U.S. History 393
History of the American West since 1848
Spring 2009
Flannery Burke
Xavier G14
MWF: 2:10-3:00 PM
Office Hours: Wednesdays 1-2 and by appointment
Office: 252 Humanities
Phone: 977-2914
Email (best way to reach me): fburke@slu.edu
Course Description:
Historians of the American West commonly see the West as three different places: the
geographic area west of the Mississippi River and contained by the United States’
borders; a frontier defined by westward moving Anglo-American expansion; and an
imagined place – most often seen in popular culture – in which people frequently invest
their expectations, hopes, and fears for the country as a whole. Historians argue over
which West – the regional West, the frontier West, or the imagined West – is the true
West. In this course, we’ll enter those arguments by giving particular attention to the
forms the various American Wests took since 1848. As we look for the contradictions
and overlap between the three Wests, we should gain a better understanding of how the
United States took the geographic form that it did, what impact that formation had on the
people and the ecology of the American West, and what expectations we have of the
American West today.
Most of our readings will come from primary sources – sources from the time period
we’re studying. This should help give you a sense of how people thought and lived in
earlier times. The reading should not be onerous – I’ve tried instead to choose material
that will be fun and engaging.
Assignments
Reading is not optional for this class. It should be completed BEFORE class. We can’t
have good or lively discussions without you giving your best shot at the reading. That
said – whether you have done the reading or not – come to class!
Participation means showing up, listening to your classmates, and making your own
contributions to class discussions. Participation means more than being present and is
absolutely crucial to your grade and to how much you can get out of this class. Everyone
benefits when we’re all invested in what we can learn from each other. I encourage you
to challenge yourselves and your classmates in class discussion – oftentimes our deepest
insights come from debate. Of course, I do ask you to treat one another politely and
respectfully, even when differences of opinion arise.
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Exams
There will be an in-class midterm and a final exam during the exam week at the end of
the semester. The midterm will include a short answer identification section, a map
section, and an essay section. The final will include a short answer identification section
and an essay section.
Papers
There are two short papers (3-5 pages) and one long paper (8-12 pages) required for
this class.
Short Paper #1
This paper asks you to engage one of our readings, Elliott West’s Contested Plains and
one of the central questions of the field of western history, “What is the West?” Your
assignment is to answer the question: “What makes Contested Plains a work of western
history?” We’ll use our class discussions to help you frame your papers.
Short Paper #2
This 3-5 page paper asks you to make an argument using primary sources based on a
baseball game held at Laguna Pueblo, New Mexico, in the 1920s. Ask yourself what
story you see in this collection of documents. If you wanted to tell someone else about
these documents but you could only tell them one thing, what would you say? If you
wanted someone else to read these documents, how would you convince them that they
are worth perusal? If you wanted to use these documents as evidence to convince
someone of a position that you hold, what parts of these documents would you cite?
These are questions that should lead you toward forming an argument for your paper.
You may also find it helpful to read ahead, and browse the documents on the Indian
Reorganization Act of the 1930s.
Final Paper
The final paper assignment asks that you pretend that you are serving as the historical
consultant for a major new film dealing with some aspect of American western history.
Drawing on your knowledge of the various films that we watch in the course (as well as
any other western films that you’ve seen), select a group of documents from the readings
to assess how they might be used as the basis for a film. You may do additional research
if you like, but you are not required to do so; just be sure that the subject you want to
discuss is reasonably well represented in the readings and/or lectures. If in doubt, discuss
your subject with me.
The job that faces you as a historical consultant is to propose a story synopsis based on
the documents that would be particularly suitable for treatment in film. Sketch out the
story you propose, suggest why you think it would work well as a film, and explain why
the topic is a historically important one. Your fictional producers want you to come up
with a subject that will make money at the box office, but you as a historian are more
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eager to see audiences learn something important about western history from the movie.
Discuss the difficulties of fulfilling these competing tasks, making reference when you
can to how other films have solved (or not solved) the problem.
