Summary
Contents
Profiling the ten most populous cities in the United States during ten critical eras of political development, Cities in American Political History presents a unique singular focus on American cities, their government and politics, industry, commerce, labor, and race and ethnicity. This title analyzes the role that large cities from New York to Chicago to San Jose have played in U.S. politics and policymaking. Each entry is structured for straightforward comparison across issues and eras. The city profiles include basic data and statistics for the era and are accompanied by maps of each era and the largest cities at that time.
Chapter 4. Cities in the Civil War and Reconstruction, 1854–1877
Chapter 4. Cities in the Civil War and Reconstruction, 1854–1877
The period covered in this chapter begins with the dissolution of the Whig Party and the rise of the Republicans, a financial crisis, and the Civil War, followed by the abolition of slavery, the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, another financial crisis (the worst to date), the end of Reconstruction, and the first nationwide strike.
Between 1854 and 1877, the population of the United States approximately doubled, ...