National History Day: Potential Topics

Remember that you are not just reporting the past, but you are investigating, searching, digging deeper into the research to thoroughly understand the historical significance of your topic and support your thesis.

Additional Ideas

Social And Societal

• Jesse Owens: Overcoming Discrimination to Break World Records

• Executive Order 9981: Breaking Down Barriers of Segregation in the Military

• Loving v. Virginia: Interracial Couple Fights Legal Barrier to Marriage

• Executive Order 11478: Breaking Down Barriers of Federal Discrimination

• Brown v. Board of Education: Removing the Barrier of Educational Segregation

• Breaking Barriers for Blacks to Vote: From the 15th Amendment to the Voting Rights Act of 1965

• The Removal of Poll Taxes: Ratification of the 24th Amendment

• Woman Suffrage Activists Hold First Protest at the White House Fence

• Breaking Barriers by Women Suffragists and their Organizations: From the Seneca Falls Convention to the League of Women Voters

• Sylvia Pankhurst and the Movement for Women's Suffrage in the United Kingdom

• Legalization of Same-Sex Marriage: U.S. Supreme Court Guarantees the Right to Marry for All

• Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation: Breaking Religious Barriers

• Nelson Mandela: Breaking the Barrier of Apartheid in South Africa

• Ratification of the U.S. Constitution: The Colonies Overcome the Final Barrier to Statehood as The Pillars of the Republic Are Built

• Mohandas Gandhi: Breaking the Barrier for Indian Independence

• The Arab Spring: Barriers to Democracy Come Down

• The Fall of Saddam Hussein: Breaking Down Authoritarian Rule

• Franklin Delano Roosevelt: First U.S. President to Serve Three Terms

• Barack Obama: First African American U.S. President

• Thurgood Marshall: First African American U.S. Supreme Court Justice

• Sonia Sotomayor: First Hispanic U.S. Supreme Court Justice

• First U.S. Congresswoman, First Woman Nominated for U.S. Presidency, First Female Speaker of the House of Representatives

• Hillary Clinton: First Woman Nominated for President by a Major Political Party

• Great Britain's EU Referendum: Breaking From the European Union

Discovery & Exploration

• The First Solo Transatlantic Trips: Breaking the Barrier of Flight

• First Americans in Space: Pushing the Limits of Our Galaxy

• The First U.S. Transcontinental Railroad: Furthering Westward Expansion

• Major Breakthrough in Treatment for AIDS: Breaking Scientific Barriers

Free Expression (First Amendment issues):

• The Debut of LBGTQ Literature: Rising Up Through the Power of the Pen

• The Pentagon Papers: A Call for Governmental Accountability

• The National Anthem Protests: Taking a Knee for Equal Justice

• Jacob Coxey's Army: Petitioning Against Income Inequality

• Mary Beth Tinker's Black Armband of Peace: Giving a Voice to Students

• The Skokie March: Removing Barriers to Allow Hateful Assembly

• Citizens United Ruling: Breaking Down Barriers to Corporate Donations to Campaigns

Physical & Natural

• The Berlin Wall: Dividing East from West

• President Kennedy Ends the Naval Blockade: Thawing of Tensions in Cuba

• D-Day: Overcoming Cliffs and Nazi Defenses in Push to Liberate

• The Selma March: Breaking Through the Line of Law Enforcement Officers

Music and Dance

• Dancers Who Broke Barriers and Impacted Dance History

Authors

• 13 Female Authors Who Have Broken Barriers

Even More Potential Topics!

Doctor or Doctress?

Explore American history through the eyes of women physicians

• Two Women Break through the Medical Fields Barriers of Race, Gender, and Social Standing

In 1897, Eliza Grier and Matilda Evans both graduated from the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania. As black women, they faced hardships in both gender and racial discrimination to earn their degrees and establish themselves as physicians. After receiving their medical degrees, both Grier and Evans set up practices in South Carolina. Through their endeavors they were harassed, contested, and eventually acknowledged. Though they diverged into different paths, both women managed to achieve success in their field.

