, and Dr. Melissa Matthes, of United States Coast Guard Academy.
Suggested Readings:
- “Love Your Enemies” Sermon, Martin Luther King, Jr., 17 NOV 1957
- Letter from Birmingham Jail, Martin Luther King, Jr., 16 April 1963
- A Time to Break Silence, Martin Luther King, Jr., 4 APR 1967
- The Bullet or the Ballot, Malcolm X, 3 APR 1964
- Last Interviews and Answers, Malcolm X
The was the final episode in our "Enduring American Questions" webinar series, for Fall 2020, and focused on the New Deal, and various arguments on its effectiveness in ending - or perhaps instead extending - the Great Depression.
Suggested Readings:
- Letter to Senator Simeon Fess, Herbert Hoover, 21 FEB 1933
- An Open Letter to President Roosevelt, John Maynard Keynes, 15 DEC 1933
- "Social Insurance for U.S.," Frances Perkins, 25 FEB 1935
- Social Economics of the New Deal, Adolf A. Berle, Jr., 29 OCT 1933
Panelists:
- Dr. Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Dr. Jennifer Keene, Chapman University
- Dr. John Moser, Ashland University
TAH.org partnered with the Missouri Humanities Council to present this special webinar about the role of religion and the American church in reform movements. This episode focused on the role of religion in the pre-Civil War abolition movement. The program consisted of a conversation between Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center and professor of Political Science at Ashland University, and Dr. Dan Monroe, of Millikin University.
Suggested Readings:
- American Anti-Slavery Society, Declaration of Sentiments, William Lloyd Garrison, 6 DEC 1833
- The American Union, William Lloyd Garrison, 10 JAN 1845
- American Slavery, Frederick Douglass, 22 OCT 1847
- "Cornerstone" Speech, Alexander Stephens, 21 MAR 1861
Our Documents in Detail episode for Wednesday 17 November 2020 focused on two short pieces from Thomas Jefferson: his letters to John Holmes and Henry Lee. Our panel consisted of Dr. John Moser, of Ashland University; Dr. Robert McDonald of the United States Military Academy at West Point; and Dr. Cara Rogers, of Ashland University.
Learn more at tah.org
This episode in our "Enduring American Questions" Saturday Webinar series will air live on 7 November 2020, from 11am-12:15 EST. Our panelists will discuss the fundamental differences in the Founders' and Progressives' vision for the role, reach, and powers of government, and how each viewed the political process in light of those ideas. This is essential information for teachers of American History and Government.
Learn more here.
TAH.org's Documents in Detail webinar for 21 OCT 2020, focusing on James Madison's essay "Property."
Dr. John Moser, of Ashland University, was joined by Dr. Chris Burkett, also of Ashland University, and Dr. Elizabeth Amato, of Gardner-Webb University.
Our archive of TAH.org's 3 October 2020 webinar, featuring a discussion of the true causes of the Civil War – was it really all about slavery, or something else?
Suggested Readings:
- Fort Hill Address, John C. Calhoun, 26 July 1831
- The Constitution of the United States: Is it Pro-Slavery or Anti-Slavery?, Frederick Douglass, 26 MAR 1860
- South Carolina’s Declaration of the Causes of Secession, 24 DEC 1860
- Mississippi Declaration of Secession, 9 JAN 1861
- First Inaugural Address, Abraham Lincoln, 4 MAR 1861
- “Cornerstone” Speech, Alexander Stephens, 12 MAR 1861
- Second Inaugural Address, Abraham Lincoln, 4 MAR 1865
The archive of our 23 SEP 20 webinar in which we looked at James Madison’s Speech on the Amendments to the Constitution, from 8 June 1789, wherein the “Father of the Constitution” added, some scholars would argue, “Father of the Bill of Rights” to his titles.
Why are both these documents essential to establishing and, hopefully, contributing to the maintenance of the American constitutional system of government? How do they work with one another, and why were they not created together? Explore these and other questions about two of the most foundational documents of the American republic, through the experience and vision of Dr. Gordon Lloyd, expert on the Constitutional Convention and the American Founding.
Learn more at tah.org
Our first Saturday Webinar for the 20-21 school year, and also the first in our Fall series, Enduring American Questions. In this 75-minute episode, we will explore the question of whether the American Revolution, or perhaps ‘The War for American Independence,” was a revolution. What were its roots and how do they compare to those of other revolutions of the era, and since? What did Americans of the time seek to accomplish, and why? This episode will delve into political and historical topics, making it relevant for American History, World History, and American Government/Civics teachers, as well as Comparative Government teachers.
Suggested Readings:
- Draft of the Declaration of Independence, 2 July 1776
- “Liberty Further Extended: Or Free Thoughts on the Illegality of Slave-keeping,” Lemuel Haynes, 1776
- Letter to Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, 24 AUG 1815
- Letter to Roger Weightman, Thomas Jefferson, 24 June 1826
Panelists:
- Dr. Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Dr. Todd Estes, Oakland University
- Dr. Rob McDonald, United States Military Academy at West Point
TAH.org's last of a three-episode series on pivotal presidential elections, tonight's focus was Ronald Reagan and the Election of 1980. Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, Professor Political Science at Ashland University and Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center, discussed the election and its legacy with Dr. Chris Burkett, also of Ashland University.
Suggested Readings:
- Acceptance Speech 1980 Democratic Convention, Jimmy Carter, 14 AUG 1980
- Crisis of Confidence Speech, Jimmy Carter, 15 July 1979
- A Time for Choosing, Ronald Reagan, 27 OCT 1964
- Acceptance Speech at 1980 Republican Convention, Ronald Reagan, 17 July 1980
- Transcript: Presidential Debate in Cleveland, OH, 28 OCT 1980
The post Special Webinar: What Can We Learn From the Election of 1980? appeared first on Teaching American History.
