History 318 Readings Wiki

Parkinson argues that patriot leaders weaponized prejudice about African Americans and Native Americans to unite the American colonists and emphasize the idea that the British were traitorous and dangerous enemies. The founding fathers spent a great deal of time, money, and effort broadcasting stories about any British government agents who might be encouraging slaves to rise up against their masters or Natives to slaughter backcountry settlers. (Guy)

Parkinson makes the argument that the issue that united the colonies, and got them to fight for independence, was not about their political freedom or rights, but it was fear that the British untied with Native Americans and slaves to fight against the colonists. The newspapers at the time fed into the fear and people believed it. It got many people to take arms and fight. They referred to slaves as “domestic insurrectionists” and Native Americans as “merciless Indian savages.” Parkinson argues that it was this portrayal of the British conspiring with slaves and Native Americans that brought the colonies together. (Connor H).

This title is an analogy of the 13 colonies coming to the same conclusion regarding independent from Britain. John Adams originally used the “thirteen clocks” metaphor to unite the thirteen colonies to resist British rule. Colonial leaders used fear and prejudice, particularly against African Americans and Native Americans, to create a common cause that could unite the colonies. Unity was crucial for the success of the Revolutionary War and the subsequent formation of a new nation. The Revolution also helped to establish a framework for federalism and the idea that, despite regional differences, the states could work together for common goals. However, those common goals did not include enslaved individuals or Native Americans. (Suzanne Ferraro).

Many contemporaries, such as John Adams, of the American Revolution saw the “revolution” as being more in ideals and collective perceptions as opposed to the actual war. However, the author of this book argues instead that those collective ideals were a series of ideas weaponized against Native Americans and African-Americans, which were used to unite the colonies in their dislike of those who were “other” or seen as inferior. (Ezra C.)

Parkinson discusses the use of colonial newspapers as one of the best-preserved primary sources from the 18th century and what they can tell us beyond the headlines. He asserts that we know that enslaved persons and Indigenous nations clearly had significant political agency to make it semi-plausible for them to have worked with the British government and also to have their actions—or lack thereof—impact the major deals of revolution and the sentiments of patriots. (Chiara)

Thirteen Clocks is stated to be a book that ponders how the American Revolution defines being an American. Parkinson argues that the revolutionaries were dedicated not just to a free America but to creating the definition of who is allowed to identify as an American and who is not by the oppression of native peoples and free or enslaved black populations. (Chiara)

The tension between loyalists and patriots politicized newspapers. Instead of being neutral, newspapers started to take sides, many taking the patriot side versus the loyalist side. Newspaper printers even became partners with political leaders and shaped the message about the American Revolution. There were no reporters back then, so printers got the news from ship captains, letters from private elite people, but they also used “exchanges” where they reprinted content from other newspapers. Parkinson points out that you can see the content of the articles change in 1975 to focus more on the colonies and Revolutionary War as opposed to European news. (Connor H)

Print newspapers and exchanges became important. It was important to establish stories to support the cooperation between the colonies to reach and explain to a wide audience across colonial society. In colonial America, a weekly newspaper consisted of one paper folded in half to create four printed pages. The paper's layout was shaped by the mechanical process of producing each week's issue. The printers had to wait for the ink to dry on one side of the sheet before using the other, so the outer side was not entirely fresh. Putting the most significant news on the front page wasn't customary. In the end, colonial leaders used the press to create a unifying message. (Suzanne Ferraro).

In 1767, Bostonians weaponized the press. The exchange of words through the press escalated to physical outbursts and violence resulting in the suit of Gill vs Mein. Questions emerged revolving around the concept of “free press”. Is it truly free press uninhibited by political influence if each side uses the press to push their views and attack the other. As the main form of news source at the time, printers were becoming heavily politicalized and were using this to profit. Declan F.

