Expansion of Everyday Life, 1860-1876

Everyday Life in America

by Daniel E. Sutherland

During this period, five states joined the Union―Kansas, West Virginia, Nevada, Nebraska and Colorado―and the population reached nearly forty million. The westward movement was given a boost by the cornpletion of the first intercontinental railroad, and migration from farms and villages to towns and cities increased, accompanied by a shift from rural occupations and crafts to industrial tasks and trades. Overall, the pursuit of middle-class status became a driving force. As this book illustrates, however, most people, though affected by the major upheavals of history, simply pursued their personal lives. Sutherland chronicles dating and marriage customs, the dangers and discomforts of mining, and life in the gambling dens, saloons, dance halls, and "cathouses" of the period. Through extensive quotations from diaries, letters, and the popular press, the reader glimpses an American middle class just beginning to grope its way toward the modern world.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Civil War, Reference, 19th Century, American History

300 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[AC · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid — and a good companion to the other books in this series.

[Pete · Rating 4 out of 5]

The sixteen years between the start of the American Civil War and the centennial year (1876) of the nation’s birth (1776) was a period of immense change. Sutherland’s writing is plain and informative if sometimes a bit repetitive.

This is the third of the Everyday Life in America series with three more to go, and for me it’s a welcome change from the usual political concentration of most history books. I often found myself recognizing some feature of life from those days that carried forward into my own boyhood, and wondered what my relatives from back then would think of our lives today with so much time spent buried in cell phone screens.

[Meghan LT · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author chose an informative and varied number of topics to cover, and he chose well to focus on such a specific and conflict-filled time in American history. Sutherland is obviously very skilled at researching and drawing from a lot of sources, and he works many, many specific statistics, quotations, economic points, and other examples into the book. However, there were still quite a few spots where the book presents generalizations about daily life as fact - difficult to avoid when trying to condense all regions and classes into one book.

While the writing style wasn't quite right for me, it was very readable and accessible. Lack of any kind of footnotes was a real issue, though.

[Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just happened to see this book in a Free Bin in front of the Friends of the Library book shop. I picked it up and thought I might give it a try even though I don't usually read history books. I was so pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed reading this information. I liked Sutherland's writing style. Interesting and not boring. I learned a lot about the Civil War and the years afterward that I had no idea about. This book put everything into proper perspective. Now I know where all those Western movies probably take place in history. Also I found that the issues of those times are not much different than those of today.

[Dave E · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book provides a thorough look at the life of Americans in the Civil War and post-Civil War period. It provides an interesting look at the transition from the more home based post-Revolutionary lifestyle to the beginning of the more industrialized life of late 19th century. Well done.

[Edward · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid book, it’s what it says on the tin. If you think you might like it you probably will - I found it to be a fun and interesting read!

[Hunter McCleary · Rating 4 out of 5]

33 Passage about the popularity of owning a piano in 1870s.