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Life and Fire Insurance Co. was one of the largest bankruptcies during the financial panic on Wall Street in 1826. The firm engaged in lending practices based on an instrument known as a post note which were initially sound but proved ruinous later on. The directors later resorted to fraud to raise cash.

Fueled by easy credit, the real-estate market had been rising swiftly for some years. Members of Congress were determined to assure the continuation of that easy credit. Suddenly, the party [...]

The impact of communications networks and social institutions on the growth of the antislavery movement in the US from 1790-1840 is studied. The growth of magazines spurred the formation of antislavery groups. This-worldly religions supported the antislavery movement, while other-worldly religions undermined it.

A major statements in the 'discourse of intellectuals' since it began in 1907, noting the moments when ideas reflected the temper of their times and highlighting different conceptual standpoints that were taken in the aim of defining Nuevomexicanos heritage is described. The findings reveal that the growing recognition constructed from strategic heritage materials gives hope that among academics the discourse on Nuevomexicanos identity would no longer be mired on ethnic essentialism.

After only about a year of law practice, Abraham Lincoln participated in his first murder trial. Dr. Jacob M. Early was shot and killed in a bitter political imbroglio. Lincoln joined a defense team of highly accomplished litigators. Despite his having the least legal experience, he was selected to give the defense summation. In his argument, he spoke to the jury in a conversational tone making his point that Dr. Early had a deadly weapon in his hands, namely an upraised wooden chair, when he was shot. His self-defense plea indicated that Henry B. Truett, the defendant, truly believed that he was in danger of being crushed by the upraised chair. Interestingly, Lincoln knew both the defendant and the murdered physician. He handled litigation for the former and served in the Black Hawk War under the command of the latter. Furthermore Lincoln knew at least five of the jurors. KEY WORDS: Abraham Lincoln; Black Hawk War; murder; Stephen A. Douglas; Stephen T. Logan.

Recent research on federations, particularly in the developing world, emphasizes the importance of hard budget constraints and a strong central government to attenuate intergovernmental economic conflicts. Such research fails on two counts. First, it does not explain how hard budget constraints emerge or become self-enforcing. Second, it does not take into account the insight of the market-preserving federalism literature that central governments strong enough to impose restraint on regions are likely too powerful to be checked in a manner consistent with the long-term health of markets. Unfortunately, the market-preserving federalism literature itself provides little insight into how to move from a market-distorting to a market-preserving equilibrium. This article answers these theoretical shortcomings with reference to the evolution of political competition at the regional level and the representation of those regions at the national level. More specifically, whereas regional competition determines the subnational demand for soft budget constraints, the coalition of those regions at the national level determines the likelihood of their provision. Empirically, the research relies on a case study of the state debt crisis of the 1840s when the United States made a definitive movement toward market-preserving federalism. Keywords: market-preserving federalism; comparative federalism; hard budget constraints

Abolitionist and teacher, Susan Paul brought her student choir to her speaking engagements and they were very effective, singing songs not only about slavery, but also about racism. Paul and her young singers were African American.

The letters of US slave traders during the years just before the Panic of 1837 reveal that slaves were viewed as commodities and sexual fetishes. The letters show that the purpose of slavery for whites was not the paternalism advanced by many scholars.

Narratives describing the history of democracy in the US should be democratized by using strategies such as abandoning biographical narration, placing the setting in the foreground, focusing on the interaction of groups rather than individuals, and not insisting on a conclusive ending. An examination of the characters, plot and setting of several works on Jacksonian democracy uncovers the common problems with historical narratives of democracy. Authors discussed include Arthur Schlesinger Jr., Charles Sellers, Richard Hofstadter, and Alexander Saxton.