Middle

Middle (X) - Slavery and the Making of America (X)

Slavery and the Making of America, Vol.1: The Downward Spiral (2005)

Icon: 
DVD icon

Covering the period from 1619 through 1739, this first volume spotlights the origins of slavery in America. Focusing on Dutch New Amesterdam (later New York City), this chapter illustrates how slavery in the early years was a loosely defined labor source similar to indentured servitude. Slaves had some limited rights.

Grade Level: 
Middle
High
Length: 
01:00
Slavery and the Making of America, Vol.1: The Downward Spiral

Slavery on the Making of America, Vol 2: Liberty in the Air (2005)

Icon: 
DVD icon

Spanning from the 1740s through the 1830s, this second hour explores the continued expansion of slavery in the colonies, the evolution of a distinct African American culture and the roots of the emancipation movement. This volume reveals the many ways the enslaved resisted their oppression including their role on both sides of the Revolutionary War.

Grade Level: 
Middle
High
Length: 
01:00
Slavery on the Making of America, Vol 2: Liberty in the Air

Slavery on the Making of America, Vol 3: Seeds of Destruction (2005)

Icon: 
DVD icon

The third volume of the series looks at the period from 1800 through the start of the Civil War when slavery saw an enormous expansion and entered its final decades. As the nation expanded west, the question of slavery became an overriding political issue. These years saw an increasingly militant abolitionist movement and a widening rift between the North and South.

Grade Level: 
Middle
High
Length: 
01:00
Slavery on the Making of America, Vol 3: Seeds of Destruction

Slavery on the Making of America, Vol 4: The Challenge of Freedom (2005)

Icon: 
DVD icon

The final volume of the series takes viewers through the Civil War, the Reconstruction and beyond as it follows the life of Robert Smalls. In 1863, Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing all slaves under the control of the Confederate government. Once the South was defeated in 1865, the nation adopted the 13th Amendment, effectively ending slavery.

Grade Level: 
Middle
High
Length: 
01:00
Slavery on the Making of America, Vol 4: The Challenge of Freedom