Overview
We will begin our examination of U.S. social policy history by reviewing social welfare systems in medieval and post-feudal England. As was indicated in our text, these systems strongly influenced the development, or lack of development, of social welfare systems within colonial America.
We will then investigate the policies enacted during the first century following the establishment of the U.S. Although a significant amount of national policy was being developed during and after the Revolutionary War, very little dealt directly with the welfare of U.S. citizens. In relation to social welfare policy, this period in U.S. history can be described as one in which anti-federalism and localism prevailed.
