The following books serve as 'primers' for background to studying nearly any topic in U.S. history. Almost all of them contain introductory coverage of nearly any fairly important political, social, or military historical topic, event or person. In many cases these books will provide all the information you will need on the particular subject or book's time period.
Philips, William and Carla Rahn Philips. The Worlds of Christopher Columbus (1991) 336 pages.
Not only valuable as a balanced portrayal of Columbus that debunks myths and overcomes political bias, it provides intriguing information on Columbus' two 'worlds,' the late 15th century Mediterranean world and the pre-contact world of the Caribbean and South America.
Elliot, John (J.H.). Empires of the Atlantic World: Britain and Spain in America 1492-1830 (2007) 608 pages.
A fascinating comparative history of the Spanish colonization of South America and the British colonization of North America with both nations colonizing the Caribbean.
Thomas, Hugh: The Slave Trade: The Story of the Atlantic Slave Trade, 1440-1870 (1999) 912 pages.
A well written and expertly researched detailed discussion of the transatlantic slave trade beginning with slavery in the islands just off of Europe to its demise in the New World.
Eltis, David and David Richardson. Atlas of the Transatlantic Slave Trade (2010) 336 pages.
This map atlas is not necessary for an introduction to the Transatlantic Slave Trade; Thomas' book is just fine for that. I just included it because I find the dozens of maps and other diagrams and illustrations fascinating and mind boggling.
Weber, David J. The Spanish Frontier in North America (1992) 602 pages.
A splendid overview of Spanish exploration and settlement from Florida to New Mexico into California and the effect on indigenous peoples in those areas. It includes Spanish colonial politics with the crown.
Taylor, Alan. The American Colonies: the Settling of North America (2002) 544 pages.
Although this book covers the Spanish frontier, and the French in the Great Lakes and Louisiana areas, the primary focus is on the settlement of the Atlantic coast British colonies and Caribbean islands. All of the original 13 colonies are covered and groups such as the Puritans, Quakers, Catholics, and Anglicans are detailed along with their relations with various Indian groups. Colonial slavery is fairly well covered, too. Because the wide range of topics covered is so large, it cannot be described here but it includes healthy doses of political, social/cultural and environmental history.
Fischer, David Hackett. Albion's Seed: Four British Folkways in America (1989) 972 pages.
Fischer's groundbreaking work not only covers the migrations of the four main British groups that migrated to the American colonies (i.e. the Puritans, the Quakers, the Anglicans, and the Scot-Irish) it examines the long lasting cultural impact each group made as the colonies developed and the American Revolution approached.
Fischer, David Hackett. Champlain's Dream (2008) 848 Pages.
Fischer again, doing something similar to what he did in Albion's Seed by describing the old world (of France, not England) in the late 16th century and describing the migration to the new world of French Canada. But instead of describing four groups of emigrants, or even one group, this book follows the travels, adventures and influences of one man; the "The Father of New France", Samuel de Champlain.
Champlain was a navigator, cartographer, explorer, geographer, ethnologist, and diplomat who founded Quebec City in 1608. The only biography on this list, Fischer's uncanny knack for analysis and his vivid historical imagination uncovers this pre-Enlightenment thinker and adventurer's dreams and motivations so artfully that this book is by far the most enjoyable read in this bibliography.
Berlin, Ira. Generations of Captivity: A History of African-American Slaves (2004) 384 pages.
An excellent overview of the history of American slavery from the first slaves of Virginia in 1619 until 1850, only a decade before the U.S. Civil War began. Berlin's primary focus is on the tightening of restrictions and increasing brutality on slaves as cotton demand skyrocketed in the 40 years before the war.
Milner, Clyde and Carol O'Conner. The Oxford History of the American West (1996) 904 pages.
An excellent collection of essays of many topics of the American west that eschew the old myths and examines the realities of the region.
Calloway, Colin. First Peoples: A Documentary Survey of American Indian History - Fifth Edition (2015) 688 pages.
A broad panorama of the many various Indian groups of North America. Read this book and you'll know some interesting things about all of them.
Note: Calloway's book is very expensive ($50 and up). For a much more wallet-friendly option, the non-academic book below is very good...
Page, Jake. In the Hands of the Great Spirit: The 20,000-Year History of American Indians (2004) 480 pages.
