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This thesis examines the trends towards states' rights and the decline of the Federalist party through the examination of the Louisiana Purchase, the Embargo Act of 1807, and the War of 1812.

In 1953 the tangled, skeletal remains of a ship were pulled from the small harbor of Penetanguishene, Ontario. Local historians had hoped to raise the hull of a War of 1812 veteran, but the vessel pulled from the depths did not meet the criteria. Identified as H.M. Schooner Tecumseth, the vessel was built just after the War of 1812 had ended. Historical research of Tecumseth and her sister ship Newash, which remained in Penetanguishene harbor, illuminated the ships? shadowy past. Conceived and built after the war, the vessels sailed for only two years before being rendered obsolete by the terms of the Rush-Bagot disarmament agreement. Nevertheless, the two vessels offer a unique perspective from which to view the post-war period on the Great Lakes. The schooners? hulls were interpreted and analyzed using archaeological evidence. A theoretical rigging reconstruction was created, using contemporary texts and documentary evidence of the ships themselves. Architectural hull analysis was carried out to explore the nature of these vessels. From these varied approaches, a conception of Newash and Tecumseth has emerged, revealing ways in which the hulls were designed to fulfill their specific duties. The hulls were sharp, yet had capacious cargo areas. The rigs combined square-rigged and fore-and-aft sails for maximum flexibility. The designs of the hulls and rigging also reflect predominant attitudes of the period, in which naval vessels on the lakes gave way to merchant craft. Taken as a whole, Tecumseth and Newash illustrate how ships, while fluid in the nature of their work, are also singular entities that truly encapsulate a specific point in time and place.

In 1997 a group of archaeologists from Texas A&M University's Nautical Archaeology Program traveled to Wasaga Beach, Ontario to document the hull remains of the eighteenth-century schooner Nancy. In 1927, the schooner was recovered from the banks of an island in the Nottawasaga River, near its confluence with Lake Huron. The hull is now on display in the Nancy Island Historic Site. Despite being available to the public for more than 75 years, the 1997 documentation was the first to thoroughly record the construction of the vessel. In addition to archaeological investigation, historical research was carried out to further our understanding of Nancy's commercial and naval career. The archaeological data reveal a schooner that was built by talented shipwrights using the fine timber harvested around the Great Lakes in the eighteenth-century. This study adds a considerable amount of new information to the otherwise scanty base of knowledge available on the construction of early Great Lakes sailing vessels. Historical research shows that Nancy and her crews were participants in many important events that shaped the Great Lakes Region. From her construction in Detroit in 1789, Nancy was employed in the fur trade. As tensions flared between Great Britain and the United States in 1812, Nancy was utilized as an armed transport for the British forces around the lakes. in August of 1814, the schooner was trapped in the Nottawasaga River by a strong American naval force. Nancy's commander set fire to the vessel to deny it to the enemy. This thesis examines the construction details and history of the schooner Nancy in detail. Preliminary chapters will provide the historical context for the vessel and describe Nancy's long journey that ended at the Nancy Island Historic Site. The second half of the thesis describes the construction of the schooner and compares it with other contemporary vessels. The study concludes that Nancy's hull represents an eighteeth-century construction tradition modified for use on the Great Lakes, and also demonstrates the vessel's dual roles as trader and military transport.

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No description available.

The impressment of American seamen by the Royal Navy was one of the most serious dilemmas faced by the United States during the early republic. Thousands of American citizens were forced into British naval service between 1793 and 1812. This dissertation uses a wide-variety of sources including seamen’s letters, newspapers, almshouse records, US Navy officer’s correspondence, and diplomatic communiqués, to demonstrate the widespread impact impressment had on American society. A sizable database on impressed Americans was created for this dissertation. The database was instrumental in some of this work’s most important theses. Drawing on an array of sources, such as newspaper reports, seamen appeals, and State Department reports, the database contains detailed information on thousands of men. Far more Americans were pressed in the Royal Navy than previously believed. While historians have long accepted that New England suffered most from impressment, in fact it was the mid-Atlantic states that lost the most mariners to the Royal Navy. Southern states were also impacted by impressment far more than anybody has realized. Seaman abductions profoundly affected American domestic, foreign, and naval affairs. Impressment influenced American culture and played a role in the African slavery debate of the early republic. Impressment also exacted a heavy toll on waterfront communities as wives and children struggled to adjust to life during the prolonged absence of the primary wage earner. Although the federal government attempted repeatedly to either legislate or negotiate a resolution to the impressment issue, all efforts were in vain. When James Madison prepared to lead the United States to war against Great Britain in 1812, the belligerence of impressment figured largely in his decision, as well as in Congressional support for war. Impressment has often been viewed as an issue of minor importance, confined largely to New England. In actuality, impressment was a national concern that impinged on a myriad of issues during the early American republic. / History

The War of 1812 brought daunting financial challenges to the national government of the United States. At the onset of war, policymakers were still in the process of sifting through a developing body of American economic thought while contemplating the practicalities of banking and public finance. The young nation's wartime experience encompassed the travails of incompetent and cautious leadership, the incautious optimism that stemmed from several previous years of economic growth, the inadequacies of the banking system, and, ultimately, the temporary deterioration of the financial position of the United States. While not equivalent to great tragedy, the war did force Americans to attend to the financial infrastructure of the country and reevaluate what kinds of institutions were truly necessary. This study of the financing of the War of 1812 provides a greater understanding of how the early American economy functioned and the sources of its economic progress during that era. Financial studies have typically not been a primary focus of historians, and certainly with regard to the War of 1812, it is easy to understand a preoccupation with political and military affairs. To a large degree, however, economic realities and financial infrastructure determine a nation's capacity for growth and change as well as national strength. The War of 1812 offers a prism through which to view the tensions of economic and financial policymaking during an emergency situation and reveals an important turning point in the development of distinctly American financial ideas and institutions.

William C. C. Claiborne found himself a stranger in a strange land. Almost more a colonial governor of a European power rather than an American statesman, Claiborne grappled with maintaining a militia force for the Territory of Orleans, now the present day state of Louisiana. He built upon the volunteer companies he found within the city of New Orleans, but had little success molding the entire militia into an effective, efficient military force. Claiborne, hoping to use the fear generated by the January 1811 slave revolt to spur militia reform, maintained an active correspondence with the state's legislators, the area's military commanders, the members of the Louisiana congressional delegation, and even the President of the United States for assistance with militia matters. Ultimately, Claiborne failed and the British attack on New Orleans in 1814/1815 made the matter of reform academic.