Trans-Appalachian Frontier: People, Societies, and Institutions, 1775-1850 (A History of the Trans-Appalachian Frontier)

697 Pages·2008·6.62 MB·English

by  Malcolm J. Rohrbough

U. S. HiStory •
Trans-
Rohrbough
“the definitive history of the subject. Nothing approaches it
in the scope of its coverage. i can think of no other book more
T
frequently cited . . . on the conquest, settlement, and develop- Appalachian
ment of the region between the Appalachians and the Great
r
Plains. [it is] the work of a master historian totally in control
a
of his craft.”
n
—Andrew Cayton, Distinguished Professor of History, Miami University Frontier
s
The first American frontier lay just beyond the Appalachian Mountains
-
and along the Gulf coast. Here successive groups of pioneers built new
A
societies and developed new institutions to cope with life in the wilderness.
In this thorough revision of his classic account, Malcolm J. Rohrbough tells p
People, Societies,
the dramatic story of these men and women from the first Kentucky settle-
p
ments to the closing of the frontier.
and Institutions,
Rather than follow a territory to state approach, Rohrbough divides
a
his narrative into major time periods designed to establish categories of
description and analysis. Within this framework, he presents case stud- l 1775-1850
a
ies that focus on the county, the town, the community, and the family, as
well as politics and urbanization. He addresses as well Spanish, French, c
and Native American traditions, and the anomalous presence of African •
h
slaves and the somewhat shadowy presence of women in the making of
Malcolm J. Rohrbough
this story. i
a
Now in its third, completely revised and updated edition, Rohrbough’s
magisterial study of the trans-Appalachian frontier is sure to find a new n
generation of readers interested in the history of America’s first frontier.

MAlcolM J. RoHRbouGH is Professor of History at the university
F
of Iowa and editor (with Walter Nugent) of Indiana’s series A History of
the Trans-Appalachian Frontier. He is author of the prize-winning book r
Days of Gold: The California Gold Rush and the American Nation. o
n
A History of the Trans-Appalachian Frontier
•
• t
i
e
INDIANA r

University Press
Bloomington & Indianapolis
INDIANA
http://iupress.indiana.edu Third Edition
1-800-842-6796
Trans-Appalachian Frontier
A History of the Trans-Appalachian Frontier
(cid:2)
Walter Nugent and Malcolm Rohrbough, eds.
Trans-
Appalachian
Frontier
(cid:3)
People, Societies, and
Institutions,
1775–1850
Third Edition
Malcolm J. Rohrbough
(cid:3)
Indiana University Press Bloomington and Indianapolis
This book is a publication of
Indiana University Press
601 North Morton Street
Bloomington, IN 47404-3797 USA
http://iupress.indiana.edu
Telephone orders 800-842-6796
Fax orders 812-855-7931
Orders by e-mail [email protected]
© 2008 by Malcolm J. Rohrbough
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form
or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including
photocopying and recording, or by any information storage
and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the
publisher. The Association of American University Presses’
Resolution on Permissions constitutes the only exception to this
prohibition.
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements
of American National Standard for Information
Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials,
ANSI Z39.48-1984.
Manufactured in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Rohrbough, Malcolm J.
Trans-Appalachian frontier : people, societies, and institutions,
1775–1850 / Malcolm J. Rohrbough. – 3rd ed.
p. cm. – (A history of the trans-Appalachian frontier)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-253-34932-3 (cloth)
ISBN-13: 978-0-253-21932-9 (pbk.)
1. Northwest, Old—History–1775-1865. 2. Frontier and pioneer
life—Northwest, Old. 3. Southwest, Old—History. 4. Frontier
and pioneer life—Southwest, Old. 5. Appalachian Region—
History. 6. Frontier and pioneer life—Appalachian Region.
I. Title.
F484.3.R64 2007
977’.02–dc22
2007011632
1 2 3 4 5 13 12 11 10 09 08
(cid:2)
Dedicated to the pioneers of a new generation:
Julia Cate Devon
Charlie Frances Maya
Christina Eva Dylan
and to the scouts of the twenty-first century: Lucas and Cyrus
(cid:3)

(cid:3)
Contents
Acknowledgments xi
Abbreviations xiii
A Note on Citations, Quotations, Maps, and Place Names xv
Introduction 1
Part I. Across the Mountains 17
1.
22
The Struggle for Security
2.
50
The Search for Stability
3.
82
Security and Stability in the Territory
Northwest of the Ohio
Part II. The Widening Frontier, 1795–1815 113
4.
121
The Reach of Government and the Authority
of Law Spread across the Western Country
5.
154
Diverse Economies Moving toward
Commercial Ends
6.
188
Many Varied Societies Emerge across
the Western Country
(cid:2)
viii Contens
Part III. The First Great Migration, 1815–1830 223
7.
233
Across the Old Northwest and into Missouri
8.
274
The Flowering of the Cotton Frontier
Part IV. The Enduring Frontiers 311
9.
316
Michigan: The Great Lakes Frontier
10.
351
Florida: A Sectional Frontier
11.
388
Arkansas: A Frontier More West than South
Part V. The Second Great Migration, 1830–1850 419
12.
423
The New Counties of Alabama and Mississippi:
A Frontier More South than West
13.
455
The Last Frontier of the Old Northwest:
Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin
Part VI. The Trans-Appalachian West
and the Nation 489
14.
492
Villages, Towns, and Cities Spread
across the Western Country
(cid:3)
Contents ix
15.
528
Changing Political Patterns across
Three Generations
16.
556
The Trans-Appalachian West and the Nation
Notes 583
Bibliography 637
Index 656