Private Acts in Public Places : A Social History of Divorce in the Formative Era of American Family Law

Richard H. Chused examines more than 1300 petitions for divorce in Maryland filed during the first half of the nineteenth century. By weaving together information on the legislative handling of these petitions, the voting patterns of the state legislators, and the judicial treatment of related disputes, Chused shows the connections between politics, regional differences, and the development of American family law. His analysis also provides valuable insights into the social history of the time, a period when traditional Southern family values were at odds with the more modern values brought about by urbanization. Contents 1. Introduction 2. Miscreant Women and Male Divorce: Family Discord Before 1805 Introduction Regional Differences and the Impact of Chancery Courts The Impact of Race on Early Legislative Divorce The "Marriage" of Electoral and Divorce Reform Pre-1805 Legislative Divorces 3. Political Reform and Family Law at the Turn of the Nineteenth Century Introduction Legislative Divorce Reform: Cruelty and Male Adultery Grounds for Private Acts Rumbles of Discontent: Legislative Controversy and Social Discord Emergence of Children as a Family Law Consideration 4. Religious and Political Maneuvering: The Disappearance of A Vinculo Divorce, 1816–1825 The Rise of Partial Divorce Partial Divorce and the Economic Interests of Marriage Child Custody 5. The State of Divorce Law in 1825: The Import of Sarah and Charles Warfield's Saga 6. The Revival of A Vinculo Divorce and a Child Custody Twist, 1826–1836 Introduction The Politics of Divorce The Contours of Divorce The Contours of Marital Property Rules Children and Divorce 7. The Arrival of Judicial Divorce, 1837–1841 The Politics of General Divorce Legislation History of Early General Divorce Bills Links Between Divorce Reform and Married Women's Property Acts Conclusion: "Liberalism" and Legislative Reform 8. The Demise of Legislative Divorce Introduction The Hiatus in Adoption of Private Bills Concurrent Jurisdiction: Family Law Complexities After Renewal of the Private Bill Process Alimony After Married Women's Property Reforms 9. Epilogue: The Long-Term Impact of the Legislative Divorce Process Appendices 1. Tables 2. Process Proposals, General Bill Proposals, and Statutes 3. The Warfield v. Warfield and Thomas v. Thomas Pamphlets Bibliography Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U V W Y Z