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jsjammersmith's review
4.0
I picked up Smallwood's Born in Dixie because I've begun researching my hometown of Tyler, and since I typically hand this book to patron after patron at the library I work at it when they come in asking questions about the greater Smith County area, I thought it was time to read this book. I'm glad I did because Smallwood has completely changed the way I look at my hometown.
The first volume of this book covers the history of Smith County through the Reconstruction period, starting with the early Native American tribes that populated the area before being ultimately forced out by white settlers. Smallwood tackles the larger narratives of the establishment of the early Republic of Texas and the conflict of the Civil War and in each of these conflicts, he manages to try to balance the larger history with the central focus. Smallwood places Tyler and Smith county in the context of these larger events. There are some passage where I believe he tends to focus on the larger narratives to fill in some empty spaces, but even then these are few and far between.
Smallwood's book is a wonderful example of a micro-history, an attempt to look at one area in the context of the larger state-wide and national events to understand how history is just as much, if not more, about how local peoples contribute to a greater whole. It's also an incredible accomplishment by a historian who has clearly dedicated himself to the task of research as this book is brimming with peoples, events, facts, and figures that show that Smith County is a territory with a chaotic and fascinating past.
The first volume of this book covers the history of Smith County through the Reconstruction period, starting with the early Native American tribes that populated the area before being ultimately forced out by white settlers. Smallwood tackles the larger narratives of the establishment of the early Republic of Texas and the conflict of the Civil War and in each of these conflicts, he manages to try to balance the larger history with the central focus. Smallwood places Tyler and Smith county in the context of these larger events. There are some passage where I believe he tends to focus on the larger narratives to fill in some empty spaces, but even then these are few and far between.
Smallwood's book is a wonderful example of a micro-history, an attempt to look at one area in the context of the larger state-wide and national events to understand how history is just as much, if not more, about how local peoples contribute to a greater whole. It's also an incredible accomplishment by a historian who has clearly dedicated himself to the task of research as this book is brimming with peoples, events, facts, and figures that show that Smith County is a territory with a chaotic and fascinating past.
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