The importance of the Civil War and Reconstruction in the history of the United States cannot be overstated. There was a very real possibility that the union could have been sundered, resulting in a very different American history, and probably, world history. But the union was held together by tough and determined leaders and by the economic muscle of the North. While not always a period to be proud of, it did have higher goals and compelling ends. This one-volume dictionary, with more than 800 entries covering the significant events, persons, politics, and economic and social themes in the U.S. Civil War and Reconstruction, is a research tool for all levels of readers from high school and up. The extensive chronology, introductory essay, dictionary entries, and comprehensive bibliography introduce and lead the reader through the military and non-military actions of one of the most pivotal events in American history. Substantial coverage is given to the time that followed the Civil War: Reconstruction. This was a period construed in many different ways by the individuals involved, many of whom had little concern for the impact of their acts on others, and even fewer who were interested in the plight of the newly enfranchised blacks, for whom the war had supposedly been fought. While the states were once again "united," many of the postwar efforts divided different segments of the population and failed to achieve their goals in an era too often remembered for carpetbaggers and scalawags, and Congressional imbroglios and incompetent government. No matter how one looks at it, the Civil War continues to affect the politics, constitutionalism, and societal norms of the United States in an irrevocable way, and it probably always will. It was a very personal war, not fought by machines, but by men, affecting countless Americans who have one or more Civil War veterans hidden in their family trees. It's a war modern enough to be relevant to today's military interests, yet gentlemanly enough to be

Historical Dictionary of the Civil War and Reconstruction (Historical Dictionaries of U.S. Politics and Political Eras)

History

Richter, William L.

Americas

Scarecrow Press

Being considerably different from other regions of the country, most notably regarding its fervent practice of slavery, the land South of the Mason-Dixon line, because of slavery, enjoyed an exceptional prominence in politics, and after the invention of the cotton gin, a high degree of prosperity. However, also because of slavery, it was alienated from the rest of the nation, attempted to secede from the union, and was forced back in only after it lost the Civil War. Numerous cross-referenced entries on prominent individuals, including Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun, Robert E. Lee, and Abraham Lincoln, as well as others on policies of the time that have since slipped into oblivion are all covered in this book. Economic, social and religious backgrounds trace the seemingly inevitable path to secession, war and defeat. This reference also includes an introductory essay, a chronology and a bibliography of the epoch.

Historical Dictionary of the Old South (Historical Dictionaries of U.S. Politics and Political Eras)

The importance of the Civil War and Reconstruction in the history of the United States cannot be overstated. There was a very real possibility that the union could have been sundered, resulting in a very different American history, and probably world history. But the union was held together by tough and determined leaders and by the economic muscle of the North. Following the end of the war, the period of American history known as Reconstruction followed. This was a period construed in many different ways. While the states were once again "united," many of the postwar efforts divided different segments of the population and failed to achieve their goals in an era too often remembered for carpetbaggers and scalawags, and Congressional imbroglios and incompetent government. This one-volume dictionary, with more than 800 entries covering the significant events, persons, politics, and economic and social themes in the U.S. Civil War and Reconstruction, is a research tool for all levels of readers from high school and up. The extensive chronology, introductory essay, dictionary entries, and comprehensive bibliography introduce and lead the reader through the military and non-military actions of one of the most pivotal events in American history.

The A to Z of the Civil War and Reconstruction (Volume 37) (The A to Z Guide Series, 37)

Being considerably different from other regions of the country, most notably regarding its fervent practice of slavery, the land south of the Mason-Dixon line, because of slavery, enjoyed an exceptional prominence in politics, and after the invention of the cotton gin, a high degree of prosperity. However, also because of slavery, it was alienated from the rest of the nation, attempted to secede from the union, and was forced back in only after it lost the Civil War. Numerous cross-referenced entries on prominent individuals, including Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun, Robert E. Lee, and Abraham Lincoln, as well as others on policies of the time that have since slipped into oblivion are all covered in this book. Economic, social and religious backgrounds trace the seemingly inevitable path to secession, war, and defeat. This reference also includes an introductory essay, a chronology, and a bibliography of the epoch.

The A to Z of the Old South (The A to Z Guide Series, 51) (Volume 51)

The importance of the Civil War and Reconstruction in the history of the United States cannot be overstated. Many historians regard the Civil War as the defining event in American history. At stake was not only freedom for 3.5 million slaves but also survival of the relatively new American experiment in self-government. A very real possibility existed that the union could have been severed, but a collection of determined leaders and soldiers proved their willingness to fight for the survival of what Abraham Lincoln called "the last best hope on earth." The second edition of this highly readable, one-volume Historical Dictionary of the Civil War and Reconstruction looks to place the war in its historical context. The more than 800 entries, encompassing the years 1844-1877, cover the significant events, persons, politics, and economic and social themes of the Civil War and Reconstruction. An extensive chronology, introductory essay, and comprehensive bibliography supplement the cross-referenced dictionary entries to guide the reader through the military and non-military actions of one of the most pivotal events in American history. The dictionary concludes with a selection of primary documents. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about the Civil War and Reconstruction.

