Blue Ridge Community College

History 121 S11, United States History I

Summer 2015
Instructor: Joseph Locke
Class Time: Mo 5:45-7:45, Room D109
jlocke0003@email.vccs.edu
Office Hours: by appointment

Number of Credit Hours: 3

BRCC Email:

Course Description: Surveys United States History from its beginning to

the present. Part I of II.
This course seeks to introduce students to the major topics in American
History through 1877. These include, but are not limited to: European
motivations for exploration and colonization, the development of slavery, the
colonial economy, the French and Indian War, the American Revolution, the
early republic, the Age of Jackson, the experiences of Indians, Manifest
Destiny, the rise of abolition and other reform movements, the Civil War, and
Reconstruction.
Student Performance Objectives: Following this course students should
have a firm grasp of the major movements, individuals and events that
shaped American history to 1877. Also, students will be able to critically
read/analyze primary sources and write concise, well-researched essays.
This is a skill we will work on each week with in-class activities and student
responses to discussion questions and short essay topics.
Text: Kennedy, David and Lizabeth Cohen. American Pageant: A History of
the American People, 15th ed. Boston, MA: Wadsworth, 2013.
Grade Scale: 90-100 = A, 80-89 = B, 70-79 = C, 65-69 =D, Below 65 = F
Gradable Content:
Exams (3)
25%
Quizzes (9)
30%
Discussion Questions (9)
20%
Short Essay
15%
Participation
10%
Your final grade will be determined by these percentagestotal points
do not factor into the grade
Exams: There will be a total of three (3) exams in this course. Each exam
will count equally toward your final grade. That works out to be about

8.333% of your final grade per exam. These will be online, open book, and
done at home. Each exam will consist of 50 questions and be timed to take 2
hours. I design your quizzes to serve as study guides for the exams. You will
not see the same questions on each, but each will stress the same main
topics. So, if you do not understand something on a quiz make sure that you
review it before you take your exam. In the feedback for each quiz and exam
question I will include a page number in your book that you can refer back to
for more information. This feedback, along with the correct answers for the
quizzes, will be made available 24 hours after each quizs due date (if a quiz
is due at midnight on Sunday, this information will appear at midnight on
Monday) and will remain available until the end of the semester.
Quizzes: There will be a total of ten quizzes in this course. Only nine of
these quizzes will count towards your final grade. This means your
lowest quiz grade will be dropped at the end of the semester. If you fail to
take a quiz it will automatically become your lowest quiz grade. So, it will be
towards your benefit to take all the quizzes.
The quizzes will be located on Blackboard, under Assignments and then
Assessments. They will be open note/open book. Except for the syllabus
quiz, each quiz will consist of 30 questions and be timed to take 45 minutes.
Once the due date and time passes, the student will not be allowed to go
back and complete the assignment. Since, I cannot control power outages,
viruses, or other issues, please do the quizzes early.
Discussion Questions: Students will also participate in nine (9) class
discussions via Blackboard, Discussion Board. These are posted 1 per
week. That means that there are a total of ten (10) options to pick from. A
new discussion will be posted when the previous discussion closes. Your
responses are due prior to class in order to push students to do that weeks
reading and ensure that everyone is coming to class prepared.
These do not need to be thorough, multi-paragraph answers like the short
essays. I will be grading your response based on whether or not it shows
that you have done the assigned reading and examined the primary source.
For example, if you are posting on discussion question one and do not
mention something specific to the Frethorne letter, such as a reference to a
particular fear he expressed, that lets me know that you have put some
thought into what Mr. Frethorne experienced in early Virginia, you will get no
higher than 50% because half of the assignment each week is analyzing the
primary source. As a general rule, you should aim for your posts to between
125-150 words. While you will not be penalized for longer responses you
should strive for brevity to practice writing for you short essay. These will
count for 20% of your grade.