If you missed our partner webinar with the Missouri Humanities Council, on 11 August 2020, you can watch the archive here, and access the readings set aside for this program.P
Subscribe to our podcast:
- At iTunes
- Via the RSS Feed
Panelists: Dr. Jeff Sikkenga and Dr. Jason Stevens
- Republican Party Platform of 1860
- Democratic Party Platform of 1860
- South Carolina’s Declaration of the Causes of Secession, 24 DEC 1860
- Farewell Speech, Abraham Lincoln, 11 FEB 1861
- Speech at Independence Hall, Abraham Lincoln, 22 FEB 1861
- First Inaugural Address, Abraham Lincoln, 4 MAR 1861
The post Special Webinar: What Can We Learn from the Election of 1860? appeared first on Teaching American History.
Join us for the first Documents in Detail webinar of the 20-21 school year, and also the first in our last year of 'Selections from the 50 Core Documents' as a series focus. In this episode we will delve into the meaning, rhetoric, and legacy of Brutus II, one of the most important Anti-federalist writings from 1787-88.
This episode aired live on Wednesday, 19 AUG 2020, at 7pm ET.
Panelists:
- Dr. John Moser, Ashland University
- Dr. Jason Jividen, Saint Vincent College
- Dr. Adam Seagrave, Arizona State University
The post Documents in Detail: Brutus II appeared first on Teaching American History.
The first in our three-episode series of webinars about Presidential Elections and Campaigns, this episode focused on the tumultuous election of 1800, wherein John Adams was eventually defeated by Thomas Jefferson, resulting in the first partisan exchange of power in America.
Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, Professor Political Science at Ashland University and Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center, discussed the election and what we can learn from it with Dr. Cara Rogers, of Ashland University.
Suggested Readings:
- Alien and Sedition Acts, 13 NOV 1797
- Letter to John Taylor, Thomas Jefferson, 4 June 1798
- The Duty of Americans, at the Present Crisis, Timothy Dwight, 4 July 1798
- Letter to Elbridge Gerry, Thomas Jefferson, 26 JAN 1799
- Hideous Hermaphroditical Character - Spurious Quotation about John Adams
- Letter to Harrison Gray Otis, Alexander Hamilton, 23 DEC 1800
- Letter to Thomas Mann Rudolph, Thomas Jefferson, 19 FEB 1801
- First Inaugural Address, Thomas Jefferson, 4 MAR 1801
The post Special Webinar: What Can We Learn from the Election of 1800? appeared first on Teaching American History.
Ashbrook and TeachingAmericanHistory presented another special webinar, this time about Operation OVERLORD, more widely known as D-Day, the invasion of Normandy, and the liberation of Europe that it led to. Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, Professor of Political Science at Ashland University and Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center, discussed the invasion and its place in WW2 and history with Dr. John Moser of Ashland University.
Suggested Readings:
- Fuhrer Directive 51, Adolf Hitler, 3 November 1943
- Combined Chiefs of Staff Directive for Operation Overlord, 12 February 1944
- D-Day Statements, General Dwight Eisenhower, 6 June 1944
- Robert Edlin's Account of D-Day
- Memo to Gen. George Marshall, Dwight Eisenhower, 6 June 1944
All participants will be sent a printable certificate for continuing education time.
REGISTER HERE The post Special Webinar: D-Day+76 Years and the Liberation of Europe appeared first on Teaching American History.
Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, Professor of Political Science at Ashland University and Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center interviewed Dr. Jennifer Keene of Chapman University on 20 May 2020, focusing on the lives, ideas, and contributions of Henry Ford and Madam CJ Walker, heroes of American Business.
Suggested Readings:
- Henry Ford's Five-Day Week, The Library Digest, 29 April 1922
- My Life and Work (Chapter 4, 5, and 8), Henry Ford, 1922
- Henry Ford Sociology Department
- Collection of Primary Sources for Mdm. CJ Walker
The post Special Webinar: Heroes of American Business appeared first on Teaching American History.
Join Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, Professor of Political Science at Ashland University and Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center on 6 May 2020 at 1pm ET for this free webinar, focusing on, among others, Abigail Adams, a Hero of the American Founding. Dr. Sikkenga will be joined by Dr. Natalie Taylor of Skidmore College.
All attendees will be provided with access to primary source readings before each episode airs, and will be emailed a printable certificate to account for continuing education.
Suggested Readings:
- Abigail Adams to John Adams, 31 March 1776
- John Adams to Abigail Adams, 14 April 1776
- From John Adams to Mercy Otis Warren, 8 January 1776
- Abigail Adams to John Quincy Adams, 10 June 1778
- Abigail Adams to John Quincy Adams, 19 January 1780
- Abigail Adams to John Quincy Adams, 10 August 1796
The post Special Webinar: Heroes of the American Founding appeared first on Teaching American History.
Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, Professor of Political Science at Ashland University and Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center interviewed Dr. Eric Pullin of Carthage College on 27 May 2020, focusing on Clara Barton and Jonas Salk.
Suggested Readings:
- "Angel of the Battlefield," Hartford Courant, 26 November 1862
- "The Red Cross of the Geneva Convention: What It Is," Clara Barton, 1878
- Notes on Antietam, Clara Barton, 1890
- "The Women Who Went to the Field," Clara Barton, 1892
- "Polio Cases and Death Rates," April and May 1955
- "Remarks on Conference on Salk Vaccine," 22 April 1955
- "President Eisenhower Cabinet Paper," 29 April 1955
- "Jonas Salk on Searching for the Next Medical Miracle," 18 February 1990
The post Special Webinar: Heroes of American Medicine appeared first on Teaching American History.
Join Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, Professor of Political Science at Ashland University and Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center on 13 May 2020 at 1pm ET for this free webinar, focusing on Ulysses S. Grant and Robert Gould Shaw. He will be joined by Dr. Dan Monroe of Millikin University.
