Charles Carroll of Carrollton is most often remembered as the sole Roman Catholic signer of the Declaration of Independence. In this monumental study of the Carrolls in Ireland and America; that act vindicates a family's determination to triumph without compromising lineage and faith.Ronald Hoffman peels back layer after layer of Carroll family history; from dispossession in Ireland to prosperity and prominence in America. Driven to emigrate by England's devastating anti-Catholic policies; the first Carroll brought to Maryland an iron determination to reconstitute his family and fortune. He found instead an increasingly militant Protestant society that ultimately disenfranchised Catholics and threatened their wealth and property. Confronting religious antagonisms like those that had destroyed their Irish ancestors; this Carroll and his descendants founded a fortune--and a dynasty that risked everything by allying with the American Revolutionary cause. Meeting each crisis with a tenacious will to survive and prevail; the Carrolls earned an esteemed place in the new nation. Hoffman balances private lives against their contentious public role in American history. The journey from Irish rebels to American revolutionaries shaped and shattered the Carrolls--and then remade them into one of the first families of the Republic.
#766011 in Books The University of North Carolina Press 1992-05-18 1992-05-18Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.92 x .63 x 5.99l; .82 #File Name: 080784361X250 pagesGreat product!
Review
8 of 10 people found the following review helpful. Actually a fun read.By ReaderI bought this book because a Google search showed it had information about one of my ancesters.I wasn't sure what to expect. Dry dissertation? Hugely slanted feminist agenda? History reduced to charts and tables?None of the above; I'm happy to say. This is an interesting and engaging look at the lives of some not-so-upstanding women of the 1800s in central NC. It's both approachable for the non-academic (that's me) and yet offers a good; full set of references with which one can do more research. If this were a class; I'd take it in a heartbeat.As a bonus; I found information about more than one of my own ancesters in the book. Boy; I wish I'd had some of this information when my mother would go on about "your generation doesn't know how to behave like ladies and gentlemen." Yeah; well; mom; apprently neither did your grandmothers' generation!0 of 1 people found the following review helpful. For my wifeBy ElleWishesWife loves southern history and this was a gift. I can't speak to the accuracy; writing quality or the writing style.0 of 1 people found the following review helpful. An academic bookBy MZWritten like a study; as opposed to a nonfiction read. It was very academic. While this was fine with me; I needed to read it for a college history course. I don't know if I would recommend it for a pleasure read. It was very thorough; and provided enough information to get a solid paper out of it.