Here is an example of a good discussion question response from a past

student. Please note that this class used a different textbook so you cannot
simply rephrase it.
In early tidewater Virginia settlers died by the dozens from disease,
malnutrition, and starvation. Adjacent woodlands were full of game as
was the river plentiful with fish. Unfortunately the settlers were
unaccustomed to fending for themselves and wasted time searching
for gold. Relations with the Indians became tense as the starving
colonists raided Indian food supplies (Unfinished Nation: A Concise
History, 7th ed., pages 12-13). Richard Frethorne, an indentured
servant, in a letter to his parents, described much sickness including
scurvy, the bloody flux and other diseases caused by the unhealthy
nature of the land. He had nothing to comfort him; he worked hard
early and late each day and was only fed portions of bread, peas and
loblollie. He feared Indian attacks at almost any hour, even on
Sundays, and noted that in the last attack the natives killed many. He
asked his parents to have mercy and pity on his miserable case.
(Richard Frethorne Letter)
It is clear from this persons response that s/he read the book (s/he was
able to provide information specific to it) and had thought about the
primary source for the week (again, by including information specific to
it).
Here is an actual example of a discussion question response that only got
half credit.
In 1607 the London Company set sail to the new world in order to find
precious riches. They landed in the inland bay area around Jamestown,
Virginia. Many of those aboard the ships were unaccustomed to
working for a living and wasted time searching for precious metals. The
conditions were poor in this new world and many of the original crew
did not make it through the first year.
This response shows that this individual read the book, but it does not
show that s/he read the primary source and thought about how it fit in
with the textbook reading.
For your discussion question responses I ask that you only use the
textbook for the class and the material I post on Blackboard.
Short Essays: In addition to helping students practice analyzing primary
sources one of the goals of the discussion questions is to help them prepare
for their short essays. Students are required to respond in short essay form
500 wordsto one of the short essay topics listed below. Please note that

there are three short essay options. It is up to you to pick the one that fits
best into your schedule. Be advised that the third option is due the last
week of class, so it may be desirable to be done with this part of the course
by then. I also advise you to pick one of the earlier options because if your
grade is less than ideal I will let you turn in another essay for a chance at a
higher grade. They will be due, via email, by midnight the designated day.
They need to be submitted as a document attachment, double-spaced, with
your name at the top of the text.
As with your discussion question responses, for your essays I ask
that you only use your textbook and any other materials I post on
Blackboard over the course of the semester. Please review the
attached essay-grading rubric (last three pages of the syllabus) and note
how your grade will be determined. In particular, it will be to your benefit to
note that your use of primary sources will have a significant impact on your
essay grade.
Due Dates: In order for you to succeed in this course it is imperative that
you pay attention to due dates. In the event that you have an extenuating
circumstance that prevents you from completing a short essay or discussion
board post you need to contact me as soon as possible. Being absent
the day a discussion question is due does not grant you more time to do the
assignment. If you do not have an acceptable reason for your tardiness 10%
will be deducted from your grade per day. For example, if a short essay is
due on Friday and you do not turn it in until Monday, an 85 will become a 55.
This penalty will apply if an assignment is due at midnight and it is not
turned in until 12:01 am. Please note that regardless of your reason for not
completing a quiz or exam on time I will be unable to do anything about it if I
do not see your email until after the answers are posted. I cannot let you
take it once that information is out. Yet, if you contact me soon enough I
might delay posting the answers so that you may take the assignment.
Participation/Attendance: Participation includes attending class (arriving
on time), being attentive while in class, and contributing to classroom
discussion. To do the former you simply need to show up, promptly. I will
take attendance each day and more than one (1) absence will start to
negatively affect your participation grade and every two (2) times
that you are tardy will count as one absence (I define tardy as being
more than five minutes late to class). You cannot participate if you are not
present. To do the latter, you need to do the assigned reading throughout
the semester and come to class prepared. Part of what it means to take a
college history class is learning what I call how to do history. This means
looking at a historical document, figuring out how it fits into the bigger
picture and, in some cases, deciding how to use it to support an argument.

