Steady encouragement

After each new topic is presented, students answer a few questions about the main ideas. This keeps students focused, actively processing the information, and constructing new knowledge.

Presentation and exploration

Fourteen chapters offer concise presentation of key concepts. And an additional 21 assignments guide students through the examination of primary resources to put the concepts into context and test the limits of the ideas presented.

Study questions

More than 900 study questions encourage close reading and guide students to key information.

Everything you need

A History of the United States, 1865 to Present provides everything you need for an online course including the text, lecture slides, a test bank, and an analytics dashboard. And we can tailor the webtext to match your program’s emphasis, term length, student expectations, and assignment types.

1. Freedom’s Meaning: Reconstruction, 1865–1877
   1. Introduction
   2. Race, Reunion, and the Aftermath of War
   3. Aftermath of War in the South
   4. Wartime Reconstruction
   5. Presidential Reconstruction
   6. Violence and Black Codes
   7. Black Agency and Resistance
   8. Congressional Reconstruction
   9. Radicals and Moderates
   10. Former Slaves, Former Masters, & the Former Vice President
   11. The Reconstruction Amendments
   12. Women and the Reconstruction Amendments
   13. Impeachment and the Election of 1868
   14. Challenges of Reconstruction
   15. Confronting the Klan
   16. Sharecropping
   17. Schools and Business Promotion
   18. Corruption and Division in Politics
   19. Reconstruction Reversed
   20. The Panic of 1873
   21. The Civil Rights Act of 1875
   22. Redeemers
   23. The Compromise of 1877
   24. Conclusion
2. Western Expansion & Industrial America, 1870–1890
   1. Introduction
   2. Native Americans and the Trans-Mississippi West
   3. Native Life on the Plains
   4. The Reservation System
   5. Encroachment and Resistance
   6. The Dawes Act and Assimilation
   7. Winning and Losing the West
   8. Homesteaders and Railroads
   9. Cattle Drives to Ranching
   10. Mining, Manufacturing, and Diversity in the West
   11. Women’s Suffrage
   12. Exodus: The Last Pioneers
   13. Growth of Industrial America and the New South
   14. Trade and Finance
   15. Titans of Industry
   16. The New South
   17. Immigration, Race, and Ethnicity
   18. Challenging the Gilded Age
   19. National Politics in the Gilded Age
   20. Readjusters and Reformers
   21. The Rise of Organized Labor
   22. The “New Departure” in Women’s Suffrage
   23. Conclusion
3. Populism and Imperialism, 1890–1900
   1. Introduction
   2. Urban America and Popular Culture
   3. The Growth of the City
   4. Vice and the Growth of Urban Reform
   5. Mail-Order Houses and Marketing
   6. Rise of Professional and College Sports
   7. Popular Culture
   8. National Politics and the Populist Party
   9. Legislative Reforms
   10. The Subtreasury Plan and Free Silver
   11. The Rise of the Populists
   12. Race and Southern Populism
   13. The Panic of 1893 and Labor Activism
   14. The Decline of the Populists
   15. Immigration, Ethnicity, and the “Nadir of Race Relations”
   16. The “New” Immigrants
   17. Race, Ethnicity, and Disenfranchisement
   18. Lynching and the Campaign for Legal Justice
   19. Creating and Confronting Jim Crow
   20. Imperialism at Home and Abroad
   21. Oklahoma and South Dakota
   22. Cultural Imperialism and Native America
   23. The Annexation of Hawaii
   24. Spanish-American War in Cuba
   25. Spanish-American War in the Pacific
   26. Democracy and Trade
   27. Conclusion
4. From Populism to the Progressive Era, 1900–1912
   1. Introduction
   2. National Politics during the Progressive Era
   3. The Rise of Teddy Roosevelt and Federal Power
   4. Business and Politics in the Progressive Era
   5. The West and Conservationism
   6. Progressivism and President Taft
   7. The Election of 1912
   8. Foreign Policy
   9. The Progressives
   10. Muckrakers
   11. Prohibition and the Social Gospel Movement
   12. Education and Child Labor
   13. Efficiency in Business and Government
   14. Radicalism and the Limits of Egalitarian Reform
   15. Women’s Rights and Birth Control
   16. Civil Rights in the Progressive Era
   17. Asian and Mexican Immigration
   18. Jewish and Central European Immigration
   19. Life in “Modern America”
   20. Sports and Entertainment
   21. The Cult of Masculinity
   22. The Limits of Progressivism
   23. Socialism and Radical Unionism
   24. Conclusion
5. The Late Progressive Era and World War, 1912–1920
   1. Introduction
   2. The Wilson Administration and the Coming War
   3. Business, Banking, and National Politics
   4. Labor and the Mine Wars
