Presidencies of the United States

In honor of my one year anniversary of podcasting, I did this special episode to run simultaneously on the Harrison Podcast to share a little bit about how I got started podcasting, some information about our audience, and a chance for you to be entered into a drawing for a gift card to Powell’s Books. The survey mentioned in the episode can be found at https://goo.gl/forms/AKCJOi0LEOCXv1ce2, but you must complete it as instructed by July 31st and leave your name and email address to be entered into the drawing. Please note: If you haven’t already, I do ask that you listen to at least one episode of either podcast (and this one doesn’t count) before participating in the drawing so that you can give feedback to help make the podcasts better as we go into year two. Thanks so much in advance! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Content Note: Though not going into graphic detail, I did want to let everyone know upfront that this episode, in discussing slavery, does touch upon the violence associated with slavery including that perpetrated against female enslaved people. Year(s) Discussed: 1490s-1792 European settlers in the Western Hemisphere began practicing slavery in the lands that they found on the other side of the Atlantic in the late 15th century. In this episode, we examine the institution of slavery in what would become the United States as it developed up to the end of Washington’s first term in office. From its beginnings to its codification, we also look at some of the living conditions of enslaved peoples and early efforts to end the practice of slavery. The episode finishes off with bringing the focus back to Washington and how he approached slavery as he participated in the Constitutional Convention and then took office as president. Source information for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Year(s) Discussed: 1792-1793 Washington hopes that third time will be the charm as he taps Anthony Wayne, a general who had served under him in the Revolutionary War, to take command of the Army following St. Clair’s defeat and to prosecute military action against native forces in the old Northwest. Wayne, who earned the nickname of “Mad Anthony” during the war, is not necessarily what one would call a conventional officer, however. Will Washington’s gamble pay off? Meanwhile, unknown to everyone, a spy lurks in the midst of the military forces in the West and threatens the future westward expansion of the United States. Source information for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Year(s) Discussed: 1789-1792 Numerous foreign relations issues faced Washington’s first administration. In this episode, we examine how the administration dealt with the Anglo-American trade imbalance, the impact of the French Revolution, Spanish attempts to break the lands west of the Appalachians away from the US, and what would prove to be the only successful major large scale slave insurrection that occurred in the French colony of Saint-Domingue at the beginning of what we now know of as the Haitian Revolution. Hope you have your seatbelts fastened, listeners, cause early 1790s diplomacy can be a bumpy ride! Sources used in this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Year(s) Discussed: 1789-1791 Increasingly during the Washington administration, tensions were beginning to build between pro-administration and anti-administration factions which would ultimately culminate in the development of the First Party System. This episode looks at some of the structural and cultural reasons for these divisions as well as some of the early leaders of the two factions including, of course Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton and Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson. Source information for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Year(s) Discussed: 1789-1791 The government is on the move! As the federal government transitions to its new temporary capitol while Washington selects a site for the permanent capitol along the Potomac, it is also forced to deal with the most controversial proposal put forward to date: the creation of a National Bank. Meanwhile, Hamilton’s proposal of an excise tax on whiskey sails through and a new state is added to the Union. Source information can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Year(s) Discussed: 1789-1792 While Congress deliberates on the course of the nation in New York, settlers in the frontier were forging ahead with their own future beyond the Appalachian mountains. In this episode, we look at the development of territories in the west and discuss how the Washington administration prioritized affairs in the region. The military’s role in the area is discussed at some length including the not-so-stellar outcomes of two campaigns against native peoples in the Northwest Territory and what impact this would have on the administration and the nation. Source information for this episode as well as supplementary maps can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Year(s) Discussed: 1790 The new government of the United States comes grinding to a halt in the spring and summer of 1790 as Congress reaches an impasse on both Hamilton’s proposed public credit scheme and the decision of where the new government should be permanently located. Ultimately, a decision is reached on both, but how it came about is rather complicated. If you’ve ever heard of the Compromise of 1790, then you’ll want to listen to this episode as there’s more to the story than has been told over the years. Meanwhile, health concerns plague a couple of major American figures, bringing even more uncertainty to an already unstable time. All the big players are in this one – Jefferson, Hamilton, Madison, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Henry Knox, and, of course, Mr. President. Source information for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Year(s) Discussed: 1790 Hamilton’s Report on the Public Credit is sent to Congress in January 1790 and immediately causes an uproar. As congressmen divide into pro and anti-administration factions on this issue, I take a closer look in this episode at the report and Hamilton’s proposals on how to deal with the public credit in order to ensure “the honor and prosperity of the United States” as well as what James Madison thought of Hamilton’s ideas. Source information for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Year(s) Discussed: 1789 After a debate over how much authority Washington would exert over its officers, the executive branch begins to take shape. I examine both the original Cabinet members and the departments as they were at the beginning of the constitutional government. Then, as Washington leaves town to take a tour of the New England states, a personal scandal becomes the talk of the town in New York City. Romantic liaisons, conflicts of interest, and strong opinions over postal routes are all to be found in this episode. Source information can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices