Table of Contents

List of Contributors.

Preface.

Part I: the Colonial South.

1. The First Southerners: Indians of the Early South (Amy turner Bushnell).

2. Spanish and French Exploration and Colonization (Paul E. Hoffman).

3. The English Colonial South to 1750 (Cynthia A. Kierner).

4. The Origins of Slavery. 1619-1808 (Betty Wood).

5. Understanding the South in the Revolutionary Era, 1750--1789 (Ira D. Gruber).

Part II: The Antebellum South.

6. The South in the New Nation, 1790-1824. (Daniel S. Dupre).

7. The Plantation Economy (Mark M. Smith).

8. The Maturation of Slave Society and Culture (Stephanie J. Shaw).

9. Plain Folk Yeomanry in the Antebellum South (Samuel C. Hyde, Jr.).

10. Religion in the Pre-Civil War South (Randy J. Sparks).

11. Politics in the Antebellum South (Daniel W, Crofts).

12. Women in the Old South (Sally G. McMillen).

13. Intellectual and Cultural History of the Old South (David Moltke-Hansen).

Part III: Civil War and Reconstruction.

14. Sectionalism and the Secession Crisis (Mary A. DeCredico).

15. The Civil War: Military and Political Aspects along with Social, Religious, Gender, and Salve Perspectives (George C. Rable).

16. Emancipation and Its Consequences (Larua F. Edwards).

17. Political Reconstruction, 1865-1877 (Michael W. Fitzgerald).

18. Economic Consequences of the Civil War and Reconstruction (Joseph P. Reidy).

Part IV: The New South.

19. Southern Politics in the Age of Populism and Progressivism: A Historiographical essay (Samuel L. Webb).

20. The Rise of Jim Crow, 1880-1920 (James Beeby and Donald G. Nieman).

21. Women in the Post-Civil War South (Elizabeth Hayes Turner).

22. The Discovery of Appalachia: regional Revisionism as Scholarly Renaissance (John C. Inscoe).

23. Religion in the American South Since the Civil War (Paul Harvey).

Part V: The Modern South.

24. Southern Environmental History (Mart A. Stewart).

25. Labor Relations in the Industrializing South (Daniel Letwin).

26. The Impact of the New Deal and World War II on the South (Pamela Tyler).

27. The Civil Rights Movement (Charles W. Eagles).

28. the Rise of the Sunbelt: Urbanization and Industrialization (David R. Goldfield).

29. The Transformation of Southern Politics, 1954 to the Present (Wayne Flynt).

Index.

About the Author

John B. Boles is William Pettus Hobby Professor of History at Rice University and Managing Editor of the Journal of Southern History. His recent books include The Irony of Southern Religion (1994) and The South Through Time: A History of an American Region (second edition, 1999).

Reviews

"Teachers and students of southern history alike will owe a great debt to John Boles for years to come. The essays in A Companion to the American South, written by scholars who are themselves at the cutting edge of the new southern historiography, cover every conceivable aspect of southern history. This volume will indeed be an indispensable companion to every southern history course." Anthony Badger, University of Cambridge
"Boles has assembled a talented group of scholars to cover every important facet of Southern History. These twenty-seven essays introduce the latest interpretations and place them in the context of the major debates in American History. This is an indispensable volume for anyone interested in the American South." Orville Vernon Burton, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
"Twenty-nine essays by noted scholars compose this truly significant contribution to southern historiography ... it is refreshing to have such a wealth of valuable information gathered in one place, easily accessible and highly readable. A must for both the scholar's bookshelf and the reference shelves of all libraries" Choice
"Graduate students in southern history rejoice! Your vade mecum is here... all serious academic southernists will want to consult at least some of the chapters in this excellent collection of historiographical essays... Every academic library should add this volume to its holdings, and every serious student of southern history should consult it." H-Net Reviews
"John B. Boles, a distinguished scholar of southern religion and the South in general, has proved a wise choice as editor and both specialists and students will find the book invaluable... casting new light upon old ground and capturing the views of those at the cutting edge of southern history... In short, no stone is left unturned and this book should be the starting point for anyone interested in the contemporary scholarship of the South." David Brown, University College Northampton