American Reformers 1815-1860 by Ronald G. Walters

American Reformers 1815-1860

By Ronald G . Walters (A Book Review Walters presented a wide scale view of American history during the mid-nineteenth century (1815-1860 the major changes that occurred in American society , the issues of equality and slavery , and some political insights on American politics and governance . Walters book did not only present the history of the United States from 1815-1860 , he also explicated some of the causes of such events , usually in very analytical terms . Walters ' book is generally divided into four general subjects They are as follows : 1 ) the

evolution of family structures in America 2 ) the Second Great Awakening , 3 ) issues of race and slavery from the presidency of Monroe to Buchanan , and 4 ) the Antebellum Reform Movements . Each of these issues carried with it some social and political links with the American domestic and foreign policies , which in a speck of prism , became the footstool of the rise of America as an economic power

With the granting of independence via the Treaty of Paris with Great Britain , America became a young nation imbibed with so many dreams . The strive for economic prosperity drove American merchants to the High Seas in search for profit . American policies such as those implemented by Alexander Hamilton were transforming America into a capitalist country with a protruding desire to dominate the world of trade and commerce Behind all these economic drama was the evolution of family structures in America . The typical American family at that time was generally the mirror image of a typical British family . However , such a typical American family belonged to the upper class the middle and lower classes did not exhibit such structure

The Second Great Awakening (Walters 21-37

With America 's expansion to the West with the Louisiana Purchase (Napoleon sold the Mississippi region to the US government to finance his wars with the British Empire ) and the defeat of the Indians in the Indian war , religious missionaries began to invade the newly acquired territories . These missionaries were not the typical Spanish friars they were men armed with the power of the gospel to transform the savage ' society of the Indians . They were men whom , according to tales , God revealed His word . The names of Joseph Smith , Thomas Campbell , and Nathaniel William Taylor were admired by the Indians and the American settlers of the West . This is called the Second Great Awakening

The Second Great Awakening was a religious revival of American society in the early 19th century . It was a revival because America at that time experienced social ills , ranging from corruption and frequent foreign wars (like the War of 1812 when the nation 's capital was burned by the British . The landowners or the so-called aristocrats refused to sell their land to the government for the simple reason that it naturally belonged to them . The government was experiencing deficits on trade the result of Hamilton 's economic policies . Government offices were put under the control of the ruling party government offices were at their...