A Nation Rising: Untold Tales from America's Hidden History

“History in Davis’s hands is loud, coarse, painful, funny, irreverent—and memorable.”

Following on his New York Times bestsellers America’s Hidden History and Don’t Know Much About History, Ken Davis explores the next chapter in the country’s hidden history: the gritty first half of the 19th century, among the most tumultuous in the nation’s short life.

These are the stories often left out of the textbooks—the moments that truly defined a rising nation.

• Fort Mims Massacre: The bloody frontier battle that shocked the nation, sparked a brutal war against the Creek Nation, and launched the military career of Andrew Jackson.
• A Daring Slave Rebellion: The forgotten story of Madison Washington, an escaped slave who led a successful revolt aboard the brig Creole, seizing freedom for more than 100 people and creating an international crisis.
• The Second Seminole War: A decades-long guerilla war in the swamps of Florida where runaway slaves and Seminole warriors joined forces to fight the U.S. Army to a bloody stalemate.
• Anti-Immigrant Riots: The shocking sectarian violence of the Philadelphia 'Bible Riots,' a forgotten chapter of American intolerance where Nativist mobs burned churches in the City of Brotherly Love.
• Manifest Destiny's Power Couple: The intertwined journey of explorer John C. Frémont and his brilliant wife Jessie Benton Frémont, whose ambition and adventures helped push America's borders to the Pacific.

In the dramatic period from 1800 through 1850, the United States went from a tiny newborn nation on the Atlantic seaboard to a near-empire that spanned the continent. But America's path to nationhood was vastly more complex than the tidily packaged national myth of a destiny made manifest by visionary political leaders and fearless pioneers. In A Nation Rising, bestselling author Kenneth C. Davis offers fascinating, intertwining stories about historical episodes whose great issues—ambition, power, territorial expansion, slavery, intolerance, civil rights, freedom of the press—reverberate to this day, including:

• Aaron Burr's 1807 trial, culminating in one of our nation's first media circuses
• The 1813 Indian uprising and ensuing massacre, exposing the powerful conflicts at the heart of America's expansion
• The mutiny aboard the slave ship Creole, illustrating how the institution of slavery both destroyed lives and warped our nation's founding
• The bloody "Bible Riots" in Philadelphia, erupting in an early episode of deadly anti-immigrant sentiment

Eye-opening history and riveting storytelling, A Nation Rising is a powerful reminder of the ways in which our past continues to shape our present.

Praise for America’s Hidden History: “American history in the vibrant narrative tradition of David McCullough.” - Ron Powers, author of Flags of Our Fathers

“Paul Revere didn’t shout out, ‘The British Are Coming’ as he galloped through the night on his famous ride. What did he actually say? Read Kenneth Davis’s ‘Hidden History’ and you’ll find out. You’ll learn lots more, too, in this engaging book.” - Joy Hakim, author of A History of US

“Davis’ engaging treatment is spicy but judicious . . . the book is far superior to standard high-school treatments, and a valuable reference for students young and old.” - Publishers Weekly

Praise for DON’T KNOW MUCH ABOUT HISTORY: “[P]uts the zest back in history.” - Washington Post Book World

“With his special gift for revealing the significance of neglected historical characters, Kenneth Davis creates a multi-layered, haunting narrative.” - Ray Raphael, author of Founders

“Davis is a fine writer who uses a fast-moving narrative to tell these stories well... This is an informative and enjoyable work.” - Booklist