Charles Sellers

Born in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1923, Charles Grier Sellers Jr. became an influential American historian of the early United States. He studied at Harvard and earned his Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, later teaching for many years at the University of California, Berkeley.

He wrote or co-wrote several major books, including James K. Polk: Continentalist, 1843–1846 and The Market Revolution: Jacksonian America, 1815–1846. The latter became especially well known for arguing that the rise of capitalism and the growth of democracy were often in tension rather than naturally aligned.

Sellers's writing is remembered for being bold, clear, and willing to challenge accepted views. For listeners interested in American history, his work offers a lively, deeply argued look at politics, power, and everyday life in the 19th century.