Rivals and Friends: Jefferson's Presidency, Early Years
Just before Jefferson takes office, Congress reduces the number of justices on the Supreme Court by one and expands the number of federal judgeships. Adams takes advantage of his last days as president to appoint a number of Federalists to these new...
Rivals and Friends: Emergence of a Stronger Judiciary under Justice Marshall
The last minute appointments by the Adams' administration sets the stage for the emergence of a stronger judiciary under the leadership of John Marshall. When the Jeffersonians come into power they repeal the last-minute actions of the previous Cong...
Rivals and Friends: Jefferson as Administrator
Jefferson avoids Adams' mistakes in selecting his cabinet, appointing such talented administrators as Albert Gallatin and James Madison who share his views. In his first administration the Republicans control both houses of Congress, and Jefferson b...
Vision for a Nation: Ratification Strategy
It is one thing to get Convention delegates to agree on the Constitution; it's quite another matter to get states and opponents to go along with it. Perhaps the most revolutionary move of the Convention is the adoption of a ratification clause which...
Vision for a Nation: Controlling Federal Power
Historian Bernard Bailyn characterizes the construction of the Constitution as "something of a miracle." Delegates to the Constitutional Convention create a system for governing the country's large geographic area while maintaining the ideals of ind...
Vision for a Nation: Delegates Gather for Constitutional Convention
By the mid 1780s, the United States is a young nation in trouble. It is impossible to get all 13 states to agree on issues of national policy. Even the Annapolis convention to modify the Articles of Confederation fails to attract enough delegates. A...
Vision for a Nation: States Consider Constitutional Ratification
On September 17, 1787 thirty-nine delegates sign their names to the Constitution of the United States. All but one of the states hold ratifying conventions in which more than 1200 people examine the details and the principles of the document. Federa...
A Precarious Experiment: Challenges Facing the Young Nation
The United States faces a number of daunting issues in the years immediately following the war. The British do not evacuate the forts in the northwest territory or provide compensation for slaves as they had agreed. In 1784, Congress sends John Adam...
Vision for a Nation: Debate over Representation
A major challenge for the delegates is how to devise a system of representation that will work effectively over country of such vast size. There is no model to follow in the 18th century. Madison and other large-state delegates want representation i...