Research Paper 

You will use the link above to submit your Research Paper.

Note: Before  beginning this assignment, read through information contained in the  Scholastic Honesty link in the course menu to the left.

The  core assignment of this course is a documented research paper  (excluding title, bibliography, citations, etc., a minimum of 3 full  pages double spaced, 12-point font, Times New Roman).

• The paper should support a thesis statement with information gained from research or investigation.
• The  paper will not be just a report presenting information, but will be a  paper that carefully examines and presents your own historical  interpretation of the topic you have chosen and your interpretation of  the information you have gathered.
• The  paper may include consideration of problems and solutions, define key  terms, or refute arguments against your thesis statement.

It  will be important to choose a topic of interest to you.  See list below  for some possible topics.  This topics should be used as a starting  point.  Narrow your topic further to something manageable for a 3-4 page paper.

• Approach this assignment with an open and skeptical mind, then form an opinion based on what you have discovered.
• You  must suspend belief while you are investigating and let the discoveries  shape your opinion. (This is a thesis-finding approach.)
• Once you have found your thesis, write the paper to support it.

You will use some of the following critical thinking skills in this process:

1. Choosing an appropriate topic, limiting the topic
2. Gathering information, summarizing sources
3. Analyzing and evaluating sources
4. Defining key terms
5. Synthesizing information, comparing and contrasting sources
6. Testing a thesis, making a historical argument, using refutation
7. Amassing support for a position
8. Documenting sources

Because  this may be a longer paper than you have written before and a complex  process is involved, it is recommended that you complete this paper  using the following steps:

1. Choose  a topic related to U.S. History up to 1877 (Chapters 1-15) that you  would truly like to explore and that you are willing to spend some time  on. Your chosen topic should be focused. Pose a question that you really  want to answer. You may want to begin with more than one topic in mind.   See list below for some possible topics to research.
2. Do  some preliminary reading on the topic(s). You may begin with the  textbook, then further explore the information available. Refine your  topic. Summarize your topic, your interest in the topic, the questions  you want to answer, and a hypothesis you want to test.
3. Gather information from a variety of sources. Use a minimum of four sources for your paper, and at least one must be a primary source. 
   • Examples of primary sources are ones that are used in our discussion forums 2 – 8.
   • They are sources that are contemporary to the times under investigation.
   • An  example of a secondary source is our textbook, though the textbook also  contains excerpts of primary sources, which you may use as a source in  your paper.
   • DO NOT USE WEBSITES since they are unreliable.   DO NOT USE ENCYCLOPEDIAS since they are not academically rigorous.  There are many excellent sources in books and articles.  Many of these are available online at the CTC Library.
4. Outline the results of your research and the plan for your paper (you are not required to submit the outline).
5. Write the final draft and be sure to include a Works Cited List, and use the correct MLA documentation style.
6. Save your file under the following naming format: LastName, FirstName, Title of Paper.

TOTAL: 100

Submission Instructions

Complete your assignment using word-processing software such as MS Word, Open Office (download free software at http://www.openoffice.org), or other per course requirements.

1. Save your file as an .rtf (rich text format) or word document.
2. Select the Browse My Computer button to navigate to the file.
3. Locate and select your file.
4. Select Submit.

Advice for Research Paper 

Before  I receive questions regarding the research paper, I wish to address  potential questions in this brief announcement.  First you should have  already picked your topic from the list provided at the bottom of this  page.   Second, when you pick a topic make sure you narrow it down  significantly.  For example instead of writing a paper about Andrew  Jackson’s entire life, you should look at the particular contributions  he made towards the development of the United States and explain their  importance.  Third, make sure you include a clear introduction with a  thesis statement.  The thesis statement gives your paper a specific  direction and an argument.  History is much more that the description of  a person or event but the importance of the topic.  Fourth, make sure  to follow the instructions listed in the “Journals/ Research Paper”  link and provide citations throughout your paper, especially  quotations.   You may use any format you are familiar with, but they  need to be accurate and provide page numbers.  Additionally, avoid using  websites.  Instead use all the sources available to you through the CTC  Online Library.  Lastly, and most importantly, make sure to put  everything in your own words to avoid plagiarism.  I wish everyone the  best of luck for their papers.  The more effort and analysis you provide  in your paper the better the score.  Follow the advice in this message  and your score will be better.  Best of luck and as always feel free to  contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Possible Topics for Research Paper 