Suggested Readings:
- Proclamation on Enforcement of the 14th Amendment, U.S. Grant, 3 May 1871
- Letter to D.H. Chamberlain, U.S. Grant, 26 July 1876
- Recollections of the War, U.S. Grant, 1885
- A Speech at the Unveiling of the Robert Gould Shaw Monument, Booker T. Washington, 31 May 1897
Supplemental Readings - Letters from and to Grant During the War:
- Grant to Buckner, 16 FEB 1862
- Grant to Banks, 15March 1864
- Grant to Butler, Meade, and Sherman, 2 April 1864
- Lincoln to Grant, 30 April 1864
- Lincoln to Grant, 17 August 1864
The post Special Webinar: American War Heroes appeared first on Teaching American History.
Examine the role of religion and religious activity during times of crisis through a series of historical case studies. Join Dr. Jeff Sikkenga of Ashland University and Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center as he discusses these topics with Professor Melissa M. Matthes of the United States Coast Guard Academy.
This special program, the last in our "Insights from History" series, aired at 1pm ET on Wednesday, 29 April.
Suggested readings:
- The Babylonian Exile and the Love of God, Pastor Hideo Hashimoto, February, 1942
- "We All Killed Kennedy," Reverend William Holmes, 24 November 1963
- Letter from Thomas Merton to Coretta Scott King After Martin Luther King, Jr's Assassination, 5 April 1968
- "http://lincoln.digitalscholarship.emory.edu/overview/
- When a Community Weeps: Case Studies in Group Survivorship Ellen Zinner and Mary Beth Williams
- Preaching With Sacred Fire: An Anthology of African American Sermons 1750 - to the Present, ed. Martha Simmons and Frank A Thomas
- Lament for a Son Nicholas Wolterstorff
- Collected Sermons of William Sloan Coffin: The Riverside Years, vol. I and II
- A Tribute: Classic Sermons of Billy Graham, ed. Patrick Doucette
- A Knock at Midnight: Inspiration from the Great Sermons of Martin Luther King, Jr. ed. Clayborne Carson.
- Glorious Women: Award Winning Sermons about Women Dorothy Emerson and Bonnie Smith
The post Insights from History: The Power of the Pulpit in Times of Crisis: From the American Revolution to the Coronavirus appeared first on Teaching American History.
The fifth episode in our "Insights from History" webinar series, hosted by Dr. Jeff Sikkenga of Ashland University and Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center, will feature Dr. Lauren Hall of the Rochester Institute of Technology. They discussed how the American family has reacted to and been shaped by times of national crisis.
This special webinar took place at 1pm on Wednesday, 22 April.
Suggested readings:
- Letter from Abigail Adams to John Adams, 23 July 1777
- The Influence of Democracy on the Family, Alexis de Tocqueville, 1840
- The Democratic Household, Jane Addams, 1902
REGISTER HERE
The post Insights from History: The American Family in Times of Crisis: Education, Health Care, and the Trade-offs of Coming Home appeared first on Teaching American History.
The story is one of the most familiar in American history. Though shrouded in myth, the details are well-known. In the overnight hours of April 18-19, 1775, British regulars staggered from their bunks, donned their red wool uniforms, were rowed across the Charles River, and marched through the Massachusetts countryside. Their goal was the destruction of military supplies believed hidden in Concord by the colonial militia. With a little luck, the British also hoped to arrest two of the nascent rebellion’s most belligerent leaders, Sam Adams and John Hancock. Throughout the long night, church bells rang, guns fired, and a trio of riders alerted the colonists that British troops were on the move. The warnings enabled Adams and Hancock to escape capture while the rebel defenders of Massachusetts, having left their warm beds, prepared to guard their towns.
This was not the first time Massachusetts militiamen had faced British troops in the field. As recently as February of 1775, a similar early morning march advanced on Salem. That stand-off did not end in gunfire. This time, the result would be different and make something of a prophet of beleaguered King George III, who claimed in November of 1774 that since “the New England governments are in a state of rebellion, blows must decide, whether they are to be subject to this country or independent.”[1]
When the British column approached Lexington, approximately six miles east of Concord, townspeople, mustered on the village lawn, confronted the troops. Militia Captain John Parker shouted to his men, “Don’t fire unless fired upon. But if they want war, let it begin here.”[2] Shots were exchanged, resulting in casualties on both sides. The militia, intimidated by British bayonets, withdrew, so the British column marched on to Concord, where they burned the few supplies they found. The colonists had taken advantage of the early warning to hide their stash in new locations.
Before the day was out, war was what the British got. Minutemen flooded the woods and farms adjacent to the road to Boston. Hiding behind trees, fences, or in farmhouses, they harassed the troops throughout the twenty-mile march back to Boston. “Even weamin had firelocks,” reported one bewildered British sea captain.[3] In February of 1775, the Earl of Sandwich had dismissed the colonists as “raw, undisciplined, cowardly men.”[4] Raw and undisciplined they were, but the day proved to any British officer who dared to pay attention that the Americans were not cowardly. They kept up a steady peppering for nearly twenty miles, striking down approximately 250 British soldiers with their sniping. British troops abandoned clothing, weapons, and ammunition in exchange for a chance to escape with their lives.
In the immediate aftermath of the fighting, both sides hustled to get their account of the battles into the public record. One of these early accounts was a letter, dated April 20, 1775, from Boston merchant John Andrews to his brother-in-law, William Barrell of Philadelphia. Andrews gets some details wrong, but his account captures the essence of the events. He describes the effectiveness of the colonial warning system before the British advance, the need for British reinforcements to rescue the endangered column retreating toward Boston, and the inherent difficulty of getting accurate information from the field. News of the events in Lexington and Concord must have traveled quickly for Andrews to have time to compile his account just one day after the encounter. Fear of the event’s significance must have been rising rapidly as well. Andrews told his brother-in-law: “When I reflect and consider that the fight was between those whose parents but a few generations ago were brothers, I shudder at the thought, and there’s no knowing where our calamities will end.”[5] Andrews intuitively understood that a rebellion against Great Britain would be a civil war: bitter, bloody, and unpredictable.