Let me stress that this is not a film assignment. Although you should give attention to the
demands of the fictional film makers to provide engaging and popular entertainment,
remember that your first loyalty is to history. You should write a pitch for a “True
Western,” a western that conveys honestly (if not necessarily accurately) the drama and
conflicts that occurred in the American West. Your paper should be 8-10 pages long and
include a 1-page appendix that briefly summarizes the plots of the films that you viewed
for this class. Your appendix does not count toward your page total.
You should take time to run the drafts of your papers by someone in the Writing Center.
Even if you already consider yourself an excellent writer, revising makes just about every
piece of written work better. You can also bring or email drafts of your paper to me, and
I will go over them with you.
Papers should be written in 12-point Times New Roman font, double-spaced, and have
one-inch margins.
We’ll discuss the paper assignments and the exam formats in greater depth as we move
toward their due dates. For now – here’s how the grading breaks down:
Participation:
Short Paper #1:
Short Paper #2:
Final Paper:
Midterm:
Final:
20%
15%
15%
20%
15%
15%
Late Work and Missed Exams:
I will lower paper grades ½ grade for every day the paper is late. I offer make-up exams
only for extreme health and family emergencies
Important: Direct quotations, as well as summaries, paraphrases, or adaptations of
another person’s ideas or research, must always be cited in your text using footnotes,
endnotes, or another standard citation format (see the Chicago Manual of Style for more
information.)
Plagiarism or academic dishonesty of any kind will result in an “F” for the course.
St. Louis University’s academic honesty policy defines plagiarism as:
“Plagiarism involves the intentional representation of someone else's thoughts or words
as if they were one's own. Instances include the following:
1. Quoting directly from someone else's work without using quotation marks and without
giving proper credit to the author;
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2. Paraphrasing someone else's ideas, concepts, arguments, observations, or statements
without giving proper credit;
3. Submitting as one's own work a paper or other assignment that has been prepared,
either wholly or in large part, by another person, group, or commercial firm.”
Books, Electronic Reserve & Films:
The following books are required:
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Elliott West, Contested Plains: Indians, Goldseekers, and the Rush to Colorado
Linda Gordon, The Great Arizona Orphan Abduction
William Deverell and Anne Hyde, The West in the History of the Nation vl. 1 &
2
Pearl Cleage, “Flyin’ West”
Primary source documents and photographs on electronic reserve and web
sites
Films on reserve
The following resource is on reserve and required, but it is not available for
purchase at the bookstore. You may order it online if you would like or you may use
the reserve copy.
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Norman Klein, Rosemary Cormella, Andreas Kratky, Bleeding Through: Layers
of Los Angeles, 1920-1986
Films play a critical role in this class. The imagined West reigns supreme in films,
and seeing how the West has been portrayed on the big screen will help you sort out
the various themes that have influenced the history of the American West as well as
give you an introduction to the western film genre. The films we’ll watch will also
help you with your final paper assignment, and questions on the films may well
show up on the final. You are required to view at least three films and at least one
from each of the following groups:
Group A:
“High Noon”
“Unforgiven”
“The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance”
Group B:
“Devil in a Blue Dress”
“Lone Star”
Group C:
“Them!”
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“Kiss Me Deadly”
I ask that you include an appendix in your final paper comprising at least two
paragraphs that explains how the films you viewed influenced your final paper. This
appendix will not count toward your page total.
Students with Disabilities: Please alert me at the beginning of the semester if you have
a disability that requires accommodation.
Course Schedule
Week 1
Looking West
January 12
Introductions
January 14
Frontier or Frontera?
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, 1848 at:
http://www.ourdocuments.gov/
Chapter 1 of Frederick Jackson Turner, “Significance of the Frontier”
at: http://xroads.virginia.edu/~Hyper/TURNER/
West in the History of the Nation vl. 1 Chapter 11
January 16
Rush
Reading:
West in the History of the Nation vl. 1 Chapter 12 pp. 251-266
Elliott West, Contested Plains Part 1 Read this first!
