Sample AP US History Essay Prompts
Period 1: 1491-16071. Compare and contrast the British, French, and Spanish imperial goals in North America between 1580 and 1763.
Period 2: 1607-1754
2. Some historians have argued that the development of differing economies shaped differing social structures in the English colonies in North America. Support, modify, or refute this contention using specific evidence.
Period 3: 1754-1800
3. Evaluate the extent to which the Seven Years’ War (French and Indian War, 1754–1763) marked a turning point in American relations with Great Britain, analyzing what changed and what stayed the same from the period before the war to the period after it.
4. Some historians argue that Shays’s Rebellion tested the Articles of Confederation, which led to the Constitutional Convention and the call for a stronger central government. Support, modify, or refute this contention using specific evidence.
5. Some historians have argued that the development of the West from 1763 to 1820 profoundly influenced American politics. Support, modify, or refute this contention using specific evidence.
6. “The United States Constitution of 1787 represented an economic and ideological victory for the traditional political elite.” Assess the validity of that statement for the period 1781 to 1789.
Period 4: 1800-1848
7. Some historians have argued that an upsurge in democracy shaped American politics in the first half of the 19th century. Support, modify, or refute this contention using specific evidence.
8. Analyze the impact the Market Revolution had on internal migration during the first half of the 19th century and the effect this migration had on the United States as a whole.
9. Compare the experiences of TWO of the following groups of immigrants during the period 1830-1860: English Irish German
10. The Jacksonian Period (1824-1848) has been celebrated as the era of the “common man.” To what extent did the period live up to its characterization?
11. “Reform movements in the united States sought to expand democratic ideals.” Assess the validity of this statement with specific reference to the years 1825-1850.
12. Analyze the causes of growing opposition to slavery in the United States from 1776 to 1852. In your response, consider both underlying forces and specific events that contributed to the growing opposition.
13. Analyze the changing ideals of American womanhood and to what extent these ideals influenced the lives of women between the American Revolution (1770’s) and the outbreak of the Civil War (1861). In your answer be sure to consider issues of race and class.
Period 5: 1844-1877
14. Evaluate the extent to which the Mexican-American War (1846–1848) marked a turning point in the debate over slavery in the United States, analyzing what changed and what stayed the same from the period before the war to the period after it.
15. Some historians argue that Manifest Destiny rekindled sectional tensions and led to the American Civil War that began in 1861. Support, modify, or refute this contention using specific evidence.
16. Analyze the ways in which controversy over the extension of slavery into western territories contributed to the coming of the Civil War. Confine your answer to the period 1845–1861.
17. Evaluate the extent to which constitutional and social developments during the Civil War and Reconstruction eras (1861-1877) amounted to a revolution.
Period 6: 1865-1898
18. For whom and to what extent was the American West a land of opportunity from 1865 to 1890?
19. How were the lives of the Plains Indians in the second half of the 19th Century affected by technological developments and government actions?