Pick of the Day: Henry Clay and the Struggle for the Union (DVD)

Henry Clay and the Struggle for the Union (Series). 3 DVDs.  20 min. ea. with tchr’s. guides online. Prod. by Witnessing History. Dist. by TMW Media. 2011, 2012 release. ISBN unavail. $69.95 ea. Includes: The Formation of the Union and Its Early Challenges; The Missouri Compromise of 1820 to the Tariff Compromise of 1833; The Compromise of 1850 to the Civil War.
Gr 6 Up–Henry Clay served in the House of Representatives and the United States Senate and worked to preserve the Union against the destructive forces of the slavery issue. The narration emphasizes the key events between 1820 and 1860 that led the nation to war. Using dramatic re-creations, historical documents, maps, period photographs and art, and stirring background music, the well-edited series brings the years before the Civil War to life. The seeds of the Civil War were planted at the time of the American Revolution and the writing of the Constitution. An industrial North surpassed the agricultural South in wealth and population. Westward expansion, first into the territories of the Louisiana Purchase, and later into land taken from Mexico in 1848, compounded the issues and forced the country to decide if slavery would spread to these new areas. Clay, the Great Compromiser, offered three compromises—the Missouri Compromise of 1820, the Tariff Compromise of 1833, and the Compromise of 1859—that addressed these issues and forestalled the Civil War for 40 years. Well-produced, fact-filled, and classroom-friendly, these programs should be a part of all library collections, especially during this sesquicentennial of the Civil War.–Patricia Ann Owens, Illinois Eastern Community Colleges, Mt. Carmel