University of Virginia Library

CHAPTER XX

VIRGINIA IN THE UNION

Virginia Cedes her Northwest Territory. — The colonies
had won their independence by united action; but at the
close of the Revolution many rivalries existed between
them. The claims which seven of the thirteen states made
to western lands, caused so many disputes that the Articles
of Confederation, adopted by Congress during the
Revolution, were not signed by all the states till 1781.
Maryland would not agree to them unless the states owning
western land would cede it to the United States. Virginia,
earnestly desiring union, surrendered her territory[26]
north of the Ohio to bring this about. Her patriotism in
this act becomes conspicuous when the greatness of her
possessions is considered and the soundness of her title,
which was based both upon her charter and upon conquest.

Boundary Dispute between Virginia and Pennsylvania. —
The territory beyond the western boundary of Maryland
was claimed by both Virginia and Pennsylvania; and in

their contest over the matter, they almost went to war.
But commissioners, appointed by the states to settle the
quarrel, agreed to begin at the Delaware River and to extend
Mason and Dixon's line[27] due west five degrees of
longitude for the southern boundary of Pennsylvania, and
then to draw a meridian from the western extremity of the
state to its northern limit for its western boundary. The
"Pan-Handle" is the part of Virginia that was left north
of Mason and Dixon's line and east of the Ohio River.
The extension of the line was not completed till 1785.

Virginia Leads the Movement for a more Perfect Union.
— After the Articles of Confederation had been signed
they proved insufficient for the government of the country.
The states soon began to quarrel in regard to commerce,
and some laid taxes on articles imported from others. So
great were the difficulties which confronted the Confederation
that the legislature of Virginia invited the states to
hold a convention to consider the regulation of the trade
and commerce of the United States. This convention met
in Annapolis in 1786; but, as only five states were represented,
the delegates adjourned after passing a resolution
requesting the states to call a convention in order to
revise the Articles of Confederation. This body met in
Philadelphia, and after a discussion which lasted for four
months, on September 17, 1787, adopted the present
Constitution of the United States.

The Constitution Ratified. — There was great opposition
to the Constitution in Virginia; and in every county
speeches were made for it and against it. The people
were divided into two great parties, and much bitterness
was manifested in the discussions that took place. On
June 2, 1788, a convention met at Richmond, which was
now the capital, to consider the adoption of the new plan
of government. A vehement struggle occurred, as is
shown by the reports of the speeches that were made
on this occasion. Patrick Henry led the opposition, and
James Madison the party in favor of ratification. Finally
on June 25, the Constitution was adopted by a vote of
eighty-nine to seventy-nine. The result was largely due to
the influence of Washington, which was exerted in favor of
the Constitution. It was ultimately signed by all the states.

Virginia Proposes another Revision. — Though Virginia
had adopted the Constitution, yet she was far from being
satisfied with it. So strong was her belief that some
essential changes should be made in it that, in 1788, her
legislature addressed a communication to Congress, asking
that a new convention should be called to revise it.
Fortunately for the permanence of the Union this was not
done; but Congress at its first session adopted a number
of amendments to the Constitution, which did much to
remove the discontent. Notwithstanding this, Virginia
was for a long time prominent in her dissatisfaction with
the Constitution, her people fearing that under it a strong
central government would be formed which would impair
the sovereignty of the states.

The Alien and Sedition Laws. — In 1798, during the
administration of President Adams, who succeeded Washington,
Congress passed the Alien and Sedition Laws, the
first giving the President power to banish any foreigner

who was regarded as dangerous to the peace of the country,
while the second laid heavy penalties upon persons who
should resist government officials in the discharge of lawful
acts, and upon those who might speak or publish anything
that would bring the government or its officers into
bad repute. These laws met with a most vigorous opposition

Mt. Vernon, Washington's Home

in Virginia, on the ground that they were an exercise
of powers not granted in the Constitution. On December
2, 1798, the legislature passed resolutions, in which it was
affirmed that the powers of the government were limited
to such as were specially mentioned in the compact between
the states, and that, if the Federal government should go
beyond the authority given to it, the states had a right to
declare such action unconstitutional. The excitement that
had been aroused by the obnoxious laws led to no serious
result at the time; but the strict interpretation of the
Constitution, as expressed in the famous resolutions of
1798, became the fundamental principle of the State-Rights
party in Virginia.

