Period 7: 1890-1945 (AP US History)

Period 7: 1890-1945

An increasingly pluralistic United States faced profound domestic and global challenges, debated the proper degree of government activism, and sought to define its international role. Topics may include

 

 

Image Source: Destitute pea pickers in California. Mother of seven children. Age thirty-two. Nipomo, California, a photograph by Dorothea Lange taken in 1936 when she was working for the Resettlement Administration. (Library of Congress)

Famous black and white depression-era photo showing destitute mother with children

  • 10-17% Exam Weighting

Resources by Period:

Key Concepts

7.1: Growth expanded opportunity, while economic instability led to new efforts to reform U.S. society and its economic system.

7.2: Innovations in communications and technology contributed to the growth of mass culture, while significant changes occurred in internal and international migration patterns.

7.3: Participation in a series of global conflicts propelled the United States into a position of international power while renewing domestic debates over the nation’s proper role in the world.

Debates over Imperialism

Illustration about American imperialism.

Empire Builders

by Robert W. Cherny

Learn about the reactions to the growth of an American overseas empire.

  • Essay
Illustration of US navy in Cuba.

Our Victorious Fleet in Cuban Waters

1898

Print depicting American naval forces off Cuba during the Spanish-American War

  • Primary Source
Illustration about US involvement in the Philippines.

The War against Spain in the Philippines in 1898

by Richard Meixel

Learn about US naval actions in Southeast Asia during the Spanish-American War.

  • Essay
1901 photo of Ha-ta-men Gate.

The US in China

by Warren Cohen

Learn about the US support of the Open Door Policy and reaction to the Boxer Rebellion.

  • Essay
Political cartoon showing America being drawn into war.

The Open Door Policy and the Boxer War

by Warren Cohen

Learn about how the Open Door Policy served US economic, cultural, and strategic interests in China.

  • Essay
See All Resources

The Progressive Movement

Political cartoon showing problem of child labor in America.

The Politics of Reform

by Julie Des Jardins

Learn about the politics of reform during the Progressive era.

  • Essay
Lithograph of women marching in suffrage parade in Washington DC.

Women in American Politics in the Twentieth Century

by Sara Evans

Learn about women who advocated full participation in American public and political life during the suffrage movement.

  • Essay
Photo of Teddy Roosevelt giving a speech.

The Square Deal

by Kirsten Swinth

Learn about themes of Progressive reform and Teddy Roosevelt's Square Deal.

  • Essay
Photo of Women's Suffrage picket of the White House.

The Progressive Era to the New Era, 1900-1929

by Daniel Rodgers

The Progressive Era to the New Era (1900-1929) Timeline and essay explaining the domestic and global challenges facing the US.

  • Essay
Negro Business League response to legal bars to voting in Virginia.

Disfranchisement of African American voters

1901

Negro Business League response to legal bars to voting in Virginia

  • Primary Source
Yiddish music about the Triangle Shirtwaist fire.

Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire

1911

Sheet music in Yiddish lamenting the deaths in Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire

  • Primary Source
A purple silk banner with gold fringe and the National Association of Colored Women’s Clubs' motto, "Lifting As We Climb" painted in large gold letters.

Women and the Progressive Movement

by Miriam Cohen

Learn about the women who sought to address a variety of social problems associated with industrialization

  • Essay
Lithograph depicting women's role promoting prohibition.

The Supreme Court upholds national prohibition

1920

The Supreme Court upholds Prohibition and the Volstead Act

  • Primary Source
Pamphlet showing how to vote for women's suffrage.

Modern Women Persuading Modern Men

by Jonathan Soffer 

Learn about the women's struggle for suffrage.

  • Essay
Pamphlet decrying lynching crisis.

Lynching in America

ca. 1926

NAACP broadside presenting the shocking statistics regarding lynching in America

  • Primary Source
Uncle Sam on "U.S. Ark of Refuge" welcoming immigrants, with cloud "War" over them.

The Quest for Equality: European Immigration

by Matthew Jacobson

Learn about the arrival of immigrants from Europe in the context of the Progressive era.

  • Video
See All Resources

World War I

World War 1 poster.

World War I poems: “In Flanders Fields” & “The Answer"

1918

Nurse's diary containing McCrae’s poem reflecting upon the horrors of WWI

  • Primary Source
Photo of troops in World War 1.

