A New History of the American West , "It's Your Misfortune and None of My Own " [Hardcover]

Richard White (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1991

A centerpiece of the New History of the American West, this book embodies the theme that, as succeeding groups have occupied the American West and shaped the land, they have done so without regard for present inhabitants. Like the cowboys herding the doggies, they have cared little about the cost their activities imposed on others; what has mattered is the immediate benefit they derived from their transformation of the land.

 

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

"It's your misfortune and none of my own," the line from a song, sets the tone for this sweeping account of the West from the early European incursions to the present. White, a leader in the "new history of the West" movement, builds upon Patricia N. Limerick's The Legacy of Conquest ( LJ 9/1/87) to provide a far-reaching explanation of the creation of a region rather than just the vanishing of the frontier. Drawing upon ethnic, environmental, urban, labor, and women's history as well as traditional sources, White gives fresh perspective to the West. His book is well written and contains useful graphics, though a major disappointment is the lack of footnotes. Nonetheless, this is a significant contribution to the understanding not only of how the West was won but also of how much of it was lost. This will appeal to history buffs and scholars and is highly recommended for academic and larger public libraries.
-Daniel Liestman, Seattle Pacific Univ.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"An excellent new synthesis of Western history...[White] is a lively, graceful writer...and he tells a story very different from the traditional picture of the progress of Anglo-American civilization, but no less compelling." —New York Times Book Review

"[White] has produced an exhaustively researched and near encyclopedic excursion into our Western past, and he pulls together an enormous amount of information about the social and political forces that shaped—and continue to shape—the most compelling region of our nation."—Los Angeles Times

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 644 pages
• Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press; 1st edition (November 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806123664
• ISBN-13: 978-0806123660
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #348,306 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Whoopee Ti Yi Yo, Git Along, Little Dogies, September 29, 2003

By 

Michael G. Woods (Mission Viejo, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: "It's Your Misfortune and None of My Own": A New History of the American West (Paperback)

Richard White work reexamines the American Western History much in the same format as Patty Limerick has. Rather than seeing the United States movement across the continent as a political/military or even industrial happening it strives to write a history of the "place" known as the American West. In doing so, the author's comprehensive history chronicles in 634 pages European arrival in the American West to the modern era 1980s.

The author's work reminds me of that geography theme- human and environmental interaction. He points to how the Spain's introduction of the horse altered life for the plains Indians. (21) Later in chapter five he addresses how various geological surveys and the changed what was know of the west. (135) He illustrates the challenges that the settles experienced in the face of 164-degree changes over the course of one year in the severe Montana climate. (229) No history on the American west would be complete with some time devoted to the railroad as White does on page 247 in the chapter entitled "the West and the World Economy." Yet Whites perspective is that of economics rather than merely industrial expansion and conquest. In doing so the railroads were not the subject history revolved around yet one part of the economic transformation occurring in the American West. Interesting and perhaps obvious to a historian of the West appears on page 142 when the author states that the catalyst for most of the legal changes to the land system stems from the 1862 Homestead, Pacific Railroad Grant, and Morrill Acts passed by Congress during the Civil War. Perhaps the author could have better stated that it was the war and the resulting absence of Southern representation that enabled this long debated westward movement legislation to clear the gridlock of antebellum politics.

White in the spirit of Limerick and other "New Western Historians" does an excellent job of illustration a multicultural, multiethnic, multi-political, and gender rich history of the land west of Missouri. At numerous occasions, he interjects the diversity of the American West throughout its history. Examples of this are the section on Red Cloud and his white-Indian culture, (105) the portrayal of Mexican-American migration during the war years, (504) the birth of Kearney's Workingmen's Party centered around nativist attitudes of the late nineteenth century, (334) and most memorable melting pot that was the California Gold Rush. (189) It was interesting to see how White's work influenced a later work - Susan Lee Johnson's Roaring Camp: The Social World of the California Gold Rush (2000) which focused entirely on such issues over one period of Western History and did it so well it garnished a Bancroft Prize.

