Author Robert Kaplan discusses his experiences while writing his book Imperial Grunts, focusing on his impressions on the identity of soldiers. He looks particularly at the representation of the working class in the field and the ways in which warfare and the military are changing today.
Video and audio options are available.
This lecture, created by the Abraham Lincoln Historical Digitization Project, examines the role of women in 19th-century Illinois. It looks at the development of the idea of separate gender spheres of influence—work for men and the home for women; the application and adaptation of this idea in the frontier; the developing power of women in pushing for social reform; the status of Native American and African-American women; and the gender perceptions of Abraham Lincoln and his wife, Mary Todd.
Kathryn Kish Sklar of SUNY—Binghamton discusses the rising importance of successful schools in antebellum frontier towns and the feminization of the teaching profession that accompanied the new demand for teachers. Sklar also looks at the impact of the Second Great Awakening on the education of female teachers.
To view this clip, select "Education, Culture, and the Patterns of Frontier Settlement" under "Frontier Settlement Video."
Kathryn Kish Sklar of SUNY-Binghamton discusses the immigration of Germans and Irish to the U.S. during the antebellum period, to serve as members of the working class. Sklar considers immigrant labor as supporting the development of the new middle class, and also looks at the changing role of women in immigrant families.
To view this clip, select "Women's Changing Roles in Immigrant Families" under "Economic Development and Labor Video."
Julie Roy Jeffrey of Goucher College compares the lifestyle of Mary Todd Lincoln, accustomed to middle-class comfort and entertaining, to that of frontierswomen of the same time period.
To view this clip, select "Mary Todd Lincoln's Frontier Life" under "Abraham Lincoln's Biography Video."
Professor Ken Masugi looks at the functioning of the Supreme Court. He then examines the 1952 Supreme Court Case Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company v. Sawyer, in which the steel company Youngstown Sheet and Tube Co. petitioned that President Harry Truman exceeded his presidential powers by instructing Secretary of Commerce Charles Sawyer to seize control of the U.S. steel industry, under wartime powers.
To listen to this lecture, scroll to session one, and select the RealAudio link to the left of the main body of text.
Hagley Museum and Library collects, preserves, and interprets the unfolding history of American enterprise. Hagley is the site of the gunpowder works founded by E. I. du Pont in 1802. This example of early American industry includes restored mills, a workers' community, and the ancestral home and gardens of the du Pont family.
The museum offers exhibits, tours, educational programs, research library access, demonstrations, and recreational and educational events (including living history events).
The A. Philip Randolph Pullman Porter Museum promotes, honors, and celebrates the legacy of A. Philip Randolph and contributions made by African Americans to America's labor history. The Museum facility educates the public about the legacy and contributions of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters. The permanent collection displays exhibits which are pertinent to the study of the Pullman Historic District, the Great Migration, American labor history, A. Philip Randolph, the Pullman Porters, and the American Civil Rights Movement.
The museum offers exhibits.
A restored boarding house with two floors of interactive exhibits tells the tale of Lawrence, one of the nation's first planned industrial cities. Along with stories of Lawrence's mill workers and industry, the workers' role in the 1912 Bread and Roses Strike is relived with images and sounds. Visitors can walk along the esplanade of a 19th-century canal and through a park created within the walls of an industrial-era building.
The park offers exhibits, tours, a short film, and educational and recreational programs.
The fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist factory in New York City was the deadliest workplace disaster in New York history until 9/11. David Von Drehle, the author of Triangle: The Fire that Changed America, discusses the fire in this segment from the NBC Today Show.
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