American History: Multiple Choice Questions and Historical Analysis

This homework assignment focuses on American History, specifically exploring key events and historical connections through multiple-choice questions. The student's work includes an identification example (The Great Railroad Strike of 1877), historical and geographical connections, and an overview of the unit's key themes. The multiple-choice section requires the creation of four questions, each with at least four answer choices, with clear identification of the correct answer and explanations for each option. The assignment emphasizes understanding of crucial historical facts, including the Homestead Act, women's fashion in the late 19th century, the impact of colonization, and the treatment of Indigenous Americans. The student provides a comprehensive analysis of the historical context, geographical influences, and the overall impact of the British colonial rule on the United States. The student also explains why each question is important and why the correct answer is correct and incorrect answers are wrong.

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AMERICAN HISTORY

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Part 2: ID Example
ID: The Great Railroad Strike of 1877
The great railroad strike of 1877 happens to be one of the most impactful events in the
American history. This can be said because this event unleashed a new wave of labor unrest in
the United States that ultimately resulted in labor and employer power conflict. The gradual
appearance of industrialization and its aftermaths started affecting the lives of the workers. The
companies became bigger in size and more workload had been forced onto the workers without
considering the wage they deserved to get. The beginning of these unrests started when in 1877;
the rail lines slashed the wages of the workers followed by the 1873 financial bubble of the
railroad bursting.1
This event has been chosen for the ID because this particular event has become the root
of the later industrial revolution which puts American history of worker struggles on a different
height. The event and its aftermath were so terrible that it saw death of more than 100
Americans.2 On the positive side, this event encouraged many workers to take a stand against the
discrimination they continued to face just for being the powerless section of the society.
Part 3: Historical Connection
Fact 1: The Homestead Act- This Act was necessary for the new settlers for acquiring
lands in America. However, married women had not been given any independent rights of
acquiring lands under this Act.3
Fact 2: Women’s fashion took a new form in the late 19th century. Women started following the
more comfortable clothing and started avoiding tight corsets and covered hemlines.4
Connection:
1. Joseph Locke, Ben Wright, The American Yewp: A Massively Collaborative Open US
History Textbook, Vol.2. (United States: Stanford University Press, 2019), 15.
2. Joseph Locke, Ben Wright, The American Yewp: A Massively Collaborative Open US
History Textbook, Vol.2 (United States: Stanford University Press, 2019), 16.
3. Joseph Locke, Ben Wright, The American Yewp: A Massively Collaborative Open US
History Textbook, Vol.2 (United States: Stanford University Press, 2019), 45.
4. Joseph Locke, Ben Wright, The American Yewp: A Massively Collaborative Open US
History Textbook, Vol.2 (United States: Stanford University Press, 2019), 87.

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Both the above mentioned historical facts may seem different and not connected to each
other at all but they actually show the journey of American women throughout different
historical phases. The Homestead Act, like other contemporary policies and legislations, avoided
the equal rights of women by seeing them as being under the rule of the men of the houses.
Gradually, after many protests and movements, women finally came out of their houses to talk
about their economic, political, and social and human rights. The later historical fact is one of the
evidences that show how women started rejecting the role and image the society forced upon
them.
Part 4: Geographical Connection
Fact 1: Indigenous Americans lived in the western part of North America until the 19th century
but gradually they were wiped out by the migrants who also wanted the western area in order to
profit more from the lands.5
Fact 2: Minnesota and Dakota Territory- This territory became very popular as the white
settlers started settling here in the 1862 because of the farming opportunities in these areas. As a
result, gradually the settlers turned their settlements into a state by pushing the aboriginal Dakota
Sioux community towards poverty and extinction.6
Connection:
The above mentioned geographical facts are strongly connected because of its common
relation to American aboriginals. It has been noticed that white settlers or migrants always tried
to capture as much lands as possible after starting to spread in America. However, one of their
tendencies was to dominate the aboriginals of America so that they can become the owners of the
land permanently. This aboriginal discrimination is still an issue in America that started from
these events when the migrants came to America and started throwing the actual inhabitants of
the land to the margins.
Part 5: Over all key
5. Joseph Locke, Ben Wright, The American Yewp: A Massively Collaborative Open US
History Textbook, Vol.2 (United States: Stanford University Press, 2019), 42.
6. Joseph Locke, Ben Wright, The American Yewp: A Massively Collaborative Open US
History Textbook, Vol.2 (United States: Stanford University Press, 2019), 46.

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This unit regarding American history focuses mainly on the British colonial rule and how
it affected the United States. The colonization has both positive and negative impact in the
history of America. On the positive side, the colonization enabled and awakened the inhabitants
of America to be united and connected in order to protest against the inequality practiced by the
British community. These protests and revolts started covering more and more social, economic
and cultural issues and gradually the protesters became the reason behind the American
Revolution. Women empowerment and the cultural awakening of the aboriginal Americans also
became a prominent part of the American History that make it a diverse and complicated history
of all times. On the negative side, the colonization period saw a huge decrease in the aboriginal
population. This decrease in man power affected the overall economic growth of America apart
from affecting the cultural identity of the nation. Finally, it can be said that this unit has been
very much important for understanding the essence of American history in general.
Bibliography
Locke, Joseph L., and Ben Wright, eds. The American Yawp: A Massively Collaborative Open
US History Textbook, Vol. 2: Since 1877. Stanford University Press, 2019.

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