Free University Project - CLEP American History II Study Guide

The Free University Project

American History II

Updated Feb 23, 2002

1865 to the Present

NOTE: You have reached this page either through a search engine, reference link, or bookmark that is now out of date. The New URL for the Study Guide for History of the United States II, updated October 2006, with optional on-demand video programming (broadband) from Annenberg/CPB, is now www.freeuniv.com/lect/hus2sg.htm. Please change your bookmarks accordingly. -- js

The material covered in the CLEP exam in American History II: 1865 to the Present (which is reflected in the lecture notes and study guide which follow) is generally considered equivalent to a two semester lower division college course.

Exam type:
CLEP: 120 multiple choice questions in 90 minutes
Typical credits: 3 units
GRE: 220 multiple choice questions
Typical credit: 12 - 18 units

For more details about the GRE click here.

The CLEP Exam

NOTE: There is at least one 30 lecture series as well as a series of 28 lecture notes, detailed outline notes, an abridged text and an outline text, chapter summaries, quiz and primary source material available on-line that relate to the CLEP Exam. I have drawn from these and suggested readings that seem to reflect the content required on the CLEP. Featured faculty and their home pages can be found at the end of this page.
(I didn't promise you a rose garden. See disclaimer.)
This suggested study guide is based on the above, plus a small selection from the hundreds of American History-related links on the Web.

Getting Started

Here is one way that you can begin. (If you haven't read a general step-by-step guide, this might be a good time. See also How to Budget Your Time)
A) Spend at least two sessions with a good encyclopedia (United States of America - History). [The Encyclopedia Brittanica is now available free.You might also want to go through the section on Government. If you have not recently studied the period from 1820 throught the Civil War, you might want to review that at this time.
B) As you read this material draw up a list for future cross referencing. This list would contain the names of prominent individuals, Supreme Court decisions, laws, amendments to the Constitution, major events (eg. The Spanish America War), political parties, industries, etc. The list will provide a useful outline for review, and you can look up the other references as you fill in your regular study sessions.
C) Quickly review the titles of linked sites in the Study Guide which follows so you can have an overview of the course.
D) You can use any standard textbook published within the last 8-10 years (frequently available for just a few dollars at a thrift shop or used book store). You will also need to obtain a book of sample tests. (See the Bookstore.)

Using the Free University Project Study Guide

This Study Guide divides the course into approximately 60 study sessions, about 90 minutes each with review sessions spaced fairly evenly. In order to stay focused, only follow those links within the lectures and outlines that seem to be directly related to the subject matter at hand. Follow other links as you have time. Take your own notes. If you print out the material, highlight key definitions and concepts for review. Add your own marginal notes.
Remember to keep your diary up to date.

Study Guide

Introduction

NOTE:For a painless way to learn history, spend 15 minutes every day at The American Memory site The American Memory and click on Today in History
Also look at:
The History Channel and click on This Day in History
Subject matter covered according to The College Board. Always check the College Board site for the latest information.

Political institutions and behavior and public policy 50%
Social and economic change 15%
Cultural and intellectual development 15%
Diplomacy and international relations 20%

About one-third of the questions deal with the period from 1865 to 1914, and about two-thirds deal with the period from 1915 to the present.
Among the specific topics tested are the following:

The motivations and character of American expansionism
The content of constitutional amendments and their interpretations by the Supreme Court
The development of American political parties
The emergence of regulatory and welfare-state legislation
The intellectual and political expressions of liberalism, conservatism, and other movements
Long term demographic trends
The process of economic growth and development
The changing occupational structure, nature of work, and labor organization
Immigration and the history of racial and ethnic minorities
Urbanization
The causes and impacts of major wars in American history
Major movements and individual figures in the history of American arts and letters

In order to put the material you are going to study in perspective, print out and review the annotated syllabus of 30 lectures of the course American History 102 by Prof. Stanley K. Schultz of the University of Wisconsin. (NOTE: There are good related links at the end of each lecture.)

Study Sessions 1/2:
[The Aftermath of the Civil War (Messer-Kruse)]
Lecture 1: Reconstruction in the Nation (Schultz)
[Reconstruction North and South (Messer-Kruse)]
(O'Malley)
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 16: The Union Reconstructed (Nash)

Study Sessions 3/4:
Lecture 2: The New South (Schultz)
[Black Labor in the South (Messer-Kruse)]

For more on Reconstruction see these two annotated timelines:
A Timeline of Reconstruction: 1865-1877 (O'Malley)
Timelines of the Reconstruction (anonymous) expands the period of Reconstruction and runs from 1861-1909.
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 17: The Realities of Rural America (Nash)

Study Session 5:
Lecture 3: Which "Old West" and Whose? (Schultz)
[The American West (Messer-Kruse)]
[The Other West (Messer-Kruse)]
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

American West (Rankin)

Study Session 6:
Review Session (Go over previous material, follow additional links, answer study questions available in your textbook, look up specific items in an encyclopedia)
Suggested Reading:
Browse The American West page. Also follow links to Native American sites.

Bookmark and print out The Development of Modern America: A Browsing Anthology. Intersperse the readings with the appropriate study sessions that follow.
You will also want to look at the special features from The American Experience Click on Web Site Archive and scroll down to Complete Archive.

Study Session 7:
Lecture 4: The Gilded Age and the Politics of Corruption (Schultz)
[Gilded Age Politics (Messer-Kruse)]
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

Farmer's Revolt (Rankin)
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 18: The Rise of Smokestack America (Nash)

Study Sessions 8/9:
Lecture 5: Businessmen and "That Creature" the Corporation (Schultz)
[Gilded Age Economics (Messer-Kruse)]
Chapter 7: Outline of American History
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

Rise of Big Business (Rankin)

Study Session 10:
Lecture 6: The Social Philsophy of American Businessmen (Schultz)
[Culture and Thought in the Gilded Age (Messer-Kruse)]
Read
Henry George Progress and Poverty

Related Documents:

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART VI: ON THE ROAD FROM SLAVERY TO FREEDOM

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART V: INDUSTRIAL AMERICA

Study Session 11:
Review Session (Go over previous material, follow additional links, answer study questions available in your textbook, look up specific items in an encyclopedia)
Suggested Reading:
William Jennings Bryan, The Cross of Gold
Lincoln Steffens, Enemies of the Republic
Theodore Roosevelt, The Trusts, The People, and the Square Deal
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 19: Politics and Reform (Nash)

Study Session 12:
Lecture 7: Labor and the Worker's Search for Power (Schultz)
[Industrialization and the Worker (Messer-Kruse)]
Read about Eugene Debs and the Pullman Strike
Industrial Labor (O'Malley)

Study Session 13:
Lecture 8: Foreign Immigrants in Industrial America (Schultz)
History Channel Series:
The History Channel has changed format. For the following go to The History Channel and enter the keywords in the Search box.

Ellis Island

Ellis Island: Part one

Ellis Island: Part two

Ellis Island: Part three
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

American Imperialism (Rankin)
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 20: Becoming a World Power (Nash)

Study Session 14:
Lecture 9: The Great Migration; Blacks in White America (Schultz)
[Populism and Jim Crow (Messer-Kruse)]

Study Session 15:
Lecture 10: How Ya' Gonna' Keep Em Down on the Farm: The Rise of Populism (Schultz)
Chapter 8: Discontent and Reform Outline of American History
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 21: The Progressives Confront Industrial Capitalism (Nash)

Study Session 16:
Lecture 11: The Dawn of Liberalism: Progressivism (Schultz)
[Progressivism (Messer-Kruse)]
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

Progressivism (Rankin)
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

Progressive Presidents (Rankin)

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART X: A MORE INCLUSIVE AMERICA

Study Session 17:
Review Session (Go over previous material, follow additional links, answer study questions available in your textbook, look up specific items in an encyclopedia)
Suggested Reading:
Read selections from Who Built America

Study Session 18:
Lecture 12: The Policeman of the World (Schultz)
[The Origins of the American Empire (Messer-Kruse)]
Imperialism (O'Malley)
History Channel Series:
The History Channel has changed format. For the Following go to The History Channel and enter the keywords in the Search box.

