The Republic for Which It Stands: The United States During Reconstruction and the Gilded Age, 1865–1896

Preeminent scholar White (Margaret Byrne Professor of American History, Stanford Univ.; The Middle Ground) authors the latest volume in the "History of the United States" series. He begins by examining the idyllic vision of the United States promulgated by the Radical Republicans at the onset of Reconstruction in which the civil rights of all individuals were respected. That dream was supplanted as the populace raced to seize economic opportunity in the West. Vast fortunes were made, often aided by corrupt politicians. As the nation's wealth became concentrated in the hands of the elite, the impoverished saw their opportunities decline and oppression increase. Prosperity proved fleeting for the middle class, as the nation was roiled economically by boom and bust cycles. American Indians fought desperately to cling to their homelands as interlopers abounded, supported by the might of the U.S. military. Immigrants provided essential labor for the expansion westward yet experienced extreme discrimination. In the midst of this chaos, Americans came to forge an optimistic worldview that saw the United States as a unified and diverse country that should share its values beyond its continental borders.