Feud By Altina L. Waller Summary

Superior Essays
Altina L. Waller exposes the old myths about the two families at war, the Hatfield’s and the McCoy’s, in the book, Feud Hatfield’s, McCoy’s, and social change in Appalachia, 1860-1900. Waller shows us that this was not only a feud between the Hatfield and McCoy families, it also included many people who were not in those families. Waller has a different perspective of the feud, and no one else has ever looked at it in the same way before. She dug up crucial facts that brought fuel to the feud. The way that she writes, may drastically change the way many people perceive the feud between the Hatfield’s and McCoy’s.
When I heard about the Hatfield’s and McCoy’s feud for the first time, I was in high school and we barely talked about it. All I
…show more content…
Waller speaks about William "Devil Anse" Hatfield and his part of the Feud. Devil Anse was a wealthy man, who just so happened to be in the timbering business. This was what brought many people from the community closer to him and his side in the Feud. The text says, “Taking into account all of Devil Anse’s supporters, related or unrelated, then, it is apparent that the most compelling motive for actively supporting Devil Anse in the feud was economic, not genealogical” (Page 81). Waller is making sure that her readers understand that Devil Anse was wealthy and his supporters supported him for the fact that money equals power and opportunity, not just because he was a Hatfield. Devil Anse was defending rational economic interests. Although there is a change in government later on in the book that strips away most of Devil Anse’s power away. The book states, “In his long explanation Devil Anse expressed his ‘great surprise’ at the turn of the events that he would suffer ‘irreparable danger and loss’ if Taylor were allowed to practice this ‘fraud’” (Page 147). Waller goes on to say, “Devil Anse’s timber business, too, suffered from his inability to get a fair hearing at the circuit court” (Page 149). This truly did damage to Devil Anse and his timber business. On the other hand, Randolph “Old Ranel” McCoy was not as prosperous as Devil Anse. Old Ranel owned some land and had some livestock. He did not have the economic …show more content…
The next generation of Hatfield’s and McCoy’s who were children, nieces, and nephews of the feud leaders “were forced to function in a new kind of world” (Page 239). The younger generation had to choose escape (to leave the area), rebellion (defiant and never accepting new order), or accommodation (testimony to the power of the new middle class social and cultural values). Old Ranel McCoy’s nephew, Sam “Squirrel Huntin’” McCoy left Tug Valley and wrote many memoirs, as the feud became popular in pulp magazine fiction. French Ellis, who married a niece of Devil Anse and was also a Hatfield supporter, was one of Devil Anse’s most loyal and aggressive supporters. He also participated in the ill-conceived and ill-executed raid on the McCoy home. He never adapted to the new order of society; he rebelled. Although most of the children of both Old Ranel and Devil Anse chose accommodation, which meant they were open to accept the power of the new middle class culture and social values. To me, I feel that this is a very important piece of this book. Knowing how many of the younger generation dealt with the feud after it occurred, and how they acted during the time, helps the reader understand how difficult this time period really

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    David Edmunds’ book Tecumseh and the Quest for Indian Leadership is one that challenges the legend behind one of the most influential Native American leaders in history. It tells the tale of Tecumseh’s life, while also giving the reader insight into the lives and culture of the Shawnee people. It tells of the hardship and tragedy that the natives faced while attempting to defend themselves against the “Long Knives.” Primary sources that discuss Tecumseh’s life are scarce to be found due to the Shawnee’s lack of written language, but author David Edmunds utilizes a collection of historical accounts that tell of his life and legacy and attest to his influence. Throughout the book, Edmunds portrays Tecumseh and his people in a positive way while…

    • 1000 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Levi Coffin and Direct Action: A Historical Analysis of the Important Contributions of North Carolinian Quakers in the Smuggling of Slaves in the Underground Railroad I.Introduction: This historical study will define the importance of the North Carolinian Quaker movement to apply “direct action” to the smuggling of salves in contrast to the more ideological and political abolitionist movements of the Pennsylvania Quaker movements. Initially, the Pennsylvania Assembly of the 18th century had imparted an important ideological opposition to slavery through the influence of the Society of Friends. In the case of William Southeby, Northern Quakers took direct action to stop slavery in the early 1700s, yet the movement became increasingly ideological…

    • 2162 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    The French and Indian War, which occurred during the mid-18th century, was one of the most influential conflicts to arise on the North American continent. During the period, hostility existed between the English colonists and their Native American neighbors; as a result, when the war broke out, colonial unity is argued to have emerged against a common enemy. However, historians disagree whether the war had any transforming effect on early America; historian Peter Silver’s work “Our Savage Neighbors” tries to set the record straight on the issue. Through Silver’s work, we can argue that the war changed early America during the period through bigotry, religion, politics, and violence which affected native-colonial relations and inter-colonial relations. From the lens of rural Pennsylvania, it is shown how these events changed early America by creating a momentary, localized reaction to a particular crisis which united multi-cultural groups under a common banner of white nationalism.…

    • 1649 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Before the war of the rebellion, in Jefferson County, Mrs. Susan Sillers Darden, a prominent citizen of the county, documented in her personal diary the events of everyday life. The primary focus of the diary is the family members of the Darden and Sillers family. Contained in this diary were the details of their day-to-day life, reports detailing doctor visits, the children and their activities, comments about neighbors as well as gossip of the community. Additionally, the diary reports the stories of primarily the white citizens of Jefferson County their social, religious, and political activities. Why is this diary of significant importance?…

