This volume offers a new perspective on American conservatism in the 1960s and the way in which the changes of the decade shaped the development of American politics for the next half-century. Historians have increasingly begun to view the sixties as a decade of conservatism, and a spate of landmark books in the field have traced the careers of Barry Goldwater, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and George Wallace. Much, however, is still unknown about the growth of the conservative movement during this decade. In their effort to chronicle the national politicians and organizations that led the movement, previous histories of conservatism neglected to examine lesser-known developments--local perspectives, the role of religion, transnational dimensions--that help to give clues to conservatism's enduring influence in American politics. The contributions here provide a synthesis of cutting-edge scholarship that addresses those overlooked developments and offers new insights into the way that the 1960s shaped the trajectory and contributed to the political power of postwar conservatism.

The 1960s were a transformative era for American politics, but much is still unknown about the growth of conservatism during the period when it was radically reshaped and became the national political force that it is today. In their efforts to chronicle the national politicians and organizations that led the movement, previous histories have often neglected local perspectives, the role of religion, transnational exchange, and other aspects that help to explain conservatism's enduring influence in American politics. Taken together, the contributions gathered here offer a cutting-edge synthesis that incorporates these overlooked developments and provides new insights into the way that the 1960s shaped the trajectory of postwar conservatism.

Most historians agree that, by the end of the 1960s, the conservative branch of the Republican Party had largely taken control of party direction. The "Reagan Revolution" of 1980 secured the GOP for conservatives, and while the events of the 2008 election may prompt considerable soul-searching, the party of Lincoln has maintained an undeniably conservative ideological orientation for almost 30 years. Too often, scholars have regarded the process of conservative transformation as a foregone conclusion. Historian Laura Gifford offers an innovative examination of the 1960 presidential election that restores an essential sense of contingency to the process. In the years prior to 1960, the GOP could have taken its agenda from a number of sources and pursued a number of directions. By the end of the 1960 campaign, however, Republican liberals had lost the battle over the party's future, and thereafter conservatives would take the lead in formulating GOP policy. The initial establishment of control over the party's future direction marked the first step toward the culmination of modern conservatism in Reagan's election. While liberals and conservatives were equally optimistic about their futures in the Republican Party in January 1960, by December a fundamental shift in power had taken place. The Center Cannot Hold provides an analysis of interactions between three key party leaders-liberal Nelson Rockefeller, conservative Barry Goldwater, and moderate Richard Nixon-and six key constituencies: liberals, African Americans, conservative intellectuals, youth, Southerners, and ethnic Americans. Gifford's study of these interactions demonstrates that conservatives successfully used grassroots organizations to develop networks that could push the Republican Party in a rightward direction. Furthermore, conservative leaders responded to their supporters more effectively than did liberal and moderate leaders. Ultimately, individuals and groups possessed the means to alter the shape of the American party system.