Mapping America's Past: A Historical Atlas (Henry Holt Reference Book) [Hardcover]

Mark C. Carnes (Author), John A. Garraty (Author), Patrick Williams (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 15, 1996 | Series: Henry Holt Reference Book

A historical atlas about people and ideas. Its themes range from exploration, colonization, wars, and political movements to issues such as family and gender relations, ethnicity, class, education, religion, demography, and disease. Each of the 120 full-color double-page spreads considers a historical debate or theme in detail, supported by graphs and illustrations and bound together by an authoritative text.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Mapping America's Past: A Historical Atlas, by Mark C. Carnes and John A. Garraty, covers all things American: atmospheric changes over 18,000 years, the arrival, heyday, and destruction of Native American communities, and the politics of expansion, segregation, and isolationism. Many moments of American history--from slavery to Jewish immigration, cholera to race riots, the birth of the working class to moon rockets--are attentively detailed. Especially impressive is the balance between formative events (such as the Civil War), lesser-known movements (American socialism between 1901 and 1920), and neighborhood vignettes (such as the making of black Harlem). --Stephanie Gold

From Booklist

This is an invaluable resource tool for specialists and an enjoyable, information packed work for general readers with an interest in American history. The maps illuminate often obscure aspects of our history that are rarely covered in general atlases. One can track everything from fertility rates on the western frontier to the ravages of Spanish influenza in 1918. The maps are generally in vibrant colors and are supplemented by lucid and sharply analytical text. In sum, this atlas provides a comprehensive look at the social, economic, and political forces that have shaped the American past and present. Jay Freeman

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.; 1st edition (January 15, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805049274
• ISBN-13: 978-0805049275
• Product Dimensions: 11.8 x 9.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,032,873 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sensational cartographic rendering of American history, March 12, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Mapping America's Past: A Historical Atlas (Henry Holt Reference Book) (Hardcover)

A highly satisfying review of historical topics.I'm often able to read only in 20-minute bites; every spread of this book is a self-contained history lesson, accessible in 20 minutes but worth revisiting many times. Most important topics and events of American history are covered well, and the rendering of complex information (e.g. the six gauges of railroad in 1850 and how this incompatablity affected commerce, population and political power) is truly inspired. This is a superb gift for an American history buff.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mapping America's Past, May 30, 2001

By 

J. Lindner (Gem Lake, MN United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mapping America's Past: A Historical Atlas (Henry Holt Reference Book) (Hardcover)

Mapping America's Past is an attempt at using maps to portray American social, economic, military, and political development. The maps that are included are excellent, but what was included is somewhat puzzling. The general analysis of wars, expansion, and elections are useful, but maps of political party development in the Cleveland area or prostitution in New York City are not entirely relevant to the general American history student. Similarly, many of the accompanying texts offer little detailed insight into the topics the maps cover.

This book should be considered a general resource, but for an in-depth historical atlas, the reader must look elsewhere.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A different view of American History, September 9, 2003

By 

Steven Schnell (Kutztown, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mapping America's Past: A Historical Atlas (Henry Holt Reference Book) (Hardcover)

Finally, a historical atlas with the imagination to look beyond the requisite but unilluminating maps of wars, battles, and westward expansion to the rich territory of social history. Urban sprawl and white flight, ethnic politics, prostitution, the death penalty, segregation, civil rights, and many others all put in an appearance here. Some of the maps, while seemingly provincial in their coverage (WPA projects in Erie, PA, for example) are effectively used to illustrate broader points about the geography of American history. My only complaint is that in quite a few places, some sloppy editing (mistaken keys, mismarked captions, etc.) has marred the otherwise excellent cartography.