Words That Make New Jersey History: A Primary Source Reader

Words That Make New Jersey History is a fascinating book-length collection of documents spanning the history of New Jersey, from the arrival of Dutch traders in the 1600s to the present. This reader includes material that touches on subjects such as factories and farms, cities and suburbs, slavery and abolitionism, the temperance and woman suffrage campaigns, race and ethnic relations, the labor movement, and mobilization for war. The documents include letters, journals, pamphlets, petitions, artwork, and songs created not only by those in official power, but also by men and women of more humble station--immigrants, workers, slaves, foreign travelers, houseworkers, and civil servants. Their lively accounts range from descriptions of the Lenape in the seventeenth century to Bruce Springsteen's lament about a declining factory town.This reader helps us understand New Jersey history by presenting it in the context of a changing nation. It is well suited to general readers who want to explore the primary sources of New Jersey's past, and to U.S. history students--high school and college--as a supplement to survey texts.