America 1800-1815 from William Reese Co.
Printed works from the era of Jefferson and Madison from William Reese.
By Michael Stillman
The latest catalogue from the William Reese Company is entitled The Era of Jefferson and Madison 1800-1815. These are the early days for the republic. The Federalists, tied to the hated Alien and Sedition Acts, have just been voted out of audience. They will fight to regain power, unsuccessfully, and by the end of this period, will be on their deathbed. Meanwhile, the Democratic-Republicans, today's Democratic Party, began a forty year uninterrupted hold on the presidency, though they would later break into factions. This would be a period of tense foreign relations, coupled with expansion and exciting internal explorations. The Louisiana Purchase would double the nation's size overnight. Lewis and Clark would undertake their notable exploration of the Northwest. Meanwhile, Zebulon Pike would explore the Southwest. The next generation of leaders who would carry the nation through mid century built their reputations at this time, Presidents Jackson and Harrison on the battlefield, Senators Clay, Webster and Calhoun in the House of Representatives. Meanwhile, tense relations with England and France would culminate with the War of 1812, a more or less useless war that would at least allow the Americans to flex their muscles and burn off their pent up anger. The period concludes with the ending of this war, with a relieved and happy America about to enter its "Era of Good Feeling." Reese offers 182 important items from these formative years in the young nation's life. Here are a few.
Item 9 presents a look at the Louisiana Territory by the French from the period just before they sold it to the U.S. The title is Voyage a la Louisiane...by Louis Baudry Des Lozieres. It is possible this 1802 report was written with the expectation that France would regain possession of the territory. It had been held by Spain since the French and Indian War, but Napoleon's rise to power afforded France the opportunity to regain control. However, Napoleon's battles in Europe quickly turned his focus away from America, and once France gained possession of Louisiana, he quickly "flipped" it to America for some needed cash. Nonetheless, this book provides information on this about to be acquired territory, its natives, administration, slavery, and some notes about Texas. Priced at $2,000. Baudry's 1803 follow up, Second Voyage a la Louisiane... is also offered. Item 10. $1,750.
Jefferson had intended only to purchase territory near the mouth of the Mississippi to ensure open shipping lanes to that river. He was surprised, but undoubtedly pleased to discover France wanted to sell all of Louisiana, which in those days extended all the way to Montana. Item 99 is one of the great items of Americana collecting, the first official printing of the treaty that brought this land under American sovereignty. It is headed Message from the President...Inclosing a Treaty...Relative to the Cession of Louisiana...printed in 1803. $30,000.
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America 1800-1815 from William Reese Co.
The end of the War of 1812 is announced to America.
Zebulon Pike is best remembered for his exploration of the American Southwest, and the peak in Colorado named for him. However, before heading west, he first traveled north, up the Mississippi in an unsuccessful attempt to find its headwaters. His very rare report on his journey, An Account of a Voyage Up the Mississippi River, from St. Louis to Its Source... is offered as item 128. It was this trip that earned him an appointment to make his more significant journey west. Published in 1807. $30,000. Pike's better known report, An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi, and through the Western Parts of Louisiana... published in 1810, is also offered as item 129. $25,000.
Indians were so often depicted as "savages" in early America that it is a welcome change to see them noted for their eloquence. Item 146 is Native Eloquence, Being Public Speeches Delivered by Two Distinguished Chiefs of the Seneca Tribe...Red Jacket and Farmer's Brother. Published in 1811, these two charismatic speakers talk about issues of the day. Red Jacket speaks of the negative impact of white civilization on his people, rejects the white man's religion, and opposes the sale of Seneca lands. $2,500.
The History of Printing in America, by Isaiah Thomas, was the first such history ever published. Thomas was a printer who devoted much of his life to preserving America's early printed works. He founded the American Antiquarian Society, which to this day holds the greatest collection of such material. This history was published in 1810. Item 157. $1,750.
The Seneca Indians were not the only people to produce great orators. One of the greatest speakers the nation has ever known, and a major political figure until the mid-19th century, was Daniel Webster. He is perhaps best known for his defense of the Union during the 1830s nullification crisis ("Liberty and union, now and forever, one and inseparable"). In 1801, Webster was still a college student when he delivered this oration, A Funeral Oration Occasioned by the Death of Ephraim Simonds... Simonds was a fellow senior at Dartmouth College when he died, and Webster's tribute presaged the day he would become one of America's greatest orators. This is only Webster's second published work, preceded by a Fourth of July speech he delivered a year earlier. Item 172. $3,750.
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America 1800-1815 from William Reese Co.
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An Exposition of the Causes and Character of the Late War with Great Britain was actually written while the war was going on. Attributed to Treasury Secretary Alexander Dallas, much of it was written with the assistance of James Madison, who was President during the war. After peace was achieved, Madison considered changing or suppressing the work, but after Thomas Jefferson's encouragement, went ahead with publication. Item 30 is the first edition, published in Philadelphia in April 1815. $750.
Item 159 announced to America the peace which ended the War of 1812. Headed Peace With England, it is an issue of The Freeman's Journal – Extraordinary (of Philadelphia). Dated February 12, 1815, it was just the second announcement in America, following an almost identical notice published the previous day in New York. Of course, this was not published the day the war ended. The peace treaty had been signed way back on December 24, 1814. However, communications were slow in those days, it taking that long for a messenger to make the journey to America with the notification of peace. Meantime, the war's most famous battle, the Battle of New Orleans, would go forward as neither side on the battlefield knew the war was over. $8,500.
The William Reese Company may be found online at www.reeseco.com, phone number 203-789-8081.
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