U.S. History For Dummies

Title Page
Copyright Page
Table of Contents
Introduction
	About This Book
	Conventions Used in This Book
	What Not to Read
	Foolish Assumptions
	Beyond the Book
	Icons Used in This Book
	Where to Go from Here
Part 1 Getting Started with U.S. History
	Chapter 1 America: A Short Biography
		They Came, They Saw, They Stayed
			Catching up to the Spanish
			It’s revolutionary!
		Putting America on the Map
			Nationalizing a nation
			Fighting with a neighbor
			Fighting among ourselves
			Making up is hard to do
		Struggling with Greatness
			Finding a place in the world
			Roaring through the ’20s
			What’s so great about a depression?
			The big one
		A Cold War and a Brave New World
			From a Kennedy to a Ford
			Good intentions, mixed results
			Finishing out the century
		America in the 21st Century
			Bursting economic bubbles
			Politics and healthcare are no tea party
			Stormy times and a new kind of president
			Changing technology, changing America
	Chapter 2 Native Americans and Explorers: 14,000 BC (?)–1607
		Coming to America
		Exploring Early Civilizations
			The Anasazi
			The Mound Builders
		Many Tribes, Not Many People
			In the Northwest
			In the Southwest
			On the Great Plains
			In the Northeast
			In the Southeast
		De-stereotyping the Native Americans
		Visiting by the Vikings
		Spicing Up Life — and Other Reasons for Exploring
		Dropping Names of Others Who Dropped By
		The Sword, the Cross, and the Measles
			Native American slavery
			The men in the brown robes
			Destruction through disease
		Arriving Late for the Party
			France
			England
	Chapter 3 Pilgrims’ Progress: The English Colonies, 1607–1700
		Seeing Potential in the New World
		Settling in Jamestown
			Early troubles
			Making Native American friends
			Finding a cash crop
		Instituting Slavery
		Colonizing: Pilgrims and Puritans
			The Mayflower Compact: A Dutch pilgrimage
			The Massachusetts Bay colony: A pure haven
		Bringing Religious Freedom: Dissidents, Catholics, and Quakers
			Sneaking off to Rhode Island
			Collecting Catholics in Maryland
			Promoting tolerance in Pennsylvania
		Dealings of the Dutch
		Coping with Native American Troubles
	Chapter 4 You Say You Want a Revolution: 1700–1775
		Looking at America in 1700
		Colonizing New France
		Fighting the First True World Wars
			King William’s War
			Queen Anne’s War
			King George’s War
		Awakening to Greater Religious Freedom
		The French and Indian War
			Unifying the colonies
			Defeating British General Braddock
			Outfighting the French
		Growing like a Weed
			Accounting for the population explosion
			Living the good life
		Heading Toward Divorce with Britain
			The Proclamation of 1763
			The Revenue Acts (1764)
			The Stamp Act (1765)
			The Townshend Act (1767)
			The Boston Massacre (1770)
			The Boston Tea Party (1773)
			The “Intolerable” Acts (1774)
		Congressing for the First Time
		Mr. Revere, Your Horse Is Ready
	Chapter 5 Yankee Doodlin’: 1775–1783
		In This Corner, the Brits . . .
		In This Corner, the Yanks . . .
		Mr. Washington Goes to War
			Finding faults in George
			Commanding a country
		Declaring Independence
			Stirring up colonists’ emotions
			Writing history
		Cozying Up to the French
		Undergoing Life Changes: The Loyalists and the Slaves
			Remaining loyal to the crown
			Confronting slavery issues
		Winning a War
			Felling a British fort
			Battling over Bunker, uh, Breed’s Hill
			Losing the campaign in Canada
			Nixing plans to take New York
			Winning at Trenton and Princeton
			Making the Brits surrender at Saratoga
			Sparring at sea
			Losing big in Charleston
			Minimizing a loss at Guilford Courthouse
			Turning things around at Yorktown
	Chapter 6 Blueprints and Birth Pains: 1783–1800
		Making the Rules
			Going back to Philly
			Selling the Constitution to the states
		Dishing Up Politics, American Style
			Washington the politician
			Family feuding: Jefferson versus Hamilton
		Raising the Dough
		Earning Respect
			Shaking things up: Shays’s Rebellion
			Taxing liquid corn: The Whiskey Rebellion
			Going “mad” over the Native Americans
			Attempting to censor the press
		Finding Foreign Friction
Part 2 Growing Pains
	Chapter 7 “Long Tom” and One Weird War: 1800–1815
		Jefferson Gets a Job
		Disorder in the Court
		Growing by Leaps and Bounds
			Capitalizing on Napoleon’s going-out-of-business sale
			Lewis, Clark, and the woman on the coin
		Fighting Pirates, and a “Dambargo”
			“To the shores of Tripoli . . . ”
			No one likes a bloodless war
		“Little Jemmy” Takes the Helm
			New kids on the block
			Fighting the Native Americans — again
		Why Not Invade Canada This Year?
