With an epic career that spanned two-thirds of the twentieth century, C. Vann Woodward was a historian of singular importance. A brilliant writer, his work captivated both academic and public audiences. James Cobb offers many original insights into Woodward's early years and private life, his long career, and his almost mythic public persona.

"With an epic career that spanned two-thirds of the twentieth century, C. Vann Woodward (1908-1999) was a historian of singular importance. A brilliant writer, his work captivated both academic and public audiences. He also figured prominently in the major intellectual conflicts between left and right during the last half of the twentieth century, although his unwavering commitment to free speech and racial integration that affirmed his liberalism in the 1950s struck some as emblematic of his growing conservatism by the 1990s."--