As we celebrate 250 years of being Americans, there was a little-known conflict at the halfway point in our history that began shaping our rise to world power status in the 20th Century. The Spanish-American War of 1898 was a pivotal moment in our history. Prior to that event, we were primarily an inward looking, agricultural-based country still growing, still maturing, but getting ready to take its place as a world power. This conflict between an aging, once powerful but now decrepit European empire and a brash, young nation that was fast becoming an industrial behemoth would set the tone for America’s entrance onto the world stage. Major personalities of the era were Teddy Roosevelt, William McKinley, William Randolph Hearst, Winston Churchill, Walter Reed, Joseph Pulitzer, and William Jennings Bryan. With slides, videos, and lecture, we will look at this pivotal point in American history that transformed the United States into a burgeoning world power.

This course will be presented in a lecture format.