Introduction to American Journey Online

The American Journey Online database contains fifteen modules, eight of which are topical in orientation and seven of which are chronological. Each module contains a variety of different kinds of sources that come together to provide users with an unprecedented picture of key topics and eras in American history. The sources contained in the database fall into several different categories. Primary source documents include such things as governmental documents, diary accounts, letters, court decisions, bills and acts, presidential speeches, and other kinds of written sources contemporary to important historical events. Images include photographs, maps, editorial cartoons, propaganda posters, drawings and engravings, other works of art, and additional visual sources, as well as charts and graphs that summarize important historical information in numerical or pictorial form. Multimedia selections in the modules include audio and visual clips of important historical events, such as speeches, newsreel footage, and propaganda films, as well as musical selections and occasional commentary by historians and other scholars. Also included periodically throughout the database are excerpts from historical monographs and other sources that seek to place the important events of American history in context and selections from relevant pieces of fiction.

Together, the sources in American Journey Online provide a treasure trove of information for students of U.S. history. Some of the sources in the database are relatively well known, such as excerpts from the U.S. Constitution or the Federalist Papers. Others are not well known beyond a small coterie of experts, and their inclusion in the database is therefore a rare chance for students to gain exposure to sources that they do not encounter frequently. Working with the sorts of primary sources that make up the bulk of the modules within American Journey Online makes students their own historians. By giving students the raw materials that have been used to create the textbooks, monographs, and other secondary sources they normally encounter in their classes, the database allows them to treat those sources as professional historians do. In other words, the primary sources and other materials in each module bring the topics and eras they address alive for students.

The American Journey Online database can be used effectively as a stand-alone research tool, but it is most effectively utilized within the context of a college-level history course. It is with the classroom user in mind, whether student or instructor, that the following guide is designed. The activities that make up the bulk of the guide should be considered supplements to classroom lectures, discussions, and individual student reading of assigned literature. They do not provide a comprehensive account of any of the units they cover, and they should not be taken as substitutes for materials selected, assigned, and covered by classroom instructors.

Because American Journey Online is generally organized by theme and not by time, it can be somewhat unwieldy to use. Students or instructors might encounter difficulties determining which modules are the likely sources of the information they seek. Or they might find it frustrating to locate information on a particular topic among the many sources contained in the database. Therefore, this guide has broken the chronological sweep normally covered by a full-year's sequence in U.S. history (two semesters or three quarters, depending on the academic schedule in use by a particular institution) into seventeen chapters. This chronological orientation fits more closely with the way that U.S. history is generally taught at the survey level, and it is hoped that providing a chronological introduction to American Journey Online will facilitate its use by students and instructors alike.

This guide is designed to provide some tips for navigating around the database and to introduce users to some of its potential uses. The information provided here does not pretend to cover everything there is to know about using American Journey Online. But it will serve as a first step in guiding users to explore the database on their own. The search tips and database activities contained here should set users on the right track as they master navigation and use of American Journey Online. Once users have familiarized themselves with how the database is organized and how to locate sources within it, they will be ready to tackle the activities that follow, to conduct their own searches for information, and to complete any assignments drawn from the database that their instructors might concoct.