History of America 1795

A new Man-o-War for the US Navy.
Boston Oct 21, 1797.
The fledgling United States Navy was bolstered today by another man-o-war when the Constitution slid down into Boston harbour. Built at Hart’s shipyard mostly of oak and cedar, the ship has 44 guns and cost $302,718. It is called Old Ironsides because its hard oak timbers were not steamed into place in the usual manner but bent into place. This leaves the wood harder. The 1,576 ton frigate became the third completed this year.

New trading post in the Northwest. Montreal 1797
Charles Chaboillez, a member of the aggressive North West company of Montreal, has established a new strategically located fur trading post known as Pembina in the Northern Plains country at the junction of the Red and Pembina Rivers. The North West company is challenging its rivals exclusive right to the fur trade in that region. It has been a force to be reckoned with in the British North for 20- years, and may yet become a challenge to American traders.

War threats prompts protective Laws. Philadelphia July 11, 1798.
In response to growing hysteria regarding the so-called “XYZ” affair, in which the French attempted diplomatic intimidation of America, and the undeclared naval war between the United States and France, Congress today passed the Sedition Act. The last of four pieces of legislation aimed at curbing dissent against the administration and preventing internal subversion, the acts subjected any American citizen to a fine and/or/imprisonment for obstructing the implementation of federal law.
Congress already approved three measures that have similar intent, The Naturalisation Act, passed June 18, The Alien Friends Act, passed June 25 and The Alien Enemies Act passed July 6, 1798.

Standardised parts in guns foreseen. New Haven Connecticut 1798
Eli Whitney, inventor of the cotton gin, has told the government he can supply 10,000 muskets with parts that are interchangeable. Instead of using the conventional method in which a skilled workman makes the entire musket, Whitney plans to employ machine tools that allow unskilled workmen to produce large numbers of standardised parts, any one of which will fit a musket of this design. Whitney says his new system of production will allow him to supply the 10,000 muskets within two years, much faster than possible with the conventional method. It is said that the government will offer him a contract soon.

U.S. Navy victory: French frigate seized.
Nevis, West Indies Feb 9, 1799.
The first clear-cut victory for the newly formed United States Navy was scored off this island today by the recently commissioned frigate, Constellation in a duel with the French ship Insurgente. After a sharp engagement fought in winds that rose to gale force, the Insurgente was forced to strike its colours, and a prize crew under lt. John Rodgers and midshipman David Porter are bringing the vessel and 173 prisoners into St. Kitts.

First products from Japan arrive in the U.S.
Boston, May 1799.
Captain James Devereaux landed in Boston harbour this month not only with coffee and spices from the Dutch East Indies but also the first products imported from Japan. Last year, after sailing his chartered ship, the Franklin, to the East Indies to pick up a cargo of Java Coffee, Devereaux accepted a lucrative offer to continue on a trade run to Nagasaki harbour and picked up Japanese mats, lacquered objects and pans.

United States Capital is now Washington Nov. 17, 1800
Congress opened its first session in this new capital of Washington, District of Columbia, today. While most of the district is swamp and farmland, there is little in the way of lodgings for Members of Congress, construction of homes, shops and taverns is underway.

Washington’s dying words “tis well”. Philadelphia Dec. 36, 1799.
Eulogising George Washington, General Henry Lee today pronounced the ‘late’ President “first in war, first in peace, first in the hearts of his countrymen”. The eloquence is strengthened by truth: Washington led the Continental Army to victory in war; he was its first president for two terms in a time of relative peace and upon his death December 14, the nation mourned the greatest friend it had known.

Who will be the next US President?.
Philadelphia Dec. 3 1800
Preliminary reports indicate that Thomas Jefferson will be the next President. Although ballots will not be officially counted until February, it seems that Jefferson and his republicans have won the public’s trust. In his campaign he expressed his commitment to democracy.

Jefferson, Burr tie: Jefferson chosen. Washington DC, March 4, 1801.
In a history making decision, the House of Representatives has chosen Thomas Jefferson to be the next President, while naming Aaron Burr Vice President. The house was called upon to elect the nation’s two highest officials when the two republican candidates, Jefferson and Burr, received the same number of votes in the Electoral College. According to the Constitution, presidential electors do not specify their preference for their choice of candidates for either President or Vice President
In the New President’s inaugural address today, he praised democratic ideas and promised “peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations - entangling alliances with none.

Philadelphians get an aqueduct system. Philadelphia 1801.
Philadelphia residents can now drink water delivered through a system of aqueducts powered by that miracle of modern technology, the steam engine. The first “atmospheric engine” used in America was one installed in a New Jersey copper mine in 1755; it was of the type invented by the Englishman Thomas Newcomen, in 1712. In 1774, New York City built a similar steam engine to power its waterworks.

