The 1850s: Union in Peril will examine the sectional crises that culminated in secession and Civil War. We will explore events in three ways. First, readings and seminar discussions will provide information about the key issues. Second, an interactive, multimedia computer program developed at Tulane will offer a unique way to examine the crisis at Fort Sumter that began the Civil War. Third, a short paper will permit a deeper investigation of a specialized topic of the 1850s. To view the paper assignment, click here:
There is a course home page available under Course Materials on the Tulane Home Page. We will also set up a listserv to provide a forum for information and discussion.
Course Requirements
The 1850s is a seminar. Attendance is required and participation is expected. There will be a mid-term and a final exam. There will also be short written assignments using the multimedia program as well as a short paper due at the end of the semester. Grading will be based upon seminar work as well as exams and the writing assignments.
Required Reading (Bookstore)
James McPherson, Ordeal By Fire, vol. 1. (Textbook)
Thomas P. Slaughter, Bloody Dawn
Don E. Fehrenbacher, Slavery, Law, & Politics: The Dred
Scott Case
Don E. Fehrenbacher, Prelude to Greatness: Lincoln in the
1850s
Eric H. Walther, The Fire-Eaters
William Freehling, ed., Secession Debated
Recommended Reading Available in Bookstore
Stephen B. Oates, To Purge This Land with Blood
Robert W. Johannsen, ed., The Lincoln-Douglas Debates
Preliminary Course Outline
The following is a only a rough guide of the sequence of topics and a readings. Changes will be announced in seminar.
Week 1. January 16. Introduction
Week 2. January 23. The Territorial Question and Slavery
Reading: McPherson, Ordeal by Fire, chs. 1 and 4; Fehrenbacher, Slavery, Law, & Politics, chs. 1-3.
Week 3. January 30. The Compromise of 1850
Reading: McPherson, Ordeal, ch. 5; Slaughter, Bloody Dawn, chs. 1-7 and Conclusion.
Week 4. February 6. The South, Slavery, and its Defenders
Reading: McPherson, Ordeal, ch. 2 and pp. 49-55; Walther, The Fire-Eaters, Introduction and chs. 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, Conclusion.
Week 5. February 13. Lincoln and the Republican Party
Reading: McPherson, Ordeal, chs. 3, 6-7; Fehrenbacher, Prelude to Greatness, chs. 1-6.
Week 6. February 20. Sectionalism Intensifies: Dred Scott and Beyond
Reading: Fehrenbacher, Slavery, Law, & Politics, ch. 5-8 and pp. 284-96.
Week 7. February 27. Secession
Reading: McPherson, Ordeal, chs. 8-9; Fehrenbacher, Prelude to Greatness, ch. 7; Freehling, ed., Secession Debated, Introduction, pp. 3-30, 80-114, 145- 159 (Selections by Thomas R. R. Cobb, Benjamin Hill, Herschel V. Johnson, and Joseph E. Brown).
Week 8. March 6. Mid-Term Paper
Week 8. March 6. Optional Class Meets in Hebert Room 200 for Viewing Movie
Week 9. March 13. Crisis at Fort Sumter Demonstration in Hebert Room 200
The Crisis at Fort Sumter program for this course will on a CD-ROM format. It will be used in the History Electronic Classroom, Hebert 200. The program can also be browsed directly via the World Wide Web (WWW) at the following location: http://www.tulane.edu/~latner/CrisisMain.html
You may also reach this site via Tulane's WWW Home Page. Go to "Academic Resources" and select "Course Materials." You will find a Crisis at Fort Sumter link.
The WWW version is somewhat different from the CD-ROM version, and it is also somewhat cumbersome because of the time necessary to download audio and video files. However, the basic text information and still pictures provided in the WWW version are essentially the same as in the CD-ROM format. You may therefore find it worthwhile to visit the Crisis at Fort Sumter site prior to coming to class on Thursday March 13.
You can visit the site by using any computer with a Netscape browser and a connection to the Internet. Computers in Tulane's computer labs are equipped to connect you, and the dorms have been connected to the university's fiber-optic cable network so that you can access the site in dormitories.
I will be available to help anyone who would like to learn how to connect to the site. You can also get advice via our Union listserv newsgroup.
Week 10. March 20. Crisis at Fort Sumter Discussion
Week 11. March 27. Spring Break
Week 12. April 3. Crisis at Fort Sumter Discussion
Week 13. April 10. Crisis at Fort Sumter Discussion
Week 14. April 17. Crisis at Fort Sumter Discussion
Week 15. April 24. Paper Reports