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Illustration of a scene with two seated figures, surrounded by six people and animals, depicting a cultural or historical event.
Historic map of Port of Louis depicting settlements, land features, and numbered structures along a river.
Map showing tribal lands during King Philip's War, including names of tribes and geographic regions in the northeastern US.
A historic gathering of military leaders listening to a speech, depicted in a rustic interior setting.

Decision Points – Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness

37 items

Illustration of a scene with two seated figures, surrounded by six people and animals, depicting a cultural or historical event.
Montezuma and Cortés
Essay - 2376 Words

Essay

2376 Words

In this section, you will explain the causes of exploration and conquest of the New World by various European nations and explain how and why European and Native American perspectives of others developed and changed in the period.
Historic map of Port of Louis depicting settlements, land features, and numbered structures along a river.
Pilgrims to the New World
Essay - 2093 Words

Essay

2093 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain how and why various European colonies developed and expanded from 1607 to 1754 and explain how and why environmental and other factors shaped the development and expansion of various British colonies that developed and expanded from 1607 to 1754.
Map showing tribal lands during King Philip's War, including names of tribes and geographic regions in the northeastern US.
King Philip’s War
Essay - 2030 Words

Essay

2030 Words

In this section, you will explain causes of the Columbian Exchange and its effect on Europe and the Americas during the period after 1492.
A historic gathering of military leaders listening to a speech, depicted in a rustic interior setting.
George Washington at Newburgh
Essay - 3004 Words

Essay

3004 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain how various factors contributed to the American victory in the Revolution.
On the left, a painting shows five Patriots tarring and feathering the Commissioner of Customs, John Malcolm. One Patriot forcibly pours tea from a teapot into Malcolm’s mouth. In the background, the Boston Tea Party and the Liberty Tree are visible. On the Liberty Tree hangs an upside-down paper labeled “Stamp Act.” On the right, an engraving shows a merchant signing a non-importation agreement outdoors on a makeshift table of barrels, surrounded by a crowd of stern-looking people holding thick sticks. Behind him, another man, forcibly held by a group of threatening-looking men, is apparently next in line to sign the agreement. In the background, a bag of tar and a bag of feathers hang from a wooden structure.
Loyalist vs. Patriot
Essay - 2696 Words

Essay

2696 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain how British colonial policies regarding North America led to the Revolutionary War and explain how various factors contributed to the American victory in the Revolution.
Historical painting of ships in a harbor, featuring various flags and a cloudy sky.
Signing the Declaration of Independence
Essay - 2926 Words

Essay

2926 Words

A colored engraving of the Maryland State House in Annapolis, featuring a prominent cupola and surrounding buildings.
The Annapolis Convention
Essay - 2864 Words

Essay

2864 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain how different forms of government developed and changed as a result of the Revolutionary Period.
Handwritten historical document with signatures and text detailing Thomas Paine's petition.
Robert Carter and Manumission
Essay - 1994 Words

Essay

1994 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the continuities and changes in regional attitudes about slavery as it expanded from 1754 to 1800.
Historic illustration of a street with horse-drawn carriages and three-story buildings, featuring trees and pedestrians.
The Compromise of 1790
Essay - 2414 Words

Essay

2414 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain how and why political ideas, institutions, and party systems developed and changed in the new republic.
A portrait of Edmond Charles Genet.
George Washington and the Proclamation of Neutrality
Essay - 2486 Words

Essay

2486 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain how and why competition intensified conflicts among peoples and nations from 1754 to 1800.
A seated man with gray hair and a beard holds a book, dressed in 19th-century formal clothing.
Marbury v. Madison
Essay - 2511 Words

Essay

2511 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the causes and effects of policy debates in the early republic.
A political cartoon of three men on a cliff and a man under the cliff, representing New England states, wondering whether to jump (commit treason), while the British monarch, shown separated from the men by water, encourages them to jump off the cliff.
The Hartford Convention
Essay - 2255 Words

Essay

2255 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the causes and effects of policy debates in the early republic.
Black and white portrait of a man in formal attire with curly hair and a slight smile.
The Missouri Compromise
Essay - 2488 Words

Essay

2488 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain how different regional interests affected debates about the role of the federal government in the early republic.
Black and white portrait of a man in formal attire, looking directly at the camera.
John Quincy Adams and the Gag Rule
Essay - 2187 Words

Essay

2187 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain how different regional interests affected debates about the role of the federal government in the early republic.
Cartoon of three men fighting a monstrous snake-like creature with multiple human heads. The man on the left holds a cane that says “veto” on it. The man on the right has dropped his axe.
Andrew Jackson’s Veto of the National Bank
Essay - 2903 Words

Essay

2903 Words

Four miners stand by a stream, panning for gold with tools and equipment in a rocky landscape.
Migration West
Essay - 2007 Words

Essay

2007 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the causes and effects of westward expansion from 1844 to 1877.
A historic battle scene featuring soldiers in uniform, cannons, and chaos amidst smoke and hills.
To Go to War with Mexico?
Essay - 2458 Words

