Chapter 2
and much more (West,1994).Women,
more than men,were responsible for
maintaining a good Christian home and
upholding the values of society.Women
also had a primary responsibility of
service to others (McNall,1983).
Theimageof thefrontierisoftenviewed
asoneof individualism,self-reliance,and
ruggedadultmales.Butthetransformation
of thenineteenth-centuryWestcouldbe
moreaccuratelypicturedasafamilial
conquest—anoccupationbytensof
thousandsof interdependenthouseholds.
By the late 1800s,the Great Plains were
bustling with well established cities,towns,
and communities.Small-townAmerica
was basically Protestant,with the settlers’
religious values mirroring their
pragmatism and positive attitude toward
success.The Puritan influence was evident
in the individualism which marked these
frontier families.However,this
individualism coexisted with a cooperative
spirit among individuals and families.
Morality in small-townAmerica meant
being a God-fearing Christian.
African-American Families in the 1800s
During the years of slavery,most slave
children lived with their mothers but
knew their fathers.While many marriages
lasted 20 years or more,family breakup
was common—often the result of the sale
of the husband or wife.Even when
marriages were not broken by sale,slave
husbands and wives often resided on
separate farms or plantations and were
owned by different individuals.
Slaveryandservitudewerevirtually
abolishedbetweenthe1770sandthe1830s
intheNorthernstates.African-Americans
intheNorthcouldlegallyestablishfamilies.
InNorthernblackchurchescoupleswere
married,childrenwerebaptized,andnew
surnameschosenbyformerslaveswere
recorded.Benevolentsocietieslookedout
fortheirmembers’welfareandsheltered
slaveswhoescapedfromslave-holdingareas.
DuringthedecadesbeforetheCivilWar,
mostslaveslivedinnuclearhouseholds,
consistingof twoparentsandtheir
children.Inthemid-1800s,approximately
threefourthsof allslaveslivedintwo-
parentfamiliesandonefourthlivedin
single-parentfamilies.Another10%lived
outsideof afamilyunit,eitheraloneor
withothersof thesamesex(Cayton,Gorn,
&Williams,1993).
After theEmancipation Proclamation
in 1863,newly freedAfrican-Americans
struggledtoreestablish family livesof their
own.Many familieswhich hadbeen
separatedmanagedtore-form intostable
units.However,it wasstillmorelikely for
black children than whitechildren tolive
in female-headedhouseholds.(Youwillsee
in chapter 11thistrendhascontinuedinto
the21st century.)Education was
important toAfrican-American families.
After slavery wasabolished,frequently