primary sources #1

Ads seeking family and friends (post emancipation newspapers)

After the Civil War, formerly enslaved people placed ads in Black newspapers to search for family members separated during slavery. These ads highlight the devastating impact of family separation under slavery and the urgent efforts at reunification.

Jordan Anderson writes his former enslaver, 1865

In a famous letter, Anderson, a freedman, sarcastically responded to his former enslaver’s request for him to return to work. He demanded back pay and showed the absurdity of slavery’s “benevolence.” A powerful example of Black resistance and dignity.

Fredrick Douglass at the emancipation memorial dedication 1876

Douglass both praised Lincoln as “the white man’s president” who freed enslaved people, and critiqued the limitations of the statue (which depicted a kneeling freedman). He also called for future memorials reflecting Black strength and equality.

1912 lesson plan for upper lake day school for native Americans in California

A weekly outline showing assimilationist education policies: English instruction, vocational training, and erasure of Native cultures. Demonstrates federal efforts to assimilate Native children and suppress Indigenous traditions.

Chief Joseph on indian affairs (1877, 1879)

In speeches, the Nez Perce leader protested U.S. government betrayal, land theft, and violence. His plea—“I will fight no more forever”—symbolized Native resistance and the tragedy of forced removal.

1875 tennessee newspaper article inviting tennessee's African american residents to participate in a state convention about migration to Kansas

An article encouraging Black Tennesseans to join discussions about moving west to Kansas. Part of the “Exoduster” movement, where thousands of African Americans migrated to escape Southern racism and pursue landownership.

A print from frank Leslie's illustrated newspaper depicting African Americans en route to Kansas via st. Louis 1879

Depicts African Americans traveling by steamboat through St. Louis on their way to Kansas. Visual evidence of mass Black migration and the hope for new opportunities in the West.

Ida B. Wells, Southern horrors, “the offense” , the black and white of it, the malicious and untruthful white press 1892

Wells exposed lynching as a tool of racial control, debunking myths that it was punishment for Black men attacking white women. She documented how lynching maintained white supremacy and was fueled by false media narratives.

Lynching announced in the crisis

The NAACP’s magazine (The Crisis, edited by W.E.B. Du Bois) published notices of lynchings to expose racial violence and mobilize activism. This reflects early 20th-century anti-lynching campaigns.

Excerpt from Andrew Carnegie, gospel of wealth 1889

Carnegie argued that wealthy industrialists had a duty to use their riches for the public good (philanthropy), rather than personal luxury. Key text of the Gilded Age, justifying inequality while promoting philanthropy.

Jacob riis how the other half lives 1890

Riis’s exposé (with photos and text) revealed harsh living conditions of New York’s urban poor. It spurred Progressive Era reforms in housing, sanitation, and labor.

Omaha platform 1892

A political platform calling for government ownership of railroads, free silver, direct election of senators, and protections for farmers and workers. Reflected agrarian discontent and early progressive ideas.

Protest letter of queen lili'uokilani to William McKinley June 17, 1897

The deposed Hawaiian queen protested U.S. annexation, declaring it illegal and unjust. Her letter represented Native Hawaiian resistance to imperialism.

Pears soap advertisement 1890

A British ad linking soap to “civilizing” nonwhite peoples, reflecting imperialist and racist ideologies of the era. Demonstrates how consumer goods were marketed with colonialist imagery.

A photograph of immigrants arriving at Ellis Island, ca 1900

Photo showing new arrivals at the U.S. immigration station. Ellis Island processed millions of immigrants, symbolizing both hope for opportunity and challenges of assimilation in the Progressive Era.