The Frontier in American History (Barnes & Noble Digital Library)

by Frederick Jackson Turner, Andrew S. Trees (Introduction)

Overview

This edition includes a modern introduction and a list of suggested further reading.

Frederick Jackson Turner’s The Frontier in American History dominated the historical profession for almost half a century after it was delivered in 1893. The “frontier thesis” offered a compelling interpretation of how the frontier played the decisive role in shaping a distinctly American identity. Traditionally, most historians argued that America’s important institutions derived from English and European sources, and when they did look for the origins of an “American” character, they focused on eastern groups, such as the Puritans of New England. Completely rejecting the reigning orthodoxy, Turner argued that the crucial element transforming Europeans into Americans was the process of settling the continent. Today his essay remains a profound influence on how Americans imagine themselves as individuals and as a nation.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781411468108
Publisher:	Barnes & Noble
Publication date:	03/13/2012
Series:	Barnes & Noble Digital Library
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	368
File size:	434 KB
Age Range:	3 Months to 18 Years

About the Author

Frederick Jackson Turner was born in Portage, Wisconsin, in 1861, and this close proximity to frontier life clearly influenced his work. He received his B.A and M.A. from the University of Wisconsin and completed his doctorate at Johns Hopkins University in 1889. He returned that year to teach at the University of Wisconsin and later moved to Harvard University in 1910. He played a leading role in the American Historical Association, serving as its president in 1910 and on the editorial board of the Association's American Historical Review from 1910 to 1915.

Table of Contents

I The Significance of the Frontier in American History 1

II The First Official Frontier of the Massachusetts Bay 39

III The Old West 67

IV The Middle West 126

V The Ohio Valley in American History 157

VI The Significance of the Mississippi Valley in American History 177

VII The Problem of the West 205

VIII Dominant Forces in Western Life 222

IX Contributions of the West to American Democracy 243

X Pioneer Ideals and the State University 269

XI The West and American Ideals 290

XII Social Forces in American History 311

XIII Middle Western Pioneer Democracy 335

Index 361