“The surest fertilizer of a movement

is the blood of martyrs.”

 Bernard DeVoto

The Year of Decision 1846

This a great book about the Polk administration.  The war with Mexico, the Donner party, the treaty with Great Britain that resolved the Oregon Territories border and much more all happened in 1846.  The book was published in 1940 so the writing is dated but captivating.  Well worth reading.