John F. McClymer is professor of history at Assumption College in Worcester, Massachusetts and editor of the American Stories series. He has written several books and dozens of articles on a wide range of subjects in social, ethnic, and cultural history. He is co-director of the E Pluribus Unum project (www.assumption.edu/ahc), which examines crucial decades in American history and literature (1770s, 1850s, 1920s), and co-editor of H-ETHNIC.