Modern Marvels: The Statue of Liberty

Theodore Roosevelt: Roughrider to Rushmore

Study Sessions 19/20:
Lecture 13: Roosevelt, Wilson, and the Morality of Power (Schultz)
[The Origins of World War I (Messer-Kruse)]
[Woodrow Wilson's Global Vision (Messer-Kruse)]
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

The US in World War I (Rankin)
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 22: The Great War (Nash)
History Channel Series:
The History Channel has changed format. For the Following go to The History Channel and enter the keywords in the Search box.

November Warriors Part Two: Trial by Fire from Lincoln to Woodrow Wilson

Study Session 21:
Lecture 14: Women, Feminism and Sex in Progressive America (Schultz)
[World War I and its Aftermath (Messer-Kruse)]
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

The United States After World War I (Rankin)
Free Speech (O'Malley)
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 23: Affluence and Anxiety (Nash)

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART VII: Freedom of Expression

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART VIII: Facing the World

Study Session 22:
Review Session (Go over previous material, follow additional links, answer study questions available in your textbook, look up specific items in an encyclopedia)
Suggested Reading:
Browse The Great War
and World War I document archives

Study Session 23:
Take a sample CLEP exam. Answer all questions pertaining to the time period from 1865 to World War I. Make notes of areas of weakness for further review.

Study Session 24:
Chapter 9: War, Prosperity and Depression Outline of American History
Lecture 15: The Politics of Prosperity: The 1920's (Schultz)

Study Session 25:
Lecture 16: The Politics of Frustration: The 1920's (Schultz)

Study Session 26:
Lecture 17: The Politics of Prohibition: The 1920's (Schultz)
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

The Roaring Twenties (Rankin)

Study Sessions 27/28:
Lecture 18: The Crash and the Great Depression (Schultz)
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

The Great Depression (Rankin)

Study Session 29:
Lecture 19: The Great Depression and the New Deal (Schultz)
[The Great Depression and the New Deal (Messer-Kruse)]
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

The New Deal (Rankin)
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 24: The Great Depression and The New Deal (Nash)

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART VII: Freedom of Expression

Photos of the 1930s (O'Malley)

Study Session 30:
Review Session (Go over previous material, follow additional links, answer study questions available in your textbook, look up specific items in an encyclopedia)

Study Session 31:
Lecture 20: Dr. New Deal and Dr. Win-the-War (Schultz)
[From Relief to Reform - the Second New Deal (Messer-Kruse)]
Chapter 10: The New Deal and World War Outline of American History
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

Interventionism (Rankin)

Study Sessions 32/33:
Lecture 21: World War II: The Home Front (Schultz)
[World War II (Messer-Kruse)]
Browse World War II documents
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

World War II (Rankin)
Hiroshima (O'Malley)
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 25: World War II
History Channel Series:

Cartoons Go to War

Study Sessions 34/35:
Lecture 22: From New Deal to Fair Deal: New Deal or Same Shuffle? (Schultz)
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 26: Postwar Growth and Social Change (Nash)

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART VII: Freedom of Expression

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART VIII: Facing the World

Study Session 36:
Review Session (Go over previous material, follow additional links, answer study questions available in your textbook, look up specific items in an encyclopedia)
Suggested Reading:

Study Session 37:
Take a sample test answering all questions covering the period from 1865 to World War II. Check your answers and note sections for review.

Study Session 38:
Lecture 23: The Coils of Cold War (Schultz)
[The Origins of the Cold War Messer-Kruse)]
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

Beginning of the Cold War (Rankin)

Study Sessions 39/40:
Lecture 24: The Cold War and the 1950's: The Affluent Society (Schultz)
[The Conformist 50's (Messer-Kruse)]
Chapter 11: Postwar America Outline of American History
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 27: Chills and Fever During the Cold War (Nash)

Study Session 41/42:
Lecture 25: Eisenhower & Kennedy (Schultz)
[JFK (Messer-Kruse)]
History Channel Series:
The History Channel has changed format. For the Following go to The History Channel and enter the keywords in the Search box.

