Rip Van Winkle's Neighbors - The Transformation of Rural Society in the Hudson River Valley, 1720-1850

Although Rip Van Winkle was a fictional character, his community in the mid-Hudson Valley of New York State was very real. Thomas S. Wermuth's book shows that the popular view of Hudson Valley farmers as self-sufficient, independent, and free of governmental authority is as fictional as the character of Rip Van Winkle himself. In fact these mid-Hudson farmers lived in villages where economic practices and behavior were regulated by civil authorities as well as neighborhood concerns, and where acquisitive practices that were believed to endanger the public good were forbidden.

Based on extensive research into previously unused town records and commercial accounts, this book challenges the belief that the early valley was a capitalist society, arguing that the beliefs and practices associated with modern capitalism developed slowly and unevenly, and were not always welcomed by valley families.

About the author

Thomas S. Wermuth is Dean of the School of Liberal Arts and Director of the Hudson River Valley Institute at Marist College. He is also Associate Editor of the Encyclopedia of New York State.

Product details

• Authors: Thomas S Wermuth, Thomas S. Wermuth
• Publisher: State University of New York Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 05.10.2001
• EAN: 9780791450833
• ISBN: 978-0-7914-5083-3
• No. of pages: 198
• Dimensions: 135 mm x 214 mm x 2 mm
• Weight: 386 g
• Series: Suny Series, an American Regio; Suny Series, an American Regio
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > General, dictionaries; Non-fiction book > History > Miscellaneous