A typical newspaper in colonial America was one sheet of paper folded in half to make four pages. Since the ink had to dry on one side of the sheet before the printers could use the other, printers filled what would be the front and back pages with items they could prepare ahead of time or ran for multiple weeks. Each word had to be assembled by the printers and their assistants one letter at a time, in reverse. (Guy)

Parkinson highlights the importance newspapers and their circulation had in starting the American Revolution. It's what brought the colonies together in a sense. It made southern colonies realize that northern colonies also had similar sentiments towards England. While the reasons for the negative sentiments weren't always the same, the negative sentient was still there. Newspapers were also important in the spreading the news of England, their plans, and other large colonial events. Newspapers weren't new, but the amount of circulation and exposure the papers got was new to the latter half of the 18th century.- Emma Galvin

Newspapers were also a way to share opinions of the current tensions. The press had two sides, patriot and loyalist, who would often write pieces bashing the other. Drawings were also an important tool in garnering support for each side. For example, the Join or Die Cartoon and the drawing of the Boston Massacre were exaggerated to build public outrage and resentment for their enemy. It heightened feelings and tensions that were already brewing, which was an important tactic in garnering support either for or against the Revolution. - Emma Galvin

The colonists didn't see themselves as having as much in common with each other, and instead saw themselves as very similar to Britain. It was then the job of the newspapers to find a way to make the revolutionary cause common and make the colonists separate themselves from Britain, whose culture and styles they imitated. (Ezra C.)

Parkinson points out that colonial newspapers were typically where one would find the news; a task that was not as easily obtainable as it seems, just as there was no illustrations or headlines, there were no standard reporters. We spoke about it during class, but often colonies would exchange newspapers together in order to transfer information across the eastern coast, a tactic that both highlights the length of time it took for colonies to communicate with one another, but also the exchange of monetary value as colonies bought and swapped newspapers, creating a circulation of money within the colonies (pg. 27). (Scarlett).

The importance of newspapers became evident in 1767, when a clash between Adams and Mein was implemented through newspapers. John Mein’s clash tells us how important newspapers were in the American Revolution. It also shows how the politicization of colonial newspapers in the 1760s was impacted by The Stamp Act and how the “freedom of the press” was disrupted. (Annie Feck)

The odds of the 13 colonies sticking together through war was low. Even Benjamin Franklin doubted it. Colonial governments, laws and religions were too different to unite even against a common enemy. Franklin's Join or Die drawing of a cut up snake by colony showed how if the colonies were too divided they would die in their fight against British Rule. (Connor H)

The colonialists' argument against the British Parliament was that they were enslaved by British control and taxation. The years leading up to the war saw a growing campaign against slavery. In 1774, the belief that slavery might end was influenced by the discussions of political slavery and natural rights. The discussion on ending slavery never took place. On May 12, 1774, Sam Adams wrote a letter in response to the Coercive Acts, stating that Boston was suffering from a common cause. (Suzanne Ferraro).

Shortly after the Boston Tea Party occurred, Parliament met and discussed how they would punish Boston through the Boston Port Bill. Parkinson explains that the Boston Port Bill would be part of what would eventually be the Coercive Acts. Parliament lacked confidence in the colonies to create a united front against the British, therefore they decided to focus their punishment on Boston alone. This decision by the British was detrimental to their fight against the Patriots, as it only created unity through common anger. (Lauren)

In the years leading up to the Revolution, it seemed that there was a heavy movement of anti-slavery. Some argued that this kept up and motivated people throughout the Revolution. However, it seems that there was instead too much of a push for unity among the colonies and because they couldn't all agree on slavery versus anti-slavery, abolitionist ideas just fell by the wayside. (Ezra C.)

The differing colonial governments and dynamics should have made it impossible for the colonies to unite against Britain. Opinions were wildly different went it came to major items such as slavery and religion. While this should have created an unconquerable divide, the colonists overcame this due to Parliaments lack of understanding of the colonial dynamic and consistent attempts to tax the colonies. Declan F.

Parkinson says that “the shot heard around the world” at the Battle of Lexington and Concord didn’t just make colonists worried about British soldiers fighting them, but they feared rebellion by slaves and Native Americans. They heard reports that African Americans and Native Americans were joining together to fight the colonists weeks before the war. For example, in Charleston in May 1775, a black preacher, David, made a speech talking about how God would deliver slaves from their masters. David’s speech fed into the fear of slave insurrections. The Committee of Safety in Charleston had to make a proclamation to say that the revolution was to oppose British rule but also slave insurrections. (Connor H)

Following Lexington and Concord, news of the war began to spread. However, colonists were not solely afraid of the British and their well-trained regulars. Rather, they were afraid of what the enslaved African Americans would think and do. Colonists were more afraid of slave rebellions than of the British. (Hank L)

