American Mobbing, 1828-1861 Toward Civil War

Riots in the United States, 1828-1861 is a comprehensive history of mobviolence in antebellum America. David Grimsted argues that, though the issue ofslavery provoked riots in both the North and the South, the riots produced twodifferent reactions from authorities. In the South, riots against suspectedabolitionists and slave insurrectionists were widely tolerated as a means ofquelling anti-slavery sentiment. In the North, both pro-slavery riots attackingabolitionists and anti-slavery riots in support of fugitive slaves and civilrights provoked reluctant but often effective riot suppression. Hundreds died inriots in both regions, but in the North, most deaths were caused by authorities,while in the South more than 90 percent of deaths were caused by the mobsthemselves.These two divergent systems of violence led to two distinct public responses. Inthe South, widespread rioting generated pro-slavery fervor; in the North, themilder, more controlled riots generally encouraged sympathy for the anti-slaverymovement. Grimsted demonstrates that, in these two distinct reactions to mobviolence, we can see the origins of the social split that ultimately led to theCivil War.