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From the colonial era to 1914, America was a debtor nation in international accounts--owing more to foreigners than foreigners owed to us. By 1914 it was the world's largest debtor nation. Mira Wilkins provides the first complete history of foreign investment in the United States during that period. The book shows why the United States was attractive to foreign investors and traces the changing role of foreign capital in the nation's development, covering both portfolio and direct investment. The immense new wave of foreign investment in the United States today, and our return to the status of a debtor nation--once again the world's largest debtor nation--makes this strong exposition far more than just historically interesting. Wilkins reviews foreign portfolio investments in government securities (federal, state, and local) and in corporate stocks and bonds, as well as foreign direct investments in land and real estate, manufacturing plants, and even such service-sector activities as accounting, insurance, banking, and mortgage lending. She finds that between 1776 and 1875, public-sector securities (principally federal and state securities) drew in the most long-term foreign investment, whereas from 1875 to 1914 the private sector was the main attraction. The construction of the American railroad system called on vast portfolio investments from abroad; there was also sizable direct investment in mining, cattle ranching, the oil industry, the chemical industry, flour production, and breweries, as well as the production of rayon, thread, and even submarines. In addition, there were foreign stakes in making automobile and electrical and nonelectrical machinery. America became the leading industrial country of the world at the very time when it was a debtor nation in world accounts.
From its very inception in 1879 until the twentieth century, the U.S. Geological Survey was embroiled in congressional politics. These early years, Thomas G. Manning shows, heralded the complex relations of contemporary science and government. Born out of rivalry between several scientific parties, the Geological Survey was founded primarily for the advancement of mining west of the Mississippi. Its scope was soon broadened, however, and the Survey became national in character. The concept of government science was challenged by the conservative Cleveland Democrats, but its proponents succeeded in establishing the Survey as a permanent bureau in 1886. Manning traces in detail the careers of the Survey's first two directors, Clarence King and John Wesley Powell, and adds new dimensions and interpretations to their public lives. King sought to make the Survey a center for geological theory as well as practical studies. By exceeding the narrow limits of the original appropriations bill, King became vulnerable to the attacks of economy-minded congressmen and was dismissed. Powell proved a more apt political manipulator and his plans for a nationwide topographical map were salable to the public, but his unpopular western land policies almost cost him his position. Near the end of the nineteenth century, under Powell's successor, C. D. Walcott, the Survey was finally able to divorce itself from active politics and its policies were developed in a more fruitful setting.
First published in 1981, The Battle for Butte has remained the best treatment of the influence of copper in the political history of Montana. "Fine history: rich in detail, full of finely drawn people, masterfully clear where the subject matter is most complex, constructed to preserve something of the tone and atmosphere of the age."-American Historical Review
Over the past five hundred years, North Americans have increasingly turned to mining to produce many of their basic social and cultural objects. From cell phones to cars and roadways, metal pots to wall tile and even talcum powder, mineral-intensive products have become central to modern North American life. As this process has unfolded, mining has also indelibly shaped the natural world and North Americans’ relationship with it. Mountains have been honeycombed, rivers poisoned, and forests leveled. The effects of these environmental transformations have fallen unevenly across North American societies. Mining North America examines these developments. Drawing on the work of scholars from Mexico, the United States, and Canada, this book explores how mining has shaped North America over the last half millennium. It covers an array of minerals and geographies while seeking to draw mining into the core debates that animate North American environmental history generally. Taken together, the authors' contributions make a powerful case for the centrality of mining in forging North American environments and societies.