World War I

by Jennifer D. Keene

Learn about America's role in WWI.

  • Essay
Recruitment poster targeting black enlistment.

Recruiting posters for African American soldiers

1918

Military recruitment of Black troops during World War I

  • Primary Source
Teddy Roosavelt letter expressing thoughts about the Lusitania.

Theodore Roosevelt on the sinking of the Lusitania

1915

Former president urges US involvement in WWI

  • Primary Source
Political cartoon showing Roman soldier walking towards horizon with piece of paper on the ground saying "15 Nations Sign Anti-War Treaty"

America's role in the world

by Michael Neiberg

Read about American foreign policy between the world wars.

  • Essay
Cabinet secretary statement defending Wilson.

Treaty of Versailles and President Wilson

1919 and 1921

Former Cabinet secretary's statement that "Woodrow Wilson did not fail"

  • Primary Source
Pamphlet criticizing use of Espionage and Sedition Acts.

Deportation: Its Meaning and Menace

1919

Pamphlet criticizing the US government for its use of the Espionage and Sedition Acts

  • Primary Source
Cartoon showing wall labeled "Literacy Test" with family on one side and Uncle Sam on the other

The Dillingham Commission

by Robert Zeidel

Learn about the background to the 1917 Literacy Test Act and the 1921 Quota Act.

  • Essay
See All Resources

Innovations in Communications and Technology in the 1920s

Photo of Ford Model T car.

The Rise of Consumerism in the 1920s

by Michael Flamm

Listen to a discussion about purchasing power, occupation, and identity

  • Video
Ford advertisement in 1908 newspaper.

Motor City: The Story of Detroit

by Thomas Sugrue

Read about the origins of Henry Ford's factory system in Detroit and its legacy.

  • Essay
"Big Business Banishes the Flapper" article from Morning Tulsa Daily World.

The Roaring Twenties

by Joshua Zeitz

Examine why the 1920s heralded a dramatic break in American social, economic, and political policies.

  • Essay
"Advice Sheet" for theaters restricting access to Birth of a Nation for African Americans

Birth of a Nation

1915

"Advice Sheet" for theaters restricting access to Birth of a Nation for African Americans

  • Primary Source
See All Resources

The Great Depression and the New Deal

Herbert Hoover signature

The Great Depression

by David Kennedy

Learn about some of the causes and consequences of the Great Depression.

  • Essay
Photo of FDR.

The New Deal

by Thomas Kessner

Learn about FDR's New Deal.

  • Essay
Photo of the Silent Protest in 1917.

Jim Crow and the Great Migration

by Jonathan Scott Holloway

Learn about the reasons behind the Great Migration.

  • Essay
Roosevelt memo to House Speaker.

The Hundred Days and Beyond

by Anthony J. Badger

Understand how the New Deal functioned as  a "laboratory for economic learning."

  • Essay
Recruitment poster for Arizona Civilian Conservation Corps

Civilian Conservation Corps poster

1938

Enlistment poster for the CCC, which put young men to work improving parks and creating infrastructure

  • Primary Source
Photo showing WPA worker receiving a paycheck with sign in background "USA Work Program WPA"

Why the New Deal Matters

by Eric Rauchway 

Watch a discussion of FDR's New Deal.

  • Video
Photo of farmers during the Dust Bowl.

Photograph of an abandoned farm in the Dust Bowl

1938

Dorothea Lange photograph depicting the devastation caused by the Dust Bowl

  • Primary Source
1870s engraving depicing the interior of the New York Clearing House featuring lines of people come to enact financial transactions

The US Banking System

by Richard Sylla

Read about the emergence of the banking industry in the United States.

  • Essay
See All Resources

World War II

WWII poster showing four soldiers planting the US flag with text saying "Now All Together"

World War II

by Kenneth T. Jackson

Learn about US involvement in WWII.

  • Essay
US Citizens Defense Corps logos.

Civilian defense on the home front

1942

Excerpt from The US Citizens Defense Corp handbook explaining the duties and responsibilities of home-front volunteers

  • Primary Source
Army photo celebrating women's contribution to war effort.

The World War II Home Front

by Allan M. Winkler

Learn how activities on the home front supported US efforts during WWII.

  • Essay
Japan's declaration of war.

