Alexander Hamilton

Award-winning author Teri Kanefield's biography of Alexander Hamilton for young readers is the first in the Making of America series.

 


The America that Alexander Hamilton knew was largely agricultural and built on slave labor. He envisioned something else: a multi-racial, urbanized, capitalistic America with a strong central government. He believed that such an America would be a land of opportunity for the poor and the newcomers. But Hamilton's vision put him at odds with his archrivals who envisioned a pastoral America of small towns, where governments were local, states would control their own destiny, and the federal government would remain small and weak.


 


The disputes that arose during America's first decades continued through American history to our present day. Over time, because of the systems Hamilton set up and the ideas he left, his vision won out. Here is the story that epitomizes the American dream—a poor immigrant who made good in America. In the end, Hamilton rose from poverty through his intelligence and ability, and did more to shape our country than any of his contemporaries.


 


Related subjects and concepts discussed in the book include:


 

Law and Legal Concepts

Due Process


Bill of Rights


Freedom of Speech and the Press


Originalism / Nonoriginalism (theories of constitutional interpretation)


 

Government

Checks and Balances


Democracy


Electoral College


Republic


 

Financial Concepts

Capitalism


Credit


Inflation


Interest


Mercantilism


Securities: Stocks and Bonds


Tariffs


Taxes


 

Miscellaneous

Demagogues


Dueling


Pastoralism


 

Includes archival images

 

About the Series

The Making of America series traces the constitutional history of the United States through overlapping biographies of American men and women. The debates that raged when our nation was founded have been argued ever since: How should the Constitution be interpreted? What is the meaning, and where are the limits of personal liberty? What is the proper role of the federal government? Who should be included in "we the people"? Each biography in the series tells the story of an American leader who helped shape the United States of today.


 

The Making of America Series
Alexander Hamilton (#1)

Andrew Jackson (#2)

Abraham Lincoln (#3)

Susan B. Anthony (#4)

Franklin D. Roosevelt (#5)

Thurgood Marshall (#6)