John Andrews’s account is part of an upcoming Core Document Collection volume from the Ashbrook Center. Entitled, The American Revolution, edited by Robert M. S. McDonald. The collection contains forty-four documents on the revolutionary era along with other resources to help teachers guide students in an in-depth study of the topic. The American Revolution tells the story in the words of those who lived it, from the roots of the imperial crisis in the 1760s to the ultimate denouement in 1783.
John Andrews' Account of the Battles of Lexington and Concord
We have included in this post an audio reading of the document and its introduction:
https://document-readings.s3.amazonaws.com/Andrews+Lex-Concord+Account.mp3
[1] Correspondence of George III with Lord North, I in The Spirit of Seventy-Six, ed. Henry Steele Commager and Richard B Morris, (Castle Books, Edison NJ, 2002), p.61
[2] Commager, Henry Steele and Richard B Morris, The Spirit of Seventy-Six (Edison, NJ, Castle Books, 2002), p. 70
[3] John Crozier to Dr. Rogers, in The Spirit of Seventy-Six, ed. Henry Steele Commager and Richard B Morris, (Castle Books, Edison NJ, 2002), p.77.
[4] The Earl of Sandwich, n The Spirit of Seventy-Six, ed. Henry Steele Commager and Richard B Morris, (Castle Books, Edison NJ, 2002), p. 61
[5] https://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/document/account-of-the-battles-of-lexington-and-concord/
The post 245th Anniversary of Lexington and Concord appeared first on Teaching American History.
As the current Coronavirus situation has continued, we are now faced with growing questions about our civil liberties. We are thinking again about the actions the government can legitimately take in restricting the freedom of American citizens in a time of crisis. For example, when and how much can the government restrict your freedom of movement, speech, religion, or carrying on a business? Can the government even force you to be vaccinated? To gain some historical insight on these and many other questions, join Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, Professor of Political Science at Ashland University and Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center, and Dr. Joseph Fornieri, a professor in Ashbrook’s Master of Arts in American History and Government and a professor of political science at Rochester Institute of Technology in New York for this special webinar. Joe is an expert on civil liberties and the Constitution, and the editor of Ashbrook’s First Amendment volume in our Core Documents Collection.
This program aired live on 15 April 2020 at 1pm ET.
All attendees of the live program will receive a PDF certificate of participation for continuing education hours, and the program will be recorded and made available in our YouTube and podcast archives.
Suggested Readings (all excerpted):
- Ex Parte Milligan, 1866
- Jacobson v. Massachusetts, 1905
- Shenck v. United States, 1919
- Korematsu v. United States, 1944
- Youngstown Sheet and Tube Co. v. Sawyer, 1952
The post Insights from History: Fire in a Crowded Theater – Civil Liberties in Times of Emergency appeared first on Teaching American History.
Herbert Hoover's Speech on the New Deal (1932) was the focus of the 13 May 2020 Documents in Detail webinar.
Panelists
- John Moser, Ashland University
- Joseph Postell, University of Colorado - Colorado Springs
- Abbylin Sellers, Azusa Pacific University
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Documents in Detail: Herbert Hoover’s Speech on the New Deal appeared first on Teaching American History.
Join Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, Professor of Political Science at Ashland University and Executive Director of the Ashbrook Center, and Dr. Steven Hayward as they discuss the economic aspects of national crisis, especially the effect of government responses to economic emergencies.
Suggested Readings:
- National Industrial Recovery Act (excerpts), 1933
- Executive Order 11615, Richard Nixon, 15 AUG 1971
- Ronald Reagan's First Inaugural Address, 20 JAN 1981
This program will take place on 8 April, at 1pm Eastern Time.
The post Insights from History: Bad Medicine? The Effects of Economic Emergencies on Liberty, Democracy, and Prosperity appeared first on Teaching American History.
Live show aired at 11am, Saturday, 2 May 2020, exploring the life, letters, and legacy of the great Ralph Ellison.
Readings
- In a Strange Country, Ralph Ellison, 1944
- Prologue to Invisible Man, Ralph Ellison, 1952
- "What America Would Be Like Without Blacks," Ralph Ellison, 1970
Panelists
- Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Lucas Morel, Washington and Lee University
- Kathleen Pfeiffer, Oakland University
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Saturday Webinar: Ralph Ellison appeared first on Teaching American History.
History can give us real insight into the problems that face America. In this webinar, we explored several good and bad examples of presidents in times of crisis, hoping to see the qualities and actions that distinguish presidential leadership at its best.
Speakers for this program were Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, of Ashland University, and Dr. Stephen Knott, of the United States Naval War College.
This special webinar took place on Wednesday, 1 April 2020, at 1pm Eastern Time. All attendees were emailed a certificate for continuing education a week after the live program aired, and all registrants were sent links to the archived program on our YouTube channel and through our podcast.
Suggested readings for this 60-minute program are below.
- George Washington/Richard Nixon - The Whiskey Rebellion and Watergate
- Proclamation on the Whisky Rebellion, George Washington, 7 AUG 1794
- Transcript of David Frost's Interview with Richard Nixon, 1977
- James Buchanan/Abraham Lincoln - Slavery and Civil War
- Second Inaugural Address, Abraham Lincoln, 4 MAR 1865
- Franklin D. Roosevelt/George W. Bush - World War II and the War on Terror
- Executive Order 9066, Franklin D> Roosevelt, 19 FEB 1942
- Backgrounder: The President's Quotes on Islam, George W. Bush
The post Insights from History: Presidential Leadership in Times of Crisis appeared first on Teaching American History.