Washington's Tomb

The Great Virginian. — Washington was the first President
elected under the Constitution. He took the oath
of office in New York on April 30, 1789. Of all the great
men of Virginia and of the United States, he stands first
for ability and distinguished service. His management
of the American army during the Revolution places him
high in the rank of the world's greatest commanders;

and the wisdom he displayed during his presidency, in
carrying the country safely through the dangers that
threatened to subvert it after independence had been
won, gave him a reputation for statesmanship of the highest
order. Truly he was "first in war, first in peace, and
first in the hearts of his countrymen." He died at his
home, Mount Vernon, in 1799, beloved by all.

Period of Prosperity. — At the end of the Revolution the
people of Virginia were very poor. The war had taxed
their resources to the utmost, and during its last years much
of their property had been destroyed by the British soldiers.
But in a few years, a great change for the better set in; and
toward the close of the eighteenth century, Virginia entered
upon an era of prosperity which extended through more
than half of the nineteenth century. Her tobacco found
ready sale in Europe at high prices, and was the source of
much wealth. So the people lived in plenty and contentment.
Under the influence of liberal laws, labor had its due
reward; and but few paupers were to be found in the state.

"The Mother of States and of Statesmen." — A few
years after the Revolution, Kentucky, which was a part of
Virginia, was admitted into the Union as a separate state.
This was done with the consent of Virginia, whose limits
were thus reduced to what is now contained in the two
Virginias. At a later period, out of the magnificent territory
north of the Ohio, which Virginia had given to the
United States, the great states of Ohio, Indiana, Michigan,
Illinois, Wisconsin, and part of Minnesota were successively
carved; and thus the Old Dominion became known
as the "Mother of States." She was also called the
"Mother of Statesmen," because so many distinguished
men were nurtured on her soil. She furnished four of the
first five presidents — Washington, Jefferson, Madison, and

Monroe, each of whom served two terms. Tyler was also
from Virginia, and Harrison and Taylor were born in Virginia,
though they were residents of other states when
elected. Thus she has given to the Union more presidents
than any other state.

Burning of the Richmond Theater

Burning of the Richmond Theater. — A domestic calamity
that occurred on the night of December 26, 1811, claims a
place in history. This was the burning of the Richmond
theater, when it was filled with a fashionable audience of
about six hundred, who had assembled to witness a drama

called the Bleeding Nun. During the performance a
spark fell on the curtain of the stage, and from this the
building was speedily enveloped in flames. A panic ensued,
and seventy persons lost their lives, many of whom
belonged to the most influential families in the state.
This memorable disaster filled the city with mourning.
Throughout the state, and indeed all over the country, it
caused the deepest sorrow. The Assembly of Virginia
by resolution requested its members to wear crape for
thirty days, and the same action was taken by Congress.
The next year, Monumental Church was erected where the
theater had been. The church still stands, and at the door
there is a marble monument, upon which are the names of
a number of those who perished in this disaster.

War of 1812.[28] — In the war which the United States
waged against Great Britain in 1812, volunteers enlisted
from all parts of Virginia in the service of their country;
and the state patriotically sustained the Federal government.
Only once during the war was the territory of Virginia
invaded. This was just a few months before the
termination of hostilities, when Admiral Cockburn, who
commanded a British fleet, entered the waters of the Chesapeake
and laid waste its banks. He captured Hampton;

and, during the short time he occupied the place, rendered
himself infamous by allowing his soldiers and negroes that
followed them to commit outrages of every kind upon
the defenseless inhabitants.

What Virginians did for the Union. — During the first
half of the nineteenth century, the territory of the United
States was nearly quadrupled; and Virginians were instrumental
either directly or indirectly in bringing about the
greater part of this tremendous increase of area. The
territory of Louisiana was purchased by Thomas Jefferson
while he was President. This province, which had been
ceded by Spain to France, extended from the Gulf of
Mexico on the south to Canada on the north, and from the
Mississippi River on the east to the Rocky Mountains on
the west; in securing this, Jefferson more than doubled the
area of the United States. Nor was this all that he did to
extend the dominion of the Union. In 1804 he sent Captains
Lewis and Clark of Albemarle County, Virginia,
with a party of men to explore the territory of Louisiana.
They ascended the Missouri River as far as they could in
boats, and proceeded on foot till they came to its source.
After this, making their way across the Rocky Mountains,
they explored the valley of the Columbia River, till they
reached the Pacific Ocean. The discoveries which were
made by Lewis and Clark proved to be important, as
they aided the United States, at a later period, in establishing
her title to Oregon. President Monroe, during his
administration, purchased Florida from Spain, thus adding
another large area to the public domain. General Sam
Houston, a native of Rockbridge County, led the Texans to
victory in their struggle for independence from Mexico;
which resulted in the admission of Texas to the Union.
In the war with Mexico which followed, two Virginians,

