American History Made Simple

340 Pages·1991·18.85 MB·English

by  Jack C. Estrin, Marilyn Frances Miller

American History
Made Simple
Jack C. Estrin, M.A.
Revised by Marilyn Miller
Completely revised and updated, this single-volume book is
a clear, comprehensive, and accessible guide to the historical,
social, and political events of the United States of America
. ,
1
1492: Columbus discovers New World 1786 - 87: Shays’ Rebellion; Northwest Ordinance; Constitutional Convention
93 years
::e
1585,1587: Roanoke Island settlements -1789: Inauguration of George Washington
-1790: Start of Second Great Awakening
20 years
-1791: Bill of Rights
1607: Founding of Jamestown
1794: Whiskey Rebellion; Jay’s Treaty
j 1619: First black slaves sold in Virginia
1 1620: Founding of Plymouth 1796: Washington’s Farewell Address
1797-98: XYZ affair
1798: Alien and Sedition Acts; Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions
1630: Massachusetts Bay Colony founded by Puritans
1^.^. j Rhode Island founded by Roger Williams
1 Establishment of Harvard College
1803: Marbury v. Madisorv, Louisiana Purchase
1804 - 06: Lewis and Clark expedition
-1650: Navigation Acts
26years...
-1676: Bacon’s Rebellion in Virginia
-1681: Pennsylvania founded by William Penn
-1811: Battle of Tippecanoe
1812-15
War of
-1692: Salem witchcraft trials 1812
40years...
I ■ ■ ■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■!
- 1732: Founding of Georgia
1820: Missouri Compromise
1740s
Great
Awaken¬ 1823: Monroe Doctrine
ing
1825: Completion of Erie Canal
1756: French and Indian War
1763: Treaty of Paris
1764: Sugar Act 1765: Stamp Act 1830: Indian Removal Act; Webster-Hayne debate
1831: Slave revolt led by Nat Turner
—j 1766: Declaratory Act
-1770: Boston Massacre 1767: Townshend Act 1832: Jackson vetoes rechartering of Bank of U.S.
1773: Boston Tea Party
1774: Coercive Acts; First Continental Congress 1834: Founding of Whig Party
1776: Declaration of Independence
1836: Texas wins independence from Mexico
1783: Peace of Paris
1845: Annexation of Texas
ISBN 0-385-41429-3
1846: Annexation of Oregon
1846 -47: Mexican War
1848: Seneca Falls Convention; Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
1849: California Gold Rush
1850: Compromise of 1850
-1854: Kansas-Nebraska Act; Formation of Republican Party
American
History
Made Simple
New, Revised Edition
Jack C. Estrin, M.A.
Revised by Marilyn Miller
Edited and prepared for publication by The Stonesong Press, Inc.
1MADEI
IHIAIJIJ
BOOKS
A MADE SIMPLE BOOK
DOUBLEDAY
NEW YORK LONDON TORONTO SYDNEY AUCKLAND
Edited and prepared for publication by The Stonesong Press, Inc.
Managing Editor: Sheree Bykofsky
Editor: Sarah Gold
Editorial Consultant: Dennis J. Maika
Design: Blackbirch Graphics, Inc.
A MADE SIMPLE BOOK
Published by Doubleday, a division of
Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc.
666 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10103
made simple and doubleday are trademarks of Doubleday,
a division of Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc.
Copyright © 1991 by Doubleday, a division of Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
Printed in the United States of America
October 1991
Revised Edition
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Estrin, Jack C.
American history made simple/Jack C. Estrin.—New, rev. ed./
rev. by Marilyn Miller,
p. cm.
A MADE SIMPLE BOOK
Includes index.
1. United States—History. I. Miller, Marilyn (Marilyn Frances)
II. Title.
E178.E8 1991
973—dc20 90-22293
CIP
ISBN 0-385-41429-3
CONTENTS
Chapter 1 The Discovery and Settlement of America
Native American Civilizations 9
European Settlements 10
The Thirteen Colonies 14
The New England Colonies 14
The Middle Colonies 15
The “Deep South" Colonies 16
Chapter Colonial Foundations
Immigrants to a New World 18
Colonial Free Enterprise 19
The Labor Problem 22
Colonial Advances Toward Political Freedom 23
Religion and Society 25
Religion and Secular Life 27
