HIST 330
African American History to 1865 (US) (WI)
Catalog Entry
HIST 330
African American History to 1865 (US) (WI)
Three hours lecture/discussion: (3)
Prerequisite: Three hours of History at the 100 level.
Examines the social, political, economic and cultural history of African Americans
in the United States from the early 1600s to Emancipation. Topics include the Atlantic
Slave Trade, the Origins of Slavery in British North America, Colonial Slavery and
the Revolutionary Era, the development of a free black community, Antebellum Slavery,
the Antebellum Free African American Population, Civil War, and Emancipation.
Note(s): Cultural or Behavioral Analysis designated course.
Detailed Description of Content of Course
• Early Presence of Africans
• Atlantic Slave Trade
• Origins of Slavery in British North America
• Free Blacks during the Colonial Era
• Colonial Slavery
• African Americans During the Revolutionary Era
• Growth of Free Black Community
• Blacks in the Early National Era
• Slavery in the Antebellum South
• Free African American Community
• Civil War and Emancipation
Detailed Description of Conduct of Course
HIST 330 utilizes a variety of pedagogical tools depending on the class makeup and
the topic under discussion. Some of the instructional strategies applied include lecture,
group and class discussions, multi-media presentations, student/class debates, and
primary source analysis.
Goals and Objectives of the Course
Departmental Goals and Objectives:
1. Students will practice thinking critically and analytically about historical issues,
acquire a broader knowledge and deeper understanding of pertinent historical events
and processes, and cultivate a familiarity with the concepts of historical argument
and interpretation.
2. Students will develop disciplinary research skills by designing strategies to locate
and analyze primary and secondary source evidence, processing and organizing the resultant
data, and composing proper citation and bibliographical entries.
3. Students will apply their critical thinking, research, and compositional skills
to the creation and presentation of thesis driven essays that discuss, for example,
historical social, economic, political, and/or cultural developments and that address
issues such as the causes and consequences of historical change and continuity.
Course Goals and Objectives:
Upon completion of HIST 330, students will be able to identify, describe and discuss
major themes of African American history including but not limited to:
• African presence in North America prior to 1619
• The workings of the Atlantic Slave Trade
• The debate surrounding the origins of slavery in British North America
• Lives of free blacks and slaves in early colonial history
• African American participation, for both the British and Patriots, during the
American Revolution
• The development of the free black community in the wake of the American Revolution
• Work, culture, and resistance of both the slave population and the free black
population in the decades before the Civil War
• Contribution of African Americans to the Confederate and Union during the Civil
War
• How emancipation came about in the United States
Assessment Measures
Knowledge and understanding of the material covered in this course will be measured
using an array of assessment tools that may include, among other things, class attendance
and participation, written examinations, formal writing assignments of various types,
and informal writing assignments. All exercises are designed to expand the student's
ability to evaluate historical events and to develop his or her ability to compose
persuasive arguments.
Other Course Information
None
Review and Approval
October 2010 Reviewed and Approved by Sharon A. Roger Hepburn, Chair
04/2011
March 01, 2021