Remembering Daniel Walker Howe and His Study of Early America

Daniel Walker Howe wrote a major history of the United States covering 1815 to 1848. The book What Hath God Wrought won the Pulitzer Prize for History in 2008 and has been widely read by students and scholars. He taught at Yale University, the University of California, Los Angeles, and Oxford University, and he was professor emeritus at UCLA.

What Hath God Wrought explores how new technologies such as the telegraph and railroads changed daily life, and how social movements advanced ideas about slavery and women's rights. Although the era included prominent political leaders, Howe argued that sweeping social and technological changes produced long-term transformations. Since he emphasized the role of religion and reform movements, the narrative links moral beliefs with political developments; therefore readers encounter a complex picture of the early republic.

Howe died on December 25, 2025, at age 88. He was born in Ogden, Utah, and grew up in Denver. Students remembered him as a lively teacher who liked to sing early American songs, and a memorial event was held on January 10. He was a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Royal Historical Society.