The Birth of Mass Political Parties : : Michigan, 1827-1861 / / Ronald P. Formisano.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter Princeton Legacy Lib. eBook Package 1931-1979
• VerfasserIn: Formisano, Ronald P.,
• Place / Publishing House: Princeton, NJ : : Princeton University Press, , [2015]; ©1971
• Year of Publication: 2015
• Language: English
• Series: Princeton Legacy Library ; 1721
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (370 p.)

The first mass political parties appeared in the United States in the 1830's, as the majority of adult white males identified ardently with the Democratic and Whig parties. Ronald Formisano opens a window on American political culture in this case study of antebellum voting and party formation in Michigan. Examining the social bases of voter commitment and the dynamics of grass roots loyalties from Jackson to Lincoln, he proposes that the forming of parties had little to do with issues of political economy, but rather with value conflicts generated by the evangelicals' promotion of a moral society.Borrowing from other disciplines, and elaborating some of the analytical techniques used by Lee Benson in The Concept of Jacksonian Democracy, Professor Formisano studies demographic and voting data to determine patterns of partisan loyalty. His study throws light on the roots of the modern Republican Party, links between religion and politics, and the role of ethnic and cultural loyalties in political life.Originally published in 1971.The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Tables -- Acknowledgments -- I. The Historical Problem of Party Formation -- II. Michigan and the Party System -- III. Economic Interest, Elites, Classes, and Parties: 1837-1852 -- IV. Party, Antiparty, and Political Character -- V. Alien Suffrage and Party Formation -- VI. Moral Society v. Laissez Faire Ethics: Evangelicals -- VII. The Whigs and the Moralization of Politics -- VIII. Religious Groups and Parties: 1837-1852 -- IX. Ethnocultural Groups and Parties: 1837-1852 -- X. Preparation for Change: 1844-1852 -- XI. The Old Farty Structure Shakes: 1853 -- XII. Rise of the Anti-Democratic Coalition: 1854-1855 -- XIII. The Crusade for White Freedom -- XIV. Republicans and Democrats: 1854-1860 -- XV. Party, the Antiaristocratic Impulse and the Evangelical Revival -- Appendices -- Index