This is a skill we will practice throughout the semester and it will be useful
for your discussion questions, essays, and future history classes. If you are
not in class you will miss practicing this skill in addition to the material
covered in lecture. Only students who attend class and frequently
participate will earn full credit for this 10% of the grade.
Course Outline
Week of
May 18

May 25

Assignments
Syllabus Quiz due by class
Read Chapter 1, New World Beginnings; Chapter 2, The
Planting of English America; Chapter 3, Settling the
Northern Colonies (you may wait to read Andros Promotes
the First American Revolution and The Middle Way in the
Middle Colonies); Chapter 4, American Life in the
Seventeenth Century (you may wait to read Frustrated
Freemen and Bacons Rebellion, Southern Society, The
New England Family and The Half-Way Covenant and the
Salem Witch Trials); and Chapter 6, only France Finds a
Foothold in Canada and New France Fans Out
Discussion Question One due by class May 18
Describe the conditions faced by Richard Frethorne in
colonial Virginia paying special attention to the impact of
nature on his circumstances, the relationship between the
Europeans and natives, and any references to religion. Don't
forget to make sure that you include information from your
textbook and the letter itself. This might be helpful with
both the first and third paper options.
We do NOT have a class meeting this week due to
Memorial Day
Discussion Question Two due by midnight May 25
Summarize what the Slave Codes tell us about the
evolution of slavery in the seventeenth century. When
looking at these codes try to grasp what their implications
were. For example, in the first code, there seems to have
been some doubts about the status of children born to slave
women. What does that mean? Does it mean that it wasn't
always certain that slavery would be a hereditary status?
Don't forget to include information from your textbook and
the codes themselves. Note that this might be helpful with
the third paper option.
Quiz 1 due by midnight May 29Chapters 1-4 and the
relevant material in chapter 6 ( Andros Promotes the
First American Revolution, The Middle Way in the Middle
Colonies, Frustrated Freemen and Bacons Rebellion,
Southern Society, The New England Family and The

June 1

Half-Way Covenant and the Salem Witch Trials will not be

covered)
Read Chapter 3 Andros Promotes the First American
Revolution and The Middle Way in the Middle Colonies;
Chapter 4 Frustrated Freemen and Bacons Rebellion,
Southern Society, The New England Family and The
Half-Way Covenant and the Salem Witch Trials; Chapter 5,
Colonial Society on the Eve of Revolution; and the rest of
Chapter 6, The Duel for North America
Discussion Question Three due by class June 1
Historians look at many different things to gain insights into
the past. It is not all reading and lectures. Look at George
Whitefield Cartoon, read about the Great Awakening in your
book, and answer the following questions. Does the author
have a positive or negative opinion of George Whitefield,
how can you tell? Why did some people have this kind of
opinion of Whitefield, give reasons? Please note that this
might be helpful with the first short essay option.
Quiz 2 due by midnight June 5remaining material in
chapters 3 and 4 and chapters 5 and 6
Short Essay Option 1 due by midnight June 7

June 8

June 15

June 22

Read Chapter 7, The Road to Revolution and Chapter 8,

America Secedes from the Empire
Discussion Question Four due by class June 8
This week's question is: What did the Revolution mean for
women? Read Letter from Abigail to John and consider:
What did Abigail mean by remember the ladies? What
did she hint might happen if the ladies were not
remembered? Does she mention any reasons why the
ladies should be remembered? Also, look at the image
Molly Pitcher and consider why she might have expected
her post-war role to be different from that of earlier times.
In your response you should be able to synthesize these
two primary sources together, but please note that these
are two different women. Please note that this might be
helpful for the third paper option.
Quiz 3 due by midnight June 10Chapters 7-8
Exam I due by midnight June 14Chapters 1-8
Read Chapter 9, The Confederation and the Constitution,
Chapter 10, Launching the New Ship of State and
Chapter 11, The Triumphs and Travails of the Jeffersonian
Republic
Discussion Question Five due by class June 15
What is going on in the cartoon Mad Tom in a Rage? This
cartoon gives us a glimpse into the world of early 19th
century politics. Examine the cartoon, read chapter 11,
and then submit your answers to the following questions.
Why is there a devil, what is being pulled down (I bet it is
more than just a column with two names on it), why did not
his predecessors like Thomas Jefferson? Please note that
this might be helpful with the second short essay option.
Quiz 4 due by midnight June 19Chapters 9-11
Read Chapter 12, The Second War for Independence and
the Upsurge of Nationalism and Chapter 13, The Rise of
a Mass Democracy (you may wait to read Gone to Texas
and The Lone Star Rebellion)
Discussion Question Six due by class June 22
Read chapter 13, look at King Mob and Jackson, and then
answer the following questions. What mood do the people
in this image convey? What is this image trying to suggest
about President Jackson and his supporters (the title itself
might hold a clue)? In what way is this an accurate
portrayal of Jackson's presidency? Is it inaccurate in any
way? Please note that this might be helpful with the
second short essay option.

