The American Political Family

Every election provides additional evidence of the continuity of families in American politics. Donn M. Kurtz compiled this collection of articles while conducting research on political families, also hoping to synthesize the body of literature on this subject. The book considers political families as a national, rather than a regional, phenomenon, looking at situations such as children with greater political efficacy and involvement in politics at a younger age. The selections are of an interdisciplinary nature and draw upon several outlets: history, sociology, political science, genealogy, and economics. Contents: Introduction: The Family in Politics, Donn M. Kurtz; Continuity Across Generation: The Adams Family Myth, David F. Musto; Making of a Myth: Abraham Lincoln’s Family Background in the Perspective of Jacksonian Politics, Thomas L. Purvis; Theodore Roosevelt’s Ancestry: A Study in Heredity, Howard K. Beale; The First Family: Presidential Kinship and Its Theoretical Implications, Michael P. Merlie and Edward T. Silva; Family Relationships, Congressional Recruitment, and Political Modernization, Alfred B. Clubok, Norman M. Wilensky, and Forrest J. Berghorn; Favorite Sons: Intergenerational Wealth Transfers Among Politicians, David N. Laband and Bernard F. Lentz; Political Families in Louisiana, Donn M. Kurtz; Index.