Colonial Craftsmen and the Beginnings Of American Industry

by Edwin Tunis

In this book, Edwin Tunis reconstructs the vanished ways of colonial America's skilled craftsmen. In over 450 meticulous drawings, the artist-author describes the skills, technologies, workshops, town and country trades, and individual and group enterprises by which early Americans forged an economy in the New World. Tunis describes the development of the Kentucky rifle, Conestoga wagon, and iron grillework that still graces houses in some parts of the South. He also shows how colonial trade formed the basis for important modern industries like papermaking, glassmaking, shipbuilding, printing, and metalworking. In many cases, Tunis's own careful research reconstructs the complex equipment that served these enterprises.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, American History

160 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1965

Reviews

[Sarah Ehinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book showcases various tools and implements that helped make the American industrial revolution thrive.

[Edmund Fletcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really interesting book on the way they made things back in colonial America and Europe. Reading this will really give you more of a grasp of how people lived, and how things were done.

And, of course, any review would be lacking if it didn't mention the beautiful illustrations. The drawings are exceptional and help you to visualize the tools, techniques, and processes in a way that words alone could not.

TOTALLY RECOMMEND!