James Hewitt, Ph.D.
Adjunct Professor of History
Email: jhewitt@nebrwesleyan.edu
Phone: 402.465.2440

Professor Hewitt received a JD from the University of Nebraska in 1956, and his PhD in 2003, but he stoutly maintains that he was not a slow student.  Instead, he served as an officer in the United States Air Force, practiced law in Hastings and Lincoln, and for 41 years he was vice president and General Counsel for Nebco, Inc. of Lincoln, a diversified construction and manufacturing firm owned by the Abel family of Lincoln, donors of Abel Stadium on the NWU campus.  He went back to school in 1991 while still working at Nebco, attending classes at UNL in the evening, early in the morning, and over the noon hour, and got his Masters in American History in l994.  He ran unsuccessfully for the Nebraska legislature in 2000, and has been teaching at Wesleyan since 2001. He was president of the Nebraska State Bar Association in 1985-86, and is the author of "Slipping Backward: A history of the Nebraska Supreme Court," published by the University of Nebraska Press.  He is at work on an account of one of the most bizarre murders in the history of Nebraska crime, which he hopes to have finished in 2008.

History 265 – Nebraska History

A survey of the social, cultural, and political history of Nebraska with special emphasis on local and community histories. Prerequisite(s): History 1 and 2. (Normally offered each spring semester.)

History 515 – U.S. Civil War and Reconstruction

An examination of the causes, conduct and outcome of the Civil War in the United States. The course will explore various topics related to the war including its causes, military operations, technology, foreign relations and the political, social and economic tensions within the Union and Confederacy and will conclude with a study of the political, constitutional and social consequences of the Reconstruction period. Prerequisite(s): History 501 and 502.

History 561 – U.S. Constitutional History

An intensive study of the origins and development of key principles and practices of constitutional democracy in the United States. Teaching with core texts and primary documents is emphasized. A substantial amount of each class session will involve class discussion focusing on United States Supreme Court decisions assigned by the instructor. The course will examine the origins of the U.S. Constitution, its development since 1787, its stature as the "supreme law of the land," the meaning of the separation of powers inherent in the U.S. federal system, how the Supreme Court became the "final arbiter" of constitutional meaning, the manner in which constitutional issues are presented to the courts for adjudication and the juridical techniques used by the courts to decide issues. Prerequisite(s): History 501 and 502.

History 564 – Nebraska History

This course will explore Nebraska from the time of its first inhabitants to the present. We will examine Indian activity, geography, agriculture, politics, business and social history. There will be some lecturing, but a strong emphasis on class discussion. There will also be videos and guest speakers.

Prerequisite(s): History 501 and 502.