Essay

2458 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the causes and effects of westward expansion from 1844 to 1877.
Painting of a wagon train surrounded by mountains on the right, trees on the left, and animals all around.
The Oregon Question: 54-40 or Fight?
Essay - 2641 Words

Essay

2641 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the causes and effects of westward expansion from 1844 to 1877.
Map of the states and territories of the United States, showing the panhandle of present-day Oklahoma as disputed (labeled “neutral strip”); Mexico as a small strip of what is currently southern Arizona and southwest New Mexico; territories of Oregon, Utah, New Mexico, Unorganized, and Minnesota; slave states of Texas and those east to the Atlantic and north to Missouri, Kentucky, Virginia, Maryland, and Delaware; and non-slave states as Iowa and Wisconsin, and all remaining states to the east (and north of the indicated slave states).
The Compromise of 1850
Essay - 2573 Words

Essay

2573 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the similarities and differences in how regional attitudes affected federal policy in the period after the Mexican–American War.
A historic painting of Abraham Lincoln with seven men in a room, seated around a table with documents.
Abraham Lincoln and Emancipation
Essay - 2746 Words

Essay

2746 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain how Lincoln’s leadership during the Civil War impacted American ideals over the course of the war
An image of Union general Ulysses S. Grant and Confederate commander Robert E. Lee at Appomattox Court House as they agree to terms of Lee’s surrender
Grant and Lee at Appomattox
Essay - 2057 Words

Essay

2057 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the various factors that contributed to the Union victory in the Civil War.
Political cartoon depicting Andrew Johnson's Reconstruction policies with various scenes of citizens and protests.
The Impeachment of Andrew Johnson
Essay - 2481 Words

Essay

2481 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the effects of government policy during Reconstruction on society from 1865 to 1877.
Image shows a crowd of American men beating Chinese men in the street and destroying their property.
The Chinese Exclusion Act
Essay - 2373 Words

Essay

2373 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain how cultural and economic factors affected migration patterns over time.
A large crowd gathered at a political convention with speakers and tables in a historic venue.
The Election of 1912
Essay - 2419 Words

Essay

2419 Words

By the end of this section, you will compare the goals and effects of the Progressive reform movement.
Group portrait of military personnel in uniforms, standing and seated on grass in a wooded area.
The Treaty of Versailles
Essay - 2741 Words

Essay

2741 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the causes and consequences of U.S. involvement in World War I.
Burning structures with firefighters, smoke rising, and the U.S. Capitol dome visible in the background.
The Bonus Army
Essay - 2140 Words

Essay

2140 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the causes of the Great Depression and its effects on the economy.
Historical black and white photo of three men seated outdoors in wicker chairs, with greenery in the background.
Dropping the Atomic Bomb
Essay - 2638 Words

Essay

2638 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the causes and effects of the victory of the United States and its allies over the Axis Powers.
Mao Zedong delivering a speech with several officials at a historic ceremony. Black and white photograph.
Truman Intervenes in Korea
Essay - 2322 Words

Essay

2322 Words

By the end of this section, you will explain the continuities and changes in Cold War policies from 1945 to 1980.
A man in a military uniform speaks at a podium with microphones, addressing a crowd in a historical setting.
Truman Fires General Douglas MacArthur
Essay - 3421 Words

Essay

3421 Words

Map depicting the Anglo-French invasion during the Sinai campaign, showing troop movements and locations, November 1956.
Eisenhower and the Suez Canal Crisis
Essay - 2453 Words

Essay

2453 Words

By the end of the section, you will explain the various military and diplomatic responses to international developments over time.
A man stands on a car, addressing a crowd of people at an outdoor event, with trees in the background.
Protests at the University of California, Berkeley
Essay - 2596 Words

Essay

2596 Words

What sparked the Berkeley Free Speech Movement?
Black and white photo of a girl and a boy holding peace symbol armbands.
Free Speech and the Student Anti-War Movement
Essay - 2057 Words

Essay

2057 Words

Explores the impact of students on the anti-war movement.
Two men engaged in a serious conversation, one leaning forward and the other looking down, in a formal setting.
Lyndon B. Johnson’s Decision Not to Run in 1968
Essay - 2123 Words

Essay

2123 Words

Why did LBJ decide not to run for president in 1968?
Black and white portrait of a woman with short, curly hair, smiling, wearing a dark jacket with a white collar.
Barbara Jordan and Watergate
Essay - 2306 Words

Essay

2306 Words

Ronald Reagan speaking at the Brandenburg Gate with flags in the background.
“Tear Down This Wall”: Ronald Reagan and the End of the Cold War
Essay - 2586 Words

Essay

2586 Words

How did President Reagan help win the Cold War?
Military personnel unloading supplies from a Navy helicopter on a grassy airstrip under overcast skies.
U.S. Foreign Policy in Somalia and Rwanda
Essay - 2697 Words

Essay

2697 Words

How did U.S. foreign policy change after the Cold War?
A group of men, including Afghan leaders, meeting with U.S. officials in a formal sitting room.
U.S. Military Intervention in Afghanistan
Essay - 2320 Words

Essay

2320 Words

Explores the war on terror in Afghanistan.