Research Project Review

Fall 2005

Major Concepts

• Sentence #1 will be your thesis sentence with 3 or 4 thesis concepts. Sentence #1 is paragraph #1!

• Sentence #2 will be the first sentence in paragraph #2. It should be a mini-thesis for concept #1!

• There are no points for conclusions other than “perspective” conclusions

• You are required to cite from your major source at least 3 times by author and page. [105 isn’t sufficient]

• You are required to annotate your bibliography.• You are required to attach your earlier paper[s] and evaluation

form[s] when you resubmit a project for additional points.• There are major deductions for weak grammar and syntax – this is a

take-home project.

“A Political Policy With An Economic Basis”   (Packard, 83)By: Lana Hayes

    The mercantilist system was a major contributing factor in the American Revolution because mercantilism fostered the economic, political and cultural dependence of the American colonies on England. [The dark section contains her 3-part thesis!]

The growing British Empire’s wealth depended on the possession of silver.  The importation of raw materials from the America’s played a crucial role in feeding British industries and subsidizing their production costs (Funk and Wagnalls). Low production costs and cheap raw materials helped the British sell more than they bought and thereby increased their bullion reserves.  From the American plantations goods like tobacco, cotton, sugar, coffee, cocoa and rice were shipped to England, while British manufactures sent back the products that the colonies didn’t have (Marshall, 18).  This increased trade clearly benefited Britain. “Between 1700 and 1763 the value of British exports to America and the West Indies multiplied fivefold, while the value of imports from those areas grew fourfold” (Marshall, 18).  

Despite this growth, these gains for England meant losses for the American colonies. Colonies were designed to support and compliment the British industries, which meant complete subordination and economic control over colonies.  The British, competing with other European powers, monopolized commerce in the colonies. For example, the Navigation Acts (1651-1696) and other restrictions, passed by the British government required the use of British ships in trade between Britain and the colonies (Marshall, 18).  These Navigation Acts granted Britain a national monopoly of supply to the expanding colonies (Smith, 45). They were designed to keep exclusive trade with Britain, to maintain low rates on raw materials and ensure high profits from transportation and manufacture (Packard, 92). These aspects of the mercantile system imposed by England on the American colonies produced   a demand for economic freedom from the colonists, and would ultimately result in the American Revolution (Packard, 34).

    Mercantilism was a “political policy with an economic basis” (Packard, 83). British control over every aspect of economic life of the colonies prevented the American colonies from participating in foreign markets that would have helped them gain a political identity and increased sovereignty (Columbia). The colonies had to abolish the industries that could compete with those in England. One example was the Wool Act in 1699, banning wool production in the American colonies.  Other examples included the Iron Act of 1750 and the Hat Act in 1732, the first forbidding steel production and the manufacture of products made of iron, the second the production of hats (Marshall, 18). These restrictions triggered not only economic, but also an inevitable political conflict of freedom, which became one of the factors for the American Revolution.

           The Mercantile system helped the British exert social and cultural control over the American colonies.  One example was encouraging population growth. The British sought to increase the industrial profits that were dependant, in part, on a steady supply of affordable labor.  They passed favorable naturalization laws to attract more immigrants into the colonies. The British encouraged marriage, freedom of religious choice, employment of servants, support of the poor, and special programs for physicians (Packard, 35). While these initiatives seemed beneficial for the population and appeared to provide cultural freedom, the roots of these policies were designed primarily to create British wealth.

            The mercantilism system, despite many negative effects, was an important stage of the colonial, and British development, and provided a platform for the future economic, political and cultural freedom of the colonies, while ultimately encouraging over-dependence on the part of the British. [This paragraph didn’t earn points because it wasn’t a perspective paragraphy.]

Bibliography

Marshall, Michael. “From Mercantilism to The Wealth of Nations.” World and I 14 (5) May 1999: 18.

This article provides insights into British global trade and it’s role as the precursor to the Industrial revolution of the 19th century, and Technological Revolution of the 20th century. It describes the

economic and political relationships between the nations in the 18th century, including England and the New English Colonies.

[This section is her annotation.]

“Mercantilism”. Columbia Encyclopedia. Academic Search Elite. EBSCOhost. Oct. 22, 2002 http://epnet.com.

The information from this encyclopedia gave me the overview of the mercantile system used by England to create their wealth. 

   “Mercantilism”. Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia. Academic Search Elite. EBSCOhost. Oct. 22 2002 http://epnet.com.      

This source includes the details about the trade between England and American colonies, British dependence on the raw materials, and Colonies position in this trade.

The People and the Erie CanalBy: Danielle Kindig   

The Erie Canal impacted many people throughout its construction and after its completion. The people whose lives were affected most were the canal laborers, merchants, and common townspeople. In 1818 the canal workforce were said to be three-fourths workers that, according to the New York canal commissioners, were “born among us”, but after 1821, most of the workers were Irish and Welsh immigrants.[1] [This endnote should be from the software!] The contractors were the people who had to hire the laborers who would work the long hours in poor working conditions.[2] In the commissioner’s report for 1819 reported that a thousand men were sick from the heat and from working in the wet soil for months at a time, which as the commissioner reported was a “ most discouraging spectacle.” [3] Most of the workers had moved and received board and housing, close to the constructing site, they were not paid for the days were they where sick, work stoppage, or there was bad weather.[4] Most canal workers lived in filthy and diseased surroundings, drank heavily, and rejected middle class morals. [5] The wageworkers had very little or no personal connection to their boss and therefore had no choice to do what the boss told them.[6] These canal workers were put out of their way and worked under very poor conditions so the people could have a fast, cheap, smooth connection from the Hudson to Lake Erie.

End Notes: [1] Shaw, Ronald E. Canals for a Nation: The Canal Era in the United States 1790-1860. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky, 1990. Page 38 [2] Sheriff, Carol. The Artificial River. United States of America: Hill and Wang, 1996. Pages 36-37 [3] Shaw 39[4] Shaw 168[5] Sheriff 148[6] Sheriff 148[7] Sheriff 54[8] Hadfield, Charles. World Canals: Inland Navigation Past and Present. New York, New York: Facts on File Publications, 1986.Page 293

Errors here – Since the sources are cited in her annotated bibliography, all that is required is the author and page for each citing.

In Microsoft Word, go to Insert, then reference, then footnote. The program will automatically insert either footnotes or endnotes.

Annotated Bibliography

Hadfield, Charles. World Canals: Inland Navigation Past and Present. New York, New York: Facts on File Publications, 1986.

This book gave a minimal amount of information concerning my view points for the Erie Canal, but what I did get from the book was information on the towns of the Erie and what they entitled.

  Shaw, Ronald E. Canals for a Nation: The Canal Era in the United States 1790-1860. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky, 1990. 

This book gave a bit of information on the workforce and laborers of the canal.

  Sheriff, Carol. The Artificial River. United States of America: Hill and Wang, 1996.

I really enjoyed this book and took a lot of information from it considering the Erie is all this book was written on. It gave a plentiful amount of information on just about all of the points I talked about.

Reminder:

If I have your project prior to Thanksgiving, I should be able to return during finals week so you can make minor improvements prior to the end of finals week.

I no longer will have much time to make major suggestions for improvement because I’ll have to correct Exam 4s. However, I will note why you lost points and how to regain them on the evaluation form.

I will post ALL student grades to the BC Internet transcript system around 2pm on Friday, December 9th. As a result, your grades may not show up on your transcripts until Monday.

I wait until Friday to post grades so that ALL students have until the end of my last final on Thursday, December 8th to resubmit projects and complete their final exams.

Good Luck!