Property and Land Speculation (Part Two)
Historian and author Bernard Bailyn continues his discussion of land speculation during the colonial period. Professor Bailyn explains that there were land speculation syndicates of all sizes. Benjamin Franklin was one of those involved with an espe...
Race in America
Professor of American studies and history Matthew Frye Jacobson argues that race and democracy have been intertwined since the earliest days of the United States. Professor Jacobson contends that, "...race is the most significant organizer of Americ...
Public Response to the Louisiana Purchase
Historian Peter Onuf talks about the reaction of the American public to the Louisiana Purchase. Most Americans were very enthusiastic about the transaction, Professor Onuf explains, because it provided commercial and trade advantages, and ended the ...
Pre-Revolutionary War Surge of Immigration
Historian and author Bernard Bailyn talks about the two major forces at work during the fifteen years preceding the American Revolution. "One, of course, was the constitutional struggle with Britain was building up," Professor Bailyn says. "But the ...
Post World War II Labor Market, The
Professor of history Gary Gerstle talks about the shifting labor market in the years following World War II. "Most of the servicemen who had gone abroad...if they had had jobs in the private sector before they left were, in most cases, guaranteed a ...
Pre-Civil War Working Conditions
American history professor Alice Kessler-Harris talks about working conditions during the pre-Civil War years. "A twelve-hour working day in the pre-Civil War period in factory labor would be more or less common, and both men and women struggled for...
Loyalty and Patriotism Following Both World Wars
Professor of history Gary Gerstle talks about the mood of the United States following World Wars I and II. In both instances, there was what Professor Gerstle calls an "...ideological intensity expressing itself in demands for patriotism (and) loyal...
Madison's Dilemma
Historian Peter Onuf talks about the dilemma of James Madison, who was torn between following the Constitution as closely as possible, and yet recognizing the need to put financial resources towards what Professor Onuf calls, "establish(ing) a robus...
Naturalization Law of 1790, The
Professor of American studies and history Matthew Frye Jacobson talks about the nation's first naturalization law (1790), which stipulated that only "free white persons" could be fully participating citizens.
Men, Women and the Union Movement
American history professor Alice Kessler-Harris traces the history of the labor movement in the United States, beginning with the collectives of the early 19th century, through the huge unionizing drives of the 1930's.