Congress and the people's contest : the conduct of the Civil War /
edited by Paul Finkelman and Donald R. Kennon.
- Athens, Ohio : published for the United States Capitol Historical Society by Ohio University Press, (c)2018.
- 1 online resource (vi, 249 pages).
- Perspectives on the history of Congress, 1801-1877 .
Includes bibliographies and index.
Introduction: freedom and democracy in "the people's contest": a complicated role for Congress in a complicated war / A martyr, a speaker, and impending crisis: a prologue to the election of 1860 / "Shatter this accursed union": the fire-eaters in Congress in 1860 / "These Zouaves will never support us": cowardice, Congress and the First Battle of Bull Run / The summer of '62: Congress, slavery, and a revolution in Federal law / The radicals' war: how the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War tried to shape the course of the Civil War / We are coming, Father Abraham, but how will you pay for us? / Why we fight: German American revolutionists confront slavery and secession / Make mine an abolition war: George Luther Stearns, Frederick Douglass, and the Black soldier / Military emancipation before the Emancipation Proclamation: overcoming structural obstacles / Negotiating Black manhood citizenship through Civil War volunteerism and patriotism: Cincinnati's Black Brigade / Paul Finkelman -- Jonathan Earle -- Eric Walther -- Lesley J. Gordon -- Paul Finkelman -- Fergus M. Bordewich -- Jenny Bourne -- Mischa Honeck -- L. Diane Barnes -- Chandra Manning -- Nikki M. Taylor.
The American Civil War was the first military conflict in history to be fought with railroads moving troops and the telegraph connecting civilian leadership to commanders in the field. New developments arose at a moment's notice. As a result, the young nation's political structure and culture often struggled to keep up. When war began, Congress was not even in session. By the time it met, the government had mobilized over 100,000 soldiers, battles had been fought, casualties had been taken, some civilians had violently opposed the war effort, and emancipation was under way. This set the stage for Congress to play catch-up for much of the conflict. The result was an ongoing race to pass new laws and set policies. Throughout it all, Congress had to answer to a fractured and demanding public. In addition, Congress, no longer paralyzed by large numbers of Southern slave owners, moved forward on progressive economic and social issues--such as the transcontinental railroad and the land grant college act--which could not previously have been passed. In Congress and the People's Contest, Paul Finkelman and Donald R. Kennon have assembled some of the nation's finest scholars of American history and law to evaluate the interactions between Congress and the American people as they navigated a cataclysmic and unprecedented war. Displaying a variety and range of focus that will make the book a classroom must, these essays show how these interactions took place--sometimes successfully, and sometimes less so. Contributors: L. Diane Barnes, Fergus M. Bordewich, Jenny Bourne, Jonathan Earle, Lesley J. Gordon, Mischa Honeck, Chandra Manning, Nikki M. Taylor, and Eric Walther.