Papers of John Marshall: Vol. XI: Correspondence, Papers, and Selected Judicial Opinions, April 1827 - December 1830

This twelfth volume of The Papers of John Marshall concludes the first scholarly annotated edition of the correspondence and papers of the great statesman and jurist. In providing an accessible documentary record of Marshall's life and legal career, this collection has become an invaluable scholarly resource for the study of American law and the Constitution in their formative stages. Volume XII covers the final years of Marshall's life, from January 1831 to his death in July 1835. It also includes an addendum of documents (mostly letters) from 1783 to 1829 that came to light after publication of their appropriate chronological volumes. More of Marshall's correspondence survives from his last years than from any other period of his life. Nullification, the Cherokee cases, the bank bill, the election of 1832, the anti-Masonic movement, slavery, and African colonization are among the topics that prompted Marshall's comments and reflections. Family letters provide intimate details of Marshall's 1831 operation for the removal of bladder stones, his companionate marriage to "dearest Polly" (who died at the end of 1831), and his relationships with his children and grandchildren. Judicial opinions published here in full include Cherokee Nation v. Georgia (1831) and Worcester v. Georgia (1832). Major editorial notes set forth the background and circumstances of these celebrated cases.

“A sweeping look at the history of voting rights in the U.S.”—Vox Who has the right to vote? And who benefits from exclusion? For most of American history, the right to vote has been a privilege restricted by wealth, sex, race, and literacy. Economic qualifications were finally eliminated in the nineteenth century, but the ideal of a white man’s republic persisted long after that. Women and racial minorities had to fight hard and creatively to secure their voice, but voter identification laws, registration requirements, and voter purges continue to prevent millions of American citizens from voting. An award-winning historian and voting right activist, Allan Lichtman gives us the history behind today’s headlines. He shows that political gerrymandering and outrageous attempts at voter suppression have been a fixture of American democracy—but so have efforts to fight back and ensure that every citizen’s voice be heard. “Lichtman uses history to contextualize the fix we’re in today. Each party gropes for advantage by fiddling with the franchise... Growing outrage, he thinks, could ignite demands for change. With luck, this fine history might just help to fan the flame.” —New York Times Book Review “The great value of Lichtman’s book is the way it puts today’s right-wing voter suppression efforts in their historical setting. He identifies the current push as the third crackdown on African-American voting rights in our history.” —Michael Tomasky, New York Review of Books

A history and political evaluation of the unique constitutional status of Native Americans profiles their sovereign government process and relationship with Congress, describing the complex legal disputes associated with the self-rule of Native tribes as reflected in landmark cases from the past two centuries. 20,000 first printing.

Papers of John Marshall: Volume IX: Correspondence, Papers, and Selected Judicial Opinions, January 1820-December 1823