
Reviews
Through a careful study of Philadelphia merchants and their far-flung operations, Kim Gruenwald demonstrates the foundational role of commercial networks in constructing the U.S. empire in the Mississippi River valley.
The conquest of the trans-Appalachian west was not just about settlement and military control, it was also about commerce. This book recovers the story of the Philadelphia businesses who transported goods, credit, and people along the rivers of the American backcountry, shaping Indian history, western settlement, and the history of early American capitalism.
This book is, indeed, a fine study of Philadelphia merchants on western waters, but it is also a reconceptualization that extends the period of the American Revolution. Enterprising and adventurous merchants are at the center of this story—founders of a different sort looking to achieve free trade. This most excellent book provides a fresh reading of a critical period of American history.
Book Details
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Part I: Colonial Port
1. An Imperial War
2. Shifting Boundaries
3. Land Grants
Part II: National Port
4. A Revolutionary War
5. Maneuvering in the Riverine West
6. Completing the
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Part I: Colonial Port
1. An Imperial War
2. Shifting Boundaries
3. Land Grants
Part II: National Port
4. A Revolutionary War
5. Maneuvering in the Riverine West
6. Completing the Circuit
Epilogue
Abbreviations
Notes
Bibliography