The Frontier in American History

Frederick Jackson Turner (1861 - 1932)

Frederick Jackson Turner was an extremely influential U.S. historian, who is best known for his "frontier thesis", which proposed that American democracy was profoundly shaped by the existence of an undeveloped frontier area from the founding through the 1880s. He originally put forth his idea in the essay "The Significance of the Frontier in American History", published just three years after the frontier was "officially closed" in 1890. He continued to elaborate on the frontier thesis as well as the influence of sectionalism, and the unique contributions of the Midwest to American democracy. His theory and other writings are still debated by modern day historians. This work, The Frontier in American History, collects a number of Turner's essays and speeches, including "The Significance of the Frontier in American History."

Genre(s): History

Language: English

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 00 Preface 00:03:56
Play 01 I - The Significance of the Frontier in American History - Part 1 Josh Kirsh
00:12:50
Play 02 I - The Significance of the Frontier in American History - Part 2 Josh Kirsh
00:12:32
Play 03 I - The Significance of the Frontier in American History - Part 3 Josh Kirsh
00:12:10
Play 04 I - The Significance of the Frontier in American History - Part 4 Colleen McMahon
00:25:43
Play 05 II - The First Official Frontier of the Massachusetts Bay - Part 1 Josh Kirsh
00:11:52
Play 06 II - The First Official Frontier of the Massachusetts Bay - Part 2 Josh Kirsh
00:12:54
Play 07 II - The First Official Frontier of the Massachusetts Bay - Part 3 Josh Kirsh
00:16:08
Play 08 III - The Old West - Part 1 Josh Kirsh
00:12:41
Play 09 III - The Old West - Part 2 Josh Kirsh
00:11:30
Play 10 III - The Old West - Part 3 Josh Kirsh
00:12:15
Play 11 III - The Old West - Part 4 Josh Kirsh
00:12:05
Play 12 III - The Old West - Part 5 Josh Kirsh
00:16:07
Play 13 III - The Old West - Part 6 Josh Kirsh
00:14:02
Play 14 III - The Old West - Part 7 Josh Kirsh
00:07:10
Play 15 IV - The Middle West - Part 1 Josh Kirsh
00:12:09
Play 16 IV - The Middle West - Part 2 Josh Kirsh
00:12:44
Play 17 IV - The Middle West - Part 3 Josh Kirsh
00:15:00
Play 18 IV - The Middle West - Part 4 Colleen McMahon
00:16:59
Play 19 V - The Ohio Valley in American History - Part 1 Josh Kirsh
00:11:49
Play 20 V - The Ohio Valley in American History - Part 2 Josh Kirsh
00:12:10
Play 21 V - The Ohio Valley in American History - Part 3 Josh Kirsh
00:09:32
Play 22 VI - The Significance of the Mississippi Valley in American History - Part 1 Josh Kirsh
00:12:31
Play 23 VI - The Significance of the Mississippi Valley in American History - Part 2 Colleen McMahon
00:13:54
Play 24 VI - The Significance of the Mississippi Valley in American History - Part 3 Colleen McMahon
00:21:19
Play 25 VII - The Problem of the West - Part 1 Josh Kirsh
00:14:52
Play 26 VII - The Problem of the West - Part 2 Colleen McMahon
00:16:42
Play 27 VIII - Dominant Forces in Western Life - Part 1 Josh Kirsh
00:13:18
Play 28 VIII - Dominant Forces in Western Life - Part 2 Colleen McMahon
00:14:28
Play 29 VIII - Dominant Forces in Western Life - Part 3 Colleen McMahon
00:11:24
Play 30 IX - Contributions of the West to American Democracy - Part 1 Colleen McMahon
00:13:23
Play 31 IX - Contributions of the West to American Democracy - Part 2 Colleen McMahon
00:15:56
Play 32 IX - Contributions of the West to American Democracy - Part 3 Colleen McMahon
00:20:41
Play 33 X - Pioneer Ideals and the State University - Part 1 Colleen McMahon
00:19:15
Play 34 X - Pioneer Ideals and the State University - Part 2 Colleen McMahon
00:20:07
Play 35 XI - The West and American Ideals - Part 1 Josh Kirsh
00:11:07
Play 36 XI - The West and American Ideals - Part 2 Josh Kirsh
00:13:20
Play 37 XI - The West and American Ideals - Part 3 Josh Kirsh
00:12:26
Play 38 XII - Social Forces in American History - Part 1 Colleen McMahon
00:17:41
Play 39 XII - Social Forces in American History - Part 2 Colleen McMahon
00:15:16
Play 40 XII - Social Forces in American History - Part 3 Colleen McMahon
00:12:37
Play 41 XIII - Middle Western Pioneer Democracy - Part 1 Josh Kirsh
00:11:20
Play 42 XIII - Middle Western Pioneer Democracy - Part 2 Josh Kirsh
00:12:09
Play 43 XIII - Middle Western Pioneer Democracy - Part 3 Colleen McMahon
00:18:49