Below, in no particular order, are some ideas for U.S. History research papers for the period of 1750-1870. I have deliberately not included the obvious or standard topics, but tried to come up with suggestions that might not occur to young researchers. Most of these are off the top of my head, and I will add more ideas as they come to me.

1. The role of coffee houses in colonial America
2. The significance of rum in colonial America
3. Smallpox and the Revolutionary War
4. First use of a submarine in battle (The Turtle), or the story of the H.L. Hunley
5. The inventions, designs, or writings of Thomas Jefferson
6. The friendship and feud between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson
7. The character, personality, or family life of George Washington
8. Surveying the Northwest Territory (Land Ordinance of 1785)
9. The mysterious duel between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr
10. The Barbary Coast War, including the burning of the U.S.S. Philadelphia
11. The adventures of Zebulon Pike
12. Samuel Slater and "The Rhode Island System"
13. The story of the National Road also known as the Cumberland Road
14. The burning of Washington D.C. by the British in 1814
15. Andrew Jackson's duels
16. Steamboats and the Ohio River (or the Mississippi River)
17. The Monroe Doctrine and its effects
18. The development of the telegraph in the U.S. and its effects (see also electromagnet)
19. The growth of railroads in the U.S. and/or opposition to railroads
20. The assault of Senator Charles Sumner in the U.S. Senate (1856)
21. The purchase of Alaska, a.k.a. Seward's Folly or Seward's Icebox (1867)

More to come...