Contrary to popular belief, following the shot heard around the world, many colonists scrambled and began to worry about what would come of this. Many were worried about the effects it would have on relationships with the enslaved and with Native Americans. (Hank L)

Due to fear among the Patriots and the British towards natives, they both would make sure to stay friendly towards them during the war in hopes to have them become allies. For example, General Thomas Gage sent a message to the Iroquois explaining that the British would never harm them as long as they were to be friendly towards the British. Parkinson further explained that Gage explained to his authority that the Patriots had already been sending messages like his to natives. The Patriots would attempt to recruit the natives by explaining that just as the British had taken the colonists' land, they would take the natives' as well.(Lauren)

For many colonists, the fear of slaves rebelling and uprising against their enslavers was a tangible fear that followed elite and middle-class colonial families and people, even in stances where New England towns had less than three dozen slaves, the fear of being made victim by actual victims of oppression was ever present on colonist minds. It would be this fear of rebelling enslaved persons, as well as continued fear and tension with Native Americans that would amplify colonist concerns that the two groups would rise up in protest together and exact violence on colonist. (Scarlett).

In 1775, the imperial crisis became a war and their views changed. On April 19th of that year the news spread that they would attack the British. However in Framingham, they were more worried about a slave rebellion. Parkinson details that the Framingham militia went out and the townspeople “brought the axes and pitchforks and clubs into the house, and securely bolted doors, and passed the day and night in anxious suspense.” The townspeople were startled, but their response was also worrisome. Those left behind in Framingham were scared that another sort of rebellion might break out in Massachusetts on April 19, 1775. (Annie Feck)

The issue that united the colonies was not just that there was now a real war against the British. The fear that remained was internal fear of uprisings by Native Americans and slaves. This idea became part of the propaganda by the patriots and it helped unite them. It was about protecting their families, not just about protecting their own political rights. (Connor H)

Colonial leaders used fear to unite behind the demand for independence from Britain. Benjamin Franklin is known for saying that Britain has found a way to unite us. Ben Franklin and other leaders realized exploiting fears was the best way to unite the American colonies. Every means of communication was used to explain this message, especially through newspapers, which played an important part. Local leaders spent a lot of time trying to spread the message of fear to unify the cause. Colonial leaders, especially in the South, worried about the British attempting to encourage enslaved individuals to fight for the British. (Suzanne Ferraro).

Colonial print shops used the war with Britain to unite all colonists. They found a common theme of fear to connect people. Newspapers and print were very popular, therefore print shops used them to call colonists to arms and to not only defends their liberty and freedom, but to also defend their household from Native Americans and rebellious slaves. This was caused by printers writing articles about British officials telling Natives and enslaved people to take arms against the colonists. (Hank L)

As the colonial communications network expands, one of the key people involved in this was Virginia's governor Lord Dunmore, who confiscated the public magazines gunpowder to deal with slave unrest in Virginia. Virginia may also be a hotspot for unrest with news, especially for slave owners who heard of news/rumors that the British were harboring runaway slaves. Washington had mentioned that Dunmore posed as a threat, specifically: “Posed as a snowball rolling downhill, gaining size and speed as it plummeted out of control.” Though Dunmore's schemes were apparently more complicated than that. (David Y.)

Initially, George Washington wanted to exclude African Americans from the patriot army, whether they were free or not. He feared them joining the British because of Lord Dunmore’s promise to African Americans that if they fought for the British they would be freed. However, eventually Washington changed his mind. He learned that free veteran African American soldiers were unhappy about being dismissed and Washington was concerned that they would join the British and share intelligence with them about the patriot army’s war strategy. Congress supported Washington's decision and carved out the exception that free African American veterans could reenlist.(Connor H.)

