Decade of Discord: Congressional Debate Over Slavery Intensifies as Country Expands
Issues related to America's expansion and westward development begin to spiral out of control in the 1850s. In Congress, aging senators Daniel Webster, Henry Clay, and John C. Calhoun debate the future of union. The Sout..
Decade of Discord: Dred Scott Decision Announced Just After Buchanan's Election in 1856
In the presidential election of 1856 Democratic party leaders, looking for a candidate who cannot be linked to bleeding Kansas, nominate James Buchanan, a party regular who was in England during the crisis. The newly-for..
Decade of Discord: John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry
In October of 1859 John Brown and a number of his followers attempt to capture a town in Virginia named Harpers Ferry, hoping to strike a blow against slavery. The townspeople fight back and trap Brown, his followers and..
Decade of Discord: Lincoln-Douglas Debates, The
Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas vie for the Illinois senate seat in 1858. Although U. S. Senators are selected by their state legislatures in the 19th century, candidates for the Senate try to increase their chances ..
Decade of Discord: Mini Civil War Rages over Kansas Vote
Outsiders attempt to influence territorial elections in Kansas in 1855 and as a result a pro-slavery territorial legislature is fraudulently elected. President Pierce decides to accept election results rather than interv..
Decade of Discord: Presidential Election of 1860, The
John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry is a divisive and controversial aspect of the politics leading to the 1860 election. Abraham Lincoln speaks out against slavery in an 1859 tour that launches his candidacy. Meanwhile t..
Decade of Discord: Transcontinental Railroad, The
Democrat Franklin Pierce wins the presidency in 1852 vowing to maintain national harmony. But as Western territories once considered unfit for cultivation begin to open up, questions of slave versus free again take cente..
Degrees of Whiteness
Professor of American studies and history Matthew Frye Jacobson talks about violence carried out against immigrants, as well as a curious duality in the way European immigrants were viewed in the early twentieth century...
Determined to be Heard: Challenging the Melting Pot Ideal
The determination of minority groups to forge a stronger cultural identity challenges the idea of the "melting pot" and becomes a threat to the idea of America for some citizens. Historian Gary Gerstle compares two very ..
Determined to be Heard: Counterculture, The
In the 1960s and 1970s, the youth counterculture openly scorns the values and conventions of middle-class society. This counterculture becomes identified with San Francisco, with Los Angeles, and later rural communes. So..