Articles

Documenting the American Family

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Abstract

Nearly ten years ago, historians "discovered" the family as a valid field of historical inquiry. During the ensuing years, two aspects of family history have combined to make it a popular topic. First, it provided issues interesting to students that also allowed them to do both extensive and meaningful primary research. Second, historians at last realized what psychologists, sociologists and anthropologists had long known—that the family was the fundamental unit of social organization. If they were to understand the dynamics of the societies they studied, they needed to understand this most basic institution.

How to Cite:

Reiff, J., (1978) “Documenting the American Family”, Archival Issues 3(1), 39–46.