Lord Dunmore was a key player in the Patriot movement by providing fuel for support of the Patriot cause. His actions like his proclamation backfired hilariously in that the Patriots saw this as a totally real threat. Instead of quelling the Patriot movement like he had hoped, this move sparked more outrage than ever, with Parkinson using the metaphor that these seeds fell on fertile soil. - Ewan H

The use of newspapers and their broadening networks became increasingly important as enemies of the Patriots such as Lord Dunmore and British proclamations such as the one to free slaves who allied with the British emerged. This made newspapers reliant on individuals such as John Adams to source their information to then print and get it through these networks as quickly as possible. Parkinson explained that the fronts of the newspapers would often be coverage of how the British were attempting to use Native Americans and slaves to fight their battles against the colonists. Parkinson further explained that their evidence would be listed in the inside of the newspapers through affidavits or intercepted correspondence. The increase of these types of publications being spread throughout the coast would allow the colonies to connect through common enemies which further added fuel to the Patriot movement's fire. (Lauren)

George Washington described the threat of independence and Lord Dunmore as a snowball rolling downhill, growing larger and out of control. Nonetheless, Lord Dunmore's plots were more elaborate. In November 1774, James Madison was worried about the potential for an insurrection among the slaves if war broke out with Britain. Lord Dunmore permitted trying to capture the press to stop the printing of material in support of the war. Colonial leaders attempted to encourage enslaved individuals not to fall for Lord Dunmore’s promise of emancipation. (Suzanne Ferraro).

Dr. John Connolly, an agent of Lord Dunmore, brought him a plan involving recruiting the Ohio Indians to the British side to fight against the Patriots. Dunmore liked this idea, so he sent Connolly to get permission to carry it out from commanding general Thomas Gage. Gage approved the plan, sending a letter to Dunmore with the warning that the letter should under no circumstances fall into rebel hands. What happened instead, was Connolly's servant, William Cowley, ran away and warned Washington of the plan. (Guy)

Stories detailing “Liberty to slaves” only furthered the tension between colonist and the idea of emancipation for their slaves driven by the political and social values of Britain, creating a galvanized opinion against the crown. Congressmen expressed their displeased mood with the crown and the unjust actions and taking of liberties the colonies had already been delt with from British royal direction. It also encouraged that racial tension within the colonies as British encouragement for enslaved people continued to sour their relationship with the colonies (pg. 121). (Scarlett).

Parkinson seems to allude to the fact that in 1774 and 1775, Lord Dunmore was one of the reason why tensions started to build. His wanting to protect the towns gunpowder from getting into the wrong hands, sparked a series of events that not only made Virginians mad, but people up and down the east coast. The story turned into all Governors having the potential to take away colonists enslaved people and that worried the colonists. This ordeal with Dunmore and other smaller incidents got exasperated. Parkinson seems to make the point that small issues became big issues and a series of coincidences, miscommunication at times, and anger led to a tipping point for many Patriots.- Emma Galvin

A perpetuating theme expressed by Parkinson is the role of the news. While reading, I likened it to yelling into an echo chamber. A story that ignited citizens from one newspaper would be quickly repeated through 13 other newspapers, and this just heightened the temperature of the time. The propaganda was perpetuated by every colonial news source. - Keller

I thought an interesting point made by Parkinson was that the colonists did a complete 180 in response to Lord Dunmore's offer to provide freedom to enslaved people who enlisted for the British. They now treated them as free-thinking individuals, and as convoluted as it sounds tried to convince them to “choose” slavery and the “good” outcomes of freedom. It seemed interesting the mental gymnastics done here by the slaveholders to convince others of their “cause”. -Keller

I think the part of the chapter that talks about “Do not be weak and wicked” sets the stage how enslave individuals were treated and some viewed them. The quote which was written by an unknown person basically stated that slaves were rational (which was a big step to admit back then) and that they were basically capable to making decisions. However, as Parkinson points out, the unnamed author doesn't admit the fact that he and his fellow men are responsible for the oppression of the enslaved people, they still treat them like their not rational and capable. (Hannah E.)

Within the first year of the war, a question came up as to just who the Patriots enemies were, and according to John Adams, that list was very long. With the British, Natives, Insurrectionists, and even mercenaries that were hired by the King to fight the Patriots, Of course, the question is whether that extremely long list of enemies that the Patriots face was actually a threat or if it was just something that the weekly newspapers were trying to spread so that they can justify their revolution. (David Y.)

Abigail Adams wrote to her husband John Adams about how the war was going and how the Virginians were doing at home. She asked John Adams to consider women when making the new laws for the new nation and wanted them to be treated better. She said “Remember the Ladies.” His response to her message was very insulting; he essentially dismissed her concerns. The exchange of letters between them was a foreshadowing of the women's rights movement. This was also the period in which “Common Sense” by Thomas Paine, which criticized the monarchy was very popular amongst the colonists.(Connor H.)