November Warriors Part Three: The New Arena from Hoover to the Kennedy Assassination

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART IX: COLD WAR ISSUES

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART X: A MORE INCLUSIVE AMERICA

Study Session 43:
Review Session (Go over previous material, follow additional links, answer study questions available in your textbook, look up specific items in an encyclopedia)

Study Sessions 44/45:
[The Other America (Messer-Kruse)]
Lecture 26: Civil Rights in an Uncivil Society (Schultz)
[The Civil Rights Movement (Messer-Kruse)]
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 28: High Water and Ebb Tide of the Liberal State (Nash)
History Channel Series:
The History Channel has changed format. For the Following go to The History Channel and enter the keywords in the Search box.

November Warriors Part Four: The Modern Campaign

Study Sessions 46/47:
Lecture 27: The Almost Great Society: The 1960's (Schultz)
Chapter 12: Decades of Change Outline of American History
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 29: The Struggle for Social Reform (Nash)

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART X: A MORE INCLUSIVE AMERICA

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART VI: ON THE ROAD FROM SLAVERY TO FREEDOM

Study Session 48:
Review Session (Go over previous material, follow additional links, answer study questions available in your textbook, look up specific items in an encyclopedia)
Suggested Reading:
Martin Luther King, Jr. papers at Stanford University (i.d. and password are "king" and "king").

Study Session 49:
Take a full sample exam. (This will take at least 90 minutes.)

Study Session 50:
Review your answers to the exam. Note areas of weakness for further review.

Study Sessions 51/52:
Lecture 28: The Asian Connection: The Road to Vietnam (Schultz)
[Vietnam (Messer-Kruse)]
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

Kennedy and Johnson (Vietnam War) (Rankin)
Vietnam (O'Malley)

Study Sessions 53/54:
Lecture 29: The Twilight of Liberalism: The Nixon Years (Schultz)

Study Session 55:
Lecture 30: America Sinking Through a Watergate (Schultz)
[Nixon and Watergate (Messer-Kruse)]
On-line Lecture Notes - detailed outline

Post Nixon America (Rankin)

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART VII: Freedom of Expression

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART VI: ON THE ROAD FROM SLAVERY TO FREEDOM

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART VII: Freedom of Expression

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART VIII: Facing the World

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART IX: COLD WAR ISSUES 61. Democracy and Foreign Policy (1990)
Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART X: A MORE INCLUSIVE AMERICA

Study Session 56:
Review Session (Go over previous material, follow additional links, answer study questions available in your textbook, look up specific items in an encyclopedia)
Suggested Reading:
Browse Vietnam: Yesterday and Today

Study Sessions 57/58:
[The New World Order of Reagan and Bush (Messer-Kruse)]
[What Next? (Messer-Kruse)]
Chapter 13: Toward the 21st Century Outline of American History
Anita Hill (O'Malley)
On-line Chapter Summary, Quiz, and Primary Sources

Chapter 30: The Revival of Conservatism (Nash)

Study Sessions 59/60:

Basic Reading in U.S. Democracy
PART XI: CONTINUING VITALITY

Study Session 61:
Review Session (Go over previous material, follow additional links, answer study questions available in your textbook, look up specific items in an encyclopedia)

Suggested Reading:
Atlantic Monthly article: In The Strawberry Fields.

Study Session 62:
Take a timed full sample test.

Study Session 63:
Review your answers and make notes of areas of weakness for further review.

Links to faculty home pages
NOTE: Please don't bug the professors. They have been generous enough just by taking the time and effort to put their material on the Web. And please don't e-mail responses to their tests. Such responses are limited to students actually enrolled in the class.

[The Aftermath of the Civil War (Messer-Kruse)]
Lecture 1: Reconstruction in the Nation (Schultz)

Related On-Line Texts
Henry Demarest Lloyd, "How the Other Half Lives,"

Selected Internet Resources

Timeline of American History at the National Museum of American History. Click on Virtual Exhibitions.

Douglass Archives of American Public Address archive of American oratory from Northwestern University.
Speeches arranged chronologically.
Personal Accounts and Primary Source Materials from Miami University of Ohio.

Offline Resources

CD-ROM Time Almanac of the 20th Century (can often be found at discount)

Good Luck!

and let us know how you are doing.

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Created:: Oct. 15, 1997
Last Update: Feb. 23, 2002