Primary sources & background »

• Breakthrough in the Civil War: Mary Walker's Experiences As a Female Surgeon on the Battlefield

Among the first generation of women physicians, Dr. Mary Walker led a dramatic career on a number of battlefronts. She served as a surgeon for the Union Army during the Civil War, where she was captured and held as a prisoner of war. President Andrew Johnson awarded Walker the Medal of Honor for her service, but it was later revoked in 1917. After breaking through discrimination, and following the war, Dr. Walker's life was marked by her activism, and ardent push for women's dress reform.

Primary sources & background »

• The Women of World War I : Broken Barriers and Saved Lives

During the intense and unprecedented fighting of World War I, U.S. women were barred from serving as official army doctors. Determined to serve, a group of female physicians established the American Women's Hospitals (AWH) as an alternative method for assistance in the war. While serving in France, the AWH provided essential medical care to French civilians in areas devastated by war.

Primary sources & background »

• Strengthening the Country by Building Up Ourselves: Media Representation for The American Women’s Hospital in Appalachia

Amidst the financial and social devastation of the Great Depression, many rural, isolated communities struggled to keep themselves healthy. In these areas, public health relief efforts like those conducted by the American Women's Hospitals (AWH) were critical. As the AWH strengthened the Appalachia community, they met the geographic and public health challenges and managed to obtain media representation for their organization. Through public health initiatives, the AWH successfully displayed educational information in public places, presented educational lectures, built clean and safe latrines and wells, promoted maternal health, and launched an aggressive nutrition education campaign.

Primary sources & background »

• Breaking Barriers as a Black Woman Doctor

Throughout the 20th century, African American women who became doctors had trouble finding work. Many created their own opportunities and became dedicated and caring service leaders in their communities. As many women broke the barriers of race in the medical field, others worked together in collaboration to diminish racial separation, prejudice in the medical field, and job opportunities.

Primary sources & background »

Wisconsin Topics

1. VICTOR BERGER AND SEWER SOCIALISM IN MILWAUKEE

Time period: 1897 – 1940s

Type of history: Political, Civil, Social

What is this about? Milwaukee Socialists believed in sharing wealth through community. Many laborers and members of the working class wanted power evenly distributed and believed the Social-Democratic Party could help accomplish this goal in city government. In 1910, Emil Seidel became the nation’s first Socialist mayor (Milwaukee), Socialists held a majority of seats in Milwaukee’s City Council and other city offices, and continued to hold power until the 1940s. Milwaukee Socialists cleaned up neighborhoods and factories, put in water and sewer systems (how they got their name), parks, and education systems. Most importantly, Victor Berger, the symbol of the party, went to Washington as the first Socialist Congressman.

Keywords: Socialism, Victor Berger, Emil Seidel, Progressivisms

Where to start:

How Wisconsin Became America’s Most Socialist State – Wisconsin Historical Society

Victor Berger, the first Socialist elected to Congress – Milwaukee Sentinel, 1929

A Milwaukee Woman’s Life on the Left: The Autobiography of Meta Berger by: Meta

Berger

2. MISSISSIPPIAN WAY OF LIFE

Time period: AD 1000 - 1200

Type of history: Native, Social, Defense

What is this about? Home to 10,000 to 40,000 residents, Cahokia, a massive community near present-day St. Louis on the Mississippi River, gave rise to many Midwest communities. One community in Wisconsin was Aztalan inhabited by the Mississippians, descendants of Cahokia and some say one of the greatest civilizations in the world. Much changed for Mississippians after they settled in this place we now call Wisconsin. Community builders copied a similar layout as Cahokia with some ‘modern’ changes. A wall surrounding the community was an addition to the design probably resulting from a battle or invasion from enemies. These changes are known through discoveries by archeologists. Researchers discovered a previous Mississippian home along the Mississippi River that did not have much protection and suspect residents moved to Aztalan in order to be off a popular waterway, out of sight from possible invaders. Mississippians adapted to their environment successfully enough to thrive for 10 generations.