   5. Birth of the NAACP and Birth of a Nation
   6. The Great War and America
   7. Race, Revolution, and War in the American Southwest
   8. Origin of the Great War
   9. The Great War and America
   10. The War in Europe and the Russian Revolution
   11. From Neutrality to War
   12. Creating an Army
   13. Government, Industry, and Military Production
   14. Women and the War
   15. Over There: America and the End of the War
   16. Armistice and Aftermath
   17. Demobilization and the Treaty of Versailles
   18. The Final Triumph of Women’s Suffrage
   19. Race and Ethnicity
   20. Dissent and Disloyalty
   21. Conclusion
6. Roaring ’20s to the Great Depression, 1920–1932
   1. Introduction
   2. Prosperity and Its Limits
   3. A Pro-Business Orientation and Scandals in Washington
   4. Prohibition and Enforcement
   5. Technology and Innovation
   6. Labor and the Limits of Prosperity
   7. Culture of Consumption and Popular Entertainment
   8. Immigration and Closing the Golden Door
   9. The Second Klan
   10. Quotas and Unwelcome Americans
   11. Nativism and National Security
   12. The Election of 1924
   13. Popular Culture and a Renaissance in Harlem
   14. A More Secular Culture
   15. Culture War and the Scopes Trial
   16. Pan-Africanism and Marcus Garvey
   17. The Harlem Renaissance
   18. The New Woman of the 1920s
   19. The Crash: From Decadence to Depression
   20. The Election of 1928 and the Stock Market Crash
   21. Hoover’s Response
   22. The Election of 1932
   23. Conclusion
7. The New Deal and Origins of World War II, 1932–1939
   1. Introduction
   2. The First New Deal, 1933–1935
   3. The Banking Crisis
   4. The First Hundred Days
   5. Industry and Labor
   6. The New Deal in the South and West
   7. Diplomacy and the Good Neighbor Policy
   8. Last Hired, First Fired: Women and Minorities in the Great Depression
   9. Women and the New Deal
   10. A New Deal for Black America?
   11. Latinos and Asian Americans
   12. Native Americans
   13. The Second New Deal and Its Opponents, 1935–1939
   14. The Second New Deal
   15. Dissidents and Demagogues
   16. Court-Packing Scheme and Reverses of 1937
   17. From New Deal to Wartime Economy
   18. America’s Entry into World War II
   19. Appeasement and the Fall of Poland
   20. The Fall of France
   21. The Battle of Britain
   22. The Eastern Front
   23. German Aggression and the American Response
   24. Japanese Aggression and the American Response
   25. Conclusion
8. America and World War II, 1941–1945
   1. Introduction
   2. Pearl Harbor and the Arsenal of Democracy
   3. Pearl Harbor
   4. Becoming the Arsenal of Democracy
   5. Financing and Selling the War
   6. Industry and Organized Labor
   7. Creating an Army
   8. Double V: Freedom Abroad, Freedom at Home
   9. Women in the Military
   10. Japanese American Internment and Military Service
   11. Native Americans
   12. Hispanic Americans
   13. African Americans and World War II
   14. Jewish Americans and the Holocaust
   15. Fighting Toward Victory
   16. Stalingrad and the Eastern Front
   17. Bataan to the Battle of Midway
   18. North Africa to D-Day
   19. D-Day to Victory in Europe
   20. War Without Mercy in Asia
   21. Conclusion
9. The Cold War at Home and Abroad, 1945–1953
   1. Introduction
   2. Postwar Europe, Asia, and the Middle East
   3. Postwar Diplomacy and Reconstruction of Europe
   4. The United Nations
   5. American-Soviet Conflict
   6. Marshall Plan and Berlin Airlift
   7. NATO, the Warsaw Pact, and Communist China
   8. The Middle East
   9. Postwar America
   10. Demobilization
   11. Truman and the Fair Deal
   12. Economic Growth and Labor
   13. Housing and the Suburbs
   14. Gender and the Baby Boom
   15. Popular Culture in Postwar America
   16. Red Scares, Lavender Scares, and the Quest for Equality
   17. The Nuclear Age
   18. The Second Red Scare
   19. The Lavender Scare
   20. School Segregation
   21. Containment and the Korean “Conflict”
   22. Origins of the Korean War
   23. Invasion to Stalemate
   24. Stalemate to Armistice
   25. Eisenhower and the Election of 1952
10. The Cold War and the Affluent Society, 1954–1963
    1. Introduction
    2. The Global Cold War during the Eisenhower Administration
    3. Decolonization and Developing Nations
    4. Castro and the Cuban Revolution
    5. The Middle East
    6. Vietnam
    7. Cold War Europe
    8. The Space Race and Nuclear Strategy
    9. America during the Eisenhower Years
    10. The End of McCarthyism
    11. Government and Labor
    12. New Americans and Native Americans
    13. Brown v. Board and School Integration
    14. Violent Resistance in the Deep South
    15. Emergence of Grassroots Activism
    16. America and the World during the Kennedy Years
    17. The 1960 Election
