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History - American — page 17

1,672 public-domain history - american books, summarised. Page 17 of 35.

Cover of The Broken Sword

The Broken Sword

D. Worthington

A Southern plantation family struggles to maintain its ancestral home amid the systemic chaos and social upheaval of post-Civil War Reconstruction.

History - American7 min read
Cover of The Centralia Conspiracy

The Centralia Conspiracy

Ralph Chaplin

Industrial loggers in the Pacific Northwest fight back when an armed mob attempts to destroy their union hall, triggering a deadly town raid and a brutal campaign of vigilante retaliation.

History - American6 min read
Cover of The postal power of Congress: A study in constitutional expansion

The postal power of Congress: A study in constitutional expansion

Lindsay Rogers

The constitutional grant empowering Congress to establish post offices and post roads has quietly grown into a vast mechanism of federal power.

History - American6 min read
Cover of The Story of Sitka: The Historic Outpost of the Northwest Coast

The Story of Sitka: The Historic Outpost of the Northwest Coast

Clarence Leroy Andrews

An isolated timber outpost on the North Pacific rim becomes the tense crossroads where imperial Russia, indigenous Thlingit clans, and early American enterprise collide.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Courts, Criminals and the Camorra

Courts, Criminals and the Camorra

Arthur Cheney Train

A hard-headed New York prosecutor pulls back the curtain on early twentieth-century American justice, showing how police routine, press sensationalism, and imported Italian secret societies turn the noble ideal of legal fairness into an unpredictable theater.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Following the Flag, from August 1861 to November 1862, with the Army of the Potomac

Following the Flag, from August 1861 to November 1862, with the Army of the Potomac

Charles Carleton Coffin

A eye-witness view of blood, mud, and military hesitation reveals the grinding reality of the American Civil War's eastern front.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Slavery and the Constitution

Slavery and the Constitution

William I. (William Ingersoll) Bowditch

Enslaved human beings cannot be held as property without stripping them of literacy, legal marriage, and political rights, a cruelty that the United States Constitution directly protects.

History - American6 min read
Cover of The American Missionary

The American Missionary

Various

A monthly dispatch of missionary intelligence, regional field rosters, financial ledgers, and institutional reports capturing the breadth of post-Civil War American Christian benevolence.

History - American5 min read
Cover of The Man in Court

The Man in Court

Frederic DeWitt Wells

The machinery of justice often turns legal conflict into an elaborate, theatrical contest that leaves ordinary participants confused and sidelined.

History - American5 min read
Cover of The Mentor: The Contest for North America, Vol. 1, No. 35, Serial No. 35: The Story of America in Pictures

The Mentor: The Contest for North America, Vol. 1, No. 35, Serial No. 35: The Story of America in Pictures

Albert Bushnell Hart

Two European powers once waged a century-and-a-half struggle to master the vast interior of the North American continent. Through wilderness journeys and bloody sieges, that rivalry reshaped the western hemisphere.

History - American6 min read
Cover of The Pre-Columbian Discovery of America by the Northmen: Illustrated by Translations from Icelandic Sagas

The Pre-Columbian Discovery of America by the Northmen: Illustrated by Translations from Icelandic Sagas

B. F. (Benjamin Franklin) DeCosta

A century before Columbus sailed, Icelandic mariners had already mapped the eastern shores of North America, recording their landfalls in vivid, matter-of-fact sagas.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Defenseless America

Defenseless America

Hudson Maxim

An explosive appeal to the American conscience, this 1915 manifesto warns that unearned wealth and total military unpreparedness invite swift catastrophic conquest.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Saratoga National Historical Park, New York

Saratoga National Historical Park, New York

Francis Wilshin

A brilliantly planned wilderness campaign collapses through miscommunication and stubborn resistance, turning a remote New York plateau into the pivotal battleground of the American Revolution.

History - American6 min read
Cover of The Trial of Aaron Burr

The Trial of Aaron Burr

Joseph P. (Joseph Plunkett) Brady

A towering political figure stands accused of high treason, while a sitting president directs the prosecution from afar and a resolute chief justice enforces strict constitutional boundaries inside a packed Virginia courtroom.

History - American6 min read
Cover of With Our Soldiers in France

With Our Soldiers in France

Sherwood Eddy

Amid the mud and artillery fire of the Western Front, an unseen battle for the souls and sanity of millions of young soldiers rages in the shadows of the trenches.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Captain Billy's Whiz Bang, Vol 1, No. 11, August, 1920: America's Magazine of Wit, Humor and Filosophy

Captain Billy's Whiz Bang, Vol 1, No. 11, August, 1920: America's Magazine of Wit, Humor and Filosophy

Various

A pocket-sized artifact of Jazz Age irreverence, this 1920 periodical captures the raw, unfiltered appetite of post-war America for snappy humor, Hollywood scandal, combat veteran nostalgia, and unpretentious rural wit.