Week 2
Underground West
January 19
No class -- Holiday
January 21
Empire of the Sierra
Reading:
Dame Shirley Letter at:
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6516/
J. Ross Brown, “A Peep at Washoe,” Harper’s New Monthly Magazine,
December, 1860 vl. 22, issue 127 – look up this article at:
http://cdl.library.cornell.edu/moa/moa_browse.html
January 23
Communications Revolution
Reading:
Elliott West, Contested Plains Part 2
Week 3
Worlds Lost and Gained
January 26
Towards Indian Wars
Reading:
West in the History of the Nation, vl. 2 Chapter 2 entire
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January 28
Hearts Falling
Reading:
Elliott West, Contested Plains Part 3
January 30
Ghost Dance
Reading:
Elliott West, Contested Plains Part 3 (finish if you haven’t already)
Week 4
Agricultural Revolutions Part 1
February 2
Assault on Tribalism
Reading:
Zitkala-Sa, “Impressions of an Indian Childhood” and “School Days of
an Indian Girl” at: http://etext.virginia.edu/modeng/modengZ.browse.html
Dawes Act (1887) at:
http://www.ourdocuments.gov/
February 4
Homesteading
Reading:
Miriam Davis Colt Went to Kansas Chapters 1-5 at:
http://www.kancoll.org/books/colt/index.html - TOC%20TOP
February 6
Homesteading for Freedom and Paper Discussion
Reading:
Pearl Cleage, Flyin’ West
West in the History of the Nation, vl. 2 Chapter 1 entire
Week 5
Agricultural Revolutions Part 2
February 9
Bonanza Farms and Boards of Trade First Papers Due Today
February 11
Ranches and Ranges
Reading:
Frank Norris, “A Deal in Wheat” at:
http://www.geocities.com/short_stories_page/norrisdealinwheat.html
McCoy, Historic Sketches of the Cattle Trade Chapters 1, 5 and 6 at:
http://www.kancoll.org/books/mccoy/
Nat Love, Life and Adventures Chapters 6-8 at:
http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/natlove/natlove.html
February 13
Farmers and Populists
West in the History of the Nation, vl. 2 Chapter 4 entire
Week 6
Agricultural Revolutions Part 3
February 16
Miners and Wobblies
West in the History of the Nation, vl. 2 Chapter 5 entire
John Reed “The Colorado War” on electronic reserve
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February 18
Catch up and begin midterm review
February 20
In-class viewing – Heartland Papers returned
Week 7
Cleaning Up
February 23
conclude Heartland and finish midterm review
February 25
Midterm (Ash Wednesday)
February 27
No class – watch films!
Week 8
Really, Really Dry
March 2
Conservation vs. Preservation
Reading:
Pinchot, The Fight for Conservation, Chapter 4
www.gutenberg.org/etext/11238
John Muir, “The Treasures of Yosemite,” The Century Magazine vl. XL,
August, 1890, No. 4 at
http://www.yosemite.ca.us/john_muir_writings/ - articles
March 4
Dust Bowl
Reading:
Donald Worster, Dust Bowl, pp. 1-64 on print reserve
March 6
Engineering Water
Owens Valley Land Grab:
http://www.usc.edu/libraries/archives/la/scandals/owens.html
The Story of the Los Angeles Aqueduct:
http://www.ladwp.com/ladwp/cms/ladwp001559.jsp
West in the History of the Nation, Chapter 9
March 9-13 Spring Break
Week 9
Landscape of Enclaves
March 16
1924: The Year That Changed The Faces of A Nation
Reading:
Chapters marked with italics in The Great Arizona Orphan Abduction
March 18
Mexican Revolution to Mexican American
Reading:
Chapter debate for The Great Arizona Orphan Abduction
Browse Zoot Suit Riots website at:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/zoot/
Carey McWilliams, North from Mexico, excerpts
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March 20
Indian New Deal
Reading:
Begin Pueblo Indian Baseball Game Documents on electronic reserve
Find the following readings at http://historymatters.gmu.edu/:
“It Didn’t Pan Out as We Thought It was Going to:” Amos Owen on the
IRA at:
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/34
“It Had a Lot of Advantages:” Alfred DuBray Praises the IRA at:
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/33
“It Set the Indian Aside as a Problem:” A Sioux attorney Criticizes the
IRA at:
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/76
“We Have Got a Good Friend in John Collier” A Taos Pueblo Tries to
Sell the Indian New Deal at:
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/26/
Week 10
Shades of Citizenship
March 23
Mormons: An Ethnic Group?