    18. The New Frontier
    19. Students and Civil Rights
    20. Albany and Birmingham
    21. The Bay of Pigs and the Cuban Missile Crisis
    22. Global Containment in Africa, West Germany, and Vietnam
    23. Chinese-Soviet Split
    24. Conclusion
11. Vietnam and Civil Disobedience, 1963–1969
    1. Introduction
    2. From New Frontier to Great Society
    3. The Assassination of John F. Kennedy
    4. The Civil Rights Act of 1964
    5. The 1964 Election
    6. Massive Resistance and School Integration
    7. Women, Labor, and Second Wave Feminism
    8. The Great Society and the Vietnam War
    9. Poverty in a Land of Plenty
    10. The Voting Rights Act of 1965
    11. The Great Society and Its Limits
    12. The Gulf of Tonkin and Escalation in Vietnam
    13. Combat in Vietnam
    14. Civil Rights and Social Justice
    15. Race and the Urban North
    16. Black Power and Black Panthers
    17. SDS and the New Left
    18. Feminism and Civil Rights
    19. Civil Rights Beyond Black and White
    20. Unrest and Upheaval
    21. The Tet Offensive and Vietnam
    22. King’s Assassination and the Poor People’s Campaign
    23. The Election of 1968
    24. Nixon and a Divided Nation
    25. Conclusion
12. A Nation in Flux, 1970–1979
    1. Introduction
    2. Vietnam to Watergate
    3. Escalation and Protest
    4. American Withdrawal and the Fall of Saigon
    5. Lessons and Legacies of Vietnam
    6. Watergate
    7. Resignation and Aftermath
    8. Détente, Decline, and Domestic Politics
    9. The Energy Crisis
    10. The Cold War and Détente
    11. Cities and the Environment
    12. Economy and Government
    13. Feminism and Reproductive Rights
    14. Equality and Liberation in the New America
    15. New Challenges for School Integration
    16. Affirmative Action and Electoral Realignment
    17. The American Indian Movement
    18. The Chicano Movement
    19. The Gay Rights Movement
    20. The Middle East and Malaise: America in the Late 1970s
    21. The Economy and the Crisis of Confidence
    22. The Equal Rights Amendment
    23. Foreign Policy
    24. Conclusion
13. The Reagan and Bush Years, 1980–1992
    1. Introduction
    2. Conservatism and the Reagan Revolution
    3. The New Right
    4. The Election of 1980
    5. Women and the New Right
    6. Reaganomics and Its Critics
    7. Wall Street and the S&L Bailout
    8. The End of the Cold War
    9. The Middle East and Afghanistan
    10. Latin America and the Iran-Contra Affair
    11. The Soviet Union and Eastern Europe
    12. Africa and Apartheid
    13. American Life in the 1980s
    14. Technology and Globalization
    15. Wealth, Poverty, and the War on Drugs
    16. Gay Rights and AIDS
    17. Race and the 1980s
    18. Immigration and Hispanic Rights
    19. The Presidency of George H.W. Bush
    20. The Election of 1988 and Domestic Affairs
    21. Berliners Tear Down the Wall
    22. The Soviet Union and Panama
    23. Desert Shield and Desert Storm
    24. The Election of 1992
    25. Conclusion
14. America in Our Time, 1992–Present
    1. Introduction
    2. America during the Clinton Administration
    3. Domestic Politics in Clinton’s First Two Years
    4. The Contract with America
    5. The Budget Crisis and the 1996 Election
    6. Domestic Affairs in Clinton’s Second Term
    7. Violence at Home and Abroad
    8. Free Trade, Globalization, and the Environment
    9. America during the George W. Bush Administration
    10. The 2000 Election and Aftermath
    11. September 11, 2001
    12. War in Iraq and Afghanistan
    13. The 2004 Election
    14. Bush’s Second Term
    15. Diversity in the New America
    16. Multiculturalism
    17. Immigration and Latino Rights
    18. Gender Equality and Third Wave Feminism
    19. Race, Equality, and Law
    20. Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered (LGBT) Rights
    21. Continuity and Change: The Transition from Bush to Obama
    22. The Pervasiveness of Inequality
    23. The Economy
    24. The 2008 Election
    25. Polarization and the Obama Presidency
    26. Conclusion

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Advisors

John Barrington, PhD
Furman University

Sarah Judson, PhD
University of North Carolina–Asheville

Thomas Leary, PhD
Southern New Hampshire University

Steve O’Neill, PhD
Furman University

Diane Vecchio, PhD
Furman University

Peer Reviewers

Andrea Burns, PhD
Appalachian State University

Charity Carney, PhD
Western Governors University

Daryl Carter, PhD
East Tennessee State University

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Appalachian State University

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Appalachian State University

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