Fall 2007 

HISTORY 411/511

MAKING THE AMERICAN WEST

Lecturer: Professor Marsha Weisiger

            Office: Breland Hall, Room 247

Telephone: 646-4037

            email: mweisige@nmsu.edu  (note: use lower case; there is no “r” in the address)

            Office hours: Wednesdays, 2-4 p.m., or by appt.

Class Schedule:

            Lectures: T-Th, 8:55-10:10, Breland 182

If you require any special accommodations due to disability or religion, please let me know within the first three weeks of class. If you have or believe you have a disability and would benefit from any accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and/or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, feel free to call Michael Armendariz, Coordinator of Services for Students with Disabilities, at 505-646-6840. All medical information will be treated confidentially. The Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) Office is located in the Corbett Center, Rm. 244. After you have registered (or if you’re already registered), please make sure that I receive a copy of the accommodation memorandum from SSD. It is your responsibility to inform either me or an SSD representative in a timely manner if the services or accommodations provided are not meeting your needs. Non-discrimination policy: Feel free to call Jerry Nevarez, Director of Institutional Equity, at 505-646-3635, with any questions you may have about NMSU's Non-Discrimination Policy and complaints of discrimination, including sexual harassment. Religion: If you are Jewish, Muslim, Native American, or a follower of any faith not recognized in the NMSU schedule, please let me know so that I can accommodate your religious practices, as necessary.

TIP: Read this syllabus carefully and refer to it often. It offers a “road map” to this course, explaining grading policies, providing weekly reading assignments, and alerting you to in-class activities and lectures that require advance preparation. Adjustments to the lecture schedule, however, may occur at my discretion and will be announced in class.

Introduction

This introductory survey of the history of the nineteenth-century U.S. West takes us from the Lewis and Clark expedition to the turn of the century. We will approach our study of the making of the West by tracing five major themes: (1) conquest, (2) the federal and corporate role in western development, (3) environmental change, (4) the West as a land of opportunity and hope, and (5) the mythic West. Major topics include  cross-cultural encounters, exploration, federal Indian policy, mining rushes, ranching, homesteading, and the West in popular culture, with particular attention to the ways in which race, class, gender, and culture shaped those experiences. No single lecture will provide a complete understanding of any of the major themes. Rather, I will trace each of these strands of history through several lectures extending throughout the semester, and the readings will provide even further insight.

Course Objectives:

By the end of the semester, you should be able to:

            ● Trace the historical development of the major course themes

            ● Analyze and interpret “primary” sources of historical information

            ● Identify an author’s argument or thesis

            ● Write an essay and develop your own argument

Readings

The readings for this course are extensive. You will be asked to read 100-150 pages or so per week. Some weeks, the readings will be longer; others, much shorter. These consist of a combination of secondary and primary sources. Because it is important that you read each of the books, I strongly recommend that you purchase them. All are available at the NMSU bookstore. They are also available on reserve at Zuhl Library.

You are required to own (and refer to frequently) a high-quality map of the United States that shows both geographical and physiographical features. Ideally, you should have one that you can hang on a wall in your room. The Rand McNally “Classic Edition” U.S.A. map can be purchased at the NMSU bookstore. However, if you already own a high quality atlas or map, you don’t need to purchase this one.

You are also required to purchase a CD containing primary sources. You may purchase this at the Language Lab, Breland 171.

Required Books

Elliott West, The Contested Plains: Indians, Goldseekers, and the Rush to Colorado

            John Neihardt, Black Elk Speaks: Being the Life Story of a Holy Man of the Oglala Sioux

            Elinore Pruitt Stewart, Letters of a Woman Homesteader

            Larry McMurtry, Buffalo Girls: A Novel

Richard White, It’s Your Misfortune and None of My Own: A New History of the        American West

Film

We will screen the movie Heartland on Nov. 6. Viewing this film is required, so please make arrangements to view it with us. One of your short papers will ask you to compare Heartland with the book on which it was based, Letters from a Woman Homesteader.

Grading

Grading will be based on the following components. Failure to complete any of the components, including both of the exams, may result in an F in the course.