Julia Fuette, 2012 graduate of our MAHG program, took some time to talk with Jeremy Gypton, Teacher Programs Manager, about her experience with and perspectives on teaching online. Formerly a traditional classroom social studies teacher, Julia now teaches fully online, in both synchronous and asynchronous formats. This 33-minute interview has some excellent advice in it, from how to conduct direction instruction to managing and fostering deep discussions, what you can get out of various popular online resources and systems, and how to get and stay connected with your students as learners and people. She also gives some great advice about how to keep your stress level in check.
Resources she mentioned include Schoology, Canvas, Google Classroom, Zoom, Google Hangouts and Calendar, and TAH.org. She also suggested reading the following articles:
- What Online Teachers Need to Know
- How to Be a Better Online Teacher
The post Teacher Interview: Transitioning to Different Forms of Online Teaching and Learning appeared first on Teaching American History.
TAH provided a special week-day webinar on a timely topic for teachers of history and government: the 1918 Flu Pandemic. Beginning during the last months of World War 1, a new strain of the H1N1 virus infected over 500 million people worldwide and led to at least 50 million deaths. It spread as far as remote Pacific Islands and even the Arctic, leaving deep scars on societies and individuals. Teaching American History felt that learning about this pandemic of a century ago may give us a clearer perspective on today’s COVID-19 crisis.
Our 60-minute webinar took place at 1pm Eastern time on Wednesday, 25 March 2020. It featured a discussion between Ernest Gibson's Account, 1918
- Excerpts from Katherine Anne Porter, 1918
- Washington, D.C. Directive, 1918
- Francis Grimke Sermon The post Special Webinar: The Flu Epidemic of 1918 – Lessons from History appeared first on Teaching American History.
Calvin Coolidge's Speech on the 150th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence was the focus of the 22 APR 2020 Documents in Detail webinar.
Panelists
- John Moser, Ashland University
- Greg Schneider, Emporia University
- Rob McDonald, United States Military Academy
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Documents in Detail: Calvin Coolidge’s Speech on the 150th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence appeared first on Teaching American History.
Live show aired at at 11am, Saturday, 4 APR 2020, exploring the truth and legend of Douglas MacArthur, perhaps America's most consequential 20th Century military leader.
Readings
- "The Noblest Development of Mankind," 1935, Douglas MacArthur
- Radio Address Upon Returning to the Philippines, 20 October 1944, Douglas MacArthur
- Radio and Television Address on the Situation in Korea, 19 July 1950, Harry Truman
- Speech Explaining the Firing of MacArthur, 13 April 1951, Harry Truman
- Farewell Address to Congress, 19 April 1951, Douglas MacArthur
- Williams, Macs, and Ikes: America's Two Military Traditions, T. Harry Williams
Panelists
- Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- John Moser, Ashland University
- Thomas Bruscino, United States Army War College
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Saturday Webinar: Douglas MacArthur appeared first on Teaching American History.
The Progressive Party Platform of 1912 was the focus of the 25 MAR 2020 Documents in Detail webinar.
Panelists
- John Moser, Ashland University
- Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- David Alvis, Wofford College
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Documents in Detail: Progressive Party Platform of 1912 appeared first on Teaching American History.
Live show aired at 11am, Saturday, 7 MAR 2020, exploring the life, ideas, and impact of Jane Addams.
Readings
- Woman's Conscience and Social Amelioration, Jane Addams, 1908
- "On The Shame of the Cities, chapter 7," George Washington Plunkitt, 1905
- Twenty Years at Hull House, ch8, Jane Addams, 1912
Panelists
- Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Jennifer Keene, Chapman University
- Mack Mariani, Xavier University
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Saturday Webinar: Jane Addams appeared first on Teaching American History.
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) was the focus of the 19 FEB 2020 Documents in Detail webinar.
Panelists
- Jason Stevens, Ashland University
- Jeff Sikkenga, Ashland University
- Peter Myers, University of Wisconsin Eau-Claire
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Documents in Detail: Plessy v. Ferguson appeared first on Teaching American History.
The live show aired at 11am, Saturday, 1 FEB 2020, exploring the person and politics of William Jennings Bryan.
Readings
- Cross of Gold, 9 July 1896, William Jennings Bryan
- "Imperialism" Speech, 8 August 1900, William Jennings Bryan
- Letter to the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, 20 January 1915, William Jennings Bryan
Panelists
- Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- John Moser, Ashland University
- Jason Stevens, Ashland University
Google Play Podcast
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Saturday Webinar: William Jennings Bryan appeared first on Teaching American History.
Abraham Lincoln's short, powerful Fragment on the Constitution and Union (1861) was the focus of the 22 JAN 2020 Documents in Detail webinar.
Panelists
- Jason Stevens, Ashland University
- Lucas Morel, Washington and Lee University
- Jason Jividen, St. Vincent College
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Documents in Detail: Abraham Lincoln’s Fragment on the Constitution and Union appeared first on Teaching American History.
American Minds Webinar Live show aired at 11am, Saturday, 11 JAN 2020, exploring the ideas, character, and meaning of Frederick Douglass.
Readings
- What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?, Frederick Douglass, 5 July 1852
- The Constitution of the United States: Is it Pro-Slavery or Anti-Slavery?, Frederick Douglass, 26 March 1860
- Men of Color, To Arm!, Frederick Douglass, 21 March1863
- Oration in the Memory of Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, 14 April 1876
- Blessings of Liberty and Education, Frederick Douglass, 3 September 1894
Panelists
- Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Peter Myers, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire
- Lucas Morel, Washington and Lee University
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Saturday Webinar: Frederick Douglass appeared first on Teaching American History.
Teaching American History's latest Core Documents Collection, Causes of the Civil War explains the political, constitutional, moral, social, and economic causes of the Civil War. As the nation expanded, it had to face the question of whether new states and thus political power and ultimately the Union would be slave or free. Compromise, in 1820 and again in 1850, was the first resort, but the nation could not evade the moral question forever. Was slavery right or wrong, just or unjust? Politically, that question expressed itself in the different opinions Americans held of the Declaration of Independence and its assertion of human equality. Was the Declaration a mere political expression of the colonists’ desire to control their own affairs, or did it express a moral truth which was the necessary foundation of self-government and which could not be denied without ultimately destroying self-government? The documents in this volume trace the struggle over this question.
