“We cannot have free government without elections.”
—Abraham Lincoln, November 10, 1864
Books (also available via library reserve or online access)
- Joanne B. Freeman, Affairs of Honor (New Haven: Yale, 2002)
- Margaret O’Mara, Pivotal Tuesdays (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, 2017)
- James Oakes, The Radical and The Republican (New York: W.W. Norton, 2008)
Additional Readings
- Akhil Reed Amar, “How Women Won the Vote,” Wilson Quarterly 29 (Summer 2005): 30-34 [JSTOR]
- Wendy E. Chmielewski, “Her Hat Was in the Ring,” Gilder Lehrman, 2017 [WEB]
- January 6 package: Committee Report // Jan 6th CMTE Recommendations // RNC Censure (2/4/22)
- Knowledge for Freedom seminar (KFF): Declaration of Sentiments (1848)// Sojourner Truth (1851) // Susan B. Anthony Trial (1873), Dickinson College, 2023 [WEB]
- Joseph Locke and Ben Wright, eds., American Yawp (Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2023-24 ed.) [WEB]
- Steven Mintz, “Winning the Vote,” Gilder Lehrman Institute, 2004 [WEB]
- Shlomo Slonim, “The Electoral College at Philadelphia: The Evolution of an Ad Hoc Congress for the Selection of a President,” Journal of American History 73 (June 1986): 35-58 [JSTOR]
- Charles Sydnor, “Chapter 4: Swilling the Planters with Bumbo,” in Gentlemen Freeholders: Political Practices in Washington’s Virginia (1952) [JSTOR]
- Judith Wellman, “Seneca Falls Convention,” Gilder Lehrman, 2006 [WEB]
- Barbara Winslow, “Alice Paul, Suffrage Militant,” Gilder Lehrman, 2018 [WEB]
First Essay –Early American Elections
On Monday, February 19, students will submit a 3-5 page typed, double-spaced essay on a topic about early American election practices provided to them in class on Thursday, February 15. All essays must include source material from the assigned readings and course resources properly cited using Chicago-style footnotes. Outside research is allowed but not required. Essays will be graded on depth of analysis, use of evidence, and quality of prose. Late essays will be penalized up to 5 points each day.
Second Essay –Slavery & American Politics
On Monday, March 25, students will submit a 3-5 page typed, double-spaced essay on a topic slavery and American politics provided to them in class on Thursday, March 21. All essays must include source material from the assigned readings and course resources properly cited using Chicago-style footnotes. Outside research is allowed but not required. Essays will be graded on depth of analysis, use of evidence, and quality of prose. Late essays will be penalized up to 5 points each day.
The highlight of this semester will be a website project that students will undertake to explain the significance of an important election in US history for a classroom audience. By Monday, April 15, students must submit an 8- to 10-page narrative essay on their subject, relying on a range of primary and secondary sources, and employing Chicago-style footnotes. This draft essay will receive a provisional or temporary grade. By Monday, May 6, students should revise the draft essay and transform it into a website on the free platform Weebly. Each website should include an array of properly credited and captioned images as well as at least one embedded short video (about 1 to 2 minutes). Projects will be graded on depth of analysis, research and design effort, and quality of prose. Late project submissions will be penalized by 5 points per day.
Grade Distribution
Class Participation 20 percent
First Essay (Early Elections) 25 percent
Second Essay (Slavery & Elections) 25 percent
Final web projects 30 percent
Schedule
| Day | Date | Discussion Topic | Reading Assignment |
| Tuesday | 1/23 | Methods & Expectations | |
| Thursday | 1/25 | Voting: A History | Mintz article |
| Tuesday | 1/30 | Revolutionary politics | Sydnor Chapter 4 |
| Thursday | 2/1 | Electoral College | Slonim article |
| Tuesday | 2/6 | Introducing George Washington | Freeman, intro, prologue, chap 1 |
| Thursday | 2/8 | Jeffersonians and Hamiltonians | Freeman, chap 2 |
| Tuesday | 2/13 | Dueling | Freeman, chap 4 |
| Thursday | 2/15 | Election of 1800 | Freeman, chap 5 |
| Monday | 2/19 | Early Elections essay due | By 5pm by email attachment |
| Tuesday | 2/20 | Antislavery Politics | Oakes, intro + chap 1 |
| Thursday | 2/22 | Party realignment | Oakes, chap 2 |
| Tuesday | 2/27 | Election of 1860 | Oakes, chap 3 |
| Thursday | 2/29 | Rebellion and Insurrection | Oakes, chap 4 |
| Tuesday | 3/5 | Emancipation | Oakes, chap 5 |
| Thursday | 3/7 | Election of 1864 | Oakes, chap 6 |
| Tuesday | 3/12 | NO CLASS –SPRING BREAK | |
| Thursday | 3/14 | NO CLASS –SPRING BREAK | |
| Tuesday | 3/19 | Reconstruction | Yawp, chap 15 |
| Thursday | 3/21 | Other Lincoln-Douglass Debates | Oakes, chap 7 |
| Monday | 3/25 | Slavery & Politics essay due | By 5pm by email attachment |
| Tuesday | 3/26 | Woman suffrage | Wellman article + KFF pages: Sentiments + Truth + Anthony |
| Thursday | 3/28 | Woman suffrage | Amar article + Chmielewski + Winslow articles |
| Thursday | 3/28 | LECTURE: Harold Holzer | Stern Great Room, 7pm |
| Tuesday | 4/2 | Election of 1912 | O’Mara, chap 1 |
| Thursday | 4/4 | Election of 1912 | O’Mara, chap 2 |
| Tuesday | 4/9 | Election of 1932 | O’Mara, chap 3 |
| Thursday | 4/11 | Election of 1932 | O’Mara, chap 4 |
| Monday | 4/15 | Final project essays due | By 5pm by email attachment |
| Tuesday | 4/16 | Election of 1968 | O’Mara, chap 5 |
| Thursday | 4/18 | Election of 1968 | O’Mara, chap 6 |
| Tuesday | 4/23 | Election of 1992 | O’Mara, chap 7 |
| Thursday | 4/25 | Election of 1992 | O’Mara, chap 8 + conclusion |
| Tuesday | 4/30 | Jan. 6th Revisited | 2020 Reflections + Jan 6th CMTE Recommendations + RNC Censure |
| Thursday | 5/2 | Lessons & Legacies | |
| Monday | 5/6 | Final web projects due | By 5pm by email link |