Here are some links relating to Wisconsin history that you might find interesting:

 State Historical Society of Wisconsin
 Chippewa Valley Museum (Eau Claire)
 Hales Corners Historical Society
 Milwaukee Public Museum
 Oak Creek Historical Society
 Oshkosh Public Museum
 Outagamie County Historical Society
 Saukville Area Historical Society
 Sheboygan County Historical Research Center
 Watertown Historical Society
 Wauwatosa Historical Society
 Sesquicentennial Minutes on Wisconsin Public Television
 South Milwaukee Historical Society
 Wisconsin Black Historical Society/Museum
 Wisconsin County Genealogical Societies
  Wisconsin Stories on Wisconsin Public Television

NOTE:  If you have a disability, please let me know early in the semester of
any help you may need.

FOCUS AND OBJECTIVE OF THE COURSE
This course focuses on the history of Wisconsin from early Indian settlement to modern times.
The course is very selective in coverage--as all history is.  It examines some of the more important
themes, developments, and events in the state's history, and explores aspects of local history that
illuminate broader state or national trends.  It also considers Wisconsin as an arena for exploring
community formation and development, changing social relationships, and other important themes
in American social history.  My objective is to provide you with a basic introduction to
Wisconsin's history and the state's role in national events.

STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES
It is very difficult to explore this course's subject matter adequately in just four weeks--much less
in one semester during the regular school year.  Because I am not assigning a
history of Wisconsin textbook this summer, you will need to attend class regularly and take notes
on information about the state's history contained in lectures and films.  You also must be
prepared to discuss reading assignments.  You should feel free to ask questions, elaborate on
course content, challenge my views, and provoke discussion.  Written assignments must be
submitted on time.

REQUIRED READING
The following books are available in local bookstores, and are on reserve in the library.

               1.  Roger Nichols, Black Hawk and the Warrior's Path.  Arlington Heights, IL:
                    Harlan Davidson, 1992.
               2.  Meta Berger,  A Milwaukee Woman’s Life on the Left: The Autobiography of Meta
                  Berger, edited by Kimberly Swanson.  Madison: State Historical Society of
                   Wisconsin, 2001.
               3.   Jack Dougherty, More One Struggle: The Evolution of Black School Reform in
                   Milwaukee.  Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2004.
 

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS
     1.   Exam on Part I of the course, June 8.
     2.   Final exam on Parts II and III on June 24.
     3.   Book review of More Than One Struggle, due June 18
 

Graduate Students

In addition to the above assignments, graduate students must write a review essay on any three
different books on a subject or period of Wisconsin history.  Please discuss your books with me
first.  Due: June 19.

GRADES
          Undergraduates
                                        Mid-term exam       25%
                                        Book review            25%
                                        Final exam               50%

          Graduate Students
                                        Mid-term exam       15%
                                        Book review            10%
                                        Review essay          25%
                                        Final exam               50%
 
 

 
 
 
 

NOTE:     You may find it useful to consult relevant chapters of a good textbook on           Wisconsin history.  See, for example, Robert C. Nesbit, Wisconsin: A History.

PART 1:  FROM EXPLORATION TO THE CIVIL WAR AND RECONSTRUCTION

          6/1      INTRODUCTION: FRENCH AND ENGLISH INFLUENCES LEAD TO
                       THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION AND THE WAR OF 1812

                      Film: This Place we Call Wisconsin

          6/2      PIONEER LIFE AND TERRITORIAL STATUS, 1815-1836

          6/3      INDIAN REMOVAL , BROKEN TREATIES (1785-1854)
                      AND THE BLACK HAWK WAR

                       See Treaty with the Sauk and Foxes, 1804. (Actual provisions.)

                      Discussion of Nichols, Black Hawk and the Warrior's Path.

          6/7       STATEHOOD, THE CIVIL WAR AND RECONSTRUCTION IN
                      WISCONSIN, 1848-1865

          6/8      EXAM ON PART I

PART 2: INDUSTRIALIZATION, WORKING-CLASS FERMENT, AND PROGRESSIVISM

          6/9       CHANGES IN SOCIETY AND THE ECONOMY SPARK THE ANTI-
                      MONOPOLY MOVEMENT AND WORKING-CLASS UPHEAVAL, 1865-
                      1890

                      FILM: The Bay View Massacre (20 minutes)

          6/10       THE ELECTION OF 1890 AND THE ORIGINS OF PROGRESSIVISM IN
                       WISCONSIN, 1890-1900

          6/14     THE ANTI-MONOPOLY MOVEMENT, AND THE RISE OF
                       LAFOLLETTE
                      AND PROGRESSIVISM, 1900-1911

         6/15      PROGRESSIVISM: ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND DECLINE, 1900-1920

                      Discussion: Berger, The Autobiography of Meta Berger.

PART 3: CONTINUITY AND CHANGE IN MODERN WISCONSIN HISTORY

          6/16      THE DEPRESSION IN WISCONSIN, 1920-1945

          6/17      POLITICAL AND SOCIAL READJUSTMENTS FROM HEIL TO
                       MCCARTHY, 1938-1957

                        FILM: American Ism: Joe McCarthy (90 minutes)

          6/21      UPHEAVAL, PROTEST, AND THE PROBLEMS OF A MATURE
                       SOCIETY, 1957-1990

                       FILM:  The War at Home (100 min.)

          6/22      CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF ECONOMIC DECLINE

          6/23      RACE, CLASS, AND WISCONSIN’S FUTURE; WHAT'S DISTINCTIVE
                       ABOUT WISCONSIN HISTORY (A SUMMARY)

                      Discussion: Dougherty, More Than One Struggle.

          6/24      FINAL EXAM ON PARTS 2 AND 3 
 
 
 

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