{"product_id":"john-sutter-a-life-on-the-north-american-frontier-hardcover","title":"John Sutter: A Life on the North American Frontier - Hardcover","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eAlbert L. Hurtado\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the history of the American frontier, John Sutter (1803-1880) looms large. A Swiss expatriate who attempted to create a personal empire in California's Sacramento Valley, he founded New Helvetia, a cosmopolitan settlement whose economy depended on Indian slaves and free laborers. New Helvetia drew overland immigrants to California in the 1840s and then--after gold was discovered by Sutter's employees--a flood of fortune seekers. Sutter was poised to become one of the richest men in the West, but rapacious settlers and his own poor business sense sent his dreams crashing.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAlbert L. Hurtado has written the definitive biography of Sutter, mining a wealth of sources to create the first fully documented account of the man and his times. \u003ci\u003eJohn Sutter\u003c\/i\u003e explores Sutter's life in the broader context of America's rush for westward expansion while plumbing the inner dynamics of this erstwhile empire-builder.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSutter was a quintessential outsider driven by anxiety over status--a man of talent, vision, and heroic ambitions who nevertheless became the victim of his own inadequacies as a businessman and his inability to adjust to a rapidly changing frontier. Sutter was full of contradictions. While building a reputation as a humanitarian friend of destitute immigrants, he callously exploited Indians. Nevertheless, this penniless dreamer became one of the most important men in California and a major player in the American conquest of the West.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 434\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.22 x 10.06 x 7.36 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e October 01, 2006\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAward:\u003c\/strong\u003e Spur Awards (2007)\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51773788881184,"sku":"9780806137728","price":81.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/8572890f13716cc77528cbc252916f12_643a1521-326b-4a00-ae7f-4d051c28e9db.webp?v=1780432817","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/john-sutter-a-life-on-the-north-american-frontier-hardcover","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}