The Fabulous History of the Dismal Swamp Company: A Story of George Washington's Times

Charles Royster opens a dialog into the lives of the patirots and the not so famous participants of society during the pre and post revolunary times. He has called a spade a scroundral and told of the DSC efforts to use one to dig a ten mile ditch into the interior of the swamp. Well written and full of information into our ancessoral past.

This is an excellent study of life among the upper classes in Virgina and North Carolinia. This is the first book I have read that provides details on how many of the planter class struggled to keep their heads above water while trying to appear rich.I have often wondered what motives some of the elites had in joiing the American Revolution. Royster points out that more than a few of the planter class had strong economic reasons to sever ties with Britian in the hopes of freeing themselves from a mountain of debt.

What my fellow reviews fail to realize is that this book's importance does not lie in the Dismal Swamp Company. Royster has woven a narrative that not only describes the economic climate in which America's elite lived, but also demonstrates that without the support of overseas investors our nation would not have been able to expand as quickly as it did. Granted, the Dismal Swamp Company represents a clear failure, but look at the investors. Prominent Englishman and Virginian planters poured money into this financial black hole. Why? For decades it returned little, if any, profit. The reason they kept investing was the belief that they could make something out of a most inhospitable plot of marshland. In short, do not get bogged down in all the names and places. Instead, think about the overall meaning of what you read.

After reading the previous reviews I almost didn't purchase this book. But because I had read and enjoyed Prof. Royster's book on "Light-Horse Harry" Lee and I'm interested in colonial Virginia, I gave it a try. Charles Royster is The Boyd Professor of history at LSU, the recipient of the Brancroft and Lincoln Prizes and the Sydnor Award. Did I find this book "Highly captivating and intriguing"? No. (Don't expect some Wilbur Smith swashbuckler laced with pirates and gratuitous sex.) Did I find the book very readable, informative, well-researched, thought-provoking and would I recommend it to American history enthusiasts? Definitely.