WEEK 7 · INQUIRY MODULE
Week 7: Civil War and Continental State-Building
How did the Civil War extend into the West, and whose freedom did wartime state-building secure?
Dates: October 5–9, 2026
Focus
- Civil War in Missouri, Indian Territory, New Mexico, and the Pacific
- Dakota War and the Long Walk
- Federal military power and emancipation’s uneven geography
Before class
- Read: American Yawp, chapters 13–15 selected sections.
- Open and inspect the linked primary-source collection(s). Record one source, one context question, and one limitation.
- Scholarship lens: Elliott West, Continental Reckoning (2023), selected excerpt.
Primary-source portals
Tuesday/Thursday meeting plan
| Date | Status | Plan |
|---|
| Tuesday, October 6 | Class | Civil War in Missouri, Indian Territory, New Mexico, and the Pacific. |
| Thursday, October 8 | Class | Dakota War, the Long Walk, emancipation, Greater Reconstruction, and capstone scope conferences. |
Capstone Question and Scope due Friday, October 9.
After class
Deliverable: Capstone Question and Scope Conference and Reading & Reasoning Check 5.
- I can answer the weekly inquiry with a contestable claim.
- I can name at least two pieces of evidence and explain their limits.
- I can identify an interpretation that my evidence supports, complicates, or challenges.