xiv Introduction
discusses how this legacy was put into practice by
the nation’s fi rst six presidents. Th e third, dealing
with the Antebellum period between the election
of Andrew Jackson in 1828 and the inauguration
of Lincoln, is particularly important in providing
the background for this volume, which takes up
the story through the Civil War (1861–1865) and
Reconstruction (1865–1877).
Th is volume contains the edited texts of more
than 60 original documents and accompanying
introductions and commentary. I have designed each
of these books with the needs of high school stu-
dents, college students, and general citizens in mind.
Like previous volumes, this one includes a timeline,
suggestions for further reading, and an index.
In compiling these volumes, I have learned that
there is a substantial diff erence between reading
histories of a period and actually examining primary
documents. It has been said that history is a “trail of
symbols,” and parchments symbols can be as potent
a force as armies and physical monuments. I have
attempted judicious editing so that students can
read fundamental provisions of laws and speeches
without becoming overwhelmed by details.
As in previous volumes, I have introduced each
reading and annotated each document not in
the expectation that my own interpretations are
fi nal but in the hopes that they will guide stu-
dents through technical terms and provoke their
own refl ections. As a student of American con-
stitutional law, I am especially interested in U.S.
Supreme Court decisions, but I have tried to main-
tain a judicious balance (the pun is intentional) in
this book among the texts of congressional laws,
presidential speeches and proclamations, and judi-
cial decisions. I have also included occasional doc-
uments from the states and from popular culture,
as, for example, the texts of “Dixie” and “Th e Battle
Hymn of the Republic.”
As I have tried to indicate in this essay, history
rarely seems to proceed in a straight line. I have had
to choose only a sample of the documents available,
but I have done so cognizant that there are multi-
ple threads in American history. Although history
was long dominated by narratives of the deeds of
white males, I have included documents that also
illume the lives of women, African Americans,
and immigrants, and I would encourage students
to look for still other perspectives that will deepen
their own understandings.
As with past volumes, I am grateful to editors
at ABC-CLIO, especially Kevin Hillstrom and
Michelle Scott, and also the editors at production,
Gordon Hammy Matchado and Ezhil R. Kuppan
of Apex CoVantage. I am the son and husband of
public school teachers. Having further witnessed
the great dedication of such teachers during my
own daughters’ years in public schools (as well
as heroic eff orts by parents to provide education
for their children at home), I publish this book in
hopes that it will be a valuable resource for those
who believe that a knowledge of the past is essen-
tial to building a viable future and of enhancing
civic participation.
John R. Vile
Middle Tennessee State University
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