This 26-document volume, which also includes eight images, helps to illuminate not only the history of the United States during the Civil War era, but also something about the fundamental American proposition that all men are created equal, and our national progress towards realizing said proposition.
The volume is available for free as a PDF or Apple eBook, for $.99 for the Kindle, and for $12.99 through Amazon.
In keeping with our tradition of interviewing each volume's editor, we have included Dr. Jason Steven's thoughts on his work on this volume, and his insights about where to start and how to include these important documents in a history, government, or civics course. https://cdc-volumes.s3.amazonaws.com/CDC+Causes+of+the+Civil+War+Stevens.mp3 The post Core Documents Collection: Causes of the Civil War appeared first on Teaching American History.
American Minds Webinar Our Saturday Webinar for 7 DEC 2019, explored the life, ideas, letters, and impact of Harriet Beecher Stowe.
Readings
- Review of Uncle Tom's Cabin, November 1852
- Stowe's Letter to Daniel Goodloe, February 9, 1853
- Letter to Harriet Beecher Stowe, Frederick Douglass, 8 March 1853
Panelists
- Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Bill Allen, Michigan State University (emeritus)
- David Krugler, University of Wisconsin-Platteville
Suggested Additional Readings
- Rethinking Uncle Tom's Cabin - William Allen
- George Washington: America's First Progressive - William Allen
- Lincoln & Stowe - Daniel Vallaro
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Saturday Webinar: Harriet Beecher Stowe appeared first on Teaching American History.
The Webster-Hayne Debates (1830) were the focus of the 20 NOV 2019 Documents in Detail webinar.
Panelists
- John Moser, Ashland University
- Eric Sands, Berry College
- Jason Stevens, Ashland University
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Documents in Detail: The Webster-Hayne Debates appeared first on Teaching American History.
Live show aired at 11am, Saturday, 2 NOV 2019, with a focus on Henry Clay, the "Great Compromiser."
Readings
- Speech on the Tariff, Henry Clay, 25 February 1832
- Speech on President Jackson's Veto of the Bank Bill in the Senate, Henry Clay, 10 July 1832
- Speech on the Mexican-American War, Henry Clay, 1847
- Eulogy of Henry Clay, Abraham Lincoln, 6 July 1852
Panelists
- Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Eric Sands, Berry College
- Dan Monroe, Millikin University
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Saturday Webinar: Henry Clay appeared first on Teaching American History.
Thomas Jefferson's First Inaugural Address (1801) was the focus of the 23 OCT 2019 Documents in Detail webinar.
Panelists
- John Moser, Ashland University
- Rob McDonald, United States Military Academy
- Todd Estes, Oakland University
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Documents in Detail: Thomas Jefferson’s First Inaugural Address appeared first on Teaching American History.
Professor Gordon Lloyd, Senior Fellow at the Ashbrook Center, author of TAH's four Exhibits on American History, and frequent instructor in our MAHG program and at teacher Seminars, conducted what is becoming something of an annual tradition: his Constitution Day lecture at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California. Watch the YouTube archive below, or listen to it as a podcast.
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Constitution Day Lecture from Professor Gordon Lloyd appeared first on Teaching American History.
Live show aired at 11am, Saturday, 5 OCT 2019, exploring the compelling, controversial, and inspired Revolutionary and American leader, Alexander Hamilton.
Readings
- The Farmer Refuted, Alexander Hamilton, 1775
- The "Hamilton Plan," Alexander Hamilton, 1787
- Federalist 1, Alexander Hamilton, 1787
- Opinion on the Constitutionality of the Bank of the United States, Alexander Hamilton, 1791
- Letter to Edward Carrington, Alexander Hamilton, 1792
Panelists
- Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Rob McDonald, United States Military Academy
- Greg McBrayer, Ashland University
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Saturday Webinar: Alexander Hamilton appeared first on Teaching American History.
Federalist 1 (1787) was the focus of the 25 SEP 2019 Documents in Detail webinar.
Panelists
- John Moser, Ashland University
- Jeremy Bailey, University of Houston
- John Dinan, Wake Forest University
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Documents in Detail: Federalist 1 appeared first on Teaching American History.
Live show aired at 11am, Saturday, 7 SEP 2019, exploring Franklin the entrepreneur, thinker, scientist, political leader, and perhaps 'original American.'
Readings
- An Appeal for the Hospital, Benjamin Franklin, 1751
- The Way To Wealth, Benjamin Franklin, 1757
- A Letter from Father Abraham to His Beloved Son, Benjamin Franklin, 1758
- The Morals of Chess, Benjamin Franklin, 1779
- Letter to Joseph Banks, Benjamin Franklin, 1783
- Final Convention Speech, Benjamin Franklin, 17 September 1787
- Excerpt, Ben Franklin's Autobiography, 1790
Panelists
- Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Todd Estes, Oakland University
- David Tucker, Ashland University
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Saturday Webinar: Benjamin Franklin appeared first on Teaching American History.
The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom (1786) Documents in Detail webinar aired live on 28 AUG 2019.
Panelists
- John Moser, Ashland University
- Todd Estes, Oakland University
- Sarah Morgan Smith, The Ashbrook Center
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Documents in Detail: Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom appeared first on Teaching American History.
Live show aired at 11am, Saturday, 17 AUG 2019, exploring the famed revivalist preacher and theologian of the Colonial Era.
Readings
- A Divine and Supernatural Light, Jonathan Edwards, 1734 (about halfway down the page)
- Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, Jonathan Edwards, 1739
Panelists
- Chris Burkett, Ashland University
- Sarah Morgan Smith, The Ashbrook Center
- Jason Stevens, Ashland University
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Saturday Webinar: Jonathan Edwards appeared first on Teaching American History.
