Writing from the vantage point of the Texas-New Mexico boundary issue, Mark J. Stegmaier provides definitive analysis of the dispute settled by the last great accord on sectional issues between North and South--the Compromise of 1850. Considering the crisis's overall implication for the Civil War, he meticulously examines Texas and New Mexico documents, U.S. government records, maps, newspapers--particularly reports by Washington correspondents--and collections of personal letters. In addition, he introduces a revisionist analysis of roll-call voting in the U.S. Congress and Texas legislature. Stegmaier recounts how, with the support of Southern radicals, Texas attempted to extend its jurisdiction despite opposition from New Mexicans and U.S. political leaders. Threatened by military occupation, New Mexicans countered by seeking free-state status, while Presidents Taylor and Fillmore committed U.S. forces to defend the territory against a Texas attack.

Author: Mark J. Stegmaier
Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Texas Tech University Press
Published: 01/06/2012
Series: Grover E. Murray Studies in the American Southwest
Pages: 452
Weight: 1.6lbs
Size: 9.06h x 6.01w x 1.11d
ISBN: 9780896726970

About the Author
Mark J. Stegmaier is professor of history at Cameron University in Lawton, Oklahoma, where he has taught since 1975. Currently he is researching a book on Congress during the 1860-61 secession crisis.