History - American5 min read
Cover of Colorado—The Bright Romance of American History

Colorado—The Bright Romance of American History

F. C. Grable

A vast, untamed wilderness undergoes centuries of Spanish exploration, indigenous defense, military surveying, and pioneer ambition to emerge as a vibrant American state.

History - American6 min read
Cover of The American Missionary

The American Missionary

Various

A Christian society’s monthly journal records its work funding Southern schools, West African missions, and Western outposts while making the case for racial equality and moral reform.

History - American6 min read
Cover of The United States Since the Civil War

The United States Since the Civil War

Charles Ramsdell Lingley

A nation emerging from the Civil War attempts to rebuild its democracy while transforming into a corporate power, navigating class conflicts, party machinery, and world war.

History - American8 min read
Cover of The war against Japan: Pictorial record

The war against Japan: Pictorial record

Kenneth E. Hunter

A vast ocean becomes a brutal proving ground where men, machines, and harsh geography collide across thousands of miles of isolated islands.

History - American5 min read
Cover of Minnesota and Dacotah

Minnesota and Dacotah

C. C. (Christopher Columbus) Andrews

The vast, untamed reaches of the mid-nineteenth-century American frontier transform before the reader's eyes, revealing a land on the precipice of rapid settlement and profound historical change.

History - American6 min read
Cover of The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution, Vol. 11

The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution, Vol. 11

Unknown

The survival of a new nation often hinges not on the battlefield, but on the quiet, desperate mechanics of credit, diplomacy, and the fragile trust between allies. This collection of documents illuminates the machinery of the American Revolution from behind the curtain.

History - American7 min read
Cover of The Early Introduction of Bogus Freemasonry in the United States of America and Texas Among Colored Masons

The Early Introduction of Bogus Freemasonry in the United States of America and Texas Among Colored Masons

C. L. (Charles L.) Mitchell

This polemical account exposes the fractious history of 19th-century African American Freemasonry, arguing that many established grand lodges were illegitimate due to their failure to adhere to original, ancient organizational requirements.

History - American7 min read
Cover of Braddock's Road and Three Relative Papers

Braddock's Road and Three Relative Papers

Archer Butler Hulbert

The brutal, grueling construction of a wilderness path across the Alleghenies became the first true test of British resolve in the American West, forever marking the landscape of the continent.

History - American5 min read
Cover of Guide to Historic Plymouth: Localities and Objects of Interest

Guide to Historic Plymouth: Localities and Objects of Interest

A. S. (Alfred Stevens) Burbank

This detailed survey navigates the geography and enduring legacy of America’s most famous landing site, blending practical travel advice with a deep reverence for the colonial past.

History - American6 min read
Cover of New Homes for Old

New Homes for Old

Sophonisba Preston Breckinridge

The immigrant home serves as the bedrock of American society, yet it remains misunderstood and unsupported. This study explores the profound adjustments required for families to thrive within a new, rapidly changing national landscape.

History - American6 min read
Cover of The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution, Vol. 02

The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution, Vol. 02

Unknown

This volume records the precarious survival of a nascent nation, revealed through the private letters of those tasked with securing its independence in the unforgiving courts of Europe.

History - American7 min read
Cover of The Hoosiers

The Hoosiers

Meredith Nicholson

An intellectual history of the Hoosier State, this volume maps the transformation of a rugged frontier wilderness into a center of American literary and educational ambition. It is a scholarly yet accessible survey of the pioneer experience, the development of local dialect, and the emergence of a distinctive…

History - American6 min read
Cover of The 'Patriotes' of '37: A Chronicle of the Lower Canada Rebellion

The 'Patriotes' of '37: A Chronicle of the Lower Canada Rebellion

Alfred D. (Alfred Duclos) DeCelles

This chronicle examines the volatile political collision that sparked the 1837–1838 Rebellions in Lower Canada, tracing the descent from legislative deadlock to armed insurrection and, ultimately, the intervention of Lord Durham.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Demobilization

Demobilization

Benedict Crowell

Moving millions of soldiers from the battlefields of Europe back to civilian life was a logistical operation as complex as the war itself. This record details the industrial and human machinery required to dismantle a global military enterprise.

History - American6 min read
Cover of History of the Indians, of North and South America

History of the Indians, of North and South America

Samuel G. (Samuel Griswold) Goodrich

This wide-ranging chronicle surveys the diverse indigenous civilizations of the Americas, tracing their initial contact with European powers and the subsequent, often tragic, collapse of their autonomy across both continents.

History - American6 min read
Cover of "Imperialism" and "The Tracks of Our Forefathers"

"Imperialism" and "The Tracks of Our Forefathers"

Charles Francis Adams

The expansion of American territory at the close of the nineteenth century ignites a fierce debate over national identity, pitting traditional principles of self-government against a new, imperial ambition.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Jamestown, Virginia: The Townsite and Its Story

Jamestown, Virginia: The Townsite and Its Story

Hatch, Charles E., Jr.