Richter, Daniel. Facing East from Indian Country: A Native History of Early America (1998) 336 pages.
Richter undermines the myth that native Americans were easily overcome by Europeans and shows their impact on the forming of the United States,
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Oxford History of the United States
This highly acclaimed series of U.S. history books provides and exceptional amount of detail about U.S. history. Nine of the 12 volumes have already been published and three more are expected within the next two years.
Except for volumes 3 and 6, which cover the American Revolution and the Civil War, each volume covers a wide range of political and social/cultural topics that give a detailed description of all major aspects in U.S. history for the era it covers. Alternative books for the 1865 - 1920 years are provided.
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Vol 1. Mancall, Peter. American Origins (Oxford History of the United States) (forthcoming)
Vol. 2. Anderson, Fred & Andrew Cayton. Imperial America, 1674–1763 (Oxford History of the United States) (forthcoming)
Note: These two volumes, when released, can replace Alan Taylor's America Colonies and possibly the books on the Spanish Frontier and Champlain's Dream, but they don't necessarily have to. Taylor's book may be all you will need on those subjects depending on what your interests are.
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Vol 3. Middlekauff, Robert. The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763-1789 (Oxford History of the United States) (1985, 2007 - 2nd Edition) 572 pages
Vol 4. Wood, Gordon. Empire of Liberty: A History of the Early Republic, 1789-1815 (Oxford History of the United States) (2011) 800 pages.
Vol 5. Howe, Daniel Walker. What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815-1848 (Oxford History of the United States) (2009) 928 pages.
Vol 6. McPherson, James. Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era (Oxford History of the United States) (either the 1st edition (1988) or 2nd edition (2003) edition is fine). 909 pages.
Vol 7. White, Richard. The Republic For Which It Stands: The United States During Reconstruction and the Gilded Age, 1865 - 1896 (Oxford History of the United States) (2017). 968 pages.
Vol 8. Shulman, Bruce. Reawakened Nation: The Birth of Modern America, 1896–1929 (Unannounced release date)
Vol 9. Kennedy, David. Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929–1945 (Oxford History of the United States) (1999) 990 pages.
Vol 10. Patterson, James. Grand Expectations: The United States, 1945–1974 (Oxford History of the United States) (1996) 880 pages.
Vol 11. Patterson, James. Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush v. Gore 1975-2000 (Oxford History of the United States) (2005) 448 Pages.
Herring, George. Years of Peril and Ambitions: U.S. Foreign Relations, 1776 - 1921 (Oxford History of the United States) (2017) 472 pages.
Herring, George. The American Century and Beyond: U.S. Foreign Relations, 1893 - 2014 (Oxford History of the United States) (2017) 768 pages.
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And here are some books that will fill most of the gap until volumes 7 and 8 of the Oxford Series are published. Depending on your interests between 1866 and 1919, you might not need those 2 volumes at all. There are many good books that cover the whole of the 1920s - contact me if you want help choosing one.
Reconstruction: 1865-1877 - Choose either of these two books, they are both very good.
Foner, Eric. Reconstruction Updated Edition: America's Unfinished Revolution, 1863-1877 (2014, 1st ed. 1988) 752 pages. $19.50 new paperback.
Summers, Mark. The Ordeal of the Reunion: A New History of Reconstruction (Littlefield History of the Civil War Era) (2014) 528 pages.
Richardson, Heather Cox. West from Appomattox: The Reconstruction of America After the Civil War (2008) 416 pages.
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The Populist Era - 1850 - 1918. Painter's or McGerr's book is preferred because it covers the largest number of years. But the other 3 are also very good.
Painter, Nell Irvin. Standing at Armageddon: A Grassroots History of the Progressive Era (c. 1880-1918) (2008) 448 pages.
McGerr, Michael. A Fierce Discontent: The Rise and Fall of the Progressive Movement in America, 1870-1920 (2005) 396 pages.
Brands, H.W. American Colossus: The Triumph of Capitalism, 1865-1900 (2010) 704 pages
Postel, Charles. The Populist Vision (mostly the 1890s only) (2009) 418 pages.
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Special Historiography Book:
Novick, Peter. That Noble Dream: The 'Objectivity Question' and the American Historical Profession (1998) 662 pages.
Ignore the outrageous Amazon price. Check re-sellers; you should be able to get a good, clean, unmarked version of the book for $15 max.
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