While women have historically made up an overwhelming percentage of America’s religious practitioners, their roles in shaping the practice as well as the doctrines of American religious groups have too often been underappreciated and undertold. Teaching American History's latest Core Documents Collection, Religion in American History and Politics: Women's Voices, edited by Sarah Morgan Smith helps to overcome this deficit, posing questions about the ways in which women understood their relationship to religious authorities, the reasons a woman might or might not act upon a felt call to religious leadership or preaching, and of course, the many ways in which religious women have been inspired by their beliefs to pursue justice and reform in their societies. The volume is an attempt to allow those women to speak for themselves so that when we speak of concepts like “antebellum evangelicalism,” “anti-Catholicism,” or even the Civil Rights Movement, we better understand them not as monolithic moments in time, but as moments of intense engagement between men and women of many different persuasions. This is, of necessity, a selective and not exhaustive collection: it is focused on texts by individuals who were clearly situated in a way to shape the discourse of their time.
This 35-document volume, which also includes eight images, helps to rediscover the impactful ideas, words, and actions of a variety of women from throughout American History, where, animated by faith, they sought social, political, and economic reform. The volume is available for free as a PDF or Apple eBook, for $.99 for the Kindle, and for $10 through Amazon's print-on-demand service.
In keeping with our tradition of interviewing each volume's editor, we have included Dr. Sarah Morgan Smith's thoughts on her work on this volume, and her insights about where to start and how to include these important documents in a history, government, or civics course. The post Core Documents Collection: Women’s Voices in Religion in American History and Politics appeared first on Teaching American History.
Saturday Webinars: American Minds - REGISTER HERE During the 2019-20 school year we will revisit a general theme – the individual – we’ve studied in past series, like American Presidents. This time, however, we are excluding presidents and instead broadening our scope to include individuals who have had significant impact on our culture, society, and government through literature, reform leadership, science, religion, and war, as well as politics. Our American Minds webinar series will help you integrate a broader selection of individuals into your history and government courses, and will also provide English teachers with an easy avenue to consider some literary icons from a historical perspective. Each program is 75 minutes long and airs on select Saturdays at 11am ET.
- Jonathan Edwards – 17 AUG 19
- Benjamin Franklin – 7 SEP 19
- Alexander Hamilton – 5 OCT 19
- Henry Clay – 2 NOV 19
- Harriet Beecher Stowe – 7 DEC 19
- Frederick Douglass – 11 JAN 20
- William Jennings Bryan – 1 FEB 20
- Jane Addams – 7 MAR 20
- Douglas MacArthur – 4 APR 20
- Ralph Ellison – 2 May 20
Documents in Detail: Selections from the 50 Core American Documents - REGISTER HERE Documents in Detail will continue during the 2019-20 school year with ten more 60-minute episodes take place typically on the third Wednesday of each month, at 7pm EST. Each episode will focus on one document, drawn from our collection of 50 Core American Documents. Spanning American history from 1776 to 1964, each episode is a deep-dive into a single document, exploring its historical context, ideas, language, and impact on politics, law, and culture.
- Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, 28 AUG 19
- Federalist 1, 25 SEP 19
- Thomas Jefferson’s First Inaugural Address, 23 OCT 19
- The Webster-Hayne Debates, 20 NOV 19
- John C. Calhoun’s Speech on the Oregon Bill, 18 DEC 19
- Abraham Lincoln’s Fragment on the Constitution and Union, 22 JAN 20
- Plessy v. Ferguson, 19 FEB 20
- 1912 Progressive Party Platform, 25 MAR 20
- Speech on the 150th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, 22 APR 20
- Herbert Hoover’s Speech on the New Deal, 13 May 20
For both series, individual episode information, including documents links, will be published one month before the episode air date. The post 2019-2020 Webinars – Registration is Open appeared first on Teaching American History.
The second of TAH.org's Great American Debates webinar series took place on Saturday, 8 September. Our episode focused on the Federalist-Antifederalist Debates that took place most obviously from late 1787 through 1788, when the Constitution was being considered for ratification throughout the 13 states. Our program took a serious look at the ideas of both sides, considering them as ideas expressed and debated at the time, and looking at how some of these issues have been alive as points of contention throughout American history. For more information about the "out of doors" debates over the Constitution, take a look at our Ratification of the Constitution exhibit.
See the full archive page here.
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
The post Saturday Webinar: Federalists vs. Antifederalists appeared first on Teaching American History.
In this final episode of the 2018-19 Documents in Detail year, we discuss President Lyndon Johnson's "Great Society" speech - its reception in 1964, and its legacy for American social policy and political thinking.
Access the full archive here.
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Documents in Detail: LBJ’s Great Society appeared first on Teaching American History.
The final episode in the 2018-19 Great American Debates webinar series, in which the ideas, principles, and implications of LBJ's Great Society-style liberalism and Ronald Reagan's limited government conservatism are compared, analyzed, and discussed.
Access the full archive here.
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Saturday Webinars: The Great Society vs. Modern Conservatism appeared first on Teaching American History.
In this month's episode of Documents in Detail, TAH faculty members discussed the meaning, context around, and importance of Franklin Roosevelt's 1933 State of the Union address, famous for its full-throated defense of FDR's vision for a reformed America, what he called a "second" Bill of Rights, and how he worked with his political allies and adversaries to frame, present, and even sometimes misrepresent, his foreign and domestic policies. An ever-complicated man, FDR's motives are often difficult to discern, although papers such as the 1944 SOTU offer a clear sense of his understanding of what America ought to be.
Access the full archive here.
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
Documents in Detail: FDR’s 1944 State of the Union Speech appeared first on Teaching American History.
