This free early American History textbook explores the people who have lived here, where they came from, how we came to fight for our Independence and how we almost destroyed ourselves. It discusses our early tribal history and puts our founding into the context of societies around the globe.
The full title of the text is History in the Making: A History of the People of the Untied States of America to 1877.” It was the 3rd version of the first edition and was released August 19, 2013. It was written by Catherine Locks (Fort Valley State University), Sarah Mergel (Dalton State College), Pamela Roseman (Georgia Perimeter College) and Tamara Spike (University of North Georgia). The text includes more detailed bios on each of the educators involved in the project.
Each chapter begins with an introduction that briefly introduces the points that chapter will be covering. Most sub-chapters conclude with a few questions. The answers are included at the end of the chapter along with end note citations.
Table of Contents
- Chapter One: United States History Before Columbus
- 1.1 Introduction
- 1.2 Origins
- 1.3 The Paleo-Indian Era through the Agricultural Revolution
- 1.4 The Pre-Contact Era (1000-1492 CE)
- Chapter Two: The Global Context: Asia, Europe, And Africa In The Early Modern Era
- 2.1 Introduction
- 2.2 Europe in the Age of Discovery: Portugal and Spain
- 2.3 Asia in the Age of Discovery: Chinese Expansion During the Ming Dynasty
- 2.4 Europe in the Age of Discovery: England and France
- 2.5 Africa at the Outset of the Age of Discovery and the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade
- Chapter Three: Initial Contact and Conquest
- 3.1 Introduction
- 3.2 The Impact of “Discovery”: The Columbian Exchange
- 3.3 The Iberian Countries in the New World
- 3.4 Control: The Iberian Nations Manage Their New World Territories
- 3.5 Alternate Models of Control: The French and Dutch in the Americas
- Chapter Four: The Establishment of English Colonies Before 1642 and Their Development Through the Late Seventeenth Century
- 4.1 Introduction
- 4.2 The English Background
- 4.3 Roanoke, Raleigh’s Lost Colony
- 4.4 Jamestown
- 4.5 The Chesapeake Colonies: Maryland
- 4.6 The Establishment of the New England Colonies
- 4.7 The Puritans and the Indians
- 4.8 New England in the Late Seventeenth Century: Declension, Witchcraft, and the Dominion of New England
- Chapter Five: English Colonization After 1660
- 5.1 Introduction
- 5.2 The English Background, 1660-1715
- 5.3 The Carolinas
- 5.4 The Middle Colonies
- 5.5 Georgia: The Final Colony
- Chapter Six: Growing Pains in the Colonies
- 6.1 Introduction
- 6.2 Colonial Administration
- 6.3 The Enlightenment and the Great Awakening
- 6.4 Colonial Conflicts and Wars
- Chapter Seven: The Road to Revolution (1754-1775)
- 7.1 Introduction
- 7.2 The French and Indian War (1754-1763)
- 7.3 The End of the Seven Years War and Worsening Relations
- 7.4 The Downward Slide to Revolution, 1772-1775
- Chapter Eight: The American Revolution
- 8.1 Introduction
- 8.2 The Second Continental Congress, 1775-1781
- 8.3 Revolutionary War Battles
- 8.4 The Impact of War
- 8.5 The Treaty of Paris, 1783
- Chapter Nine: Articles of Confederation and the Constitution
- 9.1 Introduction
- 9.2 The State Governments
- 9.3 The Articles of Confederation Government
- 9.4 The Need for a Stronger Government: Creating the U.S. Constitution: Annapolis and Philadelphia
- Chapter Ten: The Federalist Era
- 10.1 Introduction
- 10.2 The Washington Years: Implementing a “More Perfect Union”
- 10.3 The Emergence of Partisan Politics
- 10.4 The Adams Years: Federalists Under Fire
- Chapter Eleven: The Early Republic
- 11.1 Introduction
- 11.2 Jefferson
- 11.3 Madison
- 11.4 Economic and Social Changes
- Chapter Twelve: Jacksonian America (1815-1840)
- 12.1 Introduction
- 12.2 The Era of Good Feelings
- 12.3 The Age of the Common Man
- 12.4 The Second Party System
- Chapter Thirteen: Antebellum Revival and Reform
- 13.1 Introduction
- 13.2 Religious Reforms in the Antebellum United States
- 13.3 Cultural Movements: Transcendentalism, Utopian Communities, and the Cult of Domesticity
- 13.4 American Antebellum Reform
- Chapter Fourteen: Westward Expansion
- 14.1 Introduction
- 14.2 Westward Expansion and Manifest Destiny
- 14.3 The Mexican-American War
- Chapter Fifteen: The Impending Crisis
- 15.1 Introduction
- 15.2 The Sectional Balance Begins to Unravel
- 15.3 The Collapse of the Second Party System
- 15.4 The Sectional Balance Comes Undone
- Chapter Sixteen: The Civil War
- 16.1 Introduction
- 16.2 The Road to War
- 16.3 The Military Conflict
- 16.4 Wartime Politics
- 16.5 Social Developments
- Chapter Seventeen: Reconstruction
- 17.1 Introduction
- 17.2 Wartime Reconstruction
- 17.3 Reconstruction after the Assassination of Lincoln
- 17.4 The Reconstruction Experience
- 17.5 Retreat from Reconstruction: The Grant Years
View this Free Online Material at the source:
A History of the People of the United States of America to 1877
