Rethinking American Disasters

Cynthia A. Kierner is the author of many books, including Inventing Disaster: The Culture of Calamity from the Jamestown Colony to the Johnstown Flood. Matthew Mulcahy has written or cowritten several books and articles about natural disasters in colonial British America, including Hurricanes and Society in the British Greater Caribbean, 1624-1783. Liz Skilton is the author of Tempest: Hurricane Naming and American Culture and head of the Recent Louisiana Disasters Oral History Project.

"This altogether superior collection of essays presents novel, wide-ranging and accessible analyses of particular disasters that vividly illustrate what a good lens disasters provide for illuminating some of the grand themes on American history."--Gareth Davies "The essays deploy methods and approaches from this fertile interdisciplinary field to produce rich case studies that weave together social, cultural, environmental, and political analysis. . . . This volume of well-written essays provides a useful and appealing introduction to the field of historical disaster studies with important lessons for today, as we grapple with the mounting social and ecological hazards of the Anthropocene."--Journal of American History "Each essay effectively conveys how historical disasters were manipulated by those with power to control narratives and influence perceptions, whether to drive a demand for change or to protect an entrenched system. Contributors have generally made excellent and thoughtful use of their sources, and essays often expand older frameworks to connect the longer histories that created or contributed to tragedies. With the breadth of disasters and analytical lenses, this collection provides a useful introduction to any reader interested in the history of disaster."--Journal of Southern History "The field of disaster studies, while not new, has always lurked on the fringes of historiography. This collection seeks to change that. The book's 12 essays range from micro- to macro-level histories, and though limited to North America, they deal with the social, economic, religious, political, and environmental consequences of disasters. . . . Recommended."--CHOICE "Fire, flood, drought, epidemic, and the rising of our oceans: the early twenty-first century is beset. This excellent collection meets the anxieties of the present with insights from our plagued past, showing how societal choices can deepen disasters or alleviate suffering. Essays span Caribbean and U.S. history, from colonial hurricanes to COVID-19, offering case studies that are as well-researched as they are timely. Classes will find this book useful. So too will disaster planners working to mitigate current calamities both fast and slow."--Conevery Bolton Valencius, author of The Lost History of the New Madrid Earthquakes "Examining the role of disasters in American history from the colonial period to the present, these well-conceived essays offer unique perspectives on a whole range of calamities. Above all, the authors provide a wise and sobering reminder that history often unfolds in unexpected ways."--Ted Steinberg, author of Acts of God: The Unnatural History of Natural Disaster in America