Japan declares war

1941

Japan's Declaration of War coinciding with the attach on Pearl Harbor

  • Primary Source
Photo of Japanese storefront for rent.

From Citizen to Enemy

by Julie Des Jardins

Learn about the internment of Japanese Americans during WWII.

  • Essay
Notice to Japanese to assemble for transport to detention camps.

Japanese internment

1942

Broadside instructing the Japanese "to assemble for transport to detention camps"

  • Primary Source
1943 photo of Zoot Suiters lined up by bus on their way to court

An Introduction to the History of the Zoot Suit Riots

by Elizabeth Escobedo

Learn about the intersection of World War II, Pachuco/a youth culture, fashion, and music in the City of Angels.

  • Video
See All Resources

Postwar Diplomacy

Scientists' statement on atomic bomb.

Physicists predict a nuclear arms race

1945

"Preliminary Statement of the Association of Manhattan District Scientists" emphasizing the need to control atomic weaponry

  • Primary Source
Photo of Potsdam meeting.

Truman and His Doctrine

by Elizabeth Edwards Spalding

Read about how and why Truman devised a strategy of containment

  • Essay
Harry Truman letter to Dean Acheson.

Harry S. Truman responds to McCarthy

1950

Truman response to McCarthy, characterizing him as "the best asset that the Kremlin can have"

  • Primary Source
Photograph showing Clement Atlee, Harry Truman, and Joseph Stalin stead outdoors at the Potsdam Conference

The Origins of the Cold War

by John Lewis Gaddis

Learn about U.S.-Soviet relations from the nineteenth century through the end of World War II.

  • Video
See All Resources

American History Timeline: 1890-1945

Image Citations

Listed in order of appearance in the sections above

Debates over Imperialism

Debates over Imperialism

  • Keppler, Udo J. "His 128th birthday. 'Gee, But This Is an Awful Stretch!'" Puck, June 29, 1904. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
  • Currier & Ives. Our Victorious Fleets in Cuban Waters. New York, 1898. Chromolithograph. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC03534.
  • Ehrhart, Samuel D. "If They'll Only Be Good." Puck, January 31, 1900. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
  • Ricalton, James. West from Ha-ta-men Gate along Huge Ancient Wall between Tartar and Chinese Peking, Scene of a Desperate Charge during Siege - China. New York: Underwood & Underwood, 1901. Photograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
  • Keppler, Udo J. "The Tug of War in the Far East." Puck, September 14, 1898. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

The Progressive Movement

The Progressive Movement

  • Riis, Jacob A. Street Arabs in "sleeping quarters." New York, ca. 1888. Photograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
  • Woman Suffrage Procession, Washington, DC. Official Program. March 3, 1913. Library of Congress Rare Book and Special Collections Division.
  • Underwood & Underwood. "Good Government Is Practically Applying the Principles Which Make a Man a Good Citizen" - President [Theodore] Roosevelt, Waterville, Maine. 1902. Stereoview. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC06449.22.
  • Harris & Ewing. Woman Suffrage Pickets at White House. Washington, DC, 1917. Photograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
  • Jackson, Giles B. Letter to R. C. Burrow, June 22, 1901. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC08907.
  • Rumshisky, Joseph, and Anshel Schorr. "'Mamenu' or The Triangle Victims" (in Yiddish). New York: Hebrew Publishing Co., 1911. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC06225.
  • National Association of Colored Women’s Club. "Lifting As We Climb." Banner, ca. 1924. silk (fiber), wood, paint.
  • Currier & Ives. Woman's Holy War :Grand Charge on the Enemy's Works. New York, 1874. Lithograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. 
  • N. Y. State Woman Suffrage Party. How to Vote for Woman Suffrage Amendment, Election Day, November 6th, 1917. Albany, NY, 1917. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC08961.
  • National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. For the Good of America. New York, ca. 1926. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC06197.
  • Keppler, J. "Welcome to All," Puck, April 28, 1880. Color lithograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. 

