The Great Guano Rush - Entrepreneurs and American Overseas Expansion (Hardcover, 1994 ed.)

How did some of the most savage and desolate islands in the world, scattered across the Pacific and Caribbean, become U.S. territories? The Great Guano Rush describes the fascinating and little-known history of this earliest example of American overseas expansion. "Guano" (bird droppings) was the 19th century's most important fertilizer and in 1856 Congress, believing that American farmers were being gouged on guano sales by foreign monopolists, authorized U.S. citizens to claim and exploit unowned guano-rich islands around the world. The legacy of this decision is a strange group of American "appurtenances", ranging from Haiti to the central Pacific and with a highly diverse subsequent history, from the notorious near-slavery on Navassa Island to the contemporary issue of the Johnston Atoll chemical weapon destruction plant. The Great Guano Rush is an important book for its insights on both 19th century America and the history of a key commodity. But it is also important in establishing that, contrary to the American free enterprise myth, the success of this country has always been based on a close cooperation between business and government.

General

Imprint:	Palgrave Macmillan
Country of origin:	United States
Release date:	May 1995
First published:	1994
Authors:	Jimmy M. Skaggs
Dimensions:	222 x 144 x 27mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Hardcover
Pages:	334
Edition:	1994 ed.
ISBN-13:	978-0-312-10316-3
Categories:	Books > Humanities > History > World history > General Books > Humanities > History > American history > General Books > Humanities > History > History of specific subjects > Economic history Books > History > American history > General Books > History > History of specific subjects > Economic history Books > History > World history > General Promotions
LSN:	0-312-10316-6
Barcode:	9780312103163

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