Author Description

Town Born The Political Economy of New England from Its Founding to the Revolution Barry Levy "Deeply learned, vigorously argued, and politically engaged, Levy's robust reinterpretation of colonial New England's town-centered 'democracy' challenges reigning views of family, community, economy, and politics. The highly disciplined family labor of this region--in which children's work was vital--elevated the status and power of resident working people because, Levy argues, Puritan reformers refused to allow an indentured or enslaved labor force of 'outsiders' to shape their society. Uniquely insular, and committed to justice as well as harsh punishment, New Englanders created a remarkably distinct and influential Americana culture."--Richard D. Brown, University of Connecticut "Town Born celebrates the democratic, egalitarian, mercantilist politics of township government in colonial New England.... It is bold, original, often insightful, and vigorously argued."--New England Quarterly "Levy is a master of the quotidian. In many ways and with many details, he explains how things worked on the ground, and this is a gift for which we all should be thankful."--American Historical Review "Town Born is an important book that all early American historians need to read soon."--Social History "This is New England town history with a twist. No future study of early New England economics, politics, or society will be able to ignore it."--Reviews in American History In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, British colonists found the New World full of resources. With land readily available but workers in short supply, settlers developed coercive forms of labor--indentured servitude and chattel slavery--in order to produce staple export crops like rice, wheat, and tobacco. This brutal labor regime became common throughout most of the colonies. An important exception was New England, where settlers and their descendants did most work themsel