Wilderness at Dawn: The Settling of the North American Continent

Ted Morgan's "Wilderness at Dawn" is one of the best of a crop of North American colonial histories published since 1990. Rather than a comprehensive history, it is a series of incidents that add up to a very readable whole. Morgan begins with pre-Columbian history and goes on to relate the experiences of the Spanish, French, Dutch, and various flavors of English colonies. One of my favorite stories is how the godly Pilgrims found themselves neighbors to a riotous colony led by one Thomas Morton. Before Miles Standish put their rivals out of business, Morton's drunken crew traded guns and booze to the Indians in exchange for beaver pelts and sexual favors. Anyone who believes history is boring has not read Ted Morgan's and other recent works about the American colonies. The last section of this book addresses the problems of post-Revolutionary War colonization, including chapters about the appalling dangers of trans-Appalachian settlement and about how the Old Northwest was surveyed.

Breathtaking approach to a well known subject. History from the people's viewpoint. No dull dates, battles, generals, presidents; but living, breathing stories by and of the most unique and most common. Must also read Shovel of Stars, the sequel (also 10)

Reading these first person accounts of day-to-day and moment-to-moment life in pre-Colonial America gave me such an appreciation for what our predecessors went through to make our country the great one it is today. This is the book our children should read in their American history classes. Exceptionally well-written, with a "you are there" feel to it. Makes me want to learn more about the young George Washington after reading about his escape from the center of the freezing river. Well-written, entertaining and informative. I'm lapsing into cliches, but this book is a MUST READ. Just brilliant. You'll admire the everyday people who built our country one day at a time, and never tire of reading about their adventures. I hated to see it end, so thank God there's a sequel!

Ted Morgan's Wilderness At Dawn brings early North American history to life. Morgan's vibrant narrative moves beyond historical facts to make you feel that you are there. Wilderness at Dawn covers North America's prehistoric period through European exploration and settlement. It examines how various cultural groups affected and were affected by North America. The book is also more balanced than most in its coverage of the highly sophisticated (but often neglected) early Native American cultures. Absolutely the best damn read of any kind I've had in a long time

Wilderness at Dawn provides a fascinating account of the experiences of men and women in the settling of North America from the arrival of the first inhabitants crossing the Bering Strait land bridge up to the eve of the U.S. Civil War. Life on the frontier, as it moved from the coasts inward and westward, is told compellingly as if the reader were there experiencing the events. More than just an account of European colonization, the book considers the lives of all of North America's inhabitants with an even-handed approach. As an Ohioan, I found the accounts of Ohio's transformation from frontier to "hinterland" particularly interesting. All Americans should find this book useful in understanding the early history of our country.