The Good Country: A History of the American Midwest, 1800-1900

by Jon K. Lauck

Overview

At the center of American history is a hole—a gap where some scholars’ indifference or disdain have too long stood in for the true story of the American Midwest. A first-ever chronicle of the Midwest’s formative century, The Good Country restores this American heartland to its central place in the nation’s history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780806190631
Publisher:	University of Oklahoma Press
Publication date:	11/17/2022
Pages:	366
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

Jon K. Lauck is the past president of the Midwestern History Association, teaches history and political science at the University of South Dakota, and is Editor-in-Chief of Middle West Review. He has authored or edited several books, including The Lost Region: Toward a Revival of Midwestern History; Daschle vs. Thune; Finding a New Midwestern History; and three volumes of The Plains Political Tradition.

Editorial Reviews

"The Good Country offers powerful a call-to-action for scholars to appreciate the Midwest's positive impact on United States history, writ large."--South Dakota History


"...the breadth and depth of Lauck's research, and the amplitude of his footnotes, are all the defenses this book needs; I would recommend it as one of the first books of Midwest history a person might read." - Phil Christman, The New Republic


"Well-researched and provocative."--The Washington Post

"In this detailed examination of 19th-century social history from Ohio westward to Nebraska, Lauck presents an impassioned defense of the American Midwest against its critics, marshaling a formidable set of historical and cultural data that future critics will not be able to ignore."--Omaha World Herald


"I know of no historian who has done such a superb job chronicling and framing the history of the American Midwest than Jon Lauck." --Gregory L. Schneider, author of Rock Island Requiem: The Collapse of a Mighty Fine Line


"Lauck's full-throated celebration of America's democratic traditions is an invitation to today's most important debate."--John Mack Faragher, author of California: An American History


"Of the myriad American diversities--racial, ethnic, religious, lifestyle--one is often neglected: the durable diversity of the nation's regions. Jon K. Lauck redresses this imbalance by restoring the middle of the nation to its proper place in the middle of the national story. You do not need to be a Midwest chauvinist--I, a son of Central Illinois, am one--to appreciate his appreciation of this region's nation-shaping role, and between 1861 and 1865 its nation-saving role."--George F. Will

From the Publisher