Recent questions and interpretations of the U.S. Constitution have left many Americans wondering over the history and basic values of this monumentally important document. Herbert A. Johnson provides the historical background of the constitution to help shed light on the important concepts of private property rights, the idea of limited government, and the interrelationship between public and private law. American Legal and Constitutional History provides an introduction to the constitutional and private law development in the American colonies and states until 1937. This history is invaluable for law and graduate courses in legal and constitutional history, as well as undergraduate honors courses.