West from Appomattox: The Reconstruction of America after the Civil WarYale University Press, 2007 M03 28 - 416 pages “This thoughtful, engaging examination of the Reconstruction Era . . . will be appealing . . . to anyone interested in the roots of present-day American politics” (Publishers Weekly). The story of Reconstruction is not simply about the rebuilding of the South after the Civil War. In many ways, the late nineteenth century defined modern America, as Southerners, Northerners, and Westerners forged a national identity that united three very different regions into a country that could become a world power. A sweeping history of the United States from the era of Abraham Lincoln to the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt, this engaging book tracks the formation of the American middle class while stretching the boundaries of our understanding of Reconstruction. Historian Heather Cox Richardson ties the North and West into the post–Civil War story that usually focuses narrowly on the South. By weaving together the experiences of real individuals who left records in their own words—from ordinary Americans such as a plantation mistress, a Native American warrior, and a labor organizer, to prominent historical figures such as Andrew Carnegie, Julia Ward Howe, Booker T. Washington, and Sitting Bull—Richardson tells a story about the creation of modern America. |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 52
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... citizens, black cowboy Nat Love's race-blind westerners, Americans who begged the government to go to war to save the lives of Cuban women and children. They are both the worst and the best of America. ∏ Introduction.
... citizens, black cowboy Nat Love's race-blind westerners, Americans who begged the government to go to war to save the lives of Cuban women and children. They are both the worst and the best of America. ∏ Introduction.
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... person in my eyes. He was so dignified, and treated us young daughters of the house as though we were princesses; just the self-respecting manner of a noble courtier.'' But Nat Love, a young plantation slave in Tennessee, ∞≤ Spring 1865.
... person in my eyes. He was so dignified, and treated us young daughters of the house as though we were princesses; just the self-respecting manner of a noble courtier.'' But Nat Love, a young plantation slave in Tennessee, ∞≤ Spring 1865.
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... Love, a young plantation slave in Tennessee, saw the system more clearly. His master was ''kind and indulgent,'' but Love still ''their lot was the believed that while slaves in such conditions were ''lucky,'' same as a horse or a cow ...
... Love, a young plantation slave in Tennessee, saw the system more clearly. His master was ''kind and indulgent,'' but Love still ''their lot was the believed that while slaves in such conditions were ''lucky,'' same as a horse or a cow ...
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... Love, a Tennessee slave ten years old in 1861. Beginning as early as 1861, when slaves seized the confusion of the early war to escape into Union army camps, about 30 percent of planters' prewar assessed value melted away into the woods ...
... Love, a Tennessee slave ten years old in 1861. Beginning as early as 1861, when slaves seized the confusion of the early war to escape into Union army camps, about 30 percent of planters' prewar assessed value melted away into the woods ...
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... loved ones died to establish an American republic based on the ideal of free labor. Their blood had been poured upon the altar of freedom, expiating the nation's guilty sin of slavery and permitting the nation to move forward as God's ...
... loved ones died to establish an American republic based on the ideal of free labor. Their blood had been poured upon the altar of freedom, expiating the nation's guilty sin of slavery and permitting the nation to move forward as God's ...
Contents
A New Middle Ground | |
Years of Unrest | |
Years of Consolidation | |
The Struggle Renewed | |
The Final Contest | |
Reunion | |
Epilogue | |
Notes | |
Index | |
Other editions - View all
West from Appomattox: The Reconstruction of America After the Civil War Heather Cox Richardson No preview available - 2007 |
West from Appomattox: The Reconstruction of America After the Civil War Heather Cox Richardson No preview available - 2007 |
Common terms and phrases
a√airs Addams African Americans Andrew Carnegie army believed Bu√alo businessmen called Carl Schurz Carnegie cattle Charles Goodnight Chicago citizens Civil Comanche Congress corruption cowboy Cuba Cuban demanded Democrats di√erent disa√ected e√ort economic harmony election farmers federal free labor freedmen Gompers Goodnight Grover Cleveland Harper’s Weekly idea Indians individualism industry insisted Johnson Julia Ward July land legislation live Love man’s March McKinley ment middle-class million MOA-Cornell Nat Love North northern o√ered o≈ce o≈cers o≈cials organized political politicians postwar Powderly president protect Quanah Quanah Parker radical railroad recalled reconstruction reform Roosevelt Samuel Gompers Schurz seemed Senate Sitting Bull slavery slaves society soldiers South Carolina southern whites special interests strike su√ered su√rage tari√s taxes Theodore Roosevelt tion Union University Press vote voters Wade Hampton wages Washington wealth West western white southerners women workers York York World