Reconstructing Appalachia: The Civil War's Aftermath (New Directions in Southern History) - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 081314535X ISBN 13: 9780813145358

Publisher: University Press of Kentucky, 2014

Synopsis

Families, communities, and the nation itself were irretrievably altered by the Civil War and the subsequent societal transformations of the nineteenth century. The repercussions of the war incited a broad range of unique problems in Appalachia, including political dynamics, racial prejudices, and the regional economy.

Andrew L. Slap's anthology Reconstructing Appalachia reveals life in Appalachia after the ravages of the Civil War, an unexplored area that has left a void in historical literature. Addressing a gap in the chronicles of our nation, this vital collection explores little-known aspects of history with a particular focus on the Reconstruction and post-Reconstruction periods. Acclaimed scholars John C. Inscoe, Gordon B. McKinney, and Ken Fones-Wolf are joined by up-and-comers like Mary Ella Engel, Anne E. Marshall, and Kyle Osborn in a unique volume of essays investigating postwar Appalachia with clarity and precision.

Featuring a broad geographic focus, these compelling essays cover postwar events in Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. This approach provides an intimate portrait of Appalachia as a diverse collection of communities where the values of place and family are of crucial importance. Highlighting a wide array of topics including racial reconciliation, tension between former Unionists and Confederates, the evolution of post-Civil War memory, and altered perceptions of race, gender, and economic status, Reconstructing Appalachia is a timely and essential study of a region rich in heritage and tradition.

About this title

Review

"A major contribution to the continuing re-evaluation of the mountain region's history. This volume marks an extension of that rich scholarship, providing a vital bridge between the agrarian/sectional and industrial/national eras." -- Martin Crawford, author of Ashe County's Civil War: Community and Society in the Appalachian South

"The mountain people and small farmers didn't own many slaves or care too much about states' rights.... But they bore a great amount of the war's destruction. It left them embittered, resentful of any government authority and suspicious of outsiders." -- Louisville Courier-Journal

"This impressive new study will pave the way for additional scholarship. Excellent, readable, and absorbing history, it gives us a better understanding of this compelling aspect of the Civil War. Highly recommended for both general readers and specialists" -- Library Journal

" Reconstructing Appalachia is the story of a region coming to grips with the aftermath of a devastating homegrown war." -- kydirect.net

"In a collection of essays, several Southern historians examine life in Appalachia after the War Between the States ravaged the region." -- Lexington Herald-Leader

"The end of the Civil War was only the beginning." -- Knoxville News-Sentinel

"The American Civil War left a lasting mark on the lands and people of Appalachia, where there are diverse collection of communities where the values of place and family are crucial importance." -- Lone Star

" Reconstructing Appalachia is outstanding." -- North Carolina Historical Review

"" Reconstructing Appalachia addresses a gap in the nation's chronicles, as it explores little-known aspects of history with a particular focus on the Reconstruction and even the post-Reconstruction periods of the late 1800s."-- Bristol Herald Courier" --

""This much needed and very useful collection highlights the Appalachian region's diverse responses to the Civil War and complicates, while it illuminates, several long-standing historical debates."-- Civil War Book Review" --

About the Author

Andrew L. Slap, associate professor of history at East Tennessee State University, USA, is the author of The Doom of Reconstruction: The Liberal Republicans in the Civil War Era.

Edition details

• Publisher: University Press of Kentucky
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 081314535X
• ISBN 13: 9780813145358
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 390
• Editor: Slap Andrew L.