PRAISE FOR ABRAHAM LINCOLNS PATH TO REELECTION IN 1864 OUR GREATEST VICTORY Political polls consistently record a substantial lack of confidence in national political leaders of both major parties and a disturbing sentiment that the United States is on the wrong track in current policy developments.. These sentiments lead to unfortunate summaries of alleged failures of our democratic institutions and proposals.. Fortunately, at this moment in our history, Fred J. Martin Jr. has stepped forward with a comprehensive analysis of politics in 1860s and most importantly, the political genius Abraham Lincoln as he led our country through a series of perilous crises into new paths of confidence and greatness. I admire, especially, Fred Martin's mastery of political detail and the large variety of motivations, strategies, and actions of a wide assortment of political players. -Former Senator Richard Lugar Arguably the most consequential election in American history, the presidential contest of 1864 has cried out for a more sophisticated analysis than it has heretofore received. Fortunately, Fred Martins background in political journalism and in banking has enabled him to provide such an analysis in this book, which is a welcome addition to the Lincoln literature. --Michael Burlingame, Author, Abraham Lincoln: A Life; Distinguished Chair in Lincoln Studies, History Department, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences University of Illinois, Springfield IL Fred Martin has written an illuminating account of the roots of Lincolns success as president, culminating in his victory in the critical election of 1864. Effectively using Lincolns words as well as those of his contemporaries, Martin demonstrates how it became possible for Lincoln to overcome his early background and become a skillful and ethical political leader who saved the Union and ended slavery. The book clearly is a labor of love for Martin, a long-time student of Abraham Lincoln. Every person interested in Lincoln and his presidency should have this well researched and well-written book in his/her library. -- William C. Harris, author of Lincoln and the Border States: Preserving the Union (2011) and Lincoln and the Union Governors (2013)

Usually remembered for its slogan “Tippecanoe and Tyler too,” the election of 1840 is also the first presidential election of which it might be truly said, “It’s the economy, stupid.” Tackling a contest best known for log cabins, cider barrels, and catchy songs, this timely volume reveals that the election of 1840 might be better understood as a case study of how profoundly the economy shapes the presidential vote. Richard J. Ellis, a veteran scholar of presidential politics, suggests that the election pitting the Democratic incumbent Martin Van Buren against Whig William Henry Harrison should also be remembered as the first presidential election in which a major political party selected—rather than merely anointed—its nominee at a national nominating convention. In this analysis, the convention’s selection, as well as Henry Clay’s post-convention words and deeds, emerge as crucial factors in the shaping of the nineteenth-century partisan nation. Exploring the puzzle of why the Whig Party’s political titan Henry Clay lost out to a relative political also-ran, Ellis teases out the role the fluctuating economy and growing antislavery sentiment played in the party’s fateful decision to nominate the Harrison-Tyler ticket. His work dismantles the caricature of the 1840 campaign (a.k.a. the “carnival campaign”) as all froth and no substance, instead giving due seriousness to the deeply held moral commitments, as well as anxieties about the political system, that informed the campaign. In Old Tip vs. the Sly Fox, the campaign of 1840 can finally be seen clearly for what it was: a contest of two profoundly different visions of policy and governance, including fundamental, still-pressing questions about the place of the presidency and Congress in the US political system.

Details the experiences of the first generation of Americans who inherited the independent country, discussing the lives, businesses, and religious freedoms that transformed the country in its early years.