Frontiers and Borderlands: Native American History and the Settler Experience
The first theme will review the scholarship on Native American histories and the process of settling the North American continent. It will take as its local base the Newark Earthworks State Memorial, home to the largest geometric earthen structures in the world.
From Farm to Factory: Rural Life and the Impact of Industrialization
The second theme focuses on agrarian life and urbanization. This theme also includes environmental history and provides a framework in which to explore ways to use the built environment to engage students in history. The local historical site associated with this theme is Malabar Farm, the Mansfield-area home of mid-twentieth century author and social critic Louis Bromfield.
Presidents and Politics: Ohio and American Political History
The third theme encompasses the broad swath of political history in the United States, from presidential history to the history of reform movements to political protest. It will include high politics as well as efforts of marginalized groups to stake a claim in the political system. We will focus particularly on Ohio as a microcosm of national political trends and events. The Warren G. Harding Home in Marion will provide the local history setting for this theme.
Dominion of War: American Military and Technological History
The fourth theme examines the causes and consequences of war in the historical development of America. In particular, we will focus on the technological advances brought about by war and the preparation for war. We will focus on the space race as an expression of American Cold War culture and an exemple of this technological trend. The local historical site will be the Neil Armstrong Air and Space Museum near Lima.