Slave uprisings plague South; slavery curbed in Northern states. United States 1802.
All states North of the Mason-Dixon Line have now passed anti-slave laws or laws calling for the gradual emancipation, except for New Jersey. This creates an official and well delineated division of the nation into Northern free states and Southern slave states.
While northerner seem to have come to terms with their Negroes, the South still seems to be boiling with slave uprisings and conspiracies. In North Carolina, at least six counties have reported slave conspiracies recently, including a plot in May led by the outlaw, Tom Cooper that resulted in as many as 15 slaves being executed.
Virginia has also been the scene of many insurrections. Alleged conspiracies in Richmond, Williamsburg, Norfolk, Princes Anne, Hanover County, Halifax and elsewhere have resulted in the banishing, flogging or hanging of a large number of slaves.
Some white men., as well as Negroes, were reported to be involved in the revolutionary plot in Halifax.

Future State of Ohio writes constitution. Washington DC Nov. 29, 1802.
After an unsuccessful last-ditch effort by the territorial Governor, Arthur St.Clair, to block Ohio’s bid for statehood a the constitutional convention held in Chillicothe over the past 3 weeks, President Thomas Jefferson announced today that St.Clair would be removed from office and that the constitution drafted by Republican delegates would be approved. These actions were the culmination of a bitter battle over Ohio statehood between Federalist political forces led by St. Clair and Jeffersonian Republicans led by Thomas Worthington, a wealthy liberal from Chillicothe.

Ohio joins Union as 17th State.
Cilliecothe, March 1, 1803.
Republican leaders are celebrating here today after learning that Ohio has been admitted as the 17th state in the union and the first to be carved out of the Northwest territory despite efforts by federalists to block the bid for statehood. The states constitution becomes the first in the union to forbid slavery by law, and the new state legislature, which will convene here in a few days, has been given extraordinary powers.

U.S. Doubles size; buys Louisiana for $15 million. New Orleans Dec 20, 1803
The French tricolour was lowered in New Orleans today and the Stars & Stripes raised in its place, thus symbolising the transfer of the Louisiana Territory from France to the United States. In what has been one of the largest peaceful cessions of territory in history, the United States acquired a vast segment of the North American continent for the minuscule sum of $15 million. In one fell swoop, the territory of the United States of America has doubled.

Spain originally claimed this vast and largely unexplored land that stretches from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. In 1801, the Spaniards ceded the territory to France. This caused grave concern in Washington, because whoever controlled the territory also controlled the port of New Orleans and the entrance to the Gulf of Mexico. Fortunately for the United States, France, which had suffered the loss of thousands of troops in the Caribbean as a result of slave revolts and tropical diseases on the island of Santo Domingo was loosing interest in the north American continent. In April 1803, Jefferson despatched fellow Virginian James Munroe to Paris with an offer to purchase the land. Amazingly this was readily agreed to by Napoleons government and a deed of Cession was sent to Jefferson on April 30

Hamilton killed in duel. New Jersey July 12, 1804
Former Treasury Secretary, Alexander Hamilton has died a most painful death of wounds suffered yesterday in a duel with a political opponent, Aaron Burr. Burr who survived the duel unscathed, has not yet extended sympathy to Hamilton’s grieving family and seems to have secluded himself. Hamilton’s fellow statesmen, however, have expressed dismay over his untimely death. Acquaintances fin it inconceivable that Hamilton would willingly indulge in duelling, a practice he publicly deplored after an “affaire d’honneur” claimed the life of his son Philip three years ago.

U.S. Fleet batters Tripoli. Sept. 5, 1804.
Acting on his conviction that the Barbary potentates are “a deep designing artful treacherous sett of Villains” who will respond only to a strong show of force, Commodore Edward Preble has just completed the fifth general attack on the fortifications and town of the Pasha’s capital. The final blow was to have been last night’ detonation among the enemy fleet of the ketch Intrepid, which had been converted into an “infernal” - a fire ship loaded with a large quantity of gunpowder. But though moving under cover of darkness, the ship was sighted by enemy gunners and blown up. With the loss of the crew of 13.

N.Y Negro boxer is famed in England. New York, 1805.
Bill Richmond, a Negro servant in the employ of Lord Percy, a British General who was stationed in New York in the colonial era, was able to improve his lot by boxing British soldiers. He defeated all rivals and when Lord Percy returned to England in 1777, the general took Richmond back with him. In England, the “Black Terror” as Richmond became known, kept winning until he was knocked-out this year by the claimant to the British title Tom Cribb in 1hr. 30 mins.

Lewis & Clark sight Pacific at last. Columbia River Nov. 7, 1805.
After a perilous journey of 18 months and nearly 4,000 miles, the Lewis and Clark expedition has finally reached its objective, the Pacific Ocean, opening what many hope will be a new era of westward expansion for the United States.
This Corps of Discovery left Fort Mandan on the upper Missouri River on April 7 in six canoes and two large pirogues. Near the end of April, the expedition passed the mouth of the Yellowstone river, and a month later caught its first sight of the Rocky mountains Bu mid June the group reached the awesome Great Falls of the Missouri. By mid-August, the expedition had crossed the continental divide and encountered the Shoshone or Snake Indians, parent tribe of Charbonneau’s squaw, Sacjawea, a guide, and with her help struck a deal for 30 horses to begin the difficult trek through the Bitterroot Mountains

Russians to get rights to trade in America. San Francisco April 5, 1806.
In the past, Spanish authorities here have been wary of selling food and supplies to Russian-American colonists who come down from Alaska in search of such provisions. Now in an abrupt turnaround, the Spanish government has agreed to sell supplies to these colonists. The Russian’s representative, Nicolai. Rezanov, has been in San Francisco for months trying to negotiate a sale.

Cherry Tree grafted onto Washington lore. Philadelphia 1806.
George Washington’s honesty had a precocious start, according to the fifth edition of “The Life and Memorable Actions of George Washington”. Author, Mason Locke Weems, quondam minister and book pedlar, conveniently finds new lore for each edition. Parson Weems now writes that when Washington was 6 years old, he cut down an English cherry tree with a hatchet he received as a gift. Questioned by his father, George confessed with the words, “I can’t tell a lie, Pa; you know I can’t tell a lie”.

British fire on U.S. Ship, remove four men. Virginia June 22, 1807.
Outraged demands for retaliation have greeted the news brought to port today by Capt. James Barron of the Chesapeake that his ship was intercepted, attacked, boarded and searched while on the high seas by a vessel belonging to the Royal Navy. Four crew members were removed by the boarding party and 21 were killed or wounded when the British ship opened fire.

US eating habits decried by visitors. New York 1807
Although the average American eats bountifully, some French visitors find his sense of taste and eating habits wanting. Constantin Francois de Chasseboeuf, Count of Volney, has decried the amount of lard, butter, salt, pork greasy pudding, coffee and tea Americans consume. And Francois Jean Marquis de Chastellux, in his “Travels in North America” says the days pass in “heaping indigestion upon one another”.

Madison Elected; Clinton is Vice-President. Washington DC Dec. 7 1808
James Madison. President Thomas Jefferson’s Secretary of State and his hand-picked successor, has won election as President in a bitter though lopsided contest. It is believed that electors have voted have cast more than 120 votes for the Republican Madison and less than 50 votes for his chief opponent, the Federalist Charles Cotesworth Pinkney of South Carolina. Couriers are now on route to Washington with the exact totals. The vie presidency has been won with similar strength by the incumbent New Yorker, George Clinton, who has trailed badly in his simultaneous run for the Presidency.

Astor’s fur monopoly to expand in West. New York Apr 6, 1808.
The New York State Legislature passed a act today to incorporate John Jacob Astor’s newest enterprise, the American Fur Company. The venture is Astor’s attempt to establish a competitive American company in an industry that has so far been dominated by foreigners. At present ¾ of the furs purchased in the United States are supplied by two Canadian firms, the North West Company and the Michilmackinac Company and more than $400,000 worth of these furs are traped each year in United States territories. Shifting the business to American hands, Astor claims, will lower prices for consumers and increase tax revenues for the government.

Washington Irving pokes fun at New York. Philadelph. Dec 6, 1809
Inskeep and Bradford have just released A History of New York, from the Beginning of the World to the End of the Dutch Dynasty
Ostensibly the work of Diedrich Knickerboker, a “small elderly gentleman dressed in an old black coat and a cocked hat” whose misadventures have lately been reported in local papers. Knickerboker was actually invented by 26-year-old Washington Irving, who is also the author of “The History“, a mock scholarly tome that burlesques Jeffersonian democracy, academic pedantry and all pretence, ancient or modern.

Embargo on Trade with Britain reinstated. Washington DC Aug 9, 1809
The on-again, off-again, course of economic sanctions against European powers that violate American rights, as neutrals continues with today’s announcement by President Madison that he is reinstating the embargo on trade with Britain. The action comes as a response to the refusal by the British Foreign Secretary, George Canning, to revoke the orders-in-council that have been used to justify British harassment of American shipping.
Though the embargo is widely unpopular among Americans, having led some New England states to talk of seceding, many felt that the President had to something to protest Canning’s repudiation of the assurances given last April by David Erskine, the ambassador to the United States, that the offending orders would be withdrawn.

