Syllabus, Economic and Business History of the United States 1. Course Information 21.512.358 Section 61 Economic and Business History of the US Tuesdays, 6:00pm to 9:00pm, Hill 115, Rutgers University Newark We will survey the economic development of the United States from the era of European settlement to the present. Our goals are not merely to enhance our understanding of the relevant history, but also to improve our ability to critically analyze evidence and arguments and constantly review, and revise as necessary, our understanding of history. 2. Instructor Information Raymond P. Ojserkis, PhD [email protected] Office Hours on Thursdays, 4:00 to 5:00, Conklin 326 3. Grading Policy The graded components of your course are as follows: Unannounced Reading Quizzes 33.3% Midterm Exam 33.3% Final (non‐cumulative) Exam 33.3% You must also attend class. For each unexcused absence beyond the fourth, you will lose a half letter for your course grade. If you miss six of more sessions, you will lose a full letter grade. If you miss eight or more sessions through any combination of excused and unexcused absences you will not earn credit in this course, and should withdraw from the course to avoid getting an F. Quizzes The unannounced reading quizzes will be short quizzes that you should pass if you’re doing the assigned reading. The lowest grade you receive on a reading quiz will be dropped. Exams The exams will test your ability to synthesize and communicate historical information. They will only be given in the sessions designated in the calendar below. If you miss an exam for any reason other than those specified in the Rutgers catalog, you will lose a full grade on each section on your make‐up exam. 4. Classes Class sessions will be used for quizzes, examinations and lectures. Each lecture will detail a historic topic, as listed in the schedule below, and for each of these topics I will distribute a handout listing key points we’ll discuss. Some of these handouts will include primary reading in addition to that assigned below. I don’t post the handouts online, as that encourages non‐attendance. Learning can be a collaborative process, and I will involve the class in discussions. Never feel that your comments or questions aren’t appreciated. 5. Primary Sources Primary sources are first‐hand accounts, often created by participants or witnesses of events, and sometimes created by first‐recorders of events. Examples include, but aren’t limited to, memoirs, speeches, documents, data, polls, and contemporary newspaper accounts. Secondary sources are sources created by people who didn’t participate or witness events, but often have the benefit of perspective, and typically draw from a variety of sources to create a nuanced and complex history that can account for multiple interpretations. Examples include history books and lectures. We’ll try to balance the lectures (a secondary source) by reading primary sources exclusively in our out‐of‐class reading. As we will discuss the primary sources in class, it will help to bring printed copies with you, or a laptop that is Internet‐accessible. 6. Academic Integrity Agreement and Honor Pledge Rutgers provides a statement of academic integrity on Blackboard. Please review and accept the agreement. Also, on each examination, you will be required to sign the following statement: On my honor, I have neither received nor given any unauthorized assistance on this examination (assignment). I will post a copy of this syllabus on Blackboard. Tentative Calendar CLASS DATE 1 Jan 22 TOPIC Mercantilism & European Settlement in North America
ASSIGNED OUTSIDE READING (other reading will be distributed in class) n/a
2 Jan 29 From Colonial Economies to the Early Republic
Richard Hakluyt, Discourse of Western Planting, 1584
Benjamin Franklin, The Way to Wealth, 1757 3 Feb 5 National Bank and Transportation Revolution
Alexander Hamilton, The First Report on Public Credit, 1789
Andrew Jackson, Veto Message Regarding the Bank of the United States, 1832 4 Feb 12 Civil War and the US Economy Abraham Lincoln, Address Before the Wisconsin State Agricultural Society, 1859
Sharecropping Contract, 1879 5 Feb 19 Western Settlement Homestead Act, 1862, Mattie Oblinger, letter to family, 1873,
and Fort Laramie Treaty, 1868 6 Feb 26 Tycoons and “Taylorism” Andrew Carnegie, The Gospel of Wealth, 1889
Ida Tarbell, John D. Rockefeller: A Character Study, McClure’s Magazine, 1905 7 Mar 5 Labor Strife, Bank Panics, Trusts, and Responses
Illinois Bureau of Labor Statistics, Six Families Budget Their Money, 1884
Benjamin Strong, Formation of the Federal Reserve, 1915 8 Mar 12 Midterm Exam n/a
Mar 19 Spring Break – No Class n/a
9 Mar 26 Roaring Twenties W. Plummer, Consequences of Buying on Installment Plan, 1927, Seymour, Pompous Prognosticators, and C. Coolidge, Address to NY State Chamber of Commerce, 1925 10 Apr 2 Great Depression and New Deal
Oral History Interview with Rexford Tugwell, 1965, Huey Long, Share Our Wealth, 1934, and
letters to Times of London from economists (including Keynes and Hayek), 1932 11 Apr 9 Mobilization for Second World War and Cold War
Master Lend Lease Agreement with United Kingdom, 1942
George Marshall, speech at Harvard University, 1947 12 Apr 16 Consumer Economy, 1945 through 1973
Harry Henderson, Suburbs: The New American Dream, 1953
John Kenneth Galbraith, The Affluent Society, 1958 (read pages 1‐6 only) 13 Apr 23 Stagflation, Monetarism, and Supply‐Side Economics
Gerald Ford, Address on Energy Policy, 1975
PBS Interview with Milton Friedman 14 Apr 30 US Economy in Second Age of Globalization
James Glassman, Why I Was Wrong About Dow 36,000, Wall Street Journal, 2011
Pam Woodall, House of Cards, The Economist, 2003 May 14 Final Exam (@6:20pm) n/a