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19th Century America

The 19th was the United States' first full century as a nation. It was full of birth pangs, moments of triumph, and things that made everyone shake their head and wonder what was going on. One of the most interesting of the latter bits was when British ex-pat Joshua Norton crowned himself Emperor of the United States, "reigning" from San Francisco.

Most people remember the 19th century for the Civil War. While it certainly was a significant event, one of the most important events in American history even, there were a number of surrounding factors that were just as important, and without which the War Between the States would never have developed.

Arguably the most significant of these was Western Expansion. The idea that Americans were fulfilling some kind of national destiny by claiming the Western part of the continent was called Manifest Destiny, and its origins can be found in the writings of some of the most prominent Founding Fathers, like Thomas Jefferson and John Adams. Their dedication to the Enlightenment ideal of human progress (that mankind controlled its own destiny, and that that destiny was to move ever forward) translated into a need to expand their country as far as possible.

As with anything else, God used that humanist doctrine to advance His own truth. While politicians and opportunists went West to obtain land, gold, and freedom, Christian missionaries went to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. People like Marcus and Narcissa Whitman and Jason Lee braved the Oregon Trail simply to share their faith with the Native Americans in the Western Territories; the Whitmans even gave their lives, becoming the Pacific Northwest's most famous martyrs.

Meanwhile, back in the East the bigwigs were conspiring to breach the 3,000 mile gap between the East and West coasts with a recently improved invention: the steam engine train. The First Transcontinental Railroad wasn't completed till 1869 (four years after the Civil War had ended), but it's origins reach back to the 1840s when it was first envisioned by Asa Whitney.

In fact, the transcontinental railroad was a significant element of Abraham Lincoln's presidential campaign and administration. This was the problem: the North wanted the Trans to go through their territory because they had so much industrial product to move, while the South wanted it to run through the bottom half of the States so they could transport cotton, sorghum, and other agricultural goods.

The reality was a bit of a compromise, but the violent debates that stirred Congress had no small part in fomenting the division that would ultimately erupt in full-blown war. Slavery was the main issue, but it affected so many other factors that to reduce the origins of the Civil War to slavery alone is a bit revisionist and narrow-sighted.

For a lot of the 19th century, it seemed that the United States led a charmed existence, that Progress was a sure thing and there was nothing really to fear, certainly no problem that couldn't be overcome. The last two decades were exceedingly prosperous, leading to a sense of smug optimism that only the terror of World War I, the moral chaos of the Jazz Age, and the sudden insecurity of the Great Depression could effectively end.

Not everyone was man-centered and materialistic, however. The 19th century saw a surge in evangelism unlike anything the fledgling nation had seen, so pervasive and productive that it was called the Second Great Awakening. Unfortunately, a lot of doctrinal dilution came with the new preaching, but there were plenty of genuine conversions, and much good came of them.

It's difficult to reduce a one hundred year span to a few paragraphs, and there are certainly things we could have mentioned. Comprehensive treatments aren't always the best way to study history, though; each era has its own spirit and attitudes (its own zeitgeist, if you want to get all technical and German) that best represent it. We hope you'll bear that in mind in your study of the 19th century in America, and indeed throughout your study of history here and around the globe.

Topics of Interest from the 19th Century:

