Most Significant Groups in US History

[grandpoobah]

This is the thread where we will make all the posts for our final simulation EVER. To recap the rules...

Everyone has to make three informational posts that include specific details about your group and explain why they are the most significant group in US History.

Everyone has to ask three intelligent questions about other posts. “Intelligent” is defined as an actual thoughtful question that could help you or someone else write an Out paper. You may only ask one question of any other person.

You should answer any question asked of you but you can stop after five questions if you are lazy.

You have to agree with/expand on at least one other post.

You must disagree with/argue at least one other post.

You must make one summative post (at the end) that gives others a general idea of how you will be writing your out-paper based on what you learned on the bulletin board.

That means everyone makes a minimum of nine posts and a maximum of 14 by rule though you can post as many times as you like.

No funny business. No anonymous posting. No posting as someone else. No saying mean things to people unless you’re me. No posting pictures of one armed blind howler monkeys. No links to animals of any kind. No words, gestures, statements, intimations or thoughts that you would not want your grandmother to find out about. Be nice.

[grandpoobah]

Here are your assignments...

European Explorers (pre-colonial)-Becker Reconstructionists-Young
Settlers-Berman Muckrakers-Barnett
Slaves-Bryan
Native Americans (Indian Wars)-Bernier
Indentured Servants-Donatelli Segregationists-Brett
Quakers-Forrest Railroad Workers-Cohen
Traders-Glassman Immigrants-Cruz
Religious Leaders-Harris Political Machines-Dodd
Revolutionaries-Hodgson Writers (literature)-Emenaka
Loyalists-Hoffman Journalists-Faust
Framers of the Constitution-Johnston Musicians-MFox
Federalists-Kesner Athletes-Goldstein
Anti-Federalists-Lambert Greenbacks-Grant
Supreme Court Justices-Mahoney Pops/Progs-Green
Rebels (Shay's, Bacon's, Whiskey, Turner's)-Nelson Imperialists-Joyce
war hawks-Pollack Anti-imperialists-Loree
Vice Presidents-Smith Jingoists-Makhdoom
Inventors-Sola Socialists-Micallef
Labor Unions-Steck Bankers-Mountain
Industrialists-Tumolillo Fundamentalists-Perkins
Nativists-Varner Modernists-Schechter
Utopians-Vijaysimha Baby Boomers-Tessler
Poor Whites-Walker Dixiecrats-Thomas
Cowboys & Frontiersmen-Worthy Communists-Thompson
Freemasons-Yablon Congressmen-Turalski
Whigs-Abdill Civil Rights Leaders-Uhlman
Nullifiers-Appouh Scientists-Vogt
Revivalists-Belcher Economists-Walter
Mormons-Brier Environmentalists-Williams
Transcendentalists-Buechel Iriquois Confederacy-Onwuka
Femininsts-Cayemitte
Shakers-Chabrow
Artists-Crow
Temperance Societies-GFox
Educators-GSprung
Suffragists-Garcia
Abolitionists-Grohman
Republicans-Gross
Democrats-Heffley
Texans-Howley
Expansionists-Jonathan
Isolationists-Kennan
Mountain Men-Line
Farmers-Mangan
Robber Barons-Quist
Miners-Rosen
Military-Sedlak
Barn burners (expand to all)-Solomon
Know Nothings-Tolstoi
Confederates-Ukaigwe

[Amanda A.]

so will each person have their own thread, or will it be a mass amount of random information and questions on one giant thread?

[grandpoobah]

It is one thread. This thread. The information should not be random. All points made are for the same goal, to prove who the most significant groups of all time are. By the way, no pet names. You post with first name and last initial. No anonymous posts.

[mishab]

The Native Americans are the most significant group of people in U.S. history because they were the "first Americans." Without the Native Americans the Europeans would not have survived because they would have not known how to plant crops and would not have known land. "Without the help of Powhatan’s Indians, who shared food with the Englishmen, showed them how to plant local corn and yams, and introduced them to the ways of the forest, the Jamestown colonists would have perished.” (Page 26 Don’t Know Much About History). Without them there would be not "United States History" because no one would have survived.

[Zoe B.]