Keywords: Mississippian, Aztalan, platform mounds, Cahokia

Where to start:

“Who were they and why did they leave?” by: Natasha Kassulke, Wisconsin Natural Resources Magazine

Aztalan: Mysteries of an Ancient Indian Town by: Robert A. Birmingham and Lynne Goldstein Visit Aztalan State Park! Walk the land Mississippians lived on and read the markers.

3. RED LINING IN MILWAUKEE AND VEL PHILLIPS

Time period: 1950 - 1960s

Type of history: Social Justice, Legal

What is this about? Redlining is the (now illegal) process of blocking off sections of a city to indicate where certain populations can and cannot live. Up until the 1960s, Milwaukee developers and elected officials red lined African Americans into a six by six block radius on Milwaukee’s North Side. Referred to as the ‘Inner Core,’ racist landlords enforced this zone by not renting out apartments to people of color. Red lining did not involve a physical red line on the ground, but on maps created by discriminatory legislators and city developers. This made red lining hard to prove and charge. Vel Phillips, a UW-Madison educated black woman, campaigned for city council and earned her seat as the first woman and African American in an alderwoman and judge position. She fought in all her roles to make discriminatory housing practices illegal. After violent strikes, police and the National Guard arrived to prevent further violence during a tense time. The Fair Housing Marches lead to the Fair Housing Act Phillips wrote six years prior to be passed in 1968, making red lining illegal.

Keywords: red lining, Milwaukee’s inner core, Vel Phillips, fair housing, Father James Groppi

Where to start:

Crossing the line: Milwaukee Fair Housing Marches of 1967-1968 – Exhibit by the Wisconsin Historical Society

March on Milwaukee – UWM Civil Rights Library

Visit the Wisconsin Black Historical Society! 2620 W Center St, Milwaukee, WI 53206

4. PLANK ROAD

Time period: 1850s

Type of history: Transportation, Social, Labor, Geographic, Economic

What is this about? In the 1850s, Wisconsin settlers were looking for better ways to transport their goods across the state. Dirt roads at the time were inaccessible or closed during wet seasons, which made travel hard. Making roads of wooden planks seemed like a reasonable way to fix this problem. Wood was plentiful and other options, like stone roads, were expensive and difficult to make—as well as hard on the feet of animals. Plank roads grew in the 1850s, but their popularity was short-lived. Wisconsin’s long winters, wet springs and hot summers made the wood fall apart faster than places more north like Canada. These roads were, at first, privately owned and paid for by the selling shares of the road. Because the roads were privately owned and not a public good like parks, travelers paid to use the road. Toll booths collected money for the owners, but as the wood began to wear down from travel and weather, the costs became more expensive. This problem overlapped with the development of railroads. Although more expensive, railroads proved to be a more efficient and safer way to transport goods.

Keywords: plank roads, carriage, Wade House, railroads

Where to start:

Milwaukee-Watertown Plank Road – Watertown Historical Society

Old Plank Road Trail – Sheboygan County

“The Lisbon Plan Road Came from Early Indian Trails and Oxen Wagon Roads” by: Michael R. Reilly Sussex-Lisbon Area Historical Society, Inc.

5. BAYVIEW MASSACRE

Time period: 1880s

Type of history: Labor, Social

What is this about? Wisconsin state militia shot at 1,500 factory workers protesting for better working conditions and treatment in Milwaukee factories and seven people died. Mill workers, mostly immigrants, worked ten to fourteen hours a day, six days a week, for about one dollar a day during the 19th century. Workers joined together to form unions as a show of support and unity against factory owners. The Federation of Organized Trade and Labor, as well as the Knights of Labor in Milwaukee fought hard to pass the eight-hour work day with little success. Protests turned violent and eventually law enforcement arrived. It was not until May 5, 1886—the day of the massacre—that factory owners granted laborers an eight-hour work day. A Federal law did not pass until 1938 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Keywords: Bay View Rolling Mill, Knights of Labor, Governor Jeremiah Rusk

Where to start:

About the Bay View Tragedy – Wisconsin Labor History Society

Workers and unions in Wisconsin: A Labor History Anthology by Darryl Holter

“The Bay View Tragedy: Wisconsin’s Fight for the Eight-Hour Workday” Wisconsin

Magazine of History Fall 2019 by: Anna Pearce (2019 NHD in WI National Finalist)