This account traces the rise and eventual decline of Jamestown, the precarious first permanent English foothold in America, as it evolved from a mosquito-ridden fort into a colonial political hub.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Pike & Cutlass: Hero Tales of Our Navy

Pike & Cutlass: Hero Tales of Our Navy

George Gibbs

These collected accounts celebrate the valor of American sailors from the early days of the Republic through the transition to a modern steel navy. They offer a vivid, episodic chronicle of maritime combat and coastal life.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Postal Riders and Raiders

Postal Riders and Raiders

W. H. Gantz

The United States postal system is a battlefield where public service clashes with private interests. This investigation exposes the systemic corruption, bureaucratic incompetence, and corporate lobbying that once threatened to undermine the American mail service.

History - American7 min read
Cover of A History of the Boundaries of Arlington County, Virginia

A History of the Boundaries of Arlington County, Virginia

Va. County Manager Arlington Co.

This precise history chronicles the shifting borders of Arlington County, Virginia, tracing its evolution from colonial land grants to a modern, well-defined jurisdiction within the American capital region.

History - American6 min read
Cover of An Expedition to Mount St. Elias, Alaska

An Expedition to Mount St. Elias, Alaska

Israel C. (Cook) Russell

This account documents a perilous 1890 expedition into the Alaskan wilderness, detailing the grueling physical struggle to map the glaciers and peaks surrounding the formidable Mount St. Elias.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Vicksburg National Military Park, Mississippi

Vicksburg National Military Park, Mississippi

William C. Everhart

This handbook chronicles the strategic maneuvers and grueling 47-day siege that secured the Mississippi River for the Union. It offers a precise account of the military campaign that fundamentally shifted the momentum of the American Civil War.

History - American6 min read
Cover of A Philadelphia Lawyer in the London Courts

A Philadelphia Lawyer in the London Courts

Thomas Leaming

A foreign legal system reveals itself through the lived experience of a visitor walking the halls of London’s ancient courts. This account captures the specialized, often ritualized world of the English barrister, offering an American perspective on the mechanics of justice abroad.

History - American7 min read
Cover of The American Missionary

The American Missionary

Various

This monthly periodical serves as a primary historical record of late 19th-century American home missions, documenting the ambitious social and educational crusade to integrate freedmen, Chinese immigrants, and indigenous populations into post-Civil War society.

History - American6 min read
Cover of The Boy Captives: An Incident of the Indian War of 1695

The Boy Captives: An Incident of the Indian War of 1695

John Greenleaf Whittier

Two young boys disappear into the vast, unforgiving wilderness of colonial New England, embarking on a harrowing journey of survival that tests the limits of their courage and resourcefulness.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Behind the Mirrors: The Psychology of Disintegration at Washington

Behind the Mirrors: The Psychology of Disintegration at Washington

Clinton W. (Clinton Wallace) Gilbert

The gilded curtains of Washington are pulled back to reveal a government not of statesmanship, but of faltering amateurs, divided interests, and the crumbling illusions of American "Progress.

History - American6 min read
Cover of A Century of Negro Migration

A Century of Negro Migration

Carter Godwin Woodson

The quest for freedom and opportunity drove a century of movement that fundamentally reshaped the American landscape. This foundational history examines how systemic oppression and the search for autonomy fueled the migration of Black Americans from the colonial era through the onset of the World War.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Campaigning in Cuba

Campaigning in Cuba

George Kennan

This work offers a sobering, firsthand account of the chaos and human cost behind the American military victory in the Spanish-American War. It provides a rare look at the logistics of conflict through the eyes of a seasoned observer.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Masters of deceit

Masters of deceit

J. Edgar (John Edgar) Hoover

This book serves as a comprehensive primer on the internal mechanics, historical foundations, and operational strategies of the Communist Party in the United States, written from the perspective of federal law enforcement.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Morristown National Historical Park, a Military Capital of the American Revolution

Morristown National Historical Park, a Military Capital of the American Revolution

Melvin J. Weig

Morristown served as the vital military capital of the American Revolution, providing a strategic stronghold for George Washington’s Continental Army during two of the war's most punishing and pivotal winters.

History - American7 min read
Cover of A Visit to the United States in 1841

A Visit to the United States in 1841

Joseph Sturge

The cause of human freedom knows no borders, and the persistent pursuit of justice remains a global obligation. This account documents a dedicated effort to bridge the divide between British abolitionist ideals and the harsh realities of American slavery.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Siberia To-Day

Siberia To-Day

Frederick Ferdinand Moore

A firsthand account of post-revolutionary Russia, this travelogue offers a rare, ground-level glimpse of a nation unraveling through the eyes of an American observer during the Siberian intervention of 1918–1919.

History - American7 min read