Quiz 5 due by midnight June 26Chapters 12-13

Short Essay Option 2 due by midnight June 28

June 29

July 6

July 13

Read Chapter 14 Forging the National Economy and

Chapter 15 The Ferment of Reform and Culture
Discussion Question Seven due by class June 29
Read Harriet Robinson: Lowell Mill Girls. What strikes
you about the working conditions described? Are they
better or worse than you expected after reading chapter
14? This is one time when I expect you to have a certain
answer. After reading Harriets account you should be able
to firmly say conditions were better or worse than expected
and there is a right answer. Please note that this might be
helpful for the final short essay option.
Quiz 6 due by midnight July 1Chapters 14-15
Exam II due by midnight July 5Chapters 9-15
We do NOT have a class meeting this week
Read Chapter 16 The South and the Slavery
Controversy; Chapter 17 Manifest Destiny and Its
Legacy; and Gone to Texas and The Lone Star
Rebellion from Chapter 13
Discussion Question Eight due by midnight July 6
Examine Slavery as it Exists and answer the following
questions. What point is this Boston lithographer trying to
make? Is this an accurate portrayal of Southern slavery?
Based on what you know from the reading, how do you
believe this image would have been received by a Northern
audience at the time? This might be more challenging to
use than other sources, but I think you could utilize it for
the third short essay option.
Read Chapter 18 Renewing the Sectional Struggle and
Chapter 19 Drifting Toward Disunion
Discussion Question Nine due by class July 13
Examine the Kansas Freesoiler image and answer the
following questions. Who were the Freesoilers and what did
they hope to accomplish in the new western states? What
was Stephen Douglas motivation for proposing the KansasNebraska Act? How does this image support or discredit
the freesoiler movement? This might be more challenging
to use than other sources, but I think you could utilize it for
the third paper option.
Quiz 6 due by midnight July 17Chapters 16-17
Quiz 7 due by midnight July 17Chapters 18-19

July 20

July 27

Read Chapter 20 Girding for War: The North and the

South, Chapter 21 The Furnace of Civil War and
Chapter 22 The Ordeal of Reconstruction
Discussion Question Ten due by class July 20
Warning, this image might be disturbing. Look at Draft
Riots. This image might look like a scene out of the South,
but it is actually New York City, in 1863. Please read
Chapter 21 and the introduction to this image. Then,
describe why such a scene erupted in New York City in the
summer of 1863. The title of the selection, Draft Riots,
should give you a clue. There is also an important
proclamation that should shed some light on the scene.
What is it and what is the connection? You should discuss
both of these causes in your response.
Quiz 9 due by midnight July 24Chapters 20-22
Short Essay Option 3 due by midnight July 24
Final Exam Due by midnight July 27Chapters 16-22

Please note that the previous course outline is subject to change as we work
our way through the semester. Any changes to due dates will be announced
well in advance.
Academic Honesty (Honor Code): The functioning of an academic
community depends on the integrity of all of its members. Blue Ridge
Community College values truthfulness, respect for the property of others,
and honesty in academic work. BRCC Honor Code:
http://www.brcc.edu/Student/Catalog/academic/code.htm
As a member of this community, you are responsible for understanding and
adhering to the Honor Code. Violations include (but are not limited to)
cheating on tests and quizzes, unauthorized collaboration on assignments,
and plagiarism. Your instructor is the ultimate source of policy on individual
assignments; please consult him if you have any questions or concerns about
what is permitted.
Violations of the Honor Code may result in a grade penalty and/or
disciplinary action. for further information on your rights and responsibilities
as a student, and the disciplinary guidelines and procedures, please consult
the Student Handbook.
Email Correspondence: To protect your privacy, your business with Blue
Ridge Community College is conducted only through your college-provided
email account. Please use this account to contact your instructors, or when