Kamehameha of Honolulu unifies islands. 1810
King Kamehameha the Great has ended years of frustration by finally winning obeisance from the last island monarch, King Kaumualii without bloodshed.
In swearing allegiance to the 6 foot 6 inch Kamehameha, Kaumaualii joined the otheer island kings conquered by the man that Lieutenant James King of Captain Cook’s expedition described as having “ as savage a looking face as I ever saw”. But Kamehameha was not fierce in his meeting with Kaumaulalii allowing the Kauai regent to retain control over his kingdom for the

Boone comes home to pay his debts. Maysville, Kentucky 1810.
Daniel Boone has come home to Kentucky and cleared his name of the debts he amassed some 24 years ago. Boone was a prominent Kentucky legislator and fell into debt when it was discovered that he owned a great deal of land for which he had filed incorrectly. In the actions that followed, he lost all his land and property and moved to Point Pleasant (West Virginia) where he later was elected the legislative delegate to Kanawha County. Now, having paid off his debts, he is rumoured to be left without a cent.

Slaves killed in Rebellion; heads shown. New Orleans Jan 10, 1811
A rebellion of more than 400 slaves that began two days ago has forced many white residents of the parishes of St. Charles and St. John the Baptist to flee to safety in New Orleans. The rebellion began at the plantation of Major Andry when slaves armed with cane knives, axes, clubs and a few guns killed Andry’s son and marched onto other plantations, destroying them and killing tl least one other white. The rebellion was led by Charles Delondes a free mulatto from Haiti; the other rebels were said to be local slaves. Yesterday, the insurrection was opposed by a group of planters led by Major Andry, who pursued the slaves and executed many. Today the state troopers were called out, surrounding the remaining rebels .

Harrison routs Indians at Tippecanoe. Indiana Territory Nov. 8, 1811.
Travellers report that General W H Harrison defeated a huge number of Shawnee Indians yesterday at the Battle of Tippecanoe in the Indiana Territories . Earlier today, General Harrison and his army warded off a ferocious counterattack and responded by wiping out the main Indian community at Prophet’s Town, near the Tipecanoe River. The encounter was by far the most significant of the Indian-American conflicts since 1791. In that bloody clash, which also took place in the Northwest Territories, the army of General St. Clair was destroyed.

Gilbert Stuart paints Washington portrait. Philadelphia 1795.
The United States can boast an image of George Washington that is as strong as the President himself. In March Stuart made good use of the rare opportunity to paint Washington from life, for those who know the President find the likeness convincing. The painting is more than a portrait; it is an icon for the nation. The formal pose and patrician air of the depiction gives Washington a nobility that derives from Stuart’s European training.

Nation of drinkers. Philadelphia 1795.
Drinking spirits has become very much an American pastime, and the availability of beer, cider, rum, wine, gin and rye and bourbon whiskey has made the consumption of alcoholic beverages very much a family affair and one of the rewards of hard work. Americans drink far more than the British; rough estimates indicate that annually an American over 15 years old drinks 34 gallons of beer and cider, five gallons of distilled spirits and nearly a gallon of wine. The morals and values of the American communities however, apparently keep public drunkenness under control.

Tennessee becomes 16th state in U.S. June 1, 1796.
The Southwest Territory today became the state of Tennessee the 16th of the nation. After a census that was taken last year showed the population of the territory had passed the figure required for statehood, 60,000 resident, a constitutional convention was assembled in the capital of the territory, Knoxville, and it put together Tennessee’s first constitution. As a slaveholding state however, it will be allowed only one delegate in Congress. John Sevier, who served as Governor of the defunct state of Franklin, has been chosen to become the first Governor.

John Adams becomes new President. Philadelphia Dec. 7, 1796
After a bitter campaign, John Adams has defeated Thomas Jefferson for the presidency. The Vice-President won 71 electoral votes, while Jefferson got 68. As the constitution provides, Jefferson will become the next Vice President. The Federalist Party, torn between Adams and Hamilton factions, was accused of being too sympathetic to England. In turn, the Jeffersonian Republicans were charged with being overly Francophile. Now political observers were wondering whether these two political enemies can effectively work together in the same administration. Throughout the campaign, President Washington has maintained his political neutrality saying only that the wisdom and strength of Republican government would be confirmed at the ballot box.

When the report of the amazing offer - and the American response - reached the nation’s capital, a great political and constitutional debate ensued. Some congressmen feared the country would become so large and unwieldy that it would literally be ungovernable Jefferson believed that, constitutional questions aside, he had to accept Napoleon’s offer. The President submitted the cession, or Louisiana Purchase Treaty to the Senate on October 20. It received overwhelming bipartisan support and won approval by a vote of 24 to 7.