Topic #13 Overview Sheet
 
  Assignment #1
 

Sources:
 

Questions:
  1. Why did Lincoln feel that he had to send fresh provisions to Fort Sumter?  What problem presented itself to the South by Lincoln's decision?  What was the South's reaction to that decision?
  2. Create a CHART which analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of the North and the South in terms of their readiness for war.
  3. Explain the various interpretations that historians have advanced to explain why the Civil War took place.
  4. How have these interpretations followed the general outlines laid down by Senator William H. Seward in 1858?
  5. How did the Union propose to finance the war?  How successful was this?  What was the effect on the economy?
  6. How did the Union propose to raise troops?  To what extent was it forced to use conscription?  How did the nation react to this method?
  7. What caused riots in New York City in the summer of 1863?  Who were the leading participants in these riots?  What were their motivations?
  8. How did Lincoln use/abuse his presidential war powers? 
  9. Who were the opponents to the war in the North?  How did Lincoln use his powers against them?  What was the outcome?
  10. Who were the candidates running for president in 1864?  Why was the Union Party created?  Could Lincoln have lost his bid for reelection?
  11. What were the two factions trying to control the Republican Party?  What were their goals?  Who were the predominant Congressional representative of the Radical wing of the Republican Party?
  12. How did the Confiscation Acts of 1861 and 1862 deal with slavery?
  13. What factors, other than political pressure, brought about the Emancipation Proclamation?  What did the proclamation really accomplish?
  14. What role did African Americans play in support of the Union cause?
  15. What impact did the Civil War have on the Northern industrial economy?  on laborers in the North?  on women in the North?
  16. What part did women play in the Union war effort?
 

Terms:
 
  Assignment #2
 

Sources:
 

Questions:
  1. How did did the Confederate constitution differ from that of the United States?
  2. Why could it be said that in the end, Jefferson Davis was an unsuccessful President?
  3. What problems did the "upcountry" and "backcountry" regions pose for the new Confederate government?
  4. How did the Confederacy attempt to finance the war?
  5. How did the Confederacy propose to raise troops for the war?  How did these plans compare with those of the Union?  How successful were they?
  6. Why was states' rights the "great dividing force" in the Confederacy's war effort?  What caused this division?
  7. How did the Confederate government centralize its power (and in some instances did so more than Lincoln's government in the North)?
  8. What were the economic and social effects of the Civil War that "transformed" Southern society? 
  9. What impact did the war have on the lives and circumstances of women?  of slaves?
  10. What does the popularity of baseball indicate about America at the time of the Civil War?
  11. Why was Lincoln more successful at organizing a command system than Davis?  What military problems did Lincoln face throughout the war?
  12. What role did Lincoln propose for the United States Navy?  How did the Confederacy attempt to overcome this naval advantage?
  13. At the outbreak of war in 1861, why were both the French and British governments sympathetic to the Confederacy?
  14. What were the foreign-policy objectives of the Union and of the Confederacy?  How did each attempt to achieve these objectives?  Which was most successful and why?
  15. How did the West play a continuing political, diplomatic, and military part in the conflict?
 

Terms:
 
  Assignment #3
 

Sources:
 

Questions:

  1. What were some of the advances in new weapons technology in the Civil War?  How did they change the way soldiers in the field fought?

  2. Why were the railroads so critical to the conduct of the war?  What pitfalls did they create for military planners on both sides?

  3. Why was the outcome of the First Battle of Bull Run [First Manassas] such a shock to the North?  What did it reveal about the possibility of an early end to the struggle and about the readiness of the two sides for a major conflict?

  4. What was the Union plan for the conquest of the West?  How did the Confederates propose to defend this area?

  5. How did the battle of Shiloh change Grant's thinking about his military plans?

  6. What were the strengths and weaknesses of General George McClellan's military leadership?  of General Robert E. Lee's military leadership?

  7. Why was the Battle of Antietam considered to be one of the turning points in the war?

  8. Why was 1863 the "Year of Decision?"

  9. Why was the Battle of Gettysburg the biggest turning point in the Civil War?

  10. What was Grant's grand strategy for 1864?  What were his objectives?

  11. What were the political results of Sherman's capture of Atlanta in 1864?  What was the legacy of his famous "March to the Sea?"

  12. How was the Confederacy finally defeated?  In what way did the Union forces destroy the South's will to carry on the fight?
 

Terms:
 
                
Quizzes:
  1. Textbook Quizzes --> chapter 14
  2. My Quizzes -->  A   B

    3.  
Outlines / Lecture Notes / Review Sheets:

  1. APUSH Review Timeline (interactive)

  2. Giant AHAP Review Sheet by a student from the class of '04, Horace Greeley HS

  3. Prof. David McGee (Central Virginia Community College) lecture notes on:
         * The Civil War (Through 1862)
         * The Civil War -- The Home Front
         * The Civil War -- The Bloody War

    4.

  4. Timeline- 1751 to 1800

  5. Note Cards -->  601-650

  6. Presidential Election Data --> 1860     1864

  7. Cram Sheet --> James Buchanan Through Andrew Johnson

  8. "Key Events and Battles of the Civil War" - chart

 


   
 

Ten Commandments of Good Historical Writing

College Board A. P. U. S. History Main Page (.pdf file)