American Suffrage: From Property to Democracy, 1760-1860 (Princeton Legacy Library, 5535)

Since Americans have long taken price in universal suffrage and the secret ballot as foundations of democracy, it is surprising that one of its growth and reform. Mr. Williamson, focusing on the period from the Revolution to the Civil War, provides a state-by-state analysis of the growth of suffrage in its relation to partisan politics, the intellectual currents of the time, and such crises as war and rumors of war. Originally published in 1960. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905. Frontmatter Preface (page vii) 1. The Age of Property Tests (page 3) 2. The Colonial Electorate (page 20) 3. The Colonial Voter at the Polls (page 40) 4. The Genesis of Democratic Suffrage Thought (page 62) 5. A Family Quarrel (page 76) 6. American Whigs and the Suffrage (page 92) 7. The Revolutionary Aftermath (page 117) 8. Suffrage Reform in the Jeffersonian South (page 138) 9. Northern Suffrage in the Jeffersonian Age (page 158) 10. Hard Feelings about the Suffrage (page 182) 11. Suffrage in the New West (page 208) 12. Suffrage and Pro-Slavery (page 223) 13. The Rhode Island Explosion (page 242) 14. Unfinished Business (page 260) 15. Minority Report (page 281) Index (page 301)