essay ca

Essay #1: Among These Beautiful Hills History 105, Professor Helton, Fall, 2020

DUE DA TE: October 19, 2020

Over the course of thousands of years, the indigenous people of California lived in what we today call the Golden State, developing distinctive social, political and economic traditions. Then, between the years 1769 and 1850, California became a contested space as new societies moved in. The Spanish Empire, the Californios, and the United States of America all sought to control California, as the indigenous peoples of the region worked to adapt to - and survive - the changes. Each of these groups – indigenous peoples, the Spanish, the Californios and the United States – had a distinct vision of what life in California should be. Sources: Carefully examine the following sources:

• Starr, California: A History • Videos for all modules. • Videos from indigenous perspectives in the modules for the weeks of September 7 and

September 14 • Module for week of September 14:

o Selections from Francisco Palou’s Life and Apostolic Labors of the Venerable Father Junipero Serra

o Primary Sources from Spanish California • Module for week of September 21:

o Ranch and Mission Days in Alta California by Guadalupe Vallejo • Module for week of September 28:

o Selections from the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo o Selections from James Polk’s message to Congress o Selections from the Dame Shirley Letters

• Module for the week of October 5: o Winema and the Modoc War o Diseño of the Ex-Mission of San José Land o A Cruise on the Barbary Coast

The Assignment: Once you have read and watched the sources, compose a thoughtful, well-written essay, in which you answer the following questions:

In this period, four distinct groups - Indigenous Caifornians, the Spanish, the Californios, and Americans – lived in the Bay Area. Compare and contrast the communities that each of these groups built. What types of political, economic, religious and cultural systems did each of these communities create? What did each group value and prioritize in the systems they developed? And in these systems, who held power and who did not?

Please note – this is a huge set of questions, and there is no single “right” way to answer it. Focus on developing a strong thesis and supporting that thesis with primary source evidence. Format and Requirements: You are not required to do extra research for this assignment. Please use the readings from California, A History and the readings linked in Canvas in addition to the class lectures as your sources. You must use primary source evidence in this essay. Support your answer with specific quotations and examples from the assigned primary sources. Your essay should be four to five pages long, with formatting as described in the class syllabus. Your essay should include a thesis statement that clearly answers the question. The body of your essay should include primary and secondary source evidence that supports your thesis. You must use footnotes to document these sources. Your essay should include a properly formatted Bibliography at the end (the Bibliography is not included in the page count). The proper format for footnotes and bibliographies can be found in Chapter 16 and 17 of Turabian.

If you have any questions, please email me at [email protected].