    • 341 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Marion Glenn 11/18/2016 The year 1865 could be described as one of the most tumultuous periods in American history. It was the inevitable fallout following the civil war and represented an uncertain future for many southerners who now had to rebuild their lives after losing the war. The book A Year in the South by Stephen Ash, describes the exceedingly different lives of Louis Hughes a slave determined to obtain freedom, Samuel Agnew a man of God coming to grasp with his spiritual and worldly troubles, Cornelia McDonald a widow battling despair and poverty brought on by the war, and John Robertson a former Confederate soldier seeking to separate himself from the remanence of the war, all of whom struggled throughout this year to survive and find their new places in a changing world.…

    • 1361 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Two Kinds Author Amy Tan gives a remarkable look in the story “Two Kinds” into the dynamics of a clash of culture in one family. At some points in the story, it is hard to tell the protagonist from the antagonist. The man vs man conflict between mother and daughter is dynamic as it flows between them. Another interesting conflict is the battle between “Ni Kan’s” and “Waverly”, in addition to her mother and “Auntie Lindo” struggle to prove which daughter is more talented. The conflict of man vs man between Ni Kan’s mother and Auntie Lindo is in direct correlation the man vs man between her mother and Auntie Lindo.…

    • 856 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    John Brown’s Raid on Harpers Ferry was marked as one of the most important event that happen in the United States’ history. The event lead to the most memorable war of all time, the Civil War. In a book by Jonathan Earle, “John Brown’s Raid on Harper Ferry,” tells the story of John Brown and his journey from birth to his trial. Throughout history, many historians wonder if what Brown did was a correct decision. Is he a murderer?…

    • 1079 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Anderson Hatfield

    • 691 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Both of these families were spread all over the region and were widely intermarried with other families and with eachother. Several family names were represented in the struggle, and it has been proven that both families were involved on both sides. The earliest known violence between the two families…

    • 691 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In Taming Democracy (2007), Terry Bouton gives a thoroughly somber interpretation of the achievements of popular economic and political reforms within Pennsylvania resulting from the American Revolution. Bouton argues that despite increased suffrage and political participation, the majority of “ordinary people” were disappointed in the system of democracy which evolved in the decades following independence. While a significant proportion of white males achieved notable political rights as a result of the revolutionary movement, “in terms of economic well-being that gave independence its meaning, life in postwar Pennsylvanian resembled the dark days of the 1760s and 1770s.” The elite class of society, who during the 1760s and 1770s supported…

    • 1607 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The essay, “Long-Legged Yankee Lies” was a surprising essay – not what I expected to read after reading James M. McPherson’s other works. The focus of this essay was to thoroughly explain one of the main interpretations of the Civil War – the “South’s Lost Cause.” The Lost Cause, as the Southerners perceived themselves after the Civil War, is explained in that the South was incredibly outnumbered by the North in both men and resources. The South perceived themselves as righteous men who fought for state’s rights, freedoms granted by the Constitution that cannot legally be infringed upon by the government, and the approval of the people with actions taken against them by their government.…

    • 769 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Confederate Civil War Soldier Letter written by Samuel Webster Dunaway (1834-1917). To his first wife, Elizabeth Ann (Forrester) Dunaway (1827-1902) of Hickman County, Tennessee. Penned while serving in Co. F, 42nd Tennessee Infantry.…

    • 332 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Midnight Rising Analysis

    • 733 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Midnight Rising: John Brown and the raid that sparked the Civil War is written by Tony Horwitz: a bestselling author and journalist who has taken the time to tell an essential American story. The book covers the events surrounding the raid on Harpers Ferry and the complex character of John Brown. Horwitz thesis explains that the raid on Harpers Ferry is the spark that lit the fire of secession and Civil War. John Brown grew as a descendent of Puritans and soldiers from the Revolutionary War, and his upbringing created his “burning hatred of racial oppression” (Horwitz, p.16) and “determination to help slaves” (Horwitz, p.19). He believed that the dissipation of slavery would fulfill America’s founding principles, so he began to lead raids…

    • 733 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Amish Orders in Holmes County, Ohio explains the history of the Amish and how they came to America. The paper focuses on the different orders of the Amish living in Holmes County, Ohio. The author mentions why there are different types of Amish orders and how each order’s culture effects the landscape. The paper also describes a few Amish beliefs and how they are different within each order. I learned how the Amish are quite diverse within the Holmes County area.…

    • 271 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the midst of a war how people interact with others from different cultures or within their own, may be their making or breaking point. In the book Storming Heaven by Denise Giardina and in the movie Matewan, it is clear to see how the miners have conflict with the company, the scabs, and with themselves, and how the miners come together within their own group and with the scabs. Each of these interactions impact the fight for the miner’s basic human rights against the company men either for bad or for good. The first three-quarters of the book is filled with conflict as people try to figure out what is going on, how to deal with their problems, and who their friends are.…

    • 1353 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    American Social Issues and Revolutionary Ideas “The distinction between Virginians, Pennsylvanians, New Yorkers, and New Englanders, are no more. I am not a Virginia, but an American,” Patrick Henry declared in his 1774 speech at a meeting of the First Continental Congress (“Patrick”). This rhetoric illustrates the sense of society Americans felt. According to Gordon S. Wood in “Rhetoric and Reality in the America Revolution,” there is a link between American social issues and Revolutionary ideas. When looking at the causes of the American Revolution, American ideas, displayed through their rhetoric, are deeply connected to the social issues of the time.…

    • 767 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays