Why was the Emancipation Proclamation important? While the Civil War began as a war to restore the Union, not to end slavery, by 1862 President Abraham Lincoln came to believe that he could save the Union only by broadening the goals of the war. Students can explore the obstacles and alternatives America faced in making the journey toward "a more perfect Union."

An even-handed description of carpetbaggers and scalawags, particularly in regard to their beneficial activities in Arkansas.

Read about the so-called Redeemers, whose actions returned the Democratic Party to power in the southern states at the end of Reconstruction. Find out how they rolled back the legislation put into effect by the Republicans as a result of the Congressional Reconstruction Acts.

In this activity students consider different viewpoints on whether former slaves should be given land at the end of the Civil War. Students read one of five primary sources and summarize the author's viewpoint. This activity makes a good introduction to a unit on Reconstruction or to sum up a unit on the Civil War. This activity was designed to help students with language processing challenges synthesize historical documents.

This video segment from The Supreme Court introduces viewers to the 14th amendment.

This collection uses primary sources to explore the history, successes, and failures of the Freedmen's Bureau during Reconstruction. Digital Public Library of America Primary Source Sets are designed to help students develop their critical thinking skills and draw diverse material from libraries, archives, and museums across the United States. Each set includes an overview, ten to fifteen primary sources, links to related resources, and a teaching guide. These sets were created and reviewed by the teachers on the DPLA's Education Advisory Committee.

Here, read a summary of the life and career of Andrew Jackson, the 7th U.S. President. Part of a larger site about Andrew Jackson's presidency.

This site contains an index of several articles pertaining to Andrew Jackson and his dealings with the Second Bank of the United States and his fiscal policies.

The complete text of the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms, ratified July 6,1775.

Browse U.S. historical documents according to historical period or search documents via search engine.W.11-12.9b US Doc Analysis

Here you will find the primary source text of the case and the opinions of the Supreme Court Justices in the Scott v Sandford case which ultimately ruled on the constitutionality of the Missouri Compromise.

This site from the American Revolution Project discusses the state of the union at the end of the Revolutionary War and how the events of the time led to the failure of the Continental Congress and the Articles of Confederation.

Read George Washington's two inaugural speeches and his Annual Messages which give an interesting review of the beginning of the new United States. Included are links to some other writings of Washington and an 1808 biography.

This resource provides texts to James Monroe's inaugural addresses and State of the Union addresses. The Monroe Doctrine text is from his 7th annual address to Congress. Links are provided for each of the other presidents, as well.

Read the inaugural address of John Adams and his speech to the Congress concerning the XYZ Affair. Be sure to read his State of the Nation Address in 1800, the first delivered in Washington, D.C., the new capital.

This essay describes the purposes and effects of the National Bank Acts of 1863 and 1864.

During this period of American history, the presidents were in agreement, but the Republican party had some differences. This resource provides an explanation of those differences.

This article presents the second part of the history of the Whig Party to find out why the issue of slavery brought about its demise.

This site provides a brief description of the events surrounding the 20's and the Great Depression in the United States.