Tag Archives: Tobias Lear

3.28 – The Calming Seas

March 21, 202103 - Thomas JeffersonAlbert Gallatin, Anthony Wayne, Barbary States, Edward Preble, Henry Dearborn, James Madison, Robert Smith, State Department, Thomas Jefferson, Timothy Pickering, Tobias Lear, US Navy, William Eatonpresidencies

Year(s) Discussed: 1803-1805

With the war with Tripoli continuing to drag on year after year, Jefferson and his administration had to determine whether the best course to bring it to a conclusion lay with opening up a new front by partnering with foreign agents or through engaging in a new round of diplomacy. Meanwhile, a change in the command of the US naval squadron in the Mediterranean took the wind out of the sails of what had been an energetic force. Sources used for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

Featured Image: “Attack on Derna” by Charles Waterhouse, courtesy of Wikipedia

Intro and Outro Music: Selections from “Jefferson and Liberty” as performed by The Itinerant Band

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3.21 – A Plotting We Will Go

August 30, 202003 - Thomas JeffersonAaron Burr, Alexander Hamilton, Barbary States, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, De Witt Clinton, Democratic-Republican Party, Edward Preble, Election of 1804, Federalists, Fisher Ames, George Cabot, George Clinton, John Wayles Eppes, Lewis Harvie, Martha Jefferson Randolph, Rufus King, Samuel Chase, Stephen Decatur, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Mann Randolph, Timothy Pickering, Tobias Lear, William Armistead Burwell, William Bainbridgepresidencies

Year(s) Discussed: 1803-1804

In the wake of multiple political losses in the first few years of the 19th century, as the election of 1804 neared, numerous Federalist leaders from New England began to consider the possibility of whether their prospects and those of their home region would be better served by breaking away from the United States. In the meantime, Commodore Edward Preble arrived in the Mediterranean to prosecute war against Tripoli while back in Albemarle County, the life of one of Jefferson’s family members hung in the balance. Sources used for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

Featured Image: “Uriah Tracy” by Ralph Earl [c. 1790], courtesy of Wikipedia

Intro and Outro Music: Selections from “Jefferson and Liberty” as performed by The Itinerant Band

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3.17 – Sailing in New Waters

May 24, 202003 - Thomas JeffersonAlbert Gallatin, Anthony Merry, Barbary States, Edward Preble, Henry Dearborn, John Wayles Eppes, Lewis Harvie, Martha Jefferson Randolph, Meriwether Lewis, Robert Smith, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Mann Randolph, Tobias Lear, US Navy, William Clark, William Eatonpresidencies

Year(s) Discussed: 1802-1803

Despite some early successes, the US naval efforts against Tripoli languished in 1802 and early 1803, and with the cost of maintaining a squadron in the Mediterranean climbing, President Jefferson and his administration had to consider alternates in both leadership and approaches to tackle the situation. Meanwhile, various young men in Jefferson’s life moved into new roles in 1803, and the President’s personal and political realms began to overlap in new ways. Sources used for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

Featured Image: “Dutch Ships off Tripoli” by Reinier Nooms [c. mid 17th century], courtesy of Wikipedia

Intro and Outro Music: Selections from “Jefferson and Liberty” as performed by The Itinerant Band

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3.11 – Making Plans for Monroe

January 20, 2020UncategorizedCharles Pinckney, Dolley Madison, France, Haitian Revolution, Henri Christophe, James Madison, James Monroe, James Wilkinson, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, John Jay, John Randolph of Roanoke, John Wayles Eppes, Louisiana, Manuel de Godoy, Margaret Bayard Smith, Martha Jefferson Randolph, Meriwether Lewis, Napoleon Bonaparte, New Orleans, Samuel Harrison Smith, Spain, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Mann Randolph, Thomas McKean, Tobias Lear, William C C Claibornepresidencies

Year(s) Discussed: 1801-1803

As continued resistance in Saint-Domingue threatens French First Consul Napoléon Bonaparte’s plans to take control of Louisiana, President Jefferson works to keep tempers cool on the domestic front while turning to a trusted ally, James Monroe, to find a permanent solution to the New Orleans situation. Sources used for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

Featured Image: “Engraved BEP portrait of U.S. President James Monroe,” courtesy of Wikipedia

Intro and Outro Music: Selections from “Jefferson and Liberty” as performed by The Itinerant Band

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3.09 – Yazoo to You Too

December 15, 201903 - Thomas JeffersonAlbert Gallatin, Alexander Hamilton, Chancellor Robert Livingston, East Florida, France, George Hammond, Georgia, Great Britain, Haitian Revolution, Henri Christophe, Henry Addington, James Madison, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, John Adams, Levi Lincoln, Mississippi Territory, Napoleon Bonaparte, New Orleans, Rufus King, Spain, Talleyrand, Thomas Jefferson, Tobias Lear, Toussaint L'Ouverture, West Florida, William Pitt the Youngerpresidencies

Year(s) Discussed: 1795-1802

While the Jefferson administration made a breakthrough in settling a long-standing dispute with the state of Georgia over its western land claims in 1802, the new US Minister to France, Robert Livingston, began his mission trying to get answers on the situation with the colony of Louisiana. Meanwhile, peace in Europe and a new phase of the conflict in Saint-Domingue threaten to upend Jefferson’s vision for the west. Sources used for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

