United States History

This four-volume set examines every social movement in American history - from the great struggles for abolition, civil rights, and women's equality to the more specific quests for prohibition, consumer safety, unemployment insurance, and global justice.

The Complete Encyclopedia of African American History chronicles 400 years of African American history. The Complete Encyclopedia of African American History showcases a legacy of pride, struggle, and triumph through consequential events and people, covering milestones and challenges met while highlighting the considerable contributions African Americans have made to the fabric of American society and culture. It provides insights on--and inspiration from--the influence and impact of African Americans on the United States in a broad range of endeavors from politics, education, religion, business, science, medicine, the military, sports, literature, music, dance, theater, art, film, television, and more.

Whereas the first edition focused almost exclusively on the United States, this new set identifies and addresses broad themes critical to understanding the texture of the cultures, achievements, challenges, and promise of the 150 million people of African descent who live in North America, Central and South America, and the Caribbean. It is an authoritative and comprehensive information about Black history, figures, and accomplishments throughout the Americas now have a defining and current reference.

Featuring more than 80 new entries and hundreds of revisions, this second edition of a classic resource is the most in-depth and analytical of its kind. Comprehensive in scope and meticulous in detail, The Encyclopedia of American Biography examines more than 1,000 Americans who have contributed to the historical and cultural richness of the American scene, from the earliest explorers to those making headlines today. Each entry is at least a full page in length, which allows for two sections. The first, the objective section, outlines all the notable facts, dates and events of the figure's career. The second section, a subjective essay written by a prominent scholar or authority who specializes in the individual being discussed, fills the gap left by facts alone. It evaluates and puts in context the subject's contributions to American life and thinking and it discusses his or her style and personality: It brings the facts to life. The book also includes cross-references, showing how these lives affected those of their contemporaries and successors, and recommended sources for further reading. The only single-volume biographical reference to offer in-depth information, The Encyclopedia of American Biography is a cornerstone to every home, professional and public library.

This illustrated encyclopedia examines the unique influence and contributions of women in every era of American history, from the colonial period to the present. It not only covers the issues that have had an impact on women, but also traces the influence of women's achievements on society as a whole. Divided into three chronologically arranged volumes, the set includes historical surveys and thematic essays on central issues and political changes affecting women's lives during each period. These are followed by A-Z entries on significant events and social movements, laws, court cases and more, as well as profiles of notable American women from all walks of life and all fields of endeavor.

For more than two centuries, political parties have competed in encouraging, organizing, and directing political activity in the United States.

The US Supreme Court is an institution that operates almost totally behind closed doors. This book opens those doors by providing a comprehensive look at the justices, procedures, cases, and issues over the institution s more than 200-year history. The Court is a legal institution born from a highly politicized process. Modern justices time their departures to coincide with favorable administrations and the confirmation process has become a highly-charged political spectacle played out on television and in the national press. Throughout its history, the Court has been at the center of the most important issues facing the nation: federalism, separation of powers, war, slavery, civil rights, and civil liberties.

Use of military force without a declaration of war has been a weapon in the arsenal of U.S. presidents for the last 200 years. Force has become an increasingly more (relevant) foreign policy action in the post-Cold War world. This comprehensive resource approaches the study of the use of force from several theoretical approaches: the historical record, which includes regional analyses of Latin America/the Caribbean, Europe, Asia, the Middle East/North Africa, and Sub-Saharan Africa; the data sets that focus on the use of force; the international level, which includes democratic peace, multilateralism, and Yugoslavia; domestic politics, which includes Congress, the media, and public opinion; executive-congressional relations, including political and constitutional issues; ethics; and theories of decision making on the use of force.

The indigenous populations of North America created impressive societies, engaged in trade, and had varied economic, social, and religious cultures. Over the past century, archaeological and ethnological research throughout all regions of North America has revealed much about the indigenous peoples of the continent. This book examines the long and complex history of human occupation in North America, covering its distinct culture as well as areas of the Arctic, California, Eastern Woodlands, Great Basin, Great Plains, Northwest Coast, Plateau, Southwest, and Subarctic. Complete with maps, a chronology that spans the history from 11,000 B.C. to A.D. 1850, an introductory essay, more than 700 dictionary entries, and a comprehensive bibliography, this reference is a valuable tool for scholars and students.

The A to Z of the Early American Republic recounts the achievements and the failures, the progress and the backsliding, and the high and low points of our forefathers. First traced in the chronology and then explained in the introduction, the history of our nation's formative years is laid out in great detail. The several hundred dictionary entries describe the more eminent persons, the evolving institutions, and the crucial events that our young country faced. An extensive bibliography is included to provide easy access for further studies.

