Expansions and Inequalities

In most histories of the United States, the mid-19th century is dominated by the narrative of the Civil War. But beyond the war, this period was one of rapid and monumental transition. In these decades, the U.S. expanded swiftly and undertook an organized campaign to divest Indigenous people of their lands and sovereignty. The Industrial Revolution transformed work, home, and the way people lived their lives. The exponential increase in immigration to the U.S. created new questions about American identity and culture. The questions surrounding slavery and the status of free Black Americans tore the country apart. And each of these developments had profound effects on the political and social landscape of the country.

These decades also proved to be a critical period in the history of American womanhood.  Expansion and industrialization offered women new opportunities to assert their independence. Some women began to wonder whether it was possible for women to achieve social and political equality with men. But there were many obstacles to overcome, starting with defining what such a future might look like and who should benefit from it. From its earliest days, the emerging women’s movement struggled to answer and build consensus around such questions. And, of course, not all people agreed gender equality was the goal. Conservative reformers, for example, advocated for women to play a complementary but fundamentally separate role from men in U.S. society.

Expansions and Inequalities, 1830–1869, provides resources to allow you to explore the complicated and fascinating history of this period.  The unit contains three sections: Westward Expansion, Industry and Immigration, and Politics and Society. The questions surrounding slavery and freedom as well as the events of the Civil War and Reconstruction appear throughout, but you’ll find a more thorough examination of all these topics in A Nation Divided: 1832–1877. Each section contains resources that illustrate the experiences of a wide range of women across race, gender, age, social, and economic spectrums. You’ll meet women who pushed boundaries, and women who operated within them. Some of these stories will inspire, and some will provoke important discussions about justice and personhood. Many resources can easily be incorporated into your lessons, allowing you to seamlessly include women in your history curriculum. And some may inspire new lessons on topics that will enrich your students’ understanding of their nation’s history. Many of the resources “speak” to each other in interesting ways, allowing you and your students to compare and contrast women’s experiences across geographical, political, and social lines. 

To get started, you can explore the 50 resources that make up this unit in two different ways: by “section” or by “theme.” Each resource comes with background information, a vocabulary list, and suggested activities for how you might integrate it into your lessons. There are also links included on each resource page that will connect to other resources by topic or theme, so you can continue to follow interesting threads and see where they take you.