The South played a prominent role in early American history, and its position was certainly strong and proud except for the “peculiar institution” of slavery. Thus, it drew away from the rest of an expanding nation, and in 1861 declared secession and developed a Confederacy… that ultimately lost the war. Indeed, for some time it was occupied. Thus, the South has a very mixed legacy, with good and bad aspects, and sometimes the two of them mixed. Which only enhances the need for a careful and balanced approach. This can be found in the Historical Dictionary of the Old South, which first traces its history from colonial times to the end of the Civil War in a substantial chronology. Particularly interesting is the introduction, which analyzes the rise and the fall, the good and the bad, as well as the middling and indifferent, over nigh on two centuries. The details are filled in very amply in over 600 dictionary entries on the politics, economy, society and culture of the Old South. An ample bibliography directs students and researchers toward other sources of information.

Gathers anecdotes about politicians, military leaders, and unusual incidents in American history

Fascinating People and Astounding Events from American History

Smith, Ronald D.

Biographies & Memoirs

ABC-Clio, Inc.

Gives an historical overview of transportation from the year 1607 to the present, including entries on people, places, and legislation

The ABC-CLIO Companion to Transportation in America (Clio Companions)

Business & Money

Industries

ABC-CLIO

One Texan called them "blue-coated dogs of despotism." They were the federal army, and in Texas after the Civil War they were an army of occupation. Their role in carrying out Reconstruction in Texas was especially difficult because the state had a large voting majority of white former Confederates. The army was essential to the enforcement of loyalist policies and, more controversially, to the electoral success of the Republican party. How the military tried to achieve these ends varied over three major periods corresponding to the tenure of three chief officers: Generals Philip H. Sheridan, Charles Griffin, and Joseph J. Reynolds. Internal rivalries, the ability (or inability) to work with citizens, relations with state political leaders, and Texan hostility toward central authority all figured into the army's performance of its task. William Richter has mined much unused material in developing this uniquely thorough study of the military in Texas. Moving beyond the good-guy, bad-guy stereotypes, he demonstrates that the army was more competent and important than traditional Reconstruction history has taught. In spite of minimal numbers, the army exercised great political influence and left a legacy--and a reaction to that legacy--that largely shaped the post-Reconstruction constitution and party structure of the state and that "provided a convenient excuse for the denial of justice and equality to blacks without forcing whites to face up to the racism which made these goals unpalatable."

The Army in Texas during Reconstruction, 1865-1870 (Volume 3) (Williams-Ford Texas A&M University Military History Series)

Texas A&M University Press

At the end of the Civil War, the U.S. government recognized some responsibility for the former slaves that its battles and proclamations had freed. It established the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands to foster adjustment to the new economic conditions. Though the bureau initially attempted to transcend the racist beliefs of the nation, it wound up--according to this challenging analysis--embodying them in its very soul. William L. Richter finds that the Freedmen's Bureau failed in its idealistic program, radical for its time, because of the unimaginative bureaucratic administration of white officers, who hesitated to pursue the program with the same commitment that the federal govt had devoted to the prosecution of the war. In addition, the jealousy caused by the involvement of officers with regular and volunteer commissions and the competition for relatively few postwar positions created confusion and acrimony throughout the Freedmen's Bureau and the army as a whole. By 1868 violence drove most of the bureau's officials out of the rural areas where blacks needed legal protection, and except for notable areas of the original military occupation along the southeast Gulf Coast, the bureau did little. Blacks began to stop coming in to seek aid because the subassistant commissioners, ensnared in a web of bureaucratic regulations that headquarters saw as more important than deeds in the field, became more and more impotent. As a continuation of the work the author began in The Army in Texas during Reconstruction, 1865-1870, this book examines the military occupation of Texas and how the policies of the quasi-military bureau affected the state after the Civil War. Whereas other studies of the bureau have looked primarily at its effectiveness in guaranteeing blacks' civil, economic, and personal rights during this critical era, Richter focuses on the white administrators who made up the bureau's field agencies and headquarters staff and who ultimately helped entrench the system of sharecropping and peonage they had been intended to prevent.

Overreached on All Sides: The Freedmen's Bureau Administrators in Texas, 1865-1868

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Richter, William L.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Richter, William L.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Richter, William L.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Historical Dictionary of the Civil War and Reconstruction (Historical Dictionaries of U.S. Politics and Political Eras)

Historical Dictionary of the Old South (Historical Dictionaries of U.S. Politics and Political Eras)

The A to Z of the Civil War and Reconstruction (Volume 37) (The A to Z Guide Series, 37)

The A to Z of the Old South (The A to Z Guide Series, 51) (Volume 51)

Historical Dictionary of the Civil War and Reconstruction (Historical Dictionaries of U.S. Politics and Political Eras)

Historical Dictionary of the Old South (Historical Dictionaries of U.S. Politics and Political Eras)

Fascinating People and Astounding Events from American History

The ABC-CLIO Companion to Transportation in America (Clio Companions)

The Army in Texas during Reconstruction, 1865-1870 (Volume 3) (Williams-Ford Texas A&M University Military History Series)

Overreached on All Sides: The Freedmen's Bureau Administrators in Texas, 1865-1868