Drs. Chris Burkett, Peter Myers, and Lucas Morel discussed the different views and goals of Martin Luther King, jr. and Malcolm X in our latest Great American Debates series of Saturday Webinars.
Access the full archive here, and our podcast options below.
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
The post Saturday Webinars: Martin Luther King, jr. vs. Malcolm X appeared first on Teaching American History.
Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points laid out Wilson's plan for not only a post-war world, but in many ways a new world order, in response to the destruction of World War 1. TAH scholars discuss the meaning of, context around, and impact of Wilson's ideas in this one-hour webinar.
Access the full archive here.
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
The post Documents in Detail: Wilson’s Fourteen Points appeared first on Teaching American History.
TeachingAmericanHistory.org is excited to share another resource for American history, government, civics, and social studies teachers. While you may be familiar with our 50 Core American Documents book, we are launching a new 35-volume document collection.
This collection of documents on the American Founding inaugurates a new series of document collections from TeachingAmericanHistory.org.
Each Core American Document volume will contain the following:
- Key documents on the period, theme, or institution, selected by an expert and reviewed by an editorial board
- An introduction highlighting key documents and themes
- A thematic table of contents, showing the connections between various documents
- Study questions for each document, as well as questions that refer to other documents in the collection
- Notes on each document to identify people, events, movements, or ideas to improve understanding of the document’s historical context.
When complete, the series will be comprehensive and authoritative, and will present America’s story in the words of those who wrote it – America’s presidents, labor leaders, farmers, philosophers, industrialists, politicians, workers, explorers, religious leaders, judges, soldiers; its slaveholders and abolitionists; its expansionists and isolationists; its reformers and stand-patters; its strict and broad constructionists; its hard-eyed realists and visionary utopians – all united in their commitment to equality and liberty, yet so often divided by their different understandings of these most fundamental American ideas.
The latest volume in Teaching American History's Core American Documents Collections is out - the Bill of Rights. Edited by Professor Gordon Lloyd, this 26-document volume include all the same components of our other Core Documents volumes, with the goal in mind of establishing the context around the creation of the Bill of Rights, and the many sources of the right codified in those first ten amendments to the Constitution. Professor Lloyd explains how he went about choosing documents, and why he started at a somewhat novel point in history - and it's not Magna Carta.
Kindle Edition
Physical Copy
iTunes Ebook (coming soon)
The post Core American Documents: The Bill of Rights appeared first on Teaching American History.
TAH'S Saturday Webinar on March 3rd, 2019, focused on the ideological, practical, and political debates between Franklin Roosevelt and Herbert Hoover, primarily during the election campaign of 1932, but reaching deeper into American traditions of limited government and the role of the federal government in the life of the individual.
Access the full archive here.
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
The post Saturday Webinar: FDR vs. Hoover appeared first on Teaching American History.
An essential statement of America's changing role in the world at the time, both aimed toward the future and rooted in the past, Theodore Roosevelt's expansion of the Monroe Doctrine helped to define American international status and power.
Access the full archive here.
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
The post Documents in Detail: Roosevelt’s Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine appeared first on Teaching American History.
TAH.org's Great American Debates Saturday Webinar for 2 February 2019 focused on the heated years of debate during the late 19th and early 20th centuries over America's role in the world, and whether or not she should seek to create an empire along the lines of what was common for European states at the time.
Access the full archive
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
The post Saturday Webinar: Imperialists vs. Non-Interventionists appeared first on Teaching American History.
Abraham Lincoln's 1865 speech on the repeal of the Missouri Compromise signaled his return to public life and politics, after a few years of private law practice. In the speech he outlined not only his views on Congress' action, but also the growing sectional divide, slavery, and the future of America.
Access the full archives here
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
The post Documents in Detail: Lincoln’s Speech on the Repeal of the Missouri Compromise appeared first on Teaching American History.
The first Great American Debates webinar of 2019 took place on Saturday, 12 January, with a deep dive into the causes and ideas behind the opposing - and both diverse and complex in and of themselves - sides in the debate over states' right, supposedly, to secede. Drs. Scott Yenor, Jonathan White, and Chris Burkett discussed the constitutional, legal, and political dimensions of an issue that had roots far earlier than the flare-up in late 1860.
Access the full archive
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
The post Saturday Webinar: Secessionists vs. Unionists appeared first on Teaching American History.
Thomas Jefferson wrote this letter only weeks before his death in 1826, and in it seeks to explain, in effect, what he meant by some of the key ideas expressed in the Declaration of Independence. Coupled with his 1825 letter to Henry Lee, this piece provides an interesting perspective on those ideas, from their key author. Jefferson not only reflects on American independence, but looks far into the future, when "all," he believed, would seek political liberty, perhaps even in the American tradition.
Access the full archive here.
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
The post Documents in Detail: Thomas Jefferson’s Letter to Roger Weightman appeared first on Teaching American History.
TAH.org's last Saturday Webinar for 2018 took place on 1 December, and featured another Great American Debate: Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas, in their famous 'Lincoln-Douglas Debates' of 1858. Our panel of scholars, with the assistance of great questions submitted by our live audience of teachers addressed the ideas and issues, rhetoric and reasoning, and immediate and long-term impact and meaning of these singular debates in American history.
Access the full archive page here.
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
The post Saturday Webinar: Lincoln vs. Douglas appeared first on Teaching American History.
Our Documents in Detail episode for 14 NOV 18 focused on the Bill of Rights: the politics behind its proposal and adoption; interpretations over time; and place in our history, government, and society. Among the many questions asked during the lively 58-minute program included those about James Madison and Alexander Hamilton, and why they initially did not support an enumeration of rights, but in Madison's case, eventually went on to promote the legislation that led to the Bill of Rights. Also considered was the notion that to understand the Bill of Rights today, one must understand the original arguments against it.
Access the full archive page here.
iTunes Podcast
Stitcher
Podcast RSS
The post Documents in Detail: Bill of Rights appeared first on Teaching American History.