ABOUT THIS BOOK

He made a name for himself in the Missouri territory as a land speculator, entrepreneur, lawyer, militia officer, politician, and newspaper editor. He went on to take part in many of the events that shaped the young republic, and his name became a household word. But Duff Green has not found his rightful place in history—until now. W. Stephen Belko has written the first full-scale political investigation of this important figure, examining Green’s fundamental role in the politics, society, and economy of Jacksonian America.

Duff Green emerged on the national stage when he became editor of the United States Telegraph, an organizer of the fledgling Democratic Party, and one of Andrew Jackson’s chief advisers. He broke bitterly with Jackson over his feud with Vice President John C. Calhoun, then later found a place as a diplomat in John Tyler’s administration and emerged as a key figure in the popularization of Manifest Destiny and the annexation of Texas. Green also played a major role in the transportation revolution as a developer of canal and railroad projects.

Belko presents a balanced appraisal of Green’s career, particularly from 1815 to 1850, delving into his personality to tease out the motivations for his pursuit of such wide-ranging ventures. Drawing on a wealth of previously unexploited primary sources, he not only chronicles Green’s labyrinthine career but also illuminates Green’s rise in the Democratic Party; his role in the creation and development of the Whig Party; and his considerable influence on national debates regarding slavery, nullification, the National Bank, territorial expansion, and foreign relations.

For all his influence, Green has until now been either ignored or portrayed as a Calhoun minion and proslavery sectionalist in the Fireater mold. Belko revises these assessments of Green’s role in the making of Jacksonian America, showing him to be an independent westerner who was politically moderate—even less fanatical on the slavery issue than many have supposed. Belko’s research uncovers a Duff Green who was an aggressive and buoyant person, to be sure, but a democratic man of principle who is rightly called a quintessential Jacksonian.

The story of Jacksonian America cannot be fully told without Duff Green. This long-awaited study is a compelling narrative for scholars and aficionados of political or Missouri history, offering a fresh view of his crucial contributions to the antebellum era and shedding new light on the true nature of Jacksonian democracy.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

W. Stephen Belko is Executive Director for the Missouri Humanities Council. He lives in St. Louis, MO.

REVIEWS

“The book enhances our understanding of Green’s undeniable influence on the nation’s political climate, and it is a well-written, deeply researched, and thoroughly illuminating interpretation of Green’s life and political activities.”—Christopher Phillips, coeditor of The Union on Trial: The Political Journals of Judge William Barclay Napton, 1829–1883

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Contents
Acknowledgments 00
Introduction 1
Chapter 1. Nascent Jacksonian: Ancestry, Kentucky Days, and the 
Emergence of a Western Democrat 00
Section I. The Making of a Jacksonian: Missouri Years (1816-1826) 00
Chapter 2. Land Speculator, Lawyer, Merchant, and General 00
Chapter 3. Politics and Panic 00
Chapter 4. New Pursuits and a New Career 00
Section II. The Election of 1828: Jacksonian Partisan 00
Chapter 5. Ideology, Party System, and Party Press 00
Chapter 6. Defense of Jackson, Attack on the Coalition, and the Corrupt Bargain 00
Chapter 7. The Calhoun Factor 00
Chapter 8. The Issues: Tariff, Internal Improvements, and Slavery 00
Chapter 9. Victory! 00
Section III. Jackson¿s First Administration (1829¿1833): Jacksonian Apostate 00
Chapter 10. Appointments and Patronage 00
Chapter 11. The Rise of the Globe 00
Chapter 12. The Jackson-Calhoun Correspondence 00
Chapter 13. The Eaton Affairs 00
Chapter 14. The Election of 1832 00
Section IV. Jackson¿s Second Administration (1833¿1837): Jacksonian Adversary 00
Chapter 15. The Nullification Crisis 00
Chapter 16. The Bank War 00
Chapter 17. Slavery 00
Section V. Defeat, Dejection, and Diversions: Jacksonian American 00
Chapter 18. The Printing Business 00
Chapter 19. The Election of 1836 00
Chapter 20. New Pursuits 00
Section VI. Agent of Manifest Destiny: Jacksonian Expansionist 00
Chapter 21. England 00
Chapter 22. England and Texas 00
Chapter 23. England, Texas, and Mexico 00
Chapter 24. Little Hickory's Wars 00
Chapter 25. Jacksonian Capitalist and Territorial Expansion 00
Conclusion. The Last Years of a Jacksonian American 00
Bibliography 00
Index 00