Refined Paper Idea -- Tom

My topic is going to be an analysis of the evolution of the American frontier and how it came to embody the American West, specifically California, in the post-WWII era of the 1950s, 60s and 70s. The main figures of my argument are going to be the suburban residents of Orange County in the post-war era but I will also bring in some important historiographic figures such as Frederick Jackson Turner and political figures that embody the movement such as Ronald Reagan. I would also like to study some of the major figures in Orange Country during the era but at this point I need to do more research into who exactly those people were and what was their function in the community.
I am expecting to argue that the American west became symbolic of the frontier in the sense of economic development and political change during the post-war era. I want to show how the west coast, particularly California, took on the image of the untamed west in the form of someone such as Ronald Reagan, who embodied this sentiment. This argument is important in understanding the progress of the American frontier and the effects of migration and political change in the American narrative. I am expecting to use many primary resources such as news paper articles and local records and journals in the Hoover Institute to make this argument. I plan to use Lisa McGirr’s Suburban Warriors along with other secondary sources that I plan to find in the course of my research. I foresee a little issue with regards to tying this theme to my greater societal argument but I believe I can effectively use secondary sources to construct a bridge to larger societal