Perhaps the colonists wouldn't have been able to survive at first without the aid of the Native Americans, but they wouldn't have been there in the first place had it not been for the European explorers. As we all know, Christopher Columbus was one of the most significant of these. He sailed in 1492 in search of a sea route to Asia and instead stumbled upon America (of course, still believing it to be a part of Asia). Columbus was the cause of Europe's interest in the Americas beginning in the 1400s. He found gold on the island of Hispaniola, attempted to set up a colony, and set a precedent for the unmerciful treatment of Native Americans that lasted for hundreds of years. While we might not agree with all of his actions today, it is undeniable that he and the other pre-colonial European explorers make up the most influential group in United States history.

[Melissa F.]

Musicians have long since influenced the politics and events of the country. The patriotic lay songs of the American Revolution constituted the first kind of mainstream popular music; fife songs were especially celebrated and were performed on field of battle during the American Revolution, the longest lasting of these fife songs is “Yankee Doodle” which is still well known today. It has long been argued that the American spirit during the American Revolution was the driving force behind our success, and music is the most successful producer of spirit. Also, the social and political ferment of the 1960s inspired artists like Marvin Gaye and Curtis Mayfield to release albums with hard-hitting social commentary, and gospel stars like Mahalia Jackson became important figures in the Civil Rights Movement. Musicians during the Vietnam War also provided a major output for the opposing sentiment throughout the country.

[Grace F.]

Temperance Societies have always been a large influence throughout history. Organizations such as the Anti-Saloon League, The Lincoln-Lee Legion, and the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) not only promoted moderation, and eventually prohibition of alcohol, but also turned their attention to other moral issues such as gambling, recreational drugs and tobacco, labor, prostitution, public health, sanitation, and internal peace. Women such as Mary Hunt, Carrie Nation, Neal S. Dow, and Lucy Webb Hayes were temperance’s strongest promoters, deriving strongly from their stance against domestic violence, which was strongly tied to alcoholism. When the 18th Amendment was ratified and prohibition was put into effect things really did start to change. People started going back to work and being productive, men stopped beating their wives, and crime decreased. However, while petty crime decreased, prohibition fueled the emergence of organized crime and increased smuggling. Thus, the Mob, under Al “Scarface” Capone, was born. Temperance societies are the most significant group in American history because they taught us to take good things in moderation, and abstain from all things harmful. Their influences have reached all levels of society, from the most humble homes to Congress, and have brought about one of the most feared and influential institutions itself: the Mob.

[Alex G.]

Isn't it obvious? The Populist Party of 1912 is, without a doubt, the most significant group in US History. When the Republicans nominated William Howard Taft for the presidency for the 1912 election, a disgruntled Theodore Roosevelt, upset that he lost the Republican nomination to Taft, made the decision to break off from the Republican Party and create his own party, the Progressive Party (also known as the "Bull Moose" party). Surprisingly, despite a lack of significant support, this Progressive Party did help to determine who the future president of the Untied States would be. The Democratic Party nominated Woodrow Wilson, who was not extremely well liked, for the 1912 election. Wilson managed to scrap together about 40% of the vote. However, Taft and Roosevelt split the old Republican votes, which essentially catapulted Wilson into the presidency.
Now, I know what you're thinking: Why the heck is this important?!?! tsk, tsk. You've forgotten how important ol' Woodrow was for American History. Not only did Wilson carry us victoriously through THE FIRST WORLD WAR, but he also developed his Fourteen Points address, which advocated a new idea: the League of Nations. Though the League of Nations isn't exactly powerful anymore, the idea can be seen in other well known international organizations, such as NATO and the UN.
In addition to this incredible feat, Wilson passed the 19th ammendment, which gave a political voice to all women, aka HALF OF OUR NATION.
Now, I know it seems like I'm really saying that Woodrow Wilson is the most important figure in the entire universe. The fact is, I am saying he's the second most important figure in the entire universe because the most important is the Populist Party of 1912, which allowed this measley Democrat to become president.

[Ayesha M.]

Jingoists are the most significant group in United States history because if they were not around, the United States would not be a world power today. Jingoists, which were a group that came around the 1890's and wanted the United States to make the world recongnize it's power with military force. They were the group that advocated the country to get involved into war at the end of the 19th centry. They pushed for the war on Spain to free Cuba, and get involved with the Philippines and Puerto Rico. We only started doing things on a world scale bases due to their efforts of pushing U.S. out of an isolationist state.

