Books in the Law Society & Politics in the Midwest series

Historians have long argued that the Great War eradicated German culture from American soil. This book examines the experiences of German-Americans living in Missouri during the First World War, evaluating the personal relationships at the local level that shaped their lives and the way that they were affected by national war effort guidelines.

In the antebellum Midwest, Americans looked to the law, and specifically to the jury, to navigate the terrain of a rapidly changing society. Through an analysis of the composition of juries and an examination of their courtroom experiences, the author demonstrates how central the law was for people who lived in Abraham Lincoln's America.