The World of Antebellum America: A Daily Life Encyclopedia [2 Volumes](Daily Life Encyclopedias)

This set provides insight into the lives of ordinary Americans free and enslaved, in farms and cities, in the North and the South, who lived during the years of 1815 to 1860. Throughout the Antebellum Era resonated the theme of change: migration, urban growth, the economy, and the growing divide between North and South all led to great changes to which Americans had to respond. By gathering the important aspects of antebellum Americans' lives into an encyclopedia, The World of Antebellum America provides readers with the opportunity to understand how people across America lived and worked, what politics meant to them, and how they shaped or were shaped by economics. Entries on simple topics such as bread and biscuits explore workers' need for calories, the role of agriculture, and gendered divisions of labor, while entries on more complex topics, such as aging and death, disclose Americans' feelings about life itself. Collectively, the entries pull the reader into the lives of ordinary Americans, while section introductions tie together the entries and provide an overarching narrative that primes readers to understand key concepts about antebellum America before delving into Americans' lives in detail.

Table of Contents:
Preface Introduction Chronology VOLUME 1 Arts, Introduction, American Dictionary of the English Language (1828), The Atlantic Monthly (1857), Bancroft's History of the United States (1834–1876), Children's Literature, Daguerreotypes, Folk Art, Gothic Literature, Hudson River School (1820s–1880s), Leatherstocking Tales (1823–1841), Leaves of Grass (1855), Lithography, The Lowell Offering (1840–1845), Magazines, General and Literary, Miniatures, Minstrel Shows, Musical Societies, Orchestras and Concert Halls, Parlor Music, Poetry, The Scarlet Letter (1850), Serial Novels, Silver, Singing Schools and Choirs, Slave Music, Slave Narratives, Social Dances and Balls, Southern Literary Messenger (1834–1864), Textile Arts, Theater, Travelogues, Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852), Walden (1854), Woodcuts, Work Songs, Economics and Work, Introduction, Apprenticeship, Artisans, Coal, Domestic Slave Trade, Factory Owners, Feme Sole, Gold Rush (1848–1855), Grades and Futures, Horse-Drawn Vehicles, Hunting, American Indian, Immigrants, Iron, Labor Unions, Landholding and Property Ownership, Merchants and Clerks, Mill Girls, Nat Turner's Rebellion (1831), Outwork, Overseers, Panic of 1819, Panic of 1837, Panic of 1857, Precious Metals, Salt, Second Bank of the United States (1816–1836), Slavery, Agricultural, Slavery, Urban and Industrial, Slavery and American Indians, Ten-Hour Day, Family and Gender, Introduction, Adultery, Aging and Death, Childhood, American Indian, Childhood, Middle-Class, Children and Wage Work, Children in Slavery, Courtship, Coverture, Cult of Domesticity, Divorce, Domestic Violence, Enslaved Women, Fatherhood, Gender Relations, American Indian, Honor, Housework, Manhood, Marriage, Midwifery, Mixed-Race Children, Orphans and Guardianship, Parenting, Plantation Mistresses, Pregnancy and Childbirth, Republican Motherhood, Rural Family Structure, Sexuality, Sibling Relationships, Temperance, Toys and Play, A Treatise on Domestic Economy (1841–1856), Women in America, Fashion and Appearance, Introduction, American Indian Clothing, Bathing and Washrooms, Bloomer Costume, Brooks Brothers, Corsetry, Cosmetics and Beauty Culture, Dressmakers and Tailors, Etiquette and Advice Manuals, Fashion, Children's, Fashion, Men's, Fashion, Women's, Fashion Plates and Patterns, Godey's Lady's Book (1830–1898), Hairstyles, Jewelry, Laundry, Lowell Cloth, Mourning Clothes, Ready-Made Clothing, Slave Clothing, Standards of Beauty, Wedding Clothes, Working-Class Clothing, Food and Drink, Introduction, Barbecue, Beer, Breads and Biscuits, Cakes, Candy, Cider, Cookbooks and Recipes, Cooking, Southern, Cooking Techniques, Dining Spaces, Food Preservation, The Frugal Housewife (1829), Fruits and Vegetables, Kitchens, Mealtime Etiquette, Meat and Meat Processing, Pie, Rice, Roasted Meats, Special-Occasion Meals, Stews, The Virginia Housewife (1824), Housing and Community, Introduction, Boosterism, Charity and Poor Relief, Civic Ceremonies, County Courthouses, County Seats and Market Towns, Farming Families, Frontier Communities, Gardens, Land Inheritance Patterns, Lighting, Market Revolution, Mercantile Associations, Mill Towns, Olmsted, Frederick Law (1822–1903), Patriotism and National Identity, Plantation Houses, Plantation Landscapes, Post Office, Prisons and Punishment, Public Buildings, Public Health Campaigns and Advances, Public Squares and Spaces, Ranchos, Roads, Building and Use, Rural Architecture, Towns, Growth and Development of, Urban Residential Architecture, VOLUME 2 Politics and Warfare, Introduction, Abolition, Adams, John Quincy (1767–1848), Bank War (1832), Bleeding Kansas, Bleeding Sumner, Buchanan, James (1791–1868), Calhoun, John C. (1782–1850), Circuit Courts, Civilization Policy, Clay, Henry (1777–1852), Corrupt Bargain (1825), Democratic Party, Douglass, Frederick (1818–1895), Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857), Federal Property, Fillmore, Millard (1800–1874), Free-Soil Movement (1844–1857), Frontier Warfare, Fuller, Margaret (1810–1850), Garrison, William Lloyd (1805–1879), Gibbons v. Ogden (1824), Government, Expanding Role of, Harper, Frances Ellen Watkins (1825–1911), Harrison, William Henry (1773–1841), Indian Removal, Indian Treaties, Jackson, Andrew (1767–1845), Know-Nothing Party, Liberty Party, Lynching, Manifest Destiny, McCulloch v. Maryland (1819), Mexican-American War (1846–1848), Monroe, James (1758–1831), Mott, Lucretia Coffin (1793–1880), National Republican Party, Osceola (1804–1838), Pierce, Franklin (1804–1869), Polk, James K. (1795–1849), Republican Party, Scott, Winfield (1786–1866), Stanton, Elizabeth Cady (1815–1902), Supreme Court, Tariffs and Nullification, Taylor, Zachary (1784–1850), Texas Annexation (1834–1844), Truth, Sojourner (1797–1883), Tyler, John (1790–1862), Van Buren, Martin (1782–1862), Voting, Walker, David (ca. 1785–1830), Webster, Daniel (1782–1852), Whig Party, Woman's Rights, Recreation and Social Customs, Introduction, Baseball, Boxing, Cemeteries, Christmas, City Parks, Diary Writing, Dueling, Etiquette, Southern, Festivals and Spectacles, Gambling, Gift Giving, Gossip, Harness Racing, Horse Racing, Horse Racing, Southern, Hunting, Independence Day, Ladies' Fairs, Suppers, and Bazaars, Leisure, Letter Writing, Militia Companies, Oysters, Parades, Popular Politics, Sewing Societies, Taverns, Thanksgiving, Wrestling, Religion and Beliefs, Introduction, American Indian Religious Practices, Burial and Mourning Rituals, Christian Restoration, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Clergy, Conversion, Disciples of Christ, Finney, Charles Grandison (1792–1875), Millerism, Mission Societies, Moral Reform, Postmillennialism, Protestant Evangelicalism, Quakers, Roman Catholicism, Second Great Awakening (ca. 1790–1845), Secularization Act, Sermons, Shakers, Spiritualism, Sunday Schools, Tent Revivals, Transcendentalism and Fourierism, Utopian Communities, Women's Auxiliaries, Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA), Science and Technology, Introduction, Agricultural Societies and Fairs, Bright Leaf Tobacco, Canals, Cherokee Syllabary, Diseases and Epidemics, Downing, Andrew Jackson (1815–1852), Education, Higher, Education, Primary and Secondary, Education, Southern, Fulton, Robert (1765–1815), Grain Elevators, Hospitals, Hospitals, Southern, Literacy Rates and Reading Habits, Mechanical Reaper, Medical Education, Mental Health Care, Patent Medicines and Quacks, Sewing Machine, Ships and Sea Travel, Short-Staple Cotton, Smallpox and Inoculations, Steamboats, Surgery, Teaching Profession, Textile Mills, Transportation, Primary Documents, Arts, George Bancroft's History of the United States (1834), "Go Down, Moses" (folk song) (1840s), Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter (1850), Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852), Henry David Thoreau's Walden (1854), Economics and Work, Nat Turner's Rebellion (1831), John Sutter's Account of the Discovery of Gold in California (1854), The Burdens of Life and Manhood (1854), Schools on Ships (1855), Report of the Patent Commissioner (1855), A Slave Auction (1859), Family and Gender, Writing Truth for Children (1835), Catharine Beecher's Treatise on Domestic Economy (1841), Fashion and Appearance, Remembering Preindustrial Life in Rural Virginia (1740s–1760s), A Difficult Pair of Boots (1832), Suggestions to Brides and Bridesmaids (1860), Food and Drink, Cookery (1864), Recipes from Godey's Lady's Book Receipts and Household Hints (1870), Housing and Community, Dorothea Dix's Report on the Insane (1843), Andrew Jackson Downing on Gardens, Politics, and Class (1844), Politics and Warfare, Henry Clay's War Hawks Speech (1810), Andrew Jackson Takes Surrender from Weatherford of the Creeks (1814), Angelina Grimké Weld's "What Came Ye Out for to See?" (1838), Liberty Party Platform (1844), John O'Sullivan's Manifest Destiny (1845), California and Oregon Emigrants (1845), Senator John C. Calhoun's Speech to Congress against the Compromise of 1850 (1850), Ernestine Potowski Rose's Speech at the National Woman's Rights Convention (1851), The American Party Platform (1855), Frederick Douglass on the Dred Scott Decision (1857), Recreation and Social Customs, A Steamboat Ride on the Mississippi (1857), The Moon Hoax (1859), Religion and Beliefs, Red Jacket's "Missionary" Speech (1805), New Harmony Covenant (1826), Charles Grandison Finney's "What a Revival of Religion Is" (1834), Science and Technology, Joseph Marshall's Letters on Smallpox Vaccination (1799), Henry Rowe Schoolcraft Describes Death by Smallpox (1837), Sir Charles Lyell Describes a Boston School (1845), Marriage on the Brain (1847), Prescription of Arrowroot, Brandy, and Mercury (1858), Bibliography, Editor and Contributors, Index,

About the Author :
Alexandra Kindell, PhD, is editor in the U.S. Marine Corps History Division. Prior to joining the division, she taught courses on nineteenth-century history and still pursues opportunities to write as an independent scholar.

Review :
This set is a valuable resource for understanding the antebellum period. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates; general readers. A genuinely practical and highly effective encyclopedia that well describes the antebellum period.