http://www.oah.org/pubs/magazine/progressive/perry.html -- Elisabeth Perry, The Changing Meanings of the Progressive Era

http://www.wjh.harvard.edu/~wjs/BillMoyersSpeech.htm -- Bill Moyers, "The Progressive Story of America"

1			Read Elisabeth Perry's article, "The Changing Meanings of the Progressive Era," which provides one historian's perspective on the "search" for the Progressive movement. Why, according to Perry, is the Progressive Era an "elusive" and "controversial" subject? How does she make sense of the era?
2			Read Bill Moyers speech, "The Progressive Story of America," which hearkens back to the Progressive Era as a model for today's politics. Based on your readings and understanding of the period, do you find Moyers argument persuasive? Does he take into account the controversies noted by Perry?

Now read “A Different Perspective on Progressivism” (http://www.learner.org/biographyofamerica/prog19/transcript/page02.html).

3			How does Martin define “the Progressive spirit”? What does he argue that the struggles of “people of color” add to our understanding of Progressivism? Do you find his argument compelling? Why or why not?
4			Why do you think historians have debated the nature and even the very existence of a Progressive movement so hotly? What issues from the study of this era resonate in 21st-century America?

Other sites with primary and secondary sources about the Progressive Era include:

5			“Websites for the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era” (http://bss.sfsu.edu/cherny/gapesites.htm) “H-SHGAPE (Society for the History of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era) Internet Resources” (http://www2.h-net.msu.edu/~shgape/internet/index.html).