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he is a husband and father, teaches adult Sunday school in his Presbyterian congregation, and likes weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur.Read more of his reviews here.
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ABC Book of Early Americana
by Eric Sloane
2012 Dover from Dover Publications
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Pioneer & Frontier Life (Location: HISA-19PIO)
$10.95
Abraham Lincoln
by Edgar & Ingri D'Aulaire
75th Anniversary Edition from Beautiful Feet Books
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Caldecott Medal winner
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$17.95
Alamo!
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Amazing Impossible Erie Canal
by Cheryl Harness
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Historical Non-Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
in Western Expansion (1800-1898) (Location: HISA-19WES)
$7.99
Blizzard!
by Jim Murphy
from Scholastic Press
for 4th-6th grade
2001 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book
in 19th Century America (Location: HISA-19C)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
BOX: Henry Brown Mails Himself to Freedom
by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Michele Wood
from Candlewick Press
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2021 Newbery Honor Book
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$17.99
Buffalo Bill
by Edgar & Ingri D'Aulaire
from Beautiful Feet Books
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By the Dawn's Early Light
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from Scholastic Inc.
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in War of 1812 (Location: HISA-19WET)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
By the Dawn's Early Light
by Steven Kroll
from Scholastic Inc.
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Cowboy Charlie
by Jeanette Winter
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Crossing Bok Chitto
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by F. N. Monjo
from HarperCollins
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Follow the Drinking Gourd
by Jeanette Winter
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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Follow the Drinking Gourd
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from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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Go Free or Die
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Biography for 4th-6th grade
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Going West
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Going West
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Historical fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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Good Ol' Cowboy Stories
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Personification story for 4th-8th grade
1930 Newbery Medal winner
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by Carole Boston Weatherford, Illustrated by Frank Morrison
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If You Grew Up With Abraham Lincoln
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by Ann McGovern
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If You Lived 100 Years Ago
by Ann Mcgovern
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If You Traveled West in a Covered Wagon
If You Were There
by Ellen Levine
from Scholastic Inc.
Historical Non-fiction for 2nd-5th grade
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An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Eleanor Coerr
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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by Peggy Parish, illustrated by Arnold Lobel
from HarperCrest
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Lewis & Clark
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from Holiday House
Historical Non-Fiction for 1st-4th grade
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$7.99
Lewis & Clark
by Steven Kroll
No Date No Edition Stated from Holiday House
Historical Non-Fiction for 1st-4th grade
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$5.50 (1 in stock)
Lewis and Clark and Me
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from Henry Holt and Company
Fictionalized Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
Long Way Westward
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Joan Sandin
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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Lost City
by Ted Lewin
Reprint from Puffin Books
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$8.99
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from Troll Medallion
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from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
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Mill
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from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-8th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$12.99
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by Elizabeth Mann
from Mikaya Press
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in Gilded Age & Progressive Era (1877-1918) (Location: HISA-19GI)
$10.00 (2 in stock)
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by David Adler
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from Holiday House
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$4.50 (1 in stock)
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from Yearling
American History for 2nd-6th grade
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$10.99
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from Children's Press
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in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
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Cornerstones of Freedom
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from Children's Press
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in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
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by Norman Richards, illustrated by Tom Dunnington
from Children's Press
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from Children's Press
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
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from Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd.
for 4th-6th Grade
in Western Expansion (1800-1898) (Location: HISA-19WES)
$2.00 (2 in stock)
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Cornerstones of Freedom
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from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
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Cornerstones of Freedom
by Kenneth Richards
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Story of the Gettysburg Address
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Kenneth Richards & Tom Dunnington
from Children's Press
for 3rd-6th grade
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$5.00 (2 in stock)
Story of the Gold at Sutter's Mill
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Golden Spike
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd.
for 4th-6th grade
in History of Railroads (Location: HISA-19TRR)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Haymarket Riot
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Charnan Simon
from Children's Press
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in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Homestead Act
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Lewis and Clark Expedition
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Lewis and Clark Expedition
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Lincoln Memorial
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natalie Miller
from Unknown Publisher
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in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Lincoln Memorial
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natalie Miller
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
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$5.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Lone Star Republic
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Story of The Monitor and the Merrimac
by R. Conrad Stein
from Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd.
for 4th-6th Grade
in American Civil War Era (1850-1865) (Location: HISA-19CW)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Oregon Trail
Cornerstones of Freedom series
by R. Conrad Stein
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Pony Express
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
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in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
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Story of the Star-Spangled Banner
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natalie Miller
from Children's Press
for 4th-6th Grade
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$5.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Star-Spangled Banner
Cornerstones of Freedom
by Natalie Miller
from Children's Press
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$4.00 (3 in stock)
Ten Mile Day
by Mary Ann Fraser
from Henry Holt and Company
Historical Non-Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
in History of Railroads (Location: HISA-19TRR)
$10.99
Thee, Hannah!
by Marguerite de Angeli
from Herald Press
Realistic Fiction for
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They're Off!
by Cheryl Harness
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Historical Non-Fiction for 2nd-5th grade
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Three Names
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for 2nd-4th grade
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Voice of Her Own
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from Candlewick Press
for 3rd-6th grade
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$6.99
Wagon Wheels
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Barbara Brenner
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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$5.99
Wagon Wheels
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Barbara Brenner, illustrated by Don Bolognese
from HarperCrest
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Walking the Road to Freedom
by Jeri Ferris
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
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in Biographies (Location: BIO)
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Wide Open Spaces
by Jack Terry
from Harvest House
for 4th-7th grade
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Young Abe Lincoln
by Cheryl Harness
from National Geographic
Picture Book Biography for
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$7.95
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