One emotion permeated the United States in the second half of the 19th century. It wasn’t greed for gold or lust for land—it was loneliness. The nation’s gender geography was all out of kilter. In the West were thousands of unattached men who’d left everything behind to seek their fortunes. In the East were most of the women—and the Civil War would only compound the problem by leaving behind so many grieving widows and girlfriends. Such a drastic imbalance needed to be fixed. Thanks


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