Ben Waber reviewed Speculation Nation by Michael A. Blaakman
An Interesting But Slightly Scattered Book
4 stars
This is an interesting look at land policy and the speculation that accompanied it in the first few decades of its history. Given the importance of land in US history, and specifically dispossessing indigenous people and giving it to white people for rock bottom prices, this book fills a glaring hole in the literature by focusing solely on the legal and economic developments in the early republic that provided a framework for future colonization. It's a bit scattered, though, lacking the consistent application of an analytical frame, which makes it a bit hard to combine into a coherent narrative. Overall, this book provides great background on the forces that shaped the US's expansion, its roots in speculation, colonialism, graft, and historical revisionism. Highly recommend
This is an interesting look at land policy and the speculation that accompanied it in the first few decades of its history. Given the importance of land in US history, and specifically dispossessing indigenous people and giving it to white people for rock bottom prices, this book fills a glaring hole in the literature by focusing solely on the legal and economic developments in the early republic that provided a framework for future colonization. It's a bit scattered, though, lacking the consistent application of an analytical frame, which makes it a bit hard to combine into a coherent narrative. Overall, this book provides great background on the forces that shaped the US's expansion, its roots in speculation, colonialism, graft, and historical revisionism. Highly recommend