Overview

The first indepth examination of the architect of the Missouri Compromise In 1820 the Missouri controversy erupted over the issue of slavery in the newly acquired lands of the Louisiana Purchase. It fell to Jesse Burgess Thomas (1777–1853), a junior U.S. senator from the new state of Illinois, to handle the delicate negotiations that led to the Missouri Compromise. Thomas’s maturity, good judgment, and restraint helped pull the country back from the brink of disunion and created a compromise that held for thirtyfour years. In Dividing the Union, Matthew W. Hall examines the legal issues underlying the controversy and the legislative history of the Missouri Compromise while focusing on Thomas’s life and influence. As Hall demonstrates, Thomas was perfectly situated geographically, politically, and ideologically to deal with the Missouri controversy. The first speaker of the Indiana Territorial General Assembly and one of the first territorial judges in Illinois Territory, Thomas served in 1818 as the president of the Illinois State Constitutional Convention. That he was never required to clearly articulate his own views on slavery allowed Thomas to maintain a degree of neutrality, and, as Hall shows, his varied political career gave him the experience necessary to craft a compromise. Thomas’s final version of the Compromise included shrewdly worded ambiguities that supported opposing interests in the matter of slavery. By weaving Thomas’s life story into the history of the Missouri Compromise, Hall offers new insight into both a pivotal piece of legislation and an overlooked but important figure in nineteenthcentury American politics.

Full Product Details

9780809334568

Table of Contents

Reviews

Dividing the Union should be required reading for modern lawmakers. In an era that was even more politically divisive than our own, Jesse Thomas did his utmost through tact, shrewdness, and lawyerly deftness to forge a lasting and nation-saving compromise. With clarity and discernment, Matthew Hall vividly reveals the contributions of an enigmatic and overlooked but intriguing and significant statesman. Evan Thomas, author of Being Nixon Several excellent books have dealt with the Missouri controversy in the broader context of its times, but, as one of the key events in the run up to the Civil War, it deserves a truly in-depth study of its legislative history, particularly because that legislative history reflects many of the underlying nuances of the struggle between the North and the South. This is that study. Dividing the Union is particularly relevant at a time when our government appears deadlocked and unable to deal with vital issues. The deadlock we face now is certainly no more fraught with danger than the one faced by Jesse Thomas and his colleagues during the Missouri controversy when the continued existence of the Union hung in the balance.

Author Information

Matthew W. Hall, an attorney in the field of natural resources, formerly served as general counsel for the University of Pennsylvania. He graduated from Harvard College and Law School and has had a lifelong interest in American history. He has been an independent scholar and writer since 2002.

Tab Content 6

Countries Available