1857-1861

Reprints the text of the debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas in 1858.

Explores the significance of the Fort Sumter crisis that sparked the Civil War, seeking to show why certain forces drove the country into deadly conflict, and examining the lives and motives of key characters in the dispute, including William H. Seward, Abraham Lincoln, Major Robert Anderson, Francis W. Pickens, and William H. Russell.

Chronicles the life of James Buchanan, the fifteenth president, discussing his forty-year political career, the impact he had on the American government, his role in the Civil War, and the impact his stubborn personality had on his presidency.

Describes the early life and political career of the man who served as president in the years just before the Civil War.