First Along the River

A Brief History of the U.S. Environmental Movement

By (author) Benjamin Kline

Publication date:

16 January 2011

Length of book:

208 pages

Publisher

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

ISBN-13: 9781442203990

First Along the River provides students with a balanced, historical perspective on the history of the environmental movement in relation to major social and political events in U.S. history, from the pre-colonial era to the present. The book highlights important people and events, places critical concepts in context, and shows the impact of government, industry, and population on the American landscape.

Comprehensive yet brief, First Along the River discusses the religious and philosophical beliefs that shaped Americans' relationship to the environment, traces the origins and development of government regulations that impact Americans' use of natural resources, and shows why popular environmental groups were founded and how they changed over time.

The fourth edition includes up-to-date coverage of the environmental movement and developments since 2000, including the second term of George W. Bush and the administration of Barack Obama.

Chapter 1: Philosophical Foundations
Chapter 2: The 1400s through the 1700s: Inhabiting a New Land
Chapter 3: The Early 1800s: Destroying the Frontier
Chapter 4: The Late 1880s: Building an Industrial Nation
Chapter 5: The 1900s through the 1930s: Beginnings of the Conservation Movement
Chapter 6: The 1940s through the 1960s: Prelude to the Green Decade
Chapter 7: The 1970s: The Conservation Movement Matures
Chapter 8: The 1980s: A Conservative Backlash
Chapter 9: The Early 1990s: Government Retrenchment and Public Apathy
Chapter 10: The Late 1990s: The Institutionalization of the Environmental Movement
Chapter 11: The Environmental Movement in the Post 9/11 World, 2000–2010
Conclusion

A truly unique work, accessible to all, that demonstrates the common property nature of our global environment and its unwitting exploitation in the not so common interest. A good U.S. environmental history supplement for any environmentally oriented course.