Synopses & Reviews
The new two-color Value Edition of
The American Promise is the ideal solution for instructors and students who want a full-length narrative at a low price. A clear political framework supports a dynamic social and cultural story enlivened by the voices of hundreds of Americans who help students connect with history and grasp important concepts.
Table of Contents
PrefaceVersions and SupplementsMaps and Figures Chapter 1 Ancient America: Before 1492 Opening Vignette: An archeological dig helps uncover ancient North American traditionsArchaeology and History The First Americans Archaic Hunters and Gatherers Agricultural Settlements and Chiefdoms Native Americans in the 1490s The Mexica: A Mesoamerican Culture Conclusion: The World of Ancient Americans
Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 2 Europeans Encounter the New World, 1492-1600 Opening Vignette: Queen Isabella of Spain supports Christopher Columbuss risky plan to sail west across the Atlantic Europe in the Age of Exploration A Surprising New World in the Western Atlantic Spanish Exploration and Conquest The New World and Sixteenth-Century Europe Conclusion: The Promise of the New World for Europeans Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 3 The Southern Colonies in the Seventeenth Century, 1601-1700 Opening Vignette: Pocahontas "rescues" John Smith An English Colony on Chesapeake Bay A Tobacco Society Hierarchy and Inequality in the Chesapeake Toward a Slave Labor System Conclusion: The Growth of English Colonies Based on Export Crops and Slave Labor Reviewing the Chapter
Chapter 4 The Northern Colonies in the Seventeenth Century, 1601-1700 Opening Vignette: Roger Williams is banished from Puritan Massachusetts Puritans and the Settlement of New England The Evolution of New England Society The Founding of the Middle Colonies The Colonies and the English Empire Conclusion: An English Model of Colonization in North America Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 5 Colonial America in the Eighteenth Century, 1701-1770 Opening Vignette: The Robin Johns experience horrific turns of fortune in the Atlantic slave trade A Growing Population and Expanding Economy in British North America New England: From Puritan Settlers to Yankee Traders The Middle Colonies: Immigrants, Wheat, and Work The Southern Colonies: Land of Slavery Unifying Experiences Conclusion: The Dual Identity of British North American Colonists Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 6 The British Empire and the Colonial Crisis, 1754-1775 Opening Vignette: Loyalist governor Thomas Hutchinson stands his ground in radical Massachusetts The Seven Years War, 1754-1763 The Sugar and Stamp Acts, 1763-1765 The Townshend Acts and Economic Retaliation, 1767-1770 The Destruction of the Tea and the Coercive Acts, 1770-1774 Domestic Insurrections, 1774-1775 Conclusion: The Long Road to Revolution Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 7 The War for America, 1775-1783 Opening Vignette: Deborah Sampson masquerades as a man to join the Continental army The Second Continental Congress The First Year of War, 1775-1776 The Home Front The Campaigns of 1777-1779: The North and West The Southern Strategy and the End of the War Conclusion: Why the British Lost Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 8 Building a Republic, 1775-1789 Opening Vignette: James Madison comes of age in the midst of revolution The Articles of Confederation The Sovereign States The Confederations Problems The United States Constitution Ratification of the Constitution Conclusion: The "Republican Remedy"Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 9 The New Nation Takes Form, 1789-1800 Opening Vignette: Brilliant and brash, Alexander Hamilton becomes a polarizing figure in the 1790s The Search for Stability Hamiltons Economic Policies Conflict on Americas Borders and Beyond Federalists and Republicans Conclusion: Parties Nonetheless Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 10 Republicans in Power, 1800-1824 Opening Vignette: The Shawnee chief Tecumseh attempts to forge a pan-Indian confederacy Jeffersons Presidency Opportunities and Challenges in the West Jefferson, the Madisons, and the War of 1812 Womens Status in the Early Republic Monroe and Adams Conclusion: Republican Simplicity Becomes Complex Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 11 The Expanding Republic, 1815-1840 Opening Vignette: The Grimke sisters speak out against slavery The Market Revolution The Spread of Democracy Jackson Defines the Democratic Party Cultural Shifts, Religion, and Reform Van Burens One-Term Presidency Conclusion: The Age of Jackson or the Era of Reform? Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 12The New West and the Free North, 1840-1860 Opening Vignette: With the support of his wife, Abraham Lincoln struggles to survive in antebellum America Economic and Industrial Evolution Free Labor: Promise and Reality The Westward Movement Expansion and the Mexican-American War Reforming Self and Society Conclusion: Free Labor, Free Men Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 13 The Slave South, 1820-1860 Opening Vignette: Slave Nat Turner leads a revolt to end slavery The Growing Distinctiveness of the South Masters and Mistresses in the Big House Slaves in the Quarter The Plain Folk Black and Free: On the Middle Ground The Politics of Slavery Conclusion: A Slave Society Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 14 The House Divided, 1846-1861 Opening Vignette: Abolitionist John Brown takes his war against slavery to Harpers Ferry, Virginia The Bitter Fruits of War The Sectional Balance Undone Realignment of the Party System Freedom under Siege The Union Collapses Conclusion: Slavery, Free Labor, and the Failure of Political Compromise Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 15 The Crucible of War, 1861-1865 Opening Vignette: Runaway slave William Gould enlists in the U.S. navy "And the War Came"The Combatants Battling It Out, 1861-1862 Union and Freedom The South at War The North at War Grinding Out Victory, 1863-1865 Conclusion: The Second American Revolution Reviewing the Chapter Chapter 16 Reconstruction, 1863-1877 Opening Vignette: James T. Rapier emerges in the early 1870s as Alabamas most prominent black leader Wartime Reconstruction Presidential Reconstruction Congressional Reconstruction The Struggle in the South Reconstruction Collapses Conclusion: "A Revolution But Half Accomplished" Reviewing the Chapter AppendixThe Declaration of IndependenceThe Articles of Confederation and Perpetual UnionThe Constitution of the United StatesAmendments to the Constitution with Annotations (including six unratified amendments)Glossary of Historical VocabularyIndexAbout the AuthorsAbout the Cover Art