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A New Nation: The United States: 1783-1815 (American Story)

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On September 2, 1783, the American Revolution ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris. The war was over, but for some the work of creating a nation was just beginning. There would be no king, no queen and no royalty to be found anywhere. The United States would be a democracy that "put people first." The Northwest Territory needed to be dealt with and was quickly divided into five states. Currency, one of the most pressing problems, had to be created and backed up with gold and silver. Without a valid currency, there would be serious consequences. The "first order of business was to set the country on the road to financial strength." There was indeed a lot to do in our fledgling country.

Many people were "worried that the rights and freedoms they had fought so hard to gain would be lost" if the government proved to be too powerful." Delegates gathered in Pennsylvania to hammer out the details. This process took several months of hard work and compromise. Our central government came from the Virginia Plan and would create a "stronger central government" in order to "unite the states so that they could speak and act as one country." We would have three branches, the executive, legislative and judicial. The Constitution was carefully drafted. The delegates worked hard and at least nine states had to approve the Constitution before it became law. In this book, you will get a marvelous look at the beginnings of a new nation, beginnings that were often rocky and difficult.

This history is set up in a storybook format and carries the reader from the Treaty of Paris into the next thirty-two years. The "story" is tight and very well done. The watercolors are numerous and illustrate salient points in this mini history. There are several small maps included. There is a lot of history packed into this book, but the overview is excellent and would provide a nice stepping stone into a school report on a topic that struck the readers fancy. In the back of the book is a chronology, additional "important events," an index and portraits of several early prominent Americans and their quotations. This is one of several in "The American Story Series," a series you might just want to consider adding to your classroom or library shelves!