West from Appomattox: The Reconstruction of America after the Civil War

402 Pages·2007·2.39 MB·English

by  Heather Cox Richardson

WEST FROM APPOMATTOX
West from
Appomattox
The Reconstruction of
America after the Civil War
H C R
EATHER OX ICHARDSON
Yale University Press New Haven & London
Published with assistance from the Mary Cady Tew Memorial Fund.
Photo on p. iii: Rough Rider on bucking horse, Long Island, New York. Theodore Roosevelt Collection,
Harvard College Library.
Copyright © 2007 by Heather Cox Richardson.
All rights reserved.
This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, including illustrations, in any form (beyond that
copying permitted by Sections 107 and 108 of the U.S. Copyright Law and except by reviewers for the
public press), without written permission from the publishers.
Designed by James J. Johnson and set in Adobe Caslon by Keystone Typesetting, Inc.
Printed in the United States of America.
Library of Congress-Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Richardson, Heather Cox.
West from Appomattox: the reconstruction of America after the Civil War / Heather Cox Richardson.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN: 978-0-300-11052-4 (cloth : alk. paper)
1. United States—Politics and government—1865–1900. 2. Reconstruction (U.S. history, 1865–1877) 3.
United States—History—1865–1898—Biography. 4. National characteristics, American. 5. Political culture
—United States—History—19th century. 6. Middle class—United States—Political activity— History—
19th century. 7. United States—Social conditions—1865–1918. I. Title.
E661.R53 2007
973.8—dc22
2006024633
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability of the Committee on Production
Guidelines for Book Longevity of the Council on Library Resources.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For David Herbert Donald and William E. Gienapp
Contents
Acknowledgments
Map of America in 1865:
Introduction
Chapter One. Spring 1865: The View from the Civil War
Chapter Two. 1865–1867: The Future of Free Labor
Chapter Three. 1868–1871: Conflicting Visions
Chapter Four. 1872: A New Middle Ground
Chapter Five. 1873–1880: Years of Unrest
Chapter Six. 1881–1885: Years of Consolidation
Chapter Seven. 1886–1892: The Struggle Renewed
Chapter Eight. 1893–1897: The Final Contest
Chapter Nine. 1898–1901: Reunion
Epilogue
Map of America in 1901
Notes
Index
Acknowledgments
At a time when I was disenchanted with academia and almost ready to quit the
profession, a colleague urged me to give it another try, insisting that no people
were as generous as scholars. I was skeptical, but the last few years have proved
him right. Colleagues and friends have nurtured this book from the time of my
first e-mail to Jim Huston, asking if the project sounded workable, to the arrival
of the final manuscript draft, which Eric Arnesen took time to edit days before
he left for a semester abroad. Much of what is good in this book is thanks to the
wonderful people who helped along the way; all the faults that remain are my
own responsibility.
Special thanks are due to those who reviewed the final manuscript, whose
detailed comments improved the final product immensely. They are Eric
Arnesen, Thomas J. Brown, James West Davidson, Michael Green, Mitchell
Snay, and Mark Summers.
So many other nineteenth-century historians have asked or answered
questions, commented on drafts, or discussed pieces of this book with me that
thanking them by name runs the risk of seeming to try to hide behind other
people’s reputations. Instead, I will thank as generally as possible people directly
in my field, hoping that individuals recognize themselves where reviewers
won’t. Various colleagues at Columbia University, Kansas State University,
Louisiana State University, Oklahoma State University, Princeton University,
the University of Arkansas, the University of Florida, and the University of
Pennsylvania have been insightful critics of this project. At my home university,
BL has been a frequent source of support and information. Scholars at the
Southern Intellectual History Circle gave an early version of this manuscript
careful criticism that helped it mature; thanks are especially due to BWB and
DMH. The scholars whom the Institute for Southern Studies invited to talk about
recent trends in reconstruction historiography offiered an insightful discussion of
the state of reconstruction studies; I thank them for our stimulating debate.
Scholars outside of reconstruction history have also contributed to this
project. Henry Bolter, Jonathan Hansen, Daniel Kryder, Geo? Tegnell, Andrea
Walsh, Michael Willrich, and Richard Young, with whom I worked for a
number of years on the Teaching American History grant project, “Defining
Justice,” will see their influence here. At UMass Amherst, women’s historian
Laura Lovett and Latin Americanist Jane Rauch offiered advice and translations
and generously produced documents I couldn’t find myself. Also at UMass,
classicist Carlin Barton explained the importance of moderation to Roman
society so lucidly she made me approach my American moderates more
sympathetically; and political scientist Michael T. Hannahan ran a critical eye
over material on a moment’s notice.
This book also benefited enormously from students at MIT, Suffolk
University, and UMass Amherst. It was sparked in 2001 when an MIT student
challenged me to explain why the image of the cowboy has come to represent
America. As my ideas developed, I tried them out on students at Suffolk
University and UMass Amherst, who were most helpful in identifying
weaknesses and applauding strengths. On more than one occasion, I have
rewritten sections—and in one case a whole chapter—when student responses
indicated I had organized material badly. I thank all of you and hope you learned
as much from me as I did from you.
A number of people outside academia have lent their expertise to this
project. Engineer Klint Rose figured out whether or not an arrow really could go
through a bison. Dr. Charles A. Garabedian explained obscure medical issues
and made some guesses about what really killed Theodore Roosevelt’s wife. Bill
Klein at Sandy Lake Implement Company in Pennsylvania explained spring
tooth harrows. Guy Crosby of Vermont showed me an army worm moth and
impressed on me the devastation the worms had wreaked on his fields.
Others worked to bring this book to fruition. My agent, Lisa Adams, helped
me to whip the idea into a workable project. Lara Heimert, then at Yale
University Press, recognized the potential of my ideas and gave me the space to
develop them. PJ, FW, and PB provided writing tutorials when I couldn’t make
my material fit together. Stalwart editor Chris Rogers cut my prose in a
mainstream way, and copy editor Eliza Childs did a brilliant job of making the
manuscript both grammatically correct and readable. Finally, Margaret Otzel
managed the book’s final stages with both professionalism and humor. I thank
them all.
There are also personal debts to be acknowledged when a book is finished.
Mitchell Snay has always been at the other end of a telephone or an e-mail as we
both struggled to write books that threatened sometimes to devour us. Jo Calnan,
Ann Corcoran, Beth LaDow, Jim and Sarah Matel, Gillian Pearson, Karina
Pinella, and Mary Jean and Walther T. Weylman cheered this project on, read
drafts, provided information, lent books, and asked questions. Devon, Jillian, and
Rachel Murphy kept an eye on my children, playing capture the flag and
drawing pictures with endless patience. Robert, Marshall, and Eva made my
work easier by their comforting acceptance of a mother who kept disappearing
with a pen and a manuscript; on a more practical level, their concrete approach
to history has taught me to keep my prose from straying into theoretical tangents.
Michael R. Pontrelli pretended to believe me when I assured him that this one
would be a small project. I thank him for managing to refrain (mostly) from
saying “I told you so” when it grew into an all-consuming big book, for taking
the kids on weekend trips so I could work, and for keeping the book (and me)
balanced.
Finally, I owe profound thanks to the two men to whom this book is
dedicated. David Herbert Donald and William E. Gienapp were unstinting in
their effiorts to train me to be a historian and then supported me no matter what
happened. I owe them more than any book can ever repay.