Frontier in American History (Barnes & Noble Digital Library)

This edition includes a modern introduction and a list of suggested further reading.Frederick Jackson Turners The Frontier in American History dominated the historical profession for almost half a century after it was delivered in 1893. The frontier thesis offered a compelling interpretation of how the frontier played the decisive role in shaping a distinctly American identity. Traditionally, most historians argued that Americas important institutions derived from English and European sources, and when they did look for the origins of an American character, they focused on eastern groups, such as the Puritans of New England. Completely rejecting the reigning orthodoxy, Turner argued that the crucial element transforming Europeans into Americans was the process of settling the continent. Today his essay remains a profound influence on how Americans imagine themselves as individuals and as a nation.