6. VOIGT DECISION

Time period: 1980s-1990s

Type of history: Native, Legal

What is this about? In Northern Wisconsin, violence broke out over Ojibwe spearfishing. Non-Ojibwe residents argued Ojibwe spearfishing and harvesting practices were illegal on reservations and public land. Non-Ojibwe locals protested Ojibwe spearfishing by throwing objects, shouting slurs, and other acts of violence. Ojibwe bands ceded or sold lands to the United States in 1837 and 1842 treaties. However, the Ojibwe kept their “usufructuary rights” or the rights to hunt, fish, and gather on these lands. The Voigt Decision confirmed that Wisconsin had no right to regulate fishing on and off Ojibwe reservations as stated in both treaties. Ojibwe now fish freely after successfully re-claiming their rights.

Keywords: Ojibwe, spearfishing, 1837 treaty, 1842 treaty, usufructuary rights

Where to start:

Spearfishing Controversy – Milwaukee Public Museum

Feature Story: Anti-Spearfishing Concrete Walleye Decoy – Wisconsin Historical

Society

The Walleye War: The Struggle for Ojibwe Spearfishing and Treaty Rights by: Larry Nesper

7. INVENTIONS BY ALLIS CHALMERS

Time period: 1880s – 1980s

Type of history: Industrial, Labor, Agricultural

What is this about? By 1900, the United States became the world’s leading industrial nation. One manufacturing leader in Wisconsin was Edward P. Allis in Milwaukee. Rather than extracting, or taking, raw materials like lumber and lead, Allis made finished consumer goods like iron pipes and saws for sawmills. Originally the Allis Company in 1880s, the company became world-famous for making parts in mines, power plants, and public utilities. The company continued to manufacture machinery after a merger with other large engine makers in 1901, re-naming it the Allis-Chalmers Company until the 1980s. Allis-Chalmers impressed everyone by creating the best equipment for milling flour, crushing ore, pumping sewage, mines, and power—they were called, “Company of the Four Powers – Steam, Gas, Water, and Electricity.” The company continued to develop designs to make power. In 1923, the company completed work at Niagara Falls installing the largest hydroelectric unit in the world. Allis Chalmers went on to build an even bigger turbine for the Hoover Dam, help on the World War II Manhattan Project, and continued in the field of nuclear power until they entered bankruptcy in

1987.

Keywords: Allis Chalmers, Tractor Foundry, Industrial Era

Where to start:

Allis-Chalmers Governor – Wisconsin Historical Society

The Rise of Skilled Manufacturing: How Industry Transformed the State – Wisconsin Historical Society

An Industrial Heritage: Allis-Chalmers Corporation by: Charles Edward Weber

8. FRENCH FUR TRADE ERA

Time period: 1640s – 1850s

Type of history: Early American, Social, Immigration

What is this about? Jean Nicolet was the first European to arrive on this land we now call Wisconsin. Other French explorers followed, especially fur traders. French fur traders exchanged weapons, beads, and other goods for rich beaver furs. Beaver fur is waterproof, which is ideal hat-making material. Many white explorers flocked to the Great Lakes region to seek fur, causing the market to burst. Goods were shipped to posts and warehouses around the state because there was high demand. With money and goods flowing, the way of life for tribes changed drastically. Indigenous communities had to trap animals nonstop in order to keep up with the European traders’ trade. This new economic, or money-making, job took over all forms of Native life, and new goods like metal tools and weapons changed daily way of life to be more modern. The money coming into the area put this region on the map, leading to a new state

called Wisconsin.

