U.S. Southern History from 1890 to 1970

Students analyzed digital primary sources related to U.S. southern history from 1890 to 1970. These lessons occurred during Unit 2 (the “Jim Crow” era) and Unit 3 (the Civil Rights era) of the course.

• Conduct historical research, including the appropriate use of primary sources, to provide properly documented evidence to support an argument. 
• Use other course materials (lectures, documentaries, assigned readings) to provide historical context for the primary sources. 

The first aspect of the project was to define primary sources for the students. Primary source materials provide “immediate, first-hand accounts of a topic, from people who had a direct connection with it.” That includes news reports generated during the era you are investigating; interviews with people who provide eyewitness accounts, pop culture artifacts like musical performances (live or recorded), works of fiction like TV shows, films, or novels. 

Next, the instructor identified the digital primary sources from the Library of Congress that the students were to analyze:

• Booker T. Washington, “An Address Delivered at the Cotton States Exposition,” Atlanta, GA, September 18, 1895.
  • Full citation: Booker T. Washington, Cotton States Exposition, Daniel Murray Pamphlet Collection, and Susan B. Anthony Collection, Address of Booker T. Washington, principal of the Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute, Tuskegee, Alabama: delivered at the opening of the Cotton States and International Exposition, at Atlanta, GA; with a letter of congratulation from the President of the United States (Atlanta, GA: s.n, 1895), pdf.
• Ida B. Wells-Barnett, “Lynch Law in Georgia,” 1899.
  • Full citation: Wells-Barnett, Ida B, Louis P Le Vin, Daniel Murray Pamphlet Collection, and Harry Houdini Collection, “Lynch Law in Georgia: A Six-weeks' Record in the Center of Southern Civilization, As Faithfully Chronicled By The "Atlanta Journal" And The "Atlanta Constitution": Also The Full Report Of Louis P. Le Vin, The Chicago Detective Sent To Investigate The Burning Of Samuel Hose, The Torture And Hanging Of Elijah Strickland, The Colored Preacher, And The Lynching Of Nine Men For Alleged Arson” (Chicago: This pamphlet is circulated by Chicago colored citizens, 1899]), pdf.
• Students chose an interview from the Library of Congress Civil Rights History Project (144 videos available). The interview must relate to the civil rights movement in the U.S. South. The interview subject may identify as a member of any race or gender.

Course materials that provided historical context (besides lectures) included:

• Grace Elizabeth Hale, Making Whiteness: The Culture of Segregation in the South, 1890-1940 (New York: Vintage Books, 1998).
• Danielle McGuire, At the Dark End of the Street: Black Women, Rape, and Resistance: A New History of the Civil Rights Movement from Rosa Parks to the Rise of Black Power (New York: Vintage Books, 2011).
• Eyes on the Prize: Ain’t Afraid of Your Jails, directed by Orlando Blackwell (PBS Home Video, 1987).
• Eyes on the Prize: Fighting Back, directed by Orlando Blackwell (PBS Home Video, 1987).
• George Wallace: Settin’ the Woods on Fire, directed by Daniel McCabe (PBS Home Video, 2000). 

Approximately half an hour was spent in one class period discussing documents on Booker T. Washington and approximately half an hour in another class period on Ida B. Wells. The course was delivered “live-online” in Zoom, and the instructor posted links to the sources in the Zoom chat and in the D2L course management system. Two assignments followed.

Assignment 1

Part I: Initial Post

Write a discussion post of at least 300 words on D2L that analyzes how the documents from Booker T. Washington and Ida B. Wells-Barnett reveal about the "Nadir" era of U.S. southern history. The most successful posts will contain the following information:

• Summary/overview: When and where did the documents originate? What topics does they cover? What are the authors' views?
• Historical context: What was happening in this time and place that may influence the creation of this document? Draw on reading and lecture materials.
• Analysis: What aspects of the primary sources reveal something especially significant about the "Nadir" era of southern history? Be creative in your approach! If you need some inspiration, consider comparing and contrasting a particular aspect of the documents, or using the documents to draw attention to similarities or differences between Wells-Barnett and Washington. While you may certainly share your emotional response to the primary sources, you should focus on what these documents tell us about the history of the U.S. South in that era.

Part II: Response Post

Did one of your classmates offer a particularly compelling analysis? Let them know what you learned from their post. Do you disagree with someone's analysis? Respectfully offer your different interpretation. Respond to at least two classmates' posts in approximately 50 words.

Assignment 2

Part I: Initial Post

Choose an interview from the Library of Congress Civil Rights History Project (144 videos available). The interview must relate to the civil rights movement in the U.S. South. The interview subject may identify as a member of any race or gender. Write a post of at least 300 words on D2L that contains the following information:

• Summary: who is the subject (when were they born? where are they from? How were they (or someone in their family) involved in civil rights activism?
• Historical Context: What was happening in this time and place that may influence the creation of this document? Incorporate information from readings and lectures.
• Analysis: What information does this interview tell us about the civil rights movement? Highlight a new piece of historical knowledge you gained from the video, and state how that knowledge adds something significant to our understanding of the movement.

Part II: Response Post

Did one of your classmates offer a particularly compelling analysis? Let them know what you learned from their post. Do you disagree with someone's analysis? Respectfully offer your different interpretation. Respond to at least two classmates' posts in approximately 50 words each.

Rubric

Total Score: _______ (out of 100)        
A: 90-100%
B: 80-89%
C: 70-79%
D: 60-69%
E: 59% or lower