H. Trevor Colbourn (1927–2015)

This book is one of the Liberty Fund publications, virtually ensuring its importance and intelligence, but I digress...

Trevor Colbourn utilizes books as insight into the ideas and theories of their readers and owners. _The Lamp of Experience_ illustrates his theory that modern historians can better understand the theories and ideologies of the founding fathers by looking into their private libraries, library usage, and reading patterns. He looks at the reading of Whig histories from both the colonies and England as important factors on the ideology espoused by the founding fathers--especially concerning their rights as Englishmen. The book is divided into two parts: "English heritage and the Colonial Historical View" and "Revolutionary Use of History".

The first part traces the transition of the Saxon Myth of political ideology through the Whig interpretation and creation of the common law as viewed by Whig colonists. The second part of the book looks at examples of important Whig colonists in New England, Pennsylvania, and the South. It then further breaks down the reading reading habits of important leaders in revolutionary theory from Thomas Jefferson and John Adams to Richard Bland and George Mason, from Pennsylvania down into the Southern colonies as windows into the Whig ideology that prompted men to stand up for their inherent rights as followers of the ancient constitutional tradition.

The book is a thorough and fascinating read on the reading habits of prominent men at the foundations of the United States. Colbourn discusses the background of "Whig ideology" in a manner that even those unfamiliar with the term can easily understand his premise. It's recommended to both the historian and average reader.… (más)