            Map quiz                                              50 pts.

            Participation                                        50 pts.

            Short analytical papers on books     200 pts.          

            Mid-Term Exam                                100 pts.          

            Final Exam                                         100 pts.          

            Term Project                                     100 pts.          

            Attendance                                         100 pts.

            Total 700 pts.

Graduate students enrolled in Hist 511 will complete the same components that the undergraduates in Hist 411 do, but with a different term project. However, graduate students will be expected to exhibit a higher level of competence in all areas and to articulate a significantly more sophisticated level of analysis in their examinations and response papers.

Specific information on the grading of each component follows:

Examinations

There will be two exams (a mid-term and a final). Both will have two sections: a matching section and an essay section. In the matching section, you will match a name, place, or term to the best statement identifying it. In the essay section, I will give you a choice of questions to answer, and you must write a coherent essay, drawing on the lectures and readings for the class. Each essay will be graded on the basis of the argument you make, the evidence you use to support your argument, your demonstrated understanding of the information and historical interpretations provided both in class and in the readings, and the overall coherence of the essay. For the mid-term exam, you will be asked to answer one essay, out of a choice of three questions. For the final exam, you will be asked to answer two essays, one of which will be comprehensive over the entire semester. (For each of those essays, you will be able to choose from a list of three questions.) We will discuss the exam format in more detail during an in-class review session before each exam. To help you focus your studying, I will give you a long list of possible questions from which the actual exam questions will be chosen.

Because each of the exams requires you to draw on information provided in the lectures and readings, you cannot pass this course without attending the lectures and reading all the assignments.

Term Paper

Undergraduates

At the NMSU library, find three journals or diaries (or similar primary sources) of travelers along a particular western trail, written between 1803 and 1890. Suggested trails might include the Santa Fe Trail, the Oregon Trail, the trail followed by the Mormon Battalion. Consulting your map or, better yet, a high quality atlas, select a stretch of trail five hundred miles or more long, marked by identifiable points at each end (for example, Fort Smith to Santa Fe, or Santa Fe to Yuma). Read each of the three diaries for that stretch. Then write a 8-10 page history of the journeys along that stretch. I will provide a handout with additional guidance early in the semester. This paper has three required stages: (1) a one-page proposal and bibliography, due at beginning of the lecture on Sept. 18; (2) a meeting with me to discuss your progress, the week of Oct. 21-24, by appointment; and (3) the final paper, due at beginning of the lecture on Nov. 27. I will be happy to read a first draft to help ensure you’re on the right track. Please give me a one-week turn-around time. Late final papers will be marked down one-half grade for each day it is late (i.e., an A- paper would receive a B+ after one late day, and so on). No paper will be accepted after the final exam without a written medical excuse.

Graduate Students

This assignment has two parts, both due on Dec. 6:

(Part 1) You will write a historiographical essay on any topic on nineteenth-century U.S. western history. For this paper, read at least four books not already assigned for this course. At least one should be a classic in the historiography of the American West, and at least two should be “cutting edge” books on the subject, published within the last fifteen years. The fourth book can go either way. Next, find at least six different primary sources on the subject (the length can be as short as a letter, a newspaper article, or a photograph, or as long as a memoir). You may use the monograph citations as a guide to sources. Putting aside what you’ve learned in the monographs, analyze the primary sources and think hard about what they tell you; imagine the history you would write based on those sources. Then, write a historiographical essay on the subject, and critique the authors’ analyses based on what you yourself have gleaned from your reading of primary sources. I will provide a handout early in the semester that provides guidance in writing a historiographical essay, as I’m aware that this will be a new genre for most of you.

(Part 2) You will also write a critical review of a monograph on nineteenth-century U.S. western history that has been published within the last five years. This book must be on a different topic than that covered by your historiographical essay. I will provide a handout with guidelines for writing book reviews.

Short Response Papers

For each of the three major books we read (The Contested Plains, Black Elk Speaks, and Buffalo Girls), you will write a two-page analytical paper, which must be typed (using a 12 pt. font) and double-spaced, with one-inch margins. Each of these papers is due at the beginning of the lecture, as indicated in the syllabus.

Here’s what I expect for the short response papers:  Using your best English, write a two-page essay on anything you think is important, interesting, provocative, or surprising in the particular book. The most effective essays grapple with only one or two issues and take a stance or make an argument. I do not want a “book report.” The point is to think deeply about one or two of the issues that the author raises and respond to it. (Consult my Tips for Writing Essays for guidance.)

For a fourth book, Letters of a Woman Homesteader, you will write a two-page paper comparing this document to a film based on the author Elinore Pruitt Stewart’s life, Heartland. These two representations of history are quite different on the surface, yet they are in essence the same story. Your task will be to explain how they relate to one another.

Map Quizzes

It is important to understand the basic geography of the West, so there will be two short map quizzes. The first will require you to become familiar with some of the West’s most important physiographic features (such as major rivers and mountain ranges). The second will require you to understand the West’s political geography and locate where important historical events took place.

Participation

Participation in class discussions is crucial for your learning experience. Please come prepared to participate in class discussions over the books, and bring the readings with you. Think of our discussions as lively conversations about issues of mutual interest to all of us, and engage in our weekly conversations in that spirit. The purpose of these conversations is to explore, analyze, and reflect on the arguments made in the readings, the evidence they use to support those arguments, and the wisdom the authors impart (or the lack thereof). The other purpose is to explore your own ideas about the issues raised in the readings. Come prepared to express your ideas and have them challenged by others.

There are four ground rules for discussion: 1) Come prepared for each class by critically reading all the assigned materials. Always bring each week’s readings to class. 2)  You must participate in our weekly conversations with thoughtful discussion. 3)  Do not try to lead the conversation astray in an effort to cover your lack of preparedness. 4)  Show respect for your classmates’ ideas, even (or especially) when they are different from your own.

 Additionally, during week 6 we will conduct a role-play in class. Each of you will be assigned a role as part of a debate on a contentious issue. To prepare for your role, you will need to read the documents carefully, particularly those that articulate the position you have been assigned to take. We will discuss this more as the time approaches.

Attendance, Tardiness, and Make-Up Policy

Attendance is required. Five points will be deducted from your attendance grade for every missed day after Aug. 31. Moreover, six or more absences will result in an automatic F in the course. Exceptions will be made only in the event of a documented university-sponsored activity, a protracted illness (with a doctor’s note), or some major calamity. Leaving early will count as an absence; extreme or repeated tardiness will also count against your grade.

I do not accept graded course work after the class period for which the assignment is due. I do not accept emailed assignments (NO EXCEPTIONS); please plan ahead so that you successfully print your work before class. “Make up” exams and late essays will be accepted, at my discretion, only for a documented excused absence due to illness, death or severe illness in your family, an unavoidable calamity, or a documented school-sponsored activity in which you are officially representing NMSU. No other excuses will be accepted, period. If you anticipate an absence that does not fall within this make-up policy, I always accept assignments early.

Extra Credit

Extra credit may be earned by attending special programs announced in class over the course of the semester and writing a one-page response paper. Each of these events will be worth up 5 points of extra credit. You may earn up to a total of 20 extra credit points.

Plagiarism Policy

I have zero tolerance for plagiarism. Plagiarism is defined as representing someone else’s work as your own. This includes, but is not necessarily limited to, submitting examinations, papers, or reports that have been prepared by someone else, copied from someone else (including books, encyclopedias, and websites), or downloaded from the Internet, in part or in whole. Even with a citation, failure to put quotation marks around direct quotations constitutes plagiarism, because it implies that the writing is your own. Material should either be paraphrased or clearly designated as a quotation. Note that replacing words with synonyms, changing verb tense or other minor alterations do not qualify as paraphrasing. All parties involved in the submission of plagiarized or copied work are equally guilty of academic misconduct under all circumstances.

Any student found guilty of plagiarism will, at a minimum, receive in an F on the assignment and may be expelled from the course (with a grade of F). In the event that you are expelled from the course for plagiarism, I will send a letter documenting your academic misconduct to the dean of student affairs for your college. You may also be subjected to further disciplinary action under the Student Code of Conduct in the NMSU Student Handbook.

Withdrawals from the Course

If you choose not to attend this course or complete all the assignments, it is your responsibility to withdraw before October 16 to avoid an F on your transcript. I will not administratively withdraw you, despite persistent absences or persistent failure to complete assignments.

Classroom Etiquette

Please turn off cell phones and beepers while in class and keep them tucked away—this is university policy and my pet peeve. Ringing cell phones disturb your classmates and me. Never answer the phone or make a call in class. Please do not text message during class. Repeated failure to turn off your cell phone may result in dismissal from the classroom. Please also avoid chatting with your neighbor in class; the students around you find this annoying, and so do I.

WEEKLY LECTURES AND ASSIGNMENTS

Week 1: Introduction

Th • (Aug. 23): Introduction

Week 2: From Frontier to West

T • (Aug. 28): Frederick Jackson Turner and the American Frontier

Th • (Aug. 30): The View from Council Bluffs: Mapping the West

Reading Assignment:

            White, It’s Your Misfortune, Chapter 1

            Major Problems in the History of the American West:

Chapter 1, pp. 2-14

Week 3: Exploration and Empire

T • (Sept. 4): The Explorations of Louis and Clark

Th • (Sept. 6): Louis and Clark and the Indians

Reading Assignment:

            White, It’s Your Misfortune, Chapters 2 and 5

            Major Problems in the History of the American West:

            Chapter 4, pp. 117-122

Week 4: Pathfinders

T • (Sept. 11): The Fur trade

Th • (Sept. 13): Cultural Encounters/Map quiz #1

Reading Assignment:

            Major Problems in the History of the American West:

            Chapter 3 (entire)

Week 5: Contested Terrain

T • (Sept. 18): Indian Removal and the Creation of Indian Territory

            Proposal for final paper due

Th• (Sept. 20): Remembering the Alamo

            Assignment of parts for role play

Reading Assignment:

            White, It’s Your Misfortune, Chapters 3 (entire) and 4 (pp. 85-94)

            Begin reading: Elliott West, The Contested Plains (due in three weeks)

Week 6:  American Imperialism

T • (Sept. 25):  Mexican War/Review Session

Th• (Sept. 27): Role play on Mexican War

Reading Assignment:

            Continue reading: West, Contested Plains

            Major Problems in the History of the American West (for role play):

Mexican General Mariano Arista’s Advice to the Soldiers of the U.S. Army,” pp. 157-58

Charles DeMorse, A Texan’s View of War with Mexico,” Northern Standard, pp. 159-60

            John C. Calhoun, Opposes Incorporating Mexico, pp. 160-62

            John A. Dix, Advocates Expansion onto Mexican Lands,” 162-63

            On-Line (for role play):

            Philip St. George Cooke, excerpt from Conquest of New Mexico and California

            Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, “Manifesto”

            Ramón Martínez Caro, “True Account of the First Texas Campaign”

            Special Collections, Branson Library (for role play):

            Origins of the Mexican War: A Documentary Source Book (E407 .O74 1982)

            Vol. 1:

                        Wilson Shannon to James Buchanan, 6 April 1845, pp. 8-10

                        Luis Cuevas to Tomás Murphy, 30 July 1845, pp. 17-19

                        Tomás Murphy to Manuel de la Peña y Peña, 1 Oct. 1845, pp. 40-45

                        Thomas Larkin to James Buchanan, 10 July 1845, pp. 67-69

                        Aaron Leggett, to William Marcy, 16 Oct. 1845, pp. 69-71

                        James Buchanan to Thomas Larkin, 17 Oct. 1845, pp. 71-75

                        James Buchanan to John Slidell, 10 Nov. 1845, pp. 97-110

                        Pedro Maria Anaya to Manuel de la Peña y Peña, 2 Dec. 1845, pp. 143-46

Circular to Departmental Governors from Manuel de la Peña y Peña, 11 Dec. 1845, pp. 150-166