"The Imagined West" is White's final chapter and in it, the author demystifies and explains how the History of West has taken on a sort of folklore quality. Naturally, the fictional efforts of Buffalo Bill (614) and Owen Wister (621) are attributed for part of the myths about the West. However in addition, are real actors in this history that appear bigger than life such as George Armstrong Custer (625) and Kit Carson (616). One criticism of the author is that he, like most "New Western Historians," ignores the impact of Turner's Thesis unless it is to debunk it, which by the way is easily done. Yet an argument can be made that Turner was correct in that the West was a "place" unique to the American Experience unlike anything in Europe and special in its own right. One would think if an author was writing about the West, as a "place" credit would be given to the historian famous for this identification. Although White never mentions Turner this is done mildly with the citation by Henry Thoreau on page 620.

In terms of style, the book is an easy and quick read despite its behemoth size. Most frustrating is the author's lack of notes. In five years of graduate school, the reader has yet to come across a book the void of any footnote or endnotes. Furthermore, the publisher - Oklahoma Press is probably the primer research university on this subject and noted for quality historical documentation. The reader was subjected to never-ending frustration due to this omission. Where is White get information for example, "As one historian of expansion has noted, the United States had acquired 100-horsepower empire, but only a 10-horsepower government to manage it. . ." ? (84) Another example centers around statistical information, "The death rate on the trail was about 3 percent, or about 10,000 people in all, compared to a death rate of 2.5 percent in America society as a whole." (199) Had a note be added it only would lend the author greater credibility. On the other hand, White's unorthodox historical approach pays off when he releases a zinger like, "The Texans accomplished all this amidst revolutionary maneuverings more appropriate to Groucho than Karl Marx." (68)

9 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE Authority on the WEST, February 7, 2007

By 

Ben Lee Parker "B.L. Parker" (Morris, MN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: "It's Your Misfortune and None of My Own": A New History of the American West (Paperback)

If you are a historian, this book should definitely be on your shelf. It is packed full of New Western History ideals. Despite its topical form, the book still allows for a firm grasp of the chronology. White has woven a single volume that integrates, with fludity and detail, the most critical social, economic, racial, gender, and political issues of the West. Fastidiously researched. A spectacular introduction to New Western History for the aspiring or seasoned historian.

46 of 73 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars It's all our misfortune ..., January 31, 2000

By 

Michael Rose "steamrolled frog" (Sparks, NV United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: "It's Your Misfortune and None of My Own": A New History of the American West (Paperback)

Recently, movements such as the Sagebrush Rebellion in Nevada have sprung up in the West pitting ranchers, mining companies, and developers against federal government agencies in charge of managing the land. It's been a long held myth that the government agencies, especially the Forest Service and BLM, have enacted rules to hasten the end of these economic interests in the Western US. This is one of the first books to accurately dispel many western myths such as the lone individual expressing a lifestyle of freedom, land and neighbors be damned! Read this book and learn before automatically siding with groups whose sole motivation is greed at any cost to our precious land, land that will take centuries to recouperate if left alone. These "interests" hide their motives behind "noble" state rights issues, insisting that American taxpayers turn over to state politicians (who receive the bulk of their campaign funds from these special interests) what's left of western wilderness so cattle can graze, ranchers can grow surplus crops such as alfalfa, foreign mining companies can rape the land and pay a pittance to the US Treasury, and developers can hasten the destruction of what's left of our western lands. We need more books like this one to combat the misinformation these special interests spread. Remember that in the end all american taxpayers pony up the money for these groups either through ridiculously low grazing and mining fees to subsidized water systems. This is big business, not mom and pop operations nor is it the Marboro man riding into the sunset. And after reading this book, read Cadillac Desert (Marc Reisner) to better understand how these special interest groups are threatening our beloved west.