American History I final exam questions
Prepare for this examination by carefully drafting an answer for each of the following
essay questions. One of these will appear on the exam. But all of the other questions will
also be represented on the exam through terms or short answer questions pertinent to that
issue. DON'T NEGLECT ANY QUESTION!
In preparing your essays you should utilize your class notes, pertinent textbook material,
and linked documents that apply to the issue. Important dates and notable figures for
each question area should be included. But an essay should not simply be a pile of facts
without coherent argument; it should also contain generalizations and an argument of
which you wish to convince your reader. Your essay should have an introduction, a body
that develops logically paragraph by paragraph, and a conclusion.
Finally, don't overlook certain topics we covered in class that may not fit under any of the
essay questions below.
1) It is 1840 and you have recently arrived in America from England. As you travel about
the country you are struck by the incredible energy of the young republic and decide to
pen an article describing its characteristic features. You particularly wish to account for
the political phenomenon known as the Age of Jackson, but you also want to explain the
interaction between religion and reform of various kinds, and the impact of the
Transportation and Industrial Revolutions.
2) Slavery was known as the "peculiar institution." Taking the position either of a
Northerner or Southerner in 1850, characterize this institution in its social and economic
aspects. You will want to include an account of the debate over slavery between North
and South..
3) The final break between North and South in 1861 culminated a decades' long
contention. Analyze the growing split between North and South beginning in 1820 and
ending at Ft. Sumter.
4) Events as complex as the American Civil War have many facets to them. Write an
essay that accounts for the Union victory. In doing this you will need to consider what the
North did that enabled it to win as well as what the South did or didn't do that contributed
to its defeat. There may also be external factors that neither side could fully control that
helped determine the outcome.
5) Reconstruction following the Civil War evoked some of the strongest emotions our
nation has known. Beyond simply being a North-South division, various groups from
each section desired different outcomes from the process. Write an essay that describes
this interplay among groups from 1865 until Reconstruction might be said to have ended
in 1877. What group, if any, do you think accomplished its goal? Which group
accomplished the least?
CHRONOLOGY
1820-Missouri Compromise
1830-publication of Book of Mormon; Finney revival meetings in Rochester
1831-publication of Garrison's The Liberator
1830-38--Cherokee removal disputes
1836--Texas independence
1846-48--Mexican-American War; Treay of Guadalupe Hidalgo
1850-Compromise of 1850
1852-Uncle Tom's Cabin published
1854-Kansas-Nebraska Act
1859-John Brown's Raid
1860-election of Lincoln
1862-Emancipation Proclamation
1863-battles of Gettysburg & Vicksburg
1864-Sherman's March to the Sea
1865-1877-Reconstruction
1868-14th Amendment ratified
1877-presidential compromise; end of Reconstruction