            Vol. 2

                        John Slidell to Manuel de la Peña y Peña, 24 Dec. 1845, pp. 29-36

                        Editorial, El Tiempo, 5 Feb. 1846, pp. 53-56

                        Proclamation of President Mariano Paredes, 21 March 1846, pp. 91-93

Salvador Bermúdez de Castro to Spanish Prime Minister, 29 March 1846, pp. 96-98

                        Proclamation of Mariano Arista, 20 April 1846, pp. 122-23

                        Lt. George B. Meade to Mrs. Meade, 21 April 1846, pp. 124-26

            GRADUATE STUDENTS ONLY:

            Thomas R. Hietala, “The Myths of Manifest Destiny,” pp. 169-181.

            John Whitehead, “Hawai’i: The First and Last Far West?” pp. 182-194.

Week 7: Midterm Week

T • (Oct. 2): Midterm Exam

Th • (Oct. 4): NO CLASS

Reading Assignment:

            Elliott West, Contested Plains (due next week)

Week 8: Staking Claims

T • (Oct. 9): The Mother Lode

Th • (Oct. 11): Mining Communities/Discussing of Contested Plains

Analytical paper on Contested Plains due

Reading Assignment:

            White, It’s Your Misfortune, Chapter 11

            Elliott West, The Contested Plains (entire)

Week 9: Westering

T • (Oct. 16): Emigrant Trails

Th • (Oct. 18): Theocracy in a Desert Enclave

Reading Assignment:

            White, It’s Your Misfortune, Chapters 7 (pp. 163-169) and 8

             Major Problems in the History of the American West:

            Chapter 8, pp. 270-73

            Carol Cornwall Madsen, “Utah Law and the Plural Wives, 1850-1900,” pp. 285-294

Week 10: Iron Trails West

T • (Oct. 23): Surveying the West/Map Quiz #2

Th • (Oct. 25): The Iron Road (documentary)

Mandatory meeting to discuss final paper this week, by appt.

Reading Assignment:

            White, It’s Your Misfortune, Chapter 10

            Begin reading: John Neihardt, Black Elk Speaks (due next week)

            Major Problems in the History of the American West:

            Chapter 9, pp. 304-312

Week 11: Bloody, Hallowed Ground

          T • (Oct. 30): Civil War and the West

Th • (Nov. 1): A Savage Little War/ Discussion of Black Elk Speaks

Analytical paper on Black Elk Speaks due

Reading Assignment:

            White, It’s Your Misfortune, Chapter 7 (pp. 155-163, 169-177)

            John Neihardt, Black Elk Speaks (entire)

Week 12: Reconstructing the West

T • (Nov. 6): Ranchers and Cowboys

            Screening of Heartland, 4-6 p.m.

Th • (Nov. 8): Sodbusters

Reading Assignment:

            White, It’s Your Misfortune, Chapters 6 and 9 (pp. 212-227)

            Elinore Pruitt Stewart, Letters of a Woman Homesteader (entire; due next week)

Week 13: Revolution and Revolt

M • (Nov. 13): Nature’s Metropolis

W • (Nov. 15): The Farmers’ Revolt/Discussion of Letters of a Woman Homesteader and Heartland

            Comparison paper for Letters of a Woman Homesteader and Heartland due

Reading Assignment:

            White, It’s Your Misfortune, Chapter 9 (pp. 227-235) and Chapter 14 (pp. 370-377)

            Finish Letters of a Woman Homesteader

NOVEMBER 19-23   THANKSGIVING BREAK

Week 14: The Western Landscape

T • (Nov. 27): Down the River

Final Projects due

Th • (Nov. 29): Western Tourism/Review session

Reading Assignment:

            Larry McMurtry, Buffalo Girls (entire, due next week)

Week 15: Print the Legend

T • (Dec. 4): Legend of Billy the Kid

Th • (Dec. 6):  Wild West/Discussion of Buffalo Girls

            Response paper on Buffalo Girls  due

Reading assignment:

            White, It’s Your Misfortune, Chapters 13 and 21

            Larry McMurtry, Buffalo Girls (entire)

Week 16: Imagined West

Th • (Dec. 13; 8:00-10:00) Final Exam