		Three Strikes and the Brits Are Out
		Calling It Even
			Working on a settlement
			Squawking about things in New England
	Chapter 8 Pulling Together to Keep from Falling Apart: 1815–1844
		Embracing Nationalism . . . Sort Of
			Taking it to the bank
			A tariff-ic idea
			This land is my land, but for how much?
			Orders from the court
			Increasing industry
		The Slavery Cancer Grows
			Cotton and sugar mean more slaves
			Opposing slavery
			Compromising over Missouri
			Mind your own hemisphere: The Monroe Doctrine
		Mud-Wrestling to the White House
			Adams wins, but Jackson isn’t done
			Old Hickory: The Jackson presidency
		Nullify This
			The nullification debate hits the Senate
			A tarrible idea
			Bringing down the Bank
		Inventing a Better Life
			Riding the train
			Reaping what you sow
			Communicating across America
		Staking Out New Land
			Pushing out the Native Americans
			Claiming independence for Texas
			Changing it up at president
	Chapter 9 War, Gold, and a Gathering Storm: 1845–1860
		Wrenching Land from Mexico
			Provoking a war
			Capturing California and the Southwest
		Rushing for Gold
			Risking life and limb to strike gold
			Compromising on the slavery issue
		Coming Over and Spreading Out
			The Germans, the Irish, and the Know-Nothings who opposed them
			Making waves: The Mormons
			Wagons ho!
			Becoming aware of women’s rights (or the lack thereof)
		The Beginning of the End
			Factoring a slave’s life
			Battling in Kansas
			Making a “dredful” decision
		Squaring Off for a Showdown: The Lincoln–Douglas Debate
			Spark number 1: John Brown
			Spark number 2: Lincoln’s election
	Chapter 10 A Most Uncivil War: 1861–1865
		Introducing Abraham Lincoln
			Presenting the 16th president
			Understanding Lincoln’s views on slavery and the Union
			Bending the Constitution to preserve the Union — and win reelection
		North versus South: Comparing Advantages and Action Plans
		Freeing the Slaves
			Proclaiming emancipation
			Surveying the consequences of emancipation
		Reviewing the Troops, the Generals, and the Major Battles
			The men at the top
			The war at sea
			The war on land
		Two More Reasons Why the North Won
		Losing a Leader
	Chapter 11 Putting the Country Back Together: 1865–1876
		A Southern-Fried Mess: Life in the South after the Civil War
			Starting a new life
			Becoming sharecroppers
		Piecing the Union Back Together
			Demanding loyalty, legislating equality
			Using violence to keep blacks down
		The Tailor-Made President: Andrew Johnson
		Growing Corruption in Politics
			Riding the railroads to economic ruin
			Fixing a presidency (and not in a good way)
Part 3 Coming of Age
	Chapter 12 Growing Up: 1876–1898
		Heading West in a Quest for Wealth
			Making money from minerals
			Making money from animals
			Making money from vegetables
		Ousting “Undesirables”
			Putting up a fight
			Legalizing discrimination
		Cramming into Cities
		Inventing Big Business
			Building the railroads
			Manufacturing steel more efficiently
			Refining (and controlling) oil
			Getting wired for sound and light
			Forming trusts and striking against them
		Electing a String of Forgettable Presidents
		The Rise of Populism
		“A Splendid Little War”
	Chapter 13 Growing into the 20th Century: 1899–1918
		Here Today, Guam Tomorrow: Colonizing Spain’s Lands
			Arguing about American imperialism
			Keeping a high profile in international affairs
		Making a Lot of Noise and Carrying a Big Stick: Roosevelt Takes Office
		Progressing toward Political and Social Reform
			The “muckrakers” expose evil and initiate change
			Improving working conditions — and other people’s drinking habits
		Contracting Labor Pains
			Struggling in a changing workforce
			Initiating improvements to working conditions
		Transporting America
		Suffering for Suffrage
		Leaving the South: African Americans Migrate to Northern Cities
		The War to End All Chapters
	Chapter 14 Gin, Jazz, and Lucky Lindy: 1919–1929
		Wilson Goes Out of His League for Peace
		Restricting Immigration and Challenging the Natives
			Closing the gate
			Return of the Klan
		Darwin versus God
		Warren, Cal, and Herbert: Republicans in the White House
		Good Times (or Were They?)
