The Tar Heel State: A New History of North Carolina

by Milton Ready

Overview

A comprehensive, illustrated history of North Carolina spanning from the colonial period to the twenty-first century.

When first released in 2005, The Tar Heel State was celebrated as a comprehensive contribution to North Carolina’s historical record. In this revised edition, historian Milton Ready brings the text up to date, sharpens his narrative on the periods surrounding the American Revolution and the Civil War, and offers new chapters on the 1920s; World War II and the 1950s; and the confrontation between Jim Hunt, North Carolina’s longest-serving governor, and Jesse Helms, a transformational, if controversial, political presence in the state for more than thirty years.

Ready’s distinctive view of the state’s history integrates tales of famous pioneers, statesmen, soldiers, farmers, and captains of industry; as well as community leaders with often-marginalized voices, including those of African Americans, women, and the LGBTQ+ community that have roiled North Carolina for decades.

This beautifully illustrated volume gives readers a view of North Carolina that encompasses perspectives from the coast, the Tobacco Road region, the Piedmont, and the mountains. From the civil rights struggle to the building of research triangles, triads, and parks, Ready recounts the people, events, and dramatic demographic shifts since the 1990s, as well as the state’s role in the rise of modern political conservatism and subsequent emergence as a modern megastate. In a concluding chapter Ready assesses the current state of North Carolina, noting the conflicting legacies of progressivism and conservatism that continue to influence the state’s political, social, and cultural identities.

“Ready provides a skillful and well-written addition to the state’s historical literature.” —Jeffrey Crow, author of New Voyages to Carolina: Reinterpreting North Carolina History”

“An eminently readable, fast-paced, and thorough survey of North Carolina’s past.” —Alan D. Watson, University of North Carolina at Wilmington

“A scholarly and compelling story of the divergent experiences of the state’s masses—full of interesting facts and details that are often absent in other studies on the same subject.” —Joyce Blackwell, president, The Institute for Educational Research, Development and Training

“It is essential reading for anyone who seeks to understand the history of North Carolina and will be of immense benefit to those interested in the roles African Americans have played throughout the history of the state.” —Olen Cole Jr., North Carolina A&T State University

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781643360997
Publisher:	University of South Carolina Press
Publication date:	04/13/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	424
Sales rank:	976,049
File size:	29 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Milton Ready is professor emeritus of history at the University of North Carolina at Asheville. The author of numerous works on North Carolina and Georgia history, he has received the E. Merton Coulter Award for the writing of Georgia history. His works include Remembering Asheville; Mystical Madison: The History of a Mountain Region; Oh Carolina!, and, with Kenneth Coleman, edited numerous volumes of The Colonial Records of Georgia.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations vii

Preface to the Revised Edition xi

Acknowledgments xiii

Part 1 Colonial and Early North Carolina History

1 The Great Rift: The Geography and Geology of North Carolina 3

2 First Contacts between Native Americans and Europeans, 1585-1712 11

3 A Chartered Chaos: North Carolina under the Proprietors, 1663-1729 26

4 A Mosaic of Colonial North Carolina, 1663-1771 37

5 Slavery and Servitude in Early North Carolina, 1663-1861 52

Part 2 Revolution and the New State

6 The Regulator Rebellion and the Coming of the Revolution in North Carolina, 1763-1776 71

7 The First Civil War in North Carolina: The American Revolution, 1776-1781 88

8 The Rip Van Winkle State, 1781-1835 110

9 Antebellum North Carolina, 1815-1856 123

Part 3 The Civil War and Reconstruction

10 A State of indecision: North Carolina Enters the Civil War, 1858-1863 145

11 Ebb Tide of the Confederacy in North Carolina, 1863-1865 163

12 Reconstruction in North Carolina, 1865-1871 176

13 Trains, Towns, Textiles, and Tobacco: North Carolina's Emergence as a New South State, 1881-1910 197

Part 4 Political Reform

14 The Farmer's Last Stand, 1881-1901 215

15 North Carolina's Brand of Southern Progressivism, 1881-1921 235

16 North Carolina in the 1920s: The Great Divide 258

17 The 1930s: New Deals and Old Politics in North Carolina 274

Part 5 Civil Rights and Conservative Reactions

18 World War II and the 1950s: When Terry, Jesse, John, and Westray Came Marching Home 293

19 When Everything Changed: The Civil Rights Struggle in North Carolina, 1960-1972 310

20 Jesse Helms, Jim Hunt, and the Rise of Modern Conservatism in North Carolina, 1972-1984 331

Part 6 Modern North Carolina

21 Triads, Triangles, and Parks: The Urbanization of North Carolina 349

22 The End of an Era, 1984-2003 362

23 A Modern Megastate 375

Epilogue: North Carolina's Uncertain Future 394

Appendix A North Carolina Population by Race-Ethnicity, 1900-2017 397

Appendix B 1860 Census Showing Slave Totals by States 399

Appendix C Civil War Deaths by States 401

Appendix D List of US States by Educational Achievement, 2011-2015 403

Index 405

What People are Saying About This

Jeffrey Crow

Milton Ready provides a skillful and well-written addition to the state's historical literature.

Lindley S. Butler

The most original popular history of North Carolina in decades.

Alan D. Watson

The Tar Heel State constitutes an eminently readable, fast-paced, and thorough survey of North Carolina's past.

Joyce Blackwell

The Tar Heel State is a scholarly and compelling story of the divergent experiences of the state's masses—full of interesting facts and details that are often absent in other studies on the same subject.

Olen Cole Jr.

It is essential reading for anyone who seeks to understand the history of North Carolina and will be of immense benefit to those interested in the roles African Americans have played throughout the history of the state.

Editorial Reviews

Ready already made a key contribution to the study and sharing of North Carolina history with the first edition of his book. This updated edition incorporates more sources, a clearer structure, and a helpful section on the past twenty years of state history. With these extra merits, it will likely have even more of an impact on the understanding and study of the Old North State as Ready's first edition had nearly twenty years ago.

The North Carolina Historical Review

"Milton Ready provides a skillful and well-written addition to the state's historical literature."--Jeffrey Crow, author of New Voyages to Carolina: Reinterpreting North Carolina History


"It is essential reading for anyone who seeks to understand the history of North Carolina and will be of immense benefit to those interested in the roles African Americans have played throughout the history of the state."--Olen Cole Jr, North Carolina A&T State University


"The Tar Heel State constitutes an eminently readable, fast-paced, and thorough survey of North Carolina's past."--Alan D. Watson, University of North Carolina at Wilmington


"The most original popular history of North Carolina in decades."--Lindley S. Butler, coeditor of The North Carolina Experience: An Interpretive and Documentary History


"The Tar Heel State is a scholarly and compelling story of the divergent experiences of the state's masses--full of interesting facts and details that are often absent in other studies on the same subject."--Joyce Blackwell, president, The Institute for Educational Research, Development and Training

From the Publisher