A three-volume survey of the formative years of the United States, starting just prior to the American Revolution and ending with the inauguration of Andrew Jackson in 1829

This groundbreaking compendium covers the colonial experience from the 11th-century Norse settlers in Newfoundland to the Spanish in New Mexico and the Russians in 1850s Alaska. Articles speak to the daily circumstances, historical events and prevailing climates of thought that gave shape and purpose to people's lives during the centuries of imperial expansion and settlement.

While other resources focus on different aspects of the 19th century, such as the Civil War or immigration, this is the first truly comprehensive treatment to cover all aspects of 19th-century history including: population, politics and government, economy and work, society and culture, religion, social problems and reform, everyday life and foreign policy.

The brief period from 1829 to 1849 was one of the most important in American history. During just two decades, the American government was strengthened, the political system consolidated, and the economy diversified. All the while literature and the arts, the press and philanthropy, urbanization, and religious revivalism sparked other changes. The belief in Manifest Destiny simultaneously caused expansion across the continent and the wretched treatment of the Native Americans, while arguments over slavery slowly tore a rift in the country as sectional divisions grew and a national crisis became almost inevitable.

A gold mine for the historian as well as the Civil War buff, The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Civil War offers a concise, comprehensive overview of the major personalities and pivotal events of the war that redefined the American nation. Drawing upon recent research that has moved beyond battles and military campaigns to address the significant roles played by civilians, women, and African Americans, the 250 entries explore the era in all its complexity and unmistakable human drama.

The encyclopedia takes a broad, multidisciplinary approach to the history of the period. It includes general and specific entries on politics and business, labor, industry, agriculture, education and youth, law and legislative affairs, literature, music, the performing and visual arts, health and medicine, science and technology, exploration, life on the Western frontier, family life, slave life, Native American life, women, and more than a hundred influential individuals.

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.

People of the Underground Railroad is the largest in-depth collection of profiles of those individuals involved in the spiriting of black slaves to freedom in the northern states and Canada beginning around 1800 and lasting to the early Civil War years. One hundred entries introduce people who had a significant role in the rescuing, harboring, or conducting of the fugitives--from abolitionists, evangelical ministers, Quakers, philanthropists, lawyers, judges, physicians, journalists, educators, to novelists, feminists, and barbers--as well as notable runaways.

A reference work that looks at the Confederate States of America as a combatant in the Civil War and as a fully functioning nation unto itself.

Through chronology, introductory essay, bibliography, appendixes, and hundreds of cross-referenced dictionary entries on the key events, people, organizations, and ideas of the period, this resource is a lively, complete, and accessible overview of this significant era.

This three-volume set discusses important people, events and issues during the years of 1940 to 1949, with particular focus on World War II and its impact on history and daily life. It features long overviews and short entries discussing people, books, films, plays, and other important topics representative of that era.

The book focuses chiefly on the United States, but places American lives and events firmly within a global context.

The Sixties in America, surveys the events and people of the 1960's, a turbulent decade that had a profound and lasting effect on the life and culture of the United States. The set not only provides in-depth coverage of all aspects of the three major events of the 1960's that give the decade its distinctive character-the Civil Rights movement, the social revolution, and the Vietnam War-but also surveys important developments in the arts, science and technology, business and the economy, government and politics, and gender issues.

This encyclopedia documents the people, places, movements, and culture of that memorable decade for those who lived it and those who came after.

The Gulf War, dot-coms, impeachment, grunge, Y2K . . . The Nineties in America examines the iconic personalities and moments of this important decade. It features long overviews and short entries discussing people, books, films, plays, and other important topics representative of that era.

An A-Z of Modern America is a comprehensive cultural dictionary which defines contemporary America through its history and civilization. The book includes entries on: key people from presidents to Babe Ruth American life, customs, clothing and education legal, religious and governmental practices multiculturalism, minorities and civil rights

The period from the outset of World War I to the end of World War II was among the most significant in the history of the United States. Twice it was drawn into "foreign entanglements"--wars it initially thought were no concern of its own and of which it tried to steer clear--only to realize that it could not stand aside. With each one, it geared up in record time, entered the fray massively, and was crucial to the outcome. Each war tested the American people and their leaders, and in each case the country came out of the conflagration stronger than before--and even more important--yet stronger relative to other countries than it had ever been.

The second edition of Historical Dictionary of the Civil Rights Movement is a guide to the history of the African-American struggle for equal rights in the United States. The history of this period is covered in a detailed chronology, an introductory essay, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 500 cross-referenced entries on important personalities, significant legal cases, local struggles, forgotten heroes, and prominent women in the Movement.

The A to Z of the Eisenhower Era examines significant individuals, organizations, and events in American political, economic, social, and cultural history during this era (1950-1960) in American history.

The entries cover topics and persons in major areas of popular culture: film; music; print culture; social life; sports; television and radio; and art and performance (which include theater, dance, stand-up comedy, and other live performance).