American Historical Figure

Order Description
The U.S. Treasury Department will be updating the $20 bill with the image of Harriet Tubman by the year
2020. We will imagine that they’ve decided to make an additional $20 bill that depicts another
figure from early American history (the period we cover in this class). You are to write an informative and persuasive essay advocating for a particular individual (known by name or symbolic as discussed above) to be put on the new bill. You are not required to choose a woman or a person of color, but you must think beyond the ranks of the American presidents who are already well-represented in U.S. currency. Papers about U.S. presidents will not be accepted for this assignment. Such individuals are worthy of the honor they’ve received, but we’re going to earn that Essential Studies credit for U.S. Diversity and think about the many contributions of those who did not serve in the highest office of the land. Have fun and be creative!
A PIECE OF ADVICE: This paper should not be a Wikipedia-style biography in which you simply reiterate a historical figure’s life chronology. We are spending four months learning about the broad narrative of early American history. You need to draw on that history and place your research subject within it. For example, William Lloyd Garrison is an important and interesting figure, but his historical significance is lost if we don’t understand his life concerning the larger history of slavery and the abolition movement. A strong paper on Garrison would not simply describe his major contributions to American history but would do so by discussing the larger context of his time and the specific context of his life’s work. Make sure you draw on the history we’ve studied over the semester when making a case for why your historical figure deserves the honor of being on the $20 bill.
The questions that you need to address in your essay include:
• Who is the person you’ve selected or the group of people your selected person represents?
Provide appropriate background information.
• Why did this person/people matter at the time in which they lived? What is her/his/their historical significance? What did she/he/they accomplish? Make sure you provide evidence of this by pointing to specific examples that support your argument. As stated above, you must also put these accomplishments within the appropriate historical context.
• Why does this person/people matter to posterity? What is her/his/their lasting impact on the
The United States? Again, make sure you provide evidence of this.
Your paper will be between 1200-1500 words. Type the number of words at the end of your essay. It
must be single-spaced, and include a title, page numbers, footnote citations, your name, and the date.
Your bibliography will be written in Chicago Style and must include at least:
• one book (your textbook does NOT qualify)
• one peer-reviewed scholarly article (click here for a short tutorial on how to find a scholarly
article: https://screencast.com/t/8yPEH7QBip )
• one primary source (a historical document or artifact)