Keywords: Ouisconsin, Jean Nicolet, Missionaries, colonialism, trading posts, beaver fur

Where to start:

The Fur Trade Era: 1650s to 1850s: A Short History of Wisconsin – Wisconsin Historical Society

Wisconsin Fur Trade “Ouisconsin” (1640s-1763) – Milwaukee Public Museum

Fur Trade and Explorers – Heritage Parkway

9. SOCIAL SECURITY

Time period: 1920s-1930s

Type of history: Economic, Legal, Labor, Social

What is this about? The failure of America’s economic system (how money is exchanged) caused the stock market to crash in 1929 leading to the Great Depression. This meant job loss, business closings, and struggling families. President Franklin D. Roosevelt started the Committee on Economic Security, chaired by UW-Madison economist Edwin E. Witte, to lessen suffering and safeguard for the future. In 1935, the Committee recommended, and Congress later approved, a bill to provide unemployment compensation, old-age benefits, as well as other aid. Wisconsin natives Arthur Altmeyer and Edwin Witte helped design this Social Security Act based off the “Wisconsin Idea” concept. The Wisconsin Idea started by UW-Madison professor John R. Commons believes all University of Wisconsin schools should always be working and researching to improve the lives of all citizens in Wisconsin. The Social Security Act reflects the same idea of improving the health and lives of all people, thanks to Wisconsinites. This program is still happening today and Wisconsinites continue to be invited to assist with economic problems in government.

Keywords: John R. Commons, Edwin Witte, Progressivism, Wisconsin Idea

Where to start:

Social Security: The Wisconsin Connection – Wisconsin Historical Society

Why Social Security – Social Security Board Booklet published in 1937

Depression and Unemployment: Hard Times in Wisconsin – Wisconsin Historical

Society

10. WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE

Time period: 1848 - 1920

Type of history: Women, Social, Political

What is this about? Women began asking for the right to vote with a number of other rights such as the ability to own property. Social change takes a long time so there were many movements and efforts within the 72 year period of women asking for the right to vote. Women in Wisconsin, across the nation, and around the world were all asking for more rights during this time. Some important Wisconsin women included Olympia Brown, Ada James, and Theodora Winton Youmans. The movement was mainly middle-class white women and this also caused some6 issues regarding race and immigrant groups.

Keywords: Woman suffrage, voting, Theodora Winton Youmans, Olympia Brown, Ada James

Where to start:

On Wisconsin Women: Working for Their Rights from Settlement to Suffrage by: Genevieve G. McBride

The Woman’s Suffrage Movement Document Bank – Wisconsin Historical Society

“How Wisconsin Women Won the Ballot” Magazine of History by: Theodora W. Youmans

11. MAGIC IN WISCONSIN

Time period: 1890s – 1940s

Type of history: Entertainment, Social

What is this about? Harry Houdini, originally born Erik Weisz in 1874, began a career in the art of escape and illusion in Appleton, Wisconsin. He claimed his first introduction to the art of magic occurred in 1880 when the P.T. Barnum Circus (another Wisconsin original) came to town. The Weisz Family moved a lot, often struggling to support themselves. Erik eventually decided to follow his dream of magic with a friend with an act called, “Brothers Houdini” after French magician Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin. By 1896 the act separated and renamed Harry and wife Bess took their new act on the road. The two started off unsuccessful. They played at small beer halls and circuses, never able to earn a decent wage. It was not until Harry found his true calling in the art of escape. He challenged local chiefs of police to restrain him with their most secure locks and impressed the crowd with an escape in less than five minutes! As his fame grew, so did the danger. To keep crowds he added more elements, eventually gaining him performances around the world and for President Teddy Roosevelt. Later on in his career, Houdini became a key figure on the debate over spiritualism and mediums. On his 1926 farewell tour, he claimed he could withstand any punch. One audience member punched him and two weeks later he died from an undiagnosed case of chronic appendicitis. It is unclear whether the blow ruptured his appendix, but it definitely contributed to the legendary magician’s untimely death. His legacy lives on through inspiring magicians worldwide and local, like Ben Berger.

Keywords: Harry Houdini, circus, magic, vaudeville, Ben Berger

Where to start:

“The Bonds he Did Not Break: Harry Houdini” by: Kimberly Louagie Wisconsin Magazine of History: Volume 85, Number 3, Spring 2002

Visit the Houdini Exhibit at the History Museum At the Castle in Appleton!

Highlight Magic by: Ben Berger