Featured Image: “Map of West Florida” [c. 1767], courtesy of Wikipedia

Intro and Outro Music: Selections from “Jefferson and Liberty” as performed by The Itinerant Band

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1.35 – Washington Post-Presidency

June 24, 201801 - George WashingtonAlexander Hamilton, Bushrod Washington, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, George Washington, Gouverneur Morris, Henry Knox, James Madison, John Adams, Jonathan Trumbull Jr, Marquis de Lafayette, Martha Washington, Mount Vernon, Napoleon Bonaparte, slavery, Thomas Jefferson, Tobias Learpresidencies

Year(s) Discussed: 1796-1799

Washington envisioned a relaxing retirement at Mount Vernon with his family after leaving the presidency in March 1797, but it was not to be. Between personal issues and a return to public service, the last couple of years of Washington’s life prior to his sudden demise would be filled with business and breaches of trust and friendship. Source information for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

Featured Image: “Life of George Washington: The Christian” lithograph by Claude Regnier, original painting by Junius Brutus Stearns [c. 1853], courtesy of Library of Congress

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1.34 – The Final(ish) Curtain Call

June 10, 201801 - George WashingtonAaron Burr, Abigail Adams, Alexander Hamilton, Andrew Jackson, Anthony Wayne, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, France, George Washington, Henry Knox, James Madison, James McHenry, James Monroe, James Wilkinson, John Adams, John Marshall, Jonathan Trumbull Jr, Martha Washington, Oliver Wolcott Jr, Patrick Henry, Pierre Auguste Adet, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Mifflin, Thomas Paine, Thomas Pinckney, Timothy Pickering, Tobias Lear, William Branch Gilespresidencies

Year(s) Discussed: 1794-1797

After President Washington releases his Farewell Address, informing the nation that he would not seek another term, the 1796 election is carried out though, both domestically and abroad, there is much confusion about how exactly the United States would decide upon its next president. Meanwhile, the French plot to interfere with the election, the public attacks on Washington continue, and a military leader meets his untimely end. Source information for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

Featured Image: “”Evacuation day” and Washington’s triumphal entry in New York City, Nov. 25th, 1783,” Edmund Restein and Ludwig Restein, c. 1879, courtesy of the Library of Congress

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1.31 – Runaway

April 29, 201801 - George WashingtonGeorge Washington, Martha Washington, Mount Vernon, Oliver Wolcott Jr, slavery, Tobias Learpresidencies

Year(s) Discussed: 1773-1848

On May 21st, 1796, Ona/Oney Judge slips out of the President’s House in Philadelphia, PA in a bid to obtain her freedom from enslavement. The story of her being born into slavery at Mount Vernon, her being brought to work in the Washingtons’ household, and the Washingtons’ attempts at bringing Ona back into captivity is a narrative that brings much insight into the institution of slavery in the United States in the mid-1790s as well as a more complete view of George Washington’s legacy. Source information can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

Featured Image: Newspaper advertisement of the escape of Oney Judge with a reward for her return, 24 May 1796, Philadelphia Gazette, courtesy of Wikipedia

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1.19 – Rebellion

October 15, 201701 - George WashingtonAlbert Gallatin, Alexander Hamilton, Edmund Randolph, France, George Washington, Mount Vernon, Thomas Jefferson, Tobias Lear, Washington DC, Whiskey Excise Tax, Whiskey Rebellion, William Findleypresidencies

Year(s) Discussed: 1791-1794

As Washington sets wheels in motion for some rather radical changes to his personal way of life, others at home and abroad start working towards some changes of their own. In western Pennsylvania, small-scale distillers and farmers begin to organize against a new federal tax that would impact them more detrimentally than it would larger operations. In France, as the new French Republic faces food shortages and military setbacks, crowds start agitating for new, more effective leadership. Back in Philadelphia, Secretary of State Jefferson begins packing his bags and wrapping up his work as he counts down to the day set for his departure from the Washington administration. The old status quo seems forever gone as the year 1794 comes roaring in like a lion. Source information for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

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1.18 – Pestilence

October 1, 201701 - George WashingtonAlexander Hamilton, Benjamin Rush, Congress, Edmund Randolph, epidemic, Gazette of the United States, George Washington, Haitian Revolution, Henry Knox, James Madison, John Adams, John Fenno, National Gazette, Oliver Wolcott Jr, Philadelphia, Philip Freneau, Thomas Jefferson, Tobias Lear, US Supreme Courtpresidencies

The Arch Street Wharf by William Birch [c. 1800] (courtesy of Wikipedia)

Year(s) Discussed: 1786-1793

Washington, his household, and his administration struggle to deal with an epidemic of yellow fever as it makes its way through the city of Philadelphia, indiscriminately infecting people from all walks of life including a resident at the President’s House. In addition to the loss of life, the epidemic brings up questions about how best to utilize medical knowledge to the public good, the role of the press, the relationship of individuals to their environment, and the ability and role of the government in a crisis management situation. Source information for this episode can be found at http://presidencies.blubrry.com.

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Presidencies of the United States

A journey through presidential history from the beginning to the present day

Tag Archives: Tobias Lear

3.28 – The Calming Seas

3.21 – A Plotting We Will Go

3.17 – Sailing in New Waters

3.11 – Making Plans for Monroe

3.09 – Yazoo to You Too

1.35 – Washington Post-Presidency

1.34 – The Final(ish) Curtain Call

1.31 – Runaway

1.19 – Rebellion

1.18 – Pestilence