Tag Archives: Theodore Sedgwick

2.24 – The 36th Ballot



Year(s) Discussed: 1800-1801

The nation had little time to process the news that Adams was defeated in his bid for reelection as a constitutional crisis developed regarding who would succeed him to the post. Meanwhile, the outgoing president only had a few weeks remaining to secure the ratification of the Convention of Mortefontaine, get several federal judges confirmed including a new Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and get a new Treasury Secretary in place. Sources used for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

Featured Image: “Front View of the President’s House, in the City of Washington” [c.1807], courtesy of Wikipedia


2.19 – Don’t Let the Door Hit You



Year(s) Discussed: 1799-1800

As the presidential election of 1800 looms and party leaders begin weighing their options, President Adams decides that the time is right to make a few changes in his administration. To the President’s detriment, though, Arch Federalists are scheming at the same time to remove him from his office. Meanwhile, new congressmen are making a name for themselves, and Toussaint L’Ouverture works to consolidate his power in Hispanola. Sources used for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

Featured Image: “Timothy Pickering” by Charles Willson Peale, courtesy of Wikipedia


2.15 – Hot Time, Summer in the Country



Year(s) Discussed: 1797-1799

John Adams makes a fateful decision that threatens his administration and its ability to react quickly to developing events. Meanwhile, General James Wilkinson’s past collusion with the Spanish is discovered by a government agent in the Mississippi Territory. Closer to home, Fries’s Rebellion comes to a close as harassment of Democratic-Republican newspaper editors ramps up. Sources used for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

Featured Image: “Watercolor of Peacefield Before the 1800 Addition” by E Malcom [c. 1798], courtesy of Wikipedia


2.14 – The Plausible Probability of Preserving the Peace



Year(s) Discussed: 1798-1799

Adams throws the American political landscape into a frenzy with a special message to Congress announcing that he was appointing a new Minister to France to negotiate peace. While exploring what this all means for Adams, his administration, and the nation, we also take a step back in this episode to look at the influence of American policy in Saint-Domingue and South America on the realities and future of Franco-American relations in 1799. Sources used for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

Featured Image: “Atlantic or Western Ocean” by John Thomson [c. 1814], courtesy of Wikipedia


1.08 – Banking and Drinking



Congress Hall in Philadelphia, PA (c. 2007), photo by tim eschaton, courtesy of Wikipedia

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.