conducting other business with BRCC. Your instructors will use this address
to contact you as well.
Disability Services: If you have a disability for which you wish to be
considered for an accommodation, please made an appointment with the
Office of Disability Services located in the Houff Student Center. The purpose
of providing accommodations is to ensure that students with disabilities are
granted the opportunity to access programs and services offered by the
college. Requested accommodations are considered on a case by case basis
by the Coordinator of Disability Services, who works with faculty to ensure
both access and academic standards are maintained. Students requesting
services must meet with the Disability Services Coordinator and provide
sufficient documentation of the disability prior to receiving accommodations.
Accommodations are not retroactive and do not result in modification of the
essential academic elements of the course.
United States History I
Short Essay Options
For your History 121 short essay you are to write 500 words on one of the
topics below. When picking a topic please keep in mind the due dates and
how they fit into your schedule. You should not have difficulty reaching the
word count and please note that this will be factored into your grade. Your
short essay will be worth 15% of your final grade.
Option 1Due by midnight June 7
Discuss the impact of religion on the development of the British colonies in
North America.
Option 2Due by midnight June 28
The early republic saw two strong personalities take the executive mansion,
Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson. Discuss the similarities and
differences between these two leaders.
Option 3Due by midnight July 24
Throughout American history there have been various oppressed groups.
Pick either: women, African Americans, or Indians, and describe the
challenges faced by them from the earliest days of European colonization in
what would become the United States to the dawn of the Civil War.
Helpful Paper Writing Tips

1. Avoid using the first person, no I, we, our, etc.

2. Avoid using contractions
3. Be sure to cite things. The format of your citation (MLA, APA, etc.) is not
important, but I need to be able to tell where you got your information.
4. As a rule of thumb paragraphs should not be over a page long.
5. Keep it in the simple past tense. You are writing about things in the past.

History 121 Short Essay Grading Rubric

Are citations used when needed?
/30*
*This is designed to push you to include proper citations.

/5 or

What Must You Document? Document all contributions made by

other writers, such as: a direct quote, a summary or paraphrase of a
source, facts or ideas that you borrow from a source, such little-known
facts. A good rule to follow if you are not sure whether or not to
document a source is: "When in doubt, cite it!"
To cite your sources correctly, you must include either a footnote or
parenthetical citation every time you pull information from a source. I
do not care if you use footnotes, MLA, APA, etc. just let me know where
you got it. For the documents on Blackboard simply putting something
such as the following will suffice: (Death at the Polls, accessed via
Blackboard 7/17/2015). Similar documentation will be ample for class
handouts, i.e.: (Puritan Prayer, class handout).
Each essay is unique but here are some general guidelines. If you
include a citation every time you reference a source you will receive 5
out of 5 points. If you include a few citations, but not one every time
you utilize a source you will get a 0 out of 5 points on this part. If you
only include a works cited page you will lose 20 points on this part. If
you include neither citations nor a works cited page you will lose 30
points here. This means that if you do not include citations the highest
grade you can get is a 70.
Does the student use only assigned sources?
/5
I ask that you use only your textbook and the material I post on
Blackboard. I have this rule for several reasons. First, these sources
contain all the information you need. If you use additional sources you
run the risk of finding yourself with so much information that you
cannot synthesize it into a cohesive argument. Also, if you use outside
sources you run the risk of finding inaccurate information. Lastly, this
is something my college professors frequently requested of me,
probably for the reasons listed above. So, in making this request of
you I am hoping to help prepare you for future classes.
If you use outside sources you will receive a zero for this section. If
you use outside sources and do not cite them you will receive a
0 for the entire assignment, because that is plagiarism.

Does the paper come within 25 words of the word limit?