			Helping the rich
			Increasing American spending habits
			Making it difficult on the poor
		Ain’t We Got Fun?
			Going to the movies
			Listening to the radio
			Listening to music and writing literature
			Playing games
		Drying Out America: Prohibition Begins
		Changing Morals
		An Age of Heroes
	Chapter 15 Uncle Sam’s Depressed: 1930–1940
		The Great Depression: Causes and Consequences
		FDR: Making Alphabet Soup
			Electing a reformer
			Creating hope through a New Deal
			Packing the Supreme Court
			Assessing the New Deal
		Shoving Aside Racial Minorities
		Keeping Women at Home — or Work
		Developing Organized Labor
		Critics, Crooks, and Crime Fighters
			Huey Long
			Francis E. Townsend
			Charles E. Coughlin
			Bad guys and G-men
	Chapter 16 The World at War: 1941–1945
		Trying to Avoid War — Again
			Playing the role of a good neighbor
			Sensing the unavoidable
		Gearing Up for War
			Getting industry and the economy in shape for World War II
			Working with labor unions during war times
			Employing women for the war effort
			Making strides — African Americans achieve greater equality
			Returning for work after being kicked out — Latinos
			Treating the Japanese Americans poorly
		Dealing with the War in Europe
			Meeting at Yalta
			Winning one step at a time
			Making the final push
			Discovering the war’s greatest crime
			Ending the war in Europe, and the end of FDR
		Dealing with the War in the Pacific
			Fighting back
			Turning the tide
		Dropping the Bomb
Part 4 America in Adulthood
	Chapter 17 TV, Elvis, and Reds under the Bed: 1946–1960
		A Cold War and a Hot “Police Action”
			Joining the United Nations
			The world as a chessboard
			The Berlin airlift
			The “miracle of ’48”
			The Korean War
			Uncle Sam’s big stick
		Finding Commies under the Bed
			Casting suspicion on Hiss
			Leaking scientific secrets: The Rosenbergs
			Checking the loyalty of federal workers
			Telling tall tales: “Tail-Gunner Joe”
		Having It All
			A booming economy
			Moving to the burbs
			Tuning in to the tube
			Rockin’ ‘n’ rollin’
			An American king
		Moving, Slowly, to the Front of the Bus
			Brown against the board
			Boycotting the bus
	Chapter 18 Camelot to Watergate: 1961–1974
		Electing an Icon
			The Bay of Pigs
			Facing the possibility of nuclear war
			A dark day in Dallas
		Sending Troops to Vietnam
			Sinking deeper into a confusing war
			Taking a look at the Tet Offensive
		Increasing Pressure in ’Nam and Escalating Fears at Home
		Continuing the Fight for Civil Rights
			Enforcing their rights: African Americans
			Challenging the system: Latin Americans
			Maintaining their culture: Native Americans
		Entering a Generation in Revolt
			Draft dodging, drugs, and demonstrations
			The rise of feminism
			Coming out of the closet
		Weirdness in the White House
			Making strides: The Nixon administration
			Watching it all fall apart: Watergate
	Chapter 19 Hold the Malaise, or, Ayatollah So: 1975–1992
		Wearing Nixon’s Shoes
			Doing the best he could
			Whipping inflation
		Good Intentions, Bad Results
			Measuring misery
			Befriending the enemy
		There’s a First Time for Everything
			Buying into the “Reagan Revolution”
			Paying for “Reaganomics”
			Dealing with foreign affairs
		Warming Up after the Cold War
			Engaging in the Gulf War
			Back on the home front
	Chapter 20 No Sex, Please, I’m the President: 1993–1999
		Bill, Newt, and Monica
			Treading lightly abroad
			Pushing harder on the home front
			Pushing the “Contract with America”
			Judging a president
		Homegrown Terrorism
			Rallying around Ruby Ridge
			Taking down a cult: Waco
			Bombings rock the nation
			Don’t open that mail: The Unabomber
		Making Ourselves Sick
			Suffering from AIDS
			Dealing with drugs
		A World of Change
			You’ve got mail!
