American Presidents History

Even compared to his fellow founders, George Washington stands tall. Our first president has long been considered a stoic hero, holding himself above the rough-and-tumble politics of his day. Now John Ferling peers behind that image, carefully burnished by Washington himself, to show us a leader who was not only not above politics but a canny infighter---a master of persuasion, manipulation, and deniability.

When the roar of the Revolution had finally died down, a new generation of American politicians was summoned to the Potomac to assemble the nation's newly minted capital. Into that unsteady atmosphere, which would soon enough erupt into another conflict with Britain in 1812, Dolley Madison arrived, alongside her husband, James. Within a few years, she had mastered both the social and political intricacies of the city, and by her death in 1849 was the most celebrated person in Washington.

Author John F. Wasik tracks Lincoln from his time in the 1830s as a young Illinois state legislator pushing for internal improvements; through his work as a lawyer representing the Illinois Central Railroad in the 1840s; to his presidential fight for the Transcontinental Railroad; and his support of land-grant colleges that educated a nation. These brick-and-mortar developments were essential to how the nation could lift citizens above poverty and its isolating origins.

While it’s widely known in the US that the first president did not have any biological children, few are aware that he had several stepgrandchildren. In First Family, we see Washington as a father figure, as well as meet the children he helped raise and trace their complicated roles in American history. First Family brings new focus and attention to this surprisingly neglected aspect of George Washington’s life and legacy.

In this startling and original work, best-selling author Charles Higham (Howard Hughes: The Secret Life) addresses one of the greatest historical mysteries: Did John Wilkes Booth act alone on the night of Good Friday, 1865, or was he part of a wide conspiracy? Drawing from letters, diaries, previously unstudied records of official hearings, railway timetables, and obscure shipping manifests, Higham weaves a spellbinding account of intrigue.

From 1861 till his assassination in 1865, Abraham Lincoln was an American legal representative and statesman who functioned as the 16th president of the United States. Lincoln led the nation through the American Civil War, preserving the Union, eliminating slavery, enhancing the federal government, and helping the economy of the United States. Lincoln grew up on the frontier, mainly in Indiana, and was born into poverty in a log cabin.

Abraham Lincoln, our greatest president, believed that our national character was defined by three key moments: the writing of the Constitution, our declaration of independence from England, and the beginning of slavery on the North American continent.

Essays of bullying, heartbreak, racism, and confidence, Ashley taps into her own past and shares those stories that made her who she is today as she seamlessly weaves in parallel experiences that both she and Mrs. Obama have faced in their separate childhoods as well as their adult lives. Open, searing, and honest, these are stories listeners will feel seen with. listeners who are growing and learning as they move forward through life's triumphs and pitfalls will undoubtedly gravitate to and find comfort within its audio.

Rebirthing Lincoln, a Biography by Southern Historian Howard Ray White is the most impressive and truthfully educational book of the 13 books he has authored to date. White's biography of President Abraham Lincoln properly tells the essential biographical history concerning "how an Illinois lawyer kept secret his illegitimate birth and won the 1860 presidential nomination of the northern states' Republican party".

Discover the young life that shaped a great man. Few famous humans came into the world under such humble circumstances as Abraham Lincoln on February 12, 1809. But it may very well be that the humble and unassuming life he lived actually served to shape him into the solid, moral, honest, decent, hard-working adult that he became. What were those circumstances, the formula so to speak, that molded this future president? This biography looks at the childhood and young adulthood of Abraham Lincoln.

Of the 44 presidents who have led the United States, nine made mistakes that permanently scarred the nation. Which nine? Brion McClanahan, author of The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Founding Fathers and The Founding Fathers' Guide to the Constitution, will surprise listeners with his list, which he supports with exhaustive and entertaining evidence.

Charismatic, charming, and one of the best orators of his era, Henry Clay seemed to have it all. He offered a comprehensive plan of change for America, and he directed national affairs as Speaker of the House, as Secretary of State to John Quincy Adams - the man he put in office - and as acknowledged leader of the Whig party. As the broker of the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850, Henry Clay fought to keep a young nation united when westward expansion and slavery threatened to tear it apart. Yet, despite his talent and achievements, Henry Clay never became president.

Sound interesting? The author thinks so too! Listen to Jefferson Davis Timeline and for a short timeline of Jefferson Davis.

Abraham Lincoln was strangely happy for the first time in years. The war was almost over. He could put the crisis behind him; when this term was over, he could return home to Springfield. Maybe he would go back to his legal practice with William Herndon, or perhaps he would buy a farm along the Sangamon River and become a gentleman farmer. Everyone noticed the change. For John Wilkes Booth, it was exactly the opposite. His world was crumbling all around him.

From the New York Times best-selling author of The Last Castle and The Girls of Atomic City comes the fascinating story of America’s national day of thanks and of the tenacious and inspiring Sarah Josepha Hale, a 19th-century woman who made establishing this holiday her life’s mission - one brought to fruition by the wise support of Abraham Lincoln.

In full and intricate detail, featuring an amazing cast of characters from the worlds of politics, athletics, entertainment and more, this is the story of how President Theodore Roosevelt helped shepherd in a sports and fitness revolution that forever changed the complexion of the United States.

The “gripping” (The Washington Post) story of the most famous regiment in American history: the Rough Riders, a motley group of soldiers led by Theodore Roosevelt, whose daring exploits marked the beginning of American imperialism in the 20th century. Both a portrait of these men, few of whom were traditional soldiers, and of the Spanish-American War itself, The Crowded Hour dives deep into the daily lives and struggles of Roosevelt and his regiment. Using diaries, letters, and memoirs, Risen illuminates an influential moment in American history.

Most Americans know Andrew Jackson as a frontier rebel against political and diplomatic norms, a "populist" champion of ordinary people against the elitist legacy of the Founding Fathers. Many date the onset of American democracy to his 1829 inauguration. Despite his reverence for the "sovereign people", however, Jackson spent much of his career limiting that sovereignty, imposing new and often unpopular legal regimes over American lands and markets.

Why has John Quincy Adams been largely written out of American history when he is, in fact, our lost Founding Father? Overshadowed by both his brilliant father and the brash and bold Andrew Jackson, John Quincy Adams has long been dismissed as hyper-intellectual. Viciously assailed by Jackson and his populist mobs for being both slippery and effete, Adams nevertheless recovered from the malodorous 1828 presidential election to lead the nation as a lonely Massachusetts congressman in the fight against slavery.

Each quotation is explained to deliver the exact meaning of his sayings and his ideas. American values remain untouchable, even as life changes at a record pace. Lincoln was one of the great men who inspired those very values - the one who brought true freedom to our nation and to every inhabitant. So in these trying times, who better to help you stay the course than the founding father himself, whose words remain the bedrock of our nation even more than a century after his death.