Secular Trends in Colonial Social and Intellectual Life 29
Chapter 3 The Factors in the American Revolution
Crisis and Unity 36
The Birth of a Nation 40
War and Peace 41
Chapter 4 Confederation and Constitution
“The Critical Period": 1781-89 45
The Framing of the Constitution 48
Ratification 50
Chapter 5 The Federalist Era
Toward a National State 53
The Achievement of Alexander Hamilton 54
The Birth of Political Parties 57
The Decline of Federalist Power 60
Chapter 6 Jeffersonian Democratic-Republicanism
Theory and Practice 64
Jefferson's Great Reversal 66
The War of 1812 68
Evaluating the War 73
4 CONTENTS
Chapter 7: Nationalism
Political Reflections of Nationalism 77
The Development of a Nationalist Foreign Policy 79
The Monroe Doctrine: Get Out and Stay Out 80
Cultural Nationalism 81
Sectionalism 82
Chapter 8: The Age of Andrew Jackson
Democracy 85
The Policies of Andrew Jackson 88
Post-Jacksonian Government 91
Chapter 9: The Maturing of the Nation
The West 94
The Transformation of America 100
The South 103
Chapter 10: Religious, Intellectual, and Social Ferment
The Second Great Awakening 108
From Reformation to Transformation 110
Literature’s “Golden Day” 113
Chapter 11: Toward Southern Secession
Tyler's Triumph 117
Polk's Progress 119
Taylor, Fillmore, and the Last of the Whigs 122
Pierce's Pro-Southern Politics 124
Buchanan: The Breakup of the Democrats 127
Chapter 12: Consolidation of the Union
The Civil War Itself 131
Abraham Lincoln 137
The Human Consequences of the War 141
The Economic Consequences of the War 141
The Political Consequences of the War 143
Rehabilitation 147
Chapter 13: Industrialization: Causes and Results
The Advance of Industry 149
The Mining Frontier 155
Contents 5
The Indian Frontier 156
The Cattle Frontier 158
The Farmer and the Worker 159
Chapter 14: Industrialization: Political and Social Consequences
Political Results 162
The Presidents 164
The Changing Society 169
Chapter 15: The Struggle Against Laissez-Faire
The Farmer-Labor Protest 179
Chapter 16: The Progressive Movement
The Roots of Progressivism 188
The Crusade for Social Justice 190
The Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt (1901-9) 193
The Presidency of William Howard Taft (1909-13) 196
Woodrow Wilson and the New Freedom 198
Chapter 17: American Expansion Overseas
The Challenge to Isolation 202
The Spanish-American War 205
The Panama Canal 208
Stretching the Monroe Doctrine 211
The Mexican Revolution 214
Chapter 18: The Origins of American Collective Security
Far Eastern Policy 216
The United States and the First World War 219
The Home Front 222
American Contributions 224
Chapter 19: The Twenties
The Aftermath of Progressivism 228
Political Parties 229
Political Issues 230
Economic Development 231
Labor 234
Foreign Policy 234
Society and Culture 237
6 CONTENTS
Scientific and Artistic Developments 241
A Growing American Literature 242
Chapter 20: The New Deal
The Great Collapse 245
Emergency Legislation 248
Reform Through Regulation 251
New Legislation 253
Culture and Science 260
Chapter 21: The New Deal and World Affairs
Foreign Policy 263
The Long Road to War 265
World War II 268
The Home Front 270
The Postwar World 271
Chapter 22: Postwar America (1945-60)
The "Cold War" 274
Military Pacts 276
The United States in the Far East 277
The United States in the Middle East 281
Domestic Affairs (1945—60) 282
Chapter 23: The Sixties
John F. Kennedy (1961-63) 287
Lyndon B. Johnson (1963-68) 292
Foreign Policy 296
Social Change 298
Chapter 24: From Vietnam to Watergate
The Nixon Presidency 302
Foreign Policy 303
Aftermath 304
Chapter 25: America at the End of the Century
The Ford Presidency (1974-77) 307
The Carter Presidency (1977-81) 308
Contents 7
The Reagan Presidency (1981-89) 310
The Bush Presidency (1989- ) 315
Appendix A: Presidents of the United States 317
Appendix B: The Constitution of the United States 318
Index 334
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