World War I

World War I

  • Chandler, Howard John. The Spirit of America -- Join. American Red Cross, 1919. Color lithograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
  • Gridwood, H. D. At Close Grips with the Hun (A Staged Scene). Realistic Travels, 1922. Photograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
  • Renesch, Edward George. Colored Man Is No Slacker. Chicago, 1918. Print. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC06134.
  • Roosevelt, Theodore. Letter to Oscar King Davis, June 23, 1915. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC08003.
  • Berryman, Clifford Kennedy. 15 Nations Sign Anti-war Treaty. August 27, 1928. Berryman Political Cartoon Collection, 1896-1949; Records of the U.S. Senate, Record Group 46. National Archives.
  • McAdoo, William G. Statement given out by Ex-Secreatry of the Treasury on Woodrow Wilson, March 4, 1921. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC03967.
  • Berkman, Alexander, and Emma Goldman. Deportation, Its Meaning and Menace. New York, 1918. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC06222.
  • Evans, Raymond Oscar. “The Americanese Wall, as Congressman Burnett Would Build It .” Puck, March 25, 1916. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Innovations in Communications and Technology in the 1920s

Innovations in Communications and Technology in the 1920s

  • Unknown photographer. The First Model T Ford. New York, 1908. Photograph. New York Public Library Digital Collections. 
  • Ford Touring Car advertisement. Alma (Mich.) Record, October 1, 1908, p. 4. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress.
  • "Big Business Banishes the Flapper." Morning Tulsa Daily World, July 16, 1922. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress.
  • Edwards, Jack. "Advice Sheet. D. W. Griffith's 'The Birth of a Nation.'" ca. 1915. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC05091.

The Great Depression and the New Deal

The Great Depression and the New Deal

  • Hoover, Herbert. Letter to Louis L. Emmerson, July 10, 1931. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC03146.
  • Harris & Ewing. President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Washington DC, ca. 1941. Photograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
  • Underwood & Underwood. Silent Protest Parade in New York City against the East St. Louis Riots. New York, 1917. Photograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
  • Roosevelt, Franklin D. Letter to Henry T. Rainey, June 10, 1933. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC07468.
  • Arizona Civilian Conservation Corps. "Great Oaks from Little Acorns." 1938. Recruitment poster. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC06196.262.
  • Unknown photographer. Photograph of Works Progress Administration Worker Receiving Paycheck. January 1939. Photograph. Record Group 594956. WPA Information Division Photographic Index. National Archives.
  • Lange, Dorothea. Dust Bowl Farmers of West Texas in Town. Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information, June 1937. Photograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
  • Pennsylvania. Two shilling and Six-pence note, No. 4665. April 3, 1772. Printed by Hall and Sellers. Signed by Cadwalader Morris, Joseph Swift, and Samuel Hudson. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC01450.226.01.

World War II

World War II

  • United States. War Division. 7th war loan/now all together. Poster. 1945. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC09520.34.
  • US Office of Civilian Defense. Special Civilian Defense Insignia. 1942. Poster. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC09520.36.
  • Treidler, Adolph, and US Army. Soldiers Without Guns. Washington DC: US Government Printing Office, 1944. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
  • Hirohito, Emperor of Japan. Declaration of War against the United States and Britain [in Japanese]. December 8, 1941. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC01415.
  • Albers, Clem. Los Angeles, Calif. Apr. 1942. A store for rent in “Little Tokyo” after residents of Japanese ancestry were assigned to War Relocation Authority centers for the duration. Washington DC: War Relocation Authority, April 11, 1942. Photograph. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
  • DeWitt, J. L. US Army. Instructions to All Persons of Japanese Ancestry.  May 3, 1942. Broadside. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC06360.
  • Acme Newspictures. Zoot suiters lined up outside Los Angeles jail en route to court after feud with sailors. Los Angeles, CA, June 9, 1943. Photograph. New York World-Telegram and the Sun Newspaper Photograph Collection. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Postwar Diplomacy

Postwar Diplomacy

  • Kaplan, Irving. "Preliminary Statement of the Association of Manhattan District Scientists." ca. August 1945. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC03152.02.
  • United States. Army. Signal Corps. Winston Churchill, Harry Truman, and Joseph Stalin at Potsdam. ca. July-August 1945. Photograph. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC04457.
  • Truman, Harry S. Letter to Dean Acheson, March 31, 1950. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, GLC00782.22.
  • Clement Attlee, Harry Truman, and Joseph Stalin, seated outdoors at Berlin conference. Germany Potsdam, 1945. Aug. 1. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/96522042/.