Class,

Soon  you will start working on your second assignment for the course.   Though you can choose any topic that fits in the scope of the course I  have pasted below a list of 100 possible topics.  Please make sure you  narrow down the subject to some particular aspect of the topic so your  paper will be more focused.  .  For example instead of writing a paper  about the Civil War, you should look at a particular point in a battle  on the decisions a leader had to make at a specific point/ battle.   Third, make sure you include a clear introduction with a thesis  statement.  The thesis statement gives your paper a specific direction  and an argument.  History is much more that the description of a person  or event but the importance of the topic.  Lastly, make sure that you  use legitimate sources such as published books and scholarly journal  articles.  Please avoid websites and encyclopedias.  Remember to include  specific page numbers in your citations.  Remember, history is more  than regurgitating basic facts, but you need to examine the impact of  the event/person on society around them.  Best of luck with the papers  and I am looking forward to reading them.

Dr. Grear 

HIST1301

100 Possible Research Paper Topics 

Will Require Narrowing Down the Topics

1. Pre- Columbian America

2. Christopher Columbus

3. The Conquistadors

4. Spanish Explorers in the New World

5. The Jamestown Colony

6. The Plymouth Colony

7. Early Colonial Life

8. The Plantation System

9. The Pilgrims

10. The Puritans

11. William Penn

12. Anne Hutchinson

13. Bacon’s Rebellion

14. Slavery in Colonial America

15. The Middle Passage

16. Life in Colonial New England

17. Life in the Colonial South

18. The French and Indian War

19. Provincial Culture

20. George Washington

21. The Proclamation of 1763

22. Mercantilism and the American Colonies

23. The Causes of the American Revolution

24. Battles of the American Revolution

25. George Washington as a Military Commander

26. Popular Support for the American Revolution

27. Thomas Paine

28. The Invasion of Canada

29. The Loyalists

30. The Yorktown Campaign

31. Any Revolutionary War Military Figure

32. Thomas Jefferson

33. Slavery and the New Republic

34. The Constitution

35. Alexander Hamilton

36. The Federalists

37. Washington as President

38. The XYZ Affair

39. The Louisiana Purchase

40. The Lewis and Clark Expedition

41. The Indian Wars in the Old Northwest

42. The War of 1812

43. The American Navy in the War of 1812

44. The Battle of New Orleans

45. The Building of the Erie Canal

46. Robert Fulton

47. Andrew Jackson

48. The Missouri Compromise

49. Slave Rebellions

50. The Monroe Doctrine

51. The Spoils System

52. The Trail of Tears

53. Henry Clay

54. The Alamo

55. Sam Houston

56. The California Gold Rush

57. Irish Immigration in Ante Bellum America

58. America and the Industrial Revolution

59. Women in 19th Century America

60. The Development of the Railroads

61. The Mormons

62. The Rise of Public Education

63. The Utopians

64. King Cotton

65. Free Men of Color

66. The Abolitionist Movement

67. The Underground Railroad

68. Frederick Douglass

69. The Oregon Trail

70. Manifest Destiny

71. James K. Polk

72. The War with Mexico

73. Future Civil War Generals in the Mexican War

74. The Oregon Boundary Dispute

75. “Bleeding Kansas”

76. Abraham Lincoln

77. The Dred Scott Decision

78. Fort Sumter

79. Northern Strategy in the Civil War

80. The First Battle of Bull Run

81. Confederate Naval Innovations

82. The Civil War in the East

83. The Vicksburg Campaign

84. Gettysburg or any other Civil War battle.

85. American Foreign Policy during the Civil War

86. Perry Opens Japan

87. The Civil War at Sea

88. The Northern War Governors

89. Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts

90. The Lincoln Assassination

91. The Freedmen’s Bureau

92. The South and Reconstruction

93. The Black Codes

94. The Impeachment of Andrew Johnson

95. The Klu Klux Klan

96. The Alaskan Purchase

97. The Radical Republicans

98. The Grand Army of the Republic

99. The Civil War as a Prelude to Modern Industrial Warfare

100. Tammany Hall