The Other Founders

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352 pp., 6.125 x 9.25, 1 map, appends., notes, index

Paperback ISBN: 978-0-8078-4786-2
Published: September 1999
E-book EPUB ISBN: 978-0-8078-3921-8
Published: December 2012
E-book PDF ISBN: 979-8-8908-7088-9
Published: December 2012

Published by the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture and the University of North Carolina Press

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Published by the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture and the University of North Carolina Press

Awards & distinctions

A 2000 Choice Outstanding Academic Title

2001 Society of the Cincinnati Prize

Fear of centralized authority is deeply rooted in American history. The struggle over the U.S. Constitution in 1788 pitted the Federalists, supporters of a stronger central government, against the Anti-Federalists, the champions of a more localist vision of politics. But, argues Saul Cornell, while the Federalists may have won the battle over ratification, it is the ideas of the Anti-Federalists that continue to define the soul of American politics.

While no Anti-Federalist party emerged after ratification, Anti-Federalism continued to help define the limits of legitimate dissent within the American constitutional tradition for decades. Anti-Federalist ideas also exerted an important influence on Jeffersonianism and Jacksonianism. Exploring the full range of Anti-Federalist thought, Cornell illustrates its continuing relevance in the politics of the early Republic.

A new look at the Anti-Federalists is particularly timely given the recent revival of interest in this once neglected group, notes Cornell. Now widely reprinted, Anti-Federalist writings are increasingly quoted by legal scholars and cited in Supreme Court decisions--clear proof that their authors are now counted among the ranks of America's founders.

About the Author

Saul Cornell is associate professor of history at Ohio State University in Columbus.
For more information about Saul Cornell, visit the Author Page.

Reviews

"Cogently demonstrates the significance of Anti-Federalism to early Republican political thought. This book will become a standard work on the Anti-Federalists and greatly enhances understanding of state’s rights thought in the period."--Choice

"A fine piece of work. Cornell's research is prodigious, his analysis is judicious, and his thesis is persuasive."--American Historical Review

"All historians of the early republic are in [Cornell's] debt, and they will henceforth turn to The Other Founders as the essential starting point for work on the specific ideas of those who opposed the federal Constitution."--Journal of Southern History

"This book is profound, persuasive, and a much-needed taxonomy of Anti-Federalism. . . . This highly readable, comprehensive, and original work deserves to be placed alongside The Federalist Papers on Americans' bookshelves."--The Historian

"A magisterial work. . . . Anyone wishing to understand the meaning and significance of Anti-Federalist writings will have to consult The Other Founders."--Rhetoric & Public Affairs

"The story is by no means simple, but Cornell tells it well in clear and straightforward prose. . . . The result is rewarding: a book that is both good history and good theory, and a treatment of Anti-Federalist thought that is more historically nuanced and more theoretically sophisticated than any we have had before."--William and Mary Quarterly