History Program
Winona State’s History major prepares students for work in a variety of careers. Any job that requires clear thinking, good writing, articulate speaking, and the ability to ask and answer complicated questions can be a good fit if you have a history degree.
Studying history allows students to:
- Build a set of skills employers are looking for
- Develop organization and presentation skills
- Sharpen critical thinking through the investigation of an abundance of materials
- Be able to evaluate evidence and make clear, concise, and convincing arguments
History gives learners the cultural background to function in today’s contemporary, globalized society, providing students with in-depth knowledge of societies from the past to the present era.
The History major builds upon entry level foundation courses in history that are in WSU’s general education curriculum.
The major is accessible to transfer students or those wishing to add a second major or minor. Likewise, history majors at WSU are often able to add a second major or minor.
A Major Map (PDF) is available to help students plan to complete their major coursework in four years. The Transfer Pathways Major Map (PDF) is a version to help transfer students plan their coursework.
Capstone Course
One of the unique features of our program is learning to do the work of historians– developing your own interpretations of the past using sources from the past. In the History major capstone, you will be completing a semester-long project on a topic of your selection. For this project, you will be working with original sources on a thesis. Some recent senior thesis topics are:
- “Fighting for Freedom and Equality in the American Civil War: The 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment”
- “German Prisoners of War in Minnesota During World War II: The Unique Relationship Between Americans and Germans”
- “The Rise and Fall of the Nonpartisan League in North Dakota and Minnesota: 1915-1923”
- “The Vietnam Antiwar Movement: Local Activism in Winona, Minnesota”
- “The Island City’s Survival: Winona’s Role in New Deal Projects and River Traffic during the Great Depression”
- “Vindication of Restorative Justice: A Homage to the 1960s Red Wing Reform Period”
- “Mandatory Patriotism: The Minnesota Commission of Public Safety and Wartime Obedience, 1917-1920”
While all classes in the major use both primary and secondary sources, the major is organized around a series of classes that will prepare you to develop a thesis topic and engage in the research necessary to complete it.
Each of these 3 courses is offered once each year. Sophomore Seminar is open to all students, but students are encouraged to take this course early on in their major, if possible. Students must complete HIST 395 before HIST 495.
All History majors are encouraged to meet with their advisors and plan their coursework in the major, leading up to the capstone sequence.
In HIST 295, first and second-year students explore a particular historical topic through in-depth, hands-on work with the different kinds of sources that historians use in our work.
Past topics include:
- 19th-Century Technology
- World War II Through Personal Letters
- Parks, Monuments and Public Lands
In HIST 395, students develop their mastery of the nuts and bolts of historical research:
- how to locate primary sources
- how to work in an archive, in a library, in the digital world
- how to cite the sources that you use in your research and writing
- how to identify and understand the different interpretations that historians bring to a shared topic
- how to develop your own topic of research
In HIST 495, you will be putting to use all that you have learned in Historical Methods.
With the topic that you developed in 298, you will be ready to plunge into the work of the historian in analyzing and interpreting the past using both original sources and the work of other scholars and writers.
Minne Hall 214
507.457.5409
Minné 209
507.457.5411
Minné Hall 212
507.457.5400