[Laura D]

Ayesha- "Jingoists"-that is soo cool!
Do you know where the name came from (was there a main leader that it was named after)?

Who was the main proponent of "Jingoism" ?

(that is so much fun to write ) Jingoists Jingoism

[Maureen H.]

Texans are the most significant group in U.S. history because their war for independence from Mexico and desire for annexation by the U.S. were the primary causes of the Mexican-American War.

At the conclusion of their war for independence, the Texans forced Santa Anna to sign the Treaties of Velasco, which ended hostilities, removed the Mexican forces from Texas, and set the Rio Grande as Texas’s border with Mexico. Mexico’s refusal to accept the Treaties of Velasco led to constant border conflicts between it and the Republic of Texas.
Annexation of Texas became a major issue in the 1844 presidential election. James K. Polk, who ran on a platform of annexation and expansion, won the election and in March 1845 the United States annexed Texas.
Texas’s border dispute with Mexico gave President Polk a pretext to send American troops past the Nueces River, the boundary claimed by Mexico, and to the Rio Grande, the boundary claimed by the Texans. The resulting war led to the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which gave America California, New Mexico, and Arizona, and the Texans the Rio Grande border they desired.
"In all, the United States gained 529,000 square miles from Mexico, including the part of California where the gold rush soon began, bringing people to that territory from around the nation and the world. The victory turned out to be a mixed blessing, however, as northerners and southerners began to disagree strenuously over whether the lands gained from Mexico would be slave or free. It took the Civil War to finally settle the question." (Duncan, Jason. "U.S.-Mexican War." In Rohrbough, Malcolm J., and Gary B. Nash, eds. Encyclopedia of American History: Expansion and Reform, 1813 to 1855, vol. 4. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2003. Facts On File, Inc. American History Online. <www.fofweb.com>.)

[Robbie U.]

ajg1300 said:

Isn't it obvious? The Populist Party of 1912 is, without a doubt, the most significant group in US History. When the Republicans nominated William Howard Taft for the presidency for the 1912 election, a disgruntled Theodore Roosevelt, upset that he lost the Republican nomination to Taft, made the decision to break off from the Republican Party and create his own party, the Progressive Party (also known as the "Bull Moose" party). Surprisingly, despite a lack of significant support, this Progressive Party did help to determine who the future president of the Untied States would be. The Democratic Party nominated Woodrow Wilson, who was not extremely well liked, for the 1912 election. Wilson managed to scrap together about 40% of the vote. However, Taft and Roosevelt split the old Republican votes, which essentially catapulted Wilson into the presidency.
Now, I know what you're thinking: Why the heck is this important?!?! tsk, tsk. You've forgotten how important ol' Woodrow was for American History. Not only did Wilson carry us victoriously through THE FIRST WORLD WAR, but he also developed his Fourteen Points address, which advocated a new idea: the League of Nations. Though the League of Nations isn't exactly powerful anymore, the idea can be seen in other well known international organizations, such as NATO and the UN.
In addition to this incredible feat, Wilson passed the 19th ammendment, which gave a political voice to all women, aka HALF OF OUR NATION.
Now, I know it seems like I'm really saying that Woodrow Wilson is the most important figure in the entire universe. The fact is, I am saying he's the second most important figure in the entire universe because the most important is the Populist Party of 1912, which allowed this measley Democrat to become president.

It seems as if they're just important because they allowed Wilson to come to power. Can't that 'significance' be given to the other Republican candidate as well, thereby making them equally significant?

Did the progressive party of 1912 do anything themselves other than split the vote that made them significant?

[Robbie U.]

zjb said:

Perhaps the colonists wouldn't have been able to survive at first without the aid of the Native Americans, but they wouldn't have been there in the first place had it not been for the European explorers. As we all know, Christopher Columbus was one of the most significant of these. He sailed in 1492 in search of a sea route to Asia and instead stumbled upon America (of course, still believing it to be a part of Asia). Columbus was the cause of Europe's interest in the Americas beginning in the 1400s. He found gold on the island of Hispaniola, attempted to set up a colony, and set a precedent for the unmerciful treatment of Native Americans that lasted for hundreds of years. While we might not agree with all of his actions today, it is undeniable that he and the other pre-colonial European explorers make up the most influential group in United States history.