The road to ideas of independence being ratified in early July of 1776 didn’t act as a path from Common Sense to Declaration, as there was more to it than that. Common Sense no doubt played a role in educating the people and drumming more popular support with its use of the vernacular, but some Patriots attribute the supposed British treachery of turning Indians and Slaves against the colonists as a reason. Many Patriots, including Thomas Jefferson, cited that the bringing in of foreign entities to fight against the colonists over what was a domestic dispute was the point of no return. - Ewan H

The second constitutional convention was more than just the colonies hashing out independence from Great Britain because much of their time was consumed with frontier affairs. After the disaster at the Cedars, the colonial governments were preoccupied thinking about potential Indian threats from the frontier. They were so occupied with this thought that the final grievance in the Declaration of Independence cites the Indian alliance specifically. - Ewan H

Thomas Jefferson grouped the grievances the colonies pointed to into categories to maximize their impact on unification and independence. Part of the grievances omitted any criticism of slavery for fear of offending southern slaveholders. The Declaration depicted African Americans and Native peoples who supported the Patriotic Cause as mindless, bloodthirsty barbarians too ignorant to realize that a tyrant was fooling them. The idea developed that being an American means not being English; however, it also excluded the enslaved community and Native Americans. (Suzanne Ferraro).

I like how Parkinson points out the pronouns/verbiage of the Declaration of Independence. He says the two important words are “we” and “he”. The small words were an announcement of independence, it went from “We” to “he”. It showed the separation of people, in this case colonists (now American) from British rule. I never realized the words in the Declaration of Independence, I thought this was powerful. (Hannah E.)

Common Sense by Thomas Paine was published in January of 1776, Paine explains how Americans declared independence in a radical act. Later, Common Sense was edited to be a “patriot anthology” as other essays were added in. The ideas that Paine shared in Common Sense changed understandings for colonial support for reconciliation and compromise, and how patriots contended that America should declare independence due the British treachery. Common Sense declared several reasons colonists should embrace American independence and “attack” the crown for embracing Native Americans, the enslaved, and foreign mercenaries. (Annie Feck)

Some would say that the enemies that the Patriots fought in the American Revolutionary War were not just the British and hired mercenaries, but the fact that we were united against what they called: “Savages and Insurrectionists”. Parkinson had put in the this conclusion that they used these threats as the real means to united the colonists. (Personally, it feels like Parkinson had a dislike of the founding fathers, yet had good justification as to why.) (David Y.)

Parkinson argues that the origin story of the American Revolution leaves out the stories of the colonists fearing that African Americans and Native Americans joining forces with the British. He highlights the fact that in traditional stories about the American Revolution, the African American and Native Americans contributions to the patriot effort are downplayed, and the focus of the stories tend to be about them helping and fighting for the British. For example, there was rarely any acknowledgement of the Delaware Native Americans who were the “Americans’ best friends.” And when there were efforts by some to recognize the Native Americans, they were few and far between. For example, the Delaware Native Americans entered into a treaty at Fort Pitt with colonial leaders and were promised statehood and a path to citizenship. But when the treaty got to Congress it was assigned to a committee and never heard about again.(Connor H.)

Benjamin Franklin and Lafayette shared the belief that the British instigation of enslaved individuals and Indians was key to understanding the revolution. Their goal was to make stories to teach future generations about those who tried to destroy freedom at the time of America's creation. Also, the idea of freedom of citizenship belonged to those who were white and free with sufficient character to be considered a citizen. Citizenship didn’t extend to the Native population or enslaved individuals. Stories about fighting in the revolution mattered because the patriot leaders wanted to create citizenship based on commonality. (Suzanne Ferraro).

A point that Parkinson makes is that the stories told didn't go away after 1776. The fear of slave revolts, ostracization of Native Americans, and essentially anyone who wasn't a citizen continued, regardless of the language that was used in the political documents. These stories also guided policy made well beyond 1776 Parkinson argues. - Keller

After the war, Patriot leaders decided to share stories about the “savage” Indians rather than the “good Indians”. They decided not to post stories about the groups of people who were not seen as “American”. People who were considered American and deserving of citizenship were those who were white and free, so it was only a limited amount of people. They aimed to show the worst side of those who were not white and free. (Hannah E.)