History of the Old South: Reference Books on the Old South

Events, lifestyles, social history and key figures unique to each featured era are covered with extraordinary perception and thoroughness. Each volume begins with a chronology of world events to provide a context for the American experience. Contents: [1] Early American civilizations and exploration to 1600 -- [2] The colonial era, 1600-1754 -- [3] The Revolutionary era, 1754-1783 -- [4] Development of a nation, 1783-1815 -- [5] The reform era and eastern U.S. development, 1815-1850 -- [6] Westward expansion, 1800-1860 -- [7] Civil War and Reconstruction, 1850-1877 -- [8] Development of the industrial United States, 1878-1899

The Timetables of American History - an entertaining, authoritative survey of our nation's history, presented in the popular Timetables format - not only chronicles what was occurring in America in terms of politics, the arts, science, and technology, but relates them to simultaneous developments throughout the rest of the world. From breakthroughs in science to breakdowns in international relations, from the heroes who mastered the playing fields to masterpieces of art and literature, it provides a comprehensive account of the march of civilization. The Timetables of American History is an invaluable reference for serious students and dabblers alike.

The Historical Atlas of the American Revolution uses full-color maps and vivid illustrations in two-page spreads to tell the story of the founding of the United States of America. The book focuses on the land and sea battles of the Revolutionary War in places like Bunker Hill, Trenton, Saratoga, Guilford Courthouse, Chesapeake Bay, and Yorktown, but attention is also paid to aspects of society at large like the awakening of religious zeal inspired by George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards, the destination of immigrants, the slave trade, and relations with Native Americans. Also explored is the political dimension of the role of the colonies as a piece of the British Empire and the international impact of the Revolution, which eventually included active participation by the French, Spanish, and Dutch.

Part of the Series: Almanacs of American Life. On one level, it is a compendium of quantitative data on Colonial America, but beyond that it provides both sketches and longer essays summarizing current thinking about early American history and culture. It expands tremendously the statistical coverage on Colonial America in Historical Statistics of the United States: Colonial Times to 1970. Sources for all statistical tables are cited, and the detailed bibliography and index are genuinely useful additions to the work.

This panoramic reference comprises some 700 detailed mini-essays on battles, campaigns, skirmishes, raids, massacres, and sea fights, along with approximately 400 biographical sketches of the leading American, British, French, German, and Spanish military and naval figures as well as prominent American and British statesmen. The range of coverage extends beyond the war in the 13 colonies, including material about Canada, the Spanish in the Southwest, and fighting in the West Indies, European waters, and the Indian Ocean.

These cross-listed and newly-illustrated entries of 100-8,000 words are aimed at college students and reach into the future with a 1500-word essay on "9/11." Volume nine, a wonderful addition, contains archival maps and primary documents (with introductions) such as the anonymous story (c. 1745) of the league of five nations (Cayugas, Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Senecas); an excerpt from Francis Grund's (1837); and Henry Ford's "Advice to the Unemployed in the Great Depression" (1932). Volume nine's other distinctive feature is a division of the into chronological chunks that correlate entries, maps, and documents with relevant chapters in three Wadsworth textbooks: (2000), (2001); and (2002). A six-page guide provides tips on historical research. The over 2000 contributors are from American academies. One caution: the dictionary does not contain biographical entries.

In this important reference work, the European conquest of Canada and the United States is chronicled and analyzed in vast detail by 193 European and American scholars from a wide range of disciplines. Two hundred seventy-four topical and thematic essays cover all aspects of colonial political, social, economic, and cultural life, including a large number of articles that present competing scholarly interpretations of different subjects. All this is accented by a detailed chronology, useful maps, cross references, regular and annotated bibliographies, and a fine subject index. The full, worldwide impact of the peopling of North America--beginning with the first inhabitants crossing from Asia to Alaska, moving through the colonization by Europeans and enslavement of Africans, and ending with Canadian, American, and Mexican independence and the final subjugation of native peoples--is powerfully presented in these three volumes. No other reference set or monograph compares with this original, handsomely constructed, and infinitely fascinating work.