/5
One of the most important skills for a good writer to have is knowing
how to write concisely. It might sound like Im being easy on you by
requiring you to keep your essays shorter than 525 words, but you
should find it quite challenging to fit everything into this space. For
your information, headings, bibliographies, parenthetical citations
within your essay, etc. do not countonly your actual argument
counts. I.e. the following would have a word count of 20 not 39.
Joseph Locke
History 121
June 6, 2015
Why Columbus was Dumb
Columbus mistakenly believed that the earth was smaller than it
actually is and that it is shaped like a pear (Kennedy and Cohen, 9 and
class notes 5/18/15).
I will grade this section on a simple yes or no basis. If your
response is outside the 475-525 range you will receive a zero for this
section.
Is the essay well organized?
/10
This part is fairly straightforward. Do you have a good introduction
with a strong thesis statement? Does your paper follow a logical order,
is it arranged chronologically, or by topic, etc.? Does each paragraph
start with a good topic sentence? Do you stay on topic within each
paragraph? Do you include a good conclusion? With that in mind, I
advise that for short essays you keep your introductions and
conclusions as short as possibleone or two sentences for each
suffices. This will allow you to use more words for the actual substance
of the essay.
Is the information that is presented accurate?
/10
Make sure all of your dates are correct, all of your military alliances
have all of the players on the correct side, etc.
Does the essay incorporate primary sources in order to strengthen
arguments and show original thought?
/30

A primary source is an image, newspaper, diary, speech, poem, etc.

which was written or created during the time under study. For
example, a Senators speech from 1807 discussing President
Jeffersons foreign policy would be a primary source for short essay
topic number two. What your textbook says about Jeffersons foreign
policy is not a primary source. Over the course of the semester we
are going to spend a lot of time looking at primary sources and
discussing what they tell us. This is your chance to show me that you
have been paying attention. You may include primary sources
discussed on Blackboard or in the classroom, but you also need to
include two or more that you find on your own within your textbook.
These can be found in the textboxes found throughout your book,
which contain quotes from diaries, speeches, etc. or you can use any
number of the primary source images in your textbook (posters,
cartoons, etc. from the time). If there is a quote contained within the
body of the chapter text it is no longer a primary source.
When using a primary source you need to discuss it in such a way that
it augments your argument. For example, if you were to discuss the
mistreatment of Africans in response to short essay option three you
shouldnt say something as simple as: Africans were mistreated as
seen on page 66. This does virtually nothing to add to your
argument. It does not let the reader know how the Africans were
mistreated in this instance or even that this is in reference to an
image. Therefore, you should say something more like: Throughout
the history of the Atlantic slave trade Africans were mistreated. In
1846, an eyewitness to conditions onboard a slave ship painted an
image of Africans packed so tightly it appears they could not even lie
down (Kennedy, 66).
There are any number of variations you could come up with, but here
are some guidelines to keep in mind. If you fail to include primary
sources, you will receive a 0; if you include only 1, you will receive a
10; if you include 2, you will receive a 15. Only including multiple (at
least four total) sources that I highlighted and you find independently
in your textbook will earn you the full 30 points. Your grade is also
dependent upon how successfully you utilize the primary sources you
include. Mentioning two primary sources but not effectively integrating
them into your argument will not earn you the full 15 points for
including two primary sources.
Does the essay discuss the required topics and time periods?
/35 (total)
Once you pick a topic it is up to you to figure out what needs to be
covered in your essay. When picking your points you need to be sure
that you discuss the topic in its entirety. If you are discussing the

oppression of Indians you cannot only talk about the colonial period,
the prompt asks you to discuss through roughly 1860 (thats how you
cover the required time periods). At the same time, considering the
word count, I ask you pick three impacts and focus on them. You will
note that there is no space for me to give you credit for attempting to
tackle more than three. If you pick more than three I will not be
impressed. Rather, doing so will inevitably prevent you from being
able to discuss the topics you pick to a degree that shows a college
level of comprehension.
Does the essay briefly outline the era being addressed?
I.e. provide a short history of English settlement, the early
republic, or the first half of American history, in such a way
that it is evident that he/she has a general understanding of
the time period under consideration
____________/5
Does the essay comprehensively cover one impact,
similarity/difference, or example of oppression?
___________/10
Does the essay comprehensively cover one impact,
similarity/difference, or example of oppression?
___________/10
Does the essay comprehensively cover one impact,
similarity/difference, or example of oppression?
___________/10
Total:
_________/100