Winner of the 1981 Bancroft Prize. Focusing primarily on the middle class, this study delineates the social, intellectual and psychological transformation of the American family from 1780-1865. Examines the emergence of the privatized middle-class family with its sharp division of male and female roles.

Presents a history of the various towns of Oswego County from 1877, maps of the county, engravings of various county scenes, and information about prominent individuals of that time and earlier.