Reading:
Finish Pueblo Indian Baseball Game Documents
Annie Clark Taylor’s A Mormon Mother, pp. 57-101 at:
http://content.lib.utah.edu/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/tanner&CIS
OPTR=656&CISOSHOW=480
Samuel Bowles, “The Polygamy Question,” “The Mormon Wives” and
“Social Life Among the Mormons,” Letters XI-XIII in Across the
Continent at Google Books
March 25
Forced Enclaves
In-class viewing: A Family Gathering
Reading:
West in the History of the Nation, vl. 2 Chapter 10
March 27
Play Ball! Preparing your second paper & Great Arizona discussion.
Reading:
Chapters chosen from The Great Arizona Orphan Abduction
Week 11
Imagined Wests
March 30
Invented Pasts
Reading:
review Turner
Buffalo Bill Cody, Life of Buffalo Bill Chapter 8 and Chapters 21-23 at:
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~HYPER/HNS/BUFFALOBILL/home.html
Theodore Roosevelt, Ranch Life and the Hunting Trail Chapter 6
“Frontier Types” at:
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http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/seven/w67trmem/w67tr0
0.htm
April 1
Invented Futures
Reading:
Come prepared to discuss at least two films from the list at the start of
the syllabus
April 3
Utopian Vistas Second Papers due today.
Week 12
West at War
April 6
Military Industrial Complex or Bust
Reading:
West in the History of the Nation, vl. 2 Chapter 11
April 8
Atomic West
Reading:
Terry Tempest-Williams, “The Clan of One-Breasted Women” at:
http://www.ratical.org/radiation/inetSeries/TTW_C1-BW.html
April 10
Good Friday University Holiday
Week 13
Metropolitan West
April 13
Easter Monday University Holiday
April 15
Fortress Cities
Reading:
Norman Klein et. al. Bleeding Through
April 17
Rising Sun in the West – Johnson, Nixon, Reagan and the Future of
Politics
Reading:
West in the History of the Nation, Chapter 13 pp. 254-258 and Chapter 14
pp. 278-282
Week 14
West on Fire
April 20
Enclaves in the City
Reading:
West in the History of the Nation, Chapter 12 pp. 233-239
April 22
Termination and Indian Sovereignty
Reading:
West in the History of the Nation, Chapter 12 pp. 240-244
April 24
Challenge from the Fields and the Schools
West in the History of the Nation, Chapter 12 pp. 231-232 and pp. 247-249
Week 15
Reinventing West as Home
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April 27
Psychedelic Wests: Hippies and Utopian Communities
Reading:
Watch Gary Snyder, Ecology and Poetry Parts 1-4 on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8SXDe9hnfI
April 29
On Vacation: Tourism in the Modern West
Reading:
Interludes in Chris Wilson, Myth of Santa Fe on reserve
May 1
Immigration: the Nation’s Paradox
Reading:
Find an article from May 1 2006, using the archives of a major newspaper
like The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, or a paper from your home
town about the rallies held that day to support Latin American workers
and workers of Latin American descent in the United States.
West in the History of the Nation, Chapter 15 pp. 285-289
Week 16
West as America
May 4
Final Reflections
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