I disagree. Had the European explorers been denied their chance to explore, America would've still eventually been found. Many cases of evidence exist to show that America had already been discovered multiple times, and if Colombus had been locked away before sailing someone would've eventually done his job.

Not to mention those who aren't European. What if China resumed it's sea-faring way, a nation which at one time did have the largest navy in the world. It was stopped because of the expense, but what if a radical Chinese leader (China did have many after all) decided that it was in China's best interests to beign exploration once again. And then China may have discovered America.

Before you say then that America would be chinese, we can not deny the European greed and that they would no doubt seize these new lands from China and easily defeat their stretched army. America would therefore end up in European hands and the coasts would still be open to European settlement and dominance.

European explorers no doubt carry significance, but it is not something others would not have been able to claim as their own. Therefore they are not the most significant.

[Zoe B.]

First of all, I am well aware that there were other groups to have "found" America before Columbus. However, none of them popularized the land like Columbus and the European explorers following him did. Of course, America would have been "discovered" soon enough, but the point is that it was discovered by these people at this time. Had this "discovery" occurred in any slightly different way, there might have been a completely different reaction to and use of it and/or it could have been populated by entirely different people. This would have altered the entire course of history, both in and out of the Americas. While there would have eventually been new people colonizing the land, the fact that it was these people at this time makes all the difference, for the United States as we know it might never have been formed otherwise.

[michaelg]

Traders are the most important group in American History. This is so because they have influenced American foreign policy more than any other group.

The creation of America's open door policy is an example. This policy was created because of the will of american traders. America did not have a sphere of influence in china so traders would have to trade with the europeans and not the Chinese directly, if the Europeans would let them trade at all. Anyway, this was not profitable. Because traders are so important to the American economy, the government was under pressure to open markets in China. That is why the open door policy was created. Pushing to have this policy was dangerous because the European powers did not trust eachother. For example, when Secretary of State John Hay asked the countries with spheres of influence to create free ports within their spheres, each country refused to act before the other countries did.

Another example of how traders have influenced American foreign policy would be the Monroe Doctrine. The Monroe Doctrine called for an end of colonialism in South America. The reason behind the creation of this policy is traders. Because much of South America was colonized, American traders could not trade directly with the people of South America. They had to trade through the colony's motherland. This was not profitable. The Monroe Doctrine was made to open markets in South America. The Monroe Doctrine also said that Foreign countries can't attempt to conquer the newly independent countries in South America. Even though there were markets already available for American traders, this strengthened relations between America and these young countries. Those countries would then be more willing to trade with Americans,

In conclusion, traders are the most important group in American history. No other group has affected American foreign policy than traders.

[grandpoobah]

Good point Zoe.

[Buddy S.]

Aha, but Zoe, would your explorers have been able to even reach America without the TECHNOLOGY that my inventors can provide. Think about it. No trip across that sea would be possible without the advent of a compass, or of accurate (relative) maps. What about the firepower in the form of gunpower that was invented by the chinese? Without their gunpowder, the Europeans wouldn't have stood a chance against the Incan or Aztec Empires that populated South America! Don't play this game with me, or any of my inventors. Without us, you guys are still eating Caribou... without spears! (Another thoughtful invention).

[grandpoobah]

Buddy, that doesn't count as a post. Thems aint american explorers your talking about. Thems is them foreign type inventors that don't count. Patriotism and myopic american views of history only.

[Beth M.]

The most significant group in US history are the Supreme Court Justices. The Supreme Court, started in 1789 by the Judiciary Act of 1789, is the highest court in the United States. The Supreme Court consists of 9 members - one chief justice and eight associate justices. Ever since the Judiciary Act of 1789, the Supreme Court Justices have had to decide many cases that lead to alterations in the Constitution and many other important things. The most significant case was Marbury v. Madison(1803), under Chief Justice John Marshall, in which the ultimate outcome was that the Supreme Court could decided whether or not an act of Congress was unconstitutional (judicial review). The Supreme Court was also responsible for ground-breaking decisions such as Brown v. Board of Education, which stopped segregation in schools, and Roe v. Wade, in which the court ruled that a woman had the constitutional right to get an abortion during the first trimester. The Supreme Court also was one of the first federal institutions to welcome an African American, Justice Thurgood Marshall, in 1967, and a woman, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor in 1981.
Supreme Court Justices are the most significant group in US history because they affect every branch of government, and their decisions affect the United States as a whole.