			Trading under a global economy
Part 5 Facing the New Millennium
	Chapter 21 Terror Comes Home; America Goes to War(s)
		Whew! A Squeaker: Bush and Gore, 2000
			Hanging chads and butterfly ballots
			Post-election scrutinizing
		A Nation Stunned
			Al-Qaeda and Osama bin Laden
			Taking on the Taliban
			Fighting terrorism on the home front
		That Damn Saddam
			Toughening the stance against Iraq
			The U.S. invasion
		Meanwhile, in the Rest of the World . . .
		Winds and Losses
			Big blow in the Big Easy
			Ike hits Texas
	Chapter 22 Recessions Can Be Really Depressing
		Ouch! The Economy Stubs Its Toe
			Dot-com dreams and investor nightmares
			The houses that went upside down
		Brother, Can You Spare a Job?
			Looking for work. And looking . . .
			Where the work went
		“We’re from the Government; We’re Here to Help . . . ”
			Brand new president, same old problems
			Buying time by buying bonds
			Did government intervention work?
		Unspreading the Wealth
			The rich get richer
			The blame game
	Chapter 23 Reforming Healthcare Is No Tea Party
		The Great Presidential Race of 2008
			Obama versus McCain
			Obama’s historic victory
			Calling the president a liar
		Going to a Tea Party
			Taking over the House
			Cutting taxes by compromising
		Lurching Toward Healthcare
			Courting the Supreme Court
			A stumbling start
			Clinging to its legislative life
		Reelecting Obama in 2012
			The challenger
			The race
			The results
		Meanwhile, Back at the Budget . . .
			Hitting the debt ceiling
			Driving off the fiscal cliff
			Shutting down the government
	Chapter 24 America Disagrees with Itself
		Trumped
			Getting to know a new kind of president
			Cutting taxes and picking judges
			Changing who’s in charge of the House
		With Friends Like These . . .
			Putting America first
			Trading insults on trade
			Sorting out friend from foe
		Guns, Drugs, and #MeToo
			Shooting each other at alarming rates
			Black lives matter — and so do cops’
			Dying from drugs
			Confronting sexual harassment
		Weathering the Weather
	Chapter 25 This New America
		The Techno Revolution
			Getting the news — real and fake — from new news sources
			Calling all cells
			Socializing and shopping on the web
			Entertaining ourselves, by ourselves
			Using technology to spy, lie, and meddle
		Surfing the “Silver Tsunami”
			Dealing with tough times
			Straining Social Security and Medicare
		Stirring the Melting Pot
			Trying to fix the system
			The country’s changing face
		Redefining the American Family
			Changing with the times
			Legalizing gay marriage
Part 6 The Part of Tens
	Chapter 26 Ten Innovations That Made It Easier to Be Lazy
		The Escalator (1896)
		Sliced Bread (1928)
		Pizza Delivery (~1945)
		Drive-Through Restaurants (1948)
		TV Remote Controls (1950)
		Pop-Top Cans (1963)
		Microwave Ovens (1967)
		Microwave Popcorn (1983)
		Global Positioning System (1989)
		Amazon (1995)
	Chapter 27 Ten U.S. Presidents Who Were, Well, Average
		Bill Clinton
		William McKinley
		Grover Cleveland
		John Quincy Adams
		George H. W. Bush
		William Howard Taft
		Martin Van Buren
		Rutherford B. Hayes
		Gerald Ford
		Jimmy Carter
Part 7 The Appendixes
	Appendix A The Bill of Rights: Amendments 1–10 of the Constitution
	Appendix B The Declaration of Independence
Index
EULA