Generals Taylor and Scott, commanded the United States
armies, when they achieved that wonderful succession of
victories, which led to the submission of Mexico and to the
dismemberment of her territory, a large part of which came
to the United States.[29]

"The Pathfinder of the Sea." — To the scientific investigations
of a Virginian, Matthew Fontaine Maury, not only
the United States but the whole civilized world is indebted.
He entered the navy in 1825, and in 1842 was
appointed Superintendent of the Depot of Charts and
Instruments at Washington. At this time the sailing
maps in use were very inaccurate, and but meager information
had been obtained in regard to ocean currents.
Maury soon published a chart, which he called a "Fair
Way to Rio." This proved to be so accurate and valuable
that Congress authorized him to make systematic observations
of winds and currents. This he did, and as a result
originated a system of "Wind and Current Charts," which
was speedily adopted by mariners of all nations. By its
use thousands of lives were annually saved and millions of
dollars in the cost of voyages. Maury also instituted deep
sea soundings,[30] which convinced him that the bottom of
the ocean between Newfoundland and Ireland was a
plateau, the surface of which was not disturbed by either

waves or currents. He suggested that the wires of a submarine
telegraph could be safely laid upon this. His idea
was followed up, and in 1858 Europe and America were
connected by the first Atlantic cable. Upon Maury the
principal nations of Europe conferred many honors in
recognition of his services to mankind. His Physical
Geography of the Sea, which has been translated into many
languages, is an enduring monument to his genius.

Virginia's Influence upon other States. — The Old Dominion,
whose hardy pioneers began at an early period to
push their way out into the South and West, has done her
full part in bringing about the settlement and development
of the United States. As early as 1653, ten years before
the profligate Charles II. granted North Carolina to "lord
proprietors," Roger Greene, with one hundred men from
Virginia, settled on the northern shore of Albemarle
Sound, and thus laid the foundation of the colony that
grew into North Carolina. In 1750, Dr. Thomas Walker
and a company of Virginians explored a part of Tennessee
and discovered the Cumberland River and Mountains,
which they named after the Duke of Cumberland. John
Sevier and James Robertson, both Virginians by birth,
were the leaders in founding the earliest settlements in
Tennessee, and Sevier was elected first governor of the
state. In such enterprises as these Virginia has borne a
prominent part. Her influence has been great in some
states of the West, and the beginning of nearly all government
in the South can be traced to her. Her University,
which was founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819, and may
justly be called the noblest work of his life, was for a long
time the educational center of the whole South. Its halls
are still filled with students from many states, and its
alumni are to be found all over the country.

QUESTIONS

• 1. Why did Virginia cede her Northwest Territory to the Union?

• 2. What is said of her patriotism in this act?

• 3. Give an account of the disputed boundary line between Virginia
  and Pennsylvania.

• 4. What was Mason and Dixon's line?

• 5. Why did Virginia invite the states to hold a convention?

• 6. What resolution did this convention pass?

• 7. When and where did a second convention meet to revise the
  Articles of Confederation, and what was done?

• 8. How was the Constitution regarded in Virginia?

• 9. When did she ratify it?

• 10. Why did she propose another revision?

• 11. What were the Alien and Sedition Laws, and why did Virginia
  oppose them?

• 12. What resolutions did the legislature adopt in 1798?

• 13. What is said of George Washington?

• 14. What is said of Virginia's prosperity?

• 15. Why was Virginia called the "Mother of States"?

• 16. Why the "Mother of Statesmen"?

• 17. Give an account of the burning of Richmond theater.

• 18. What action was taken by the legislature and Congress in regard
  to it?

• 19. What has been erected on the spot?

• 20. What was the War of 1812?

• 21. How did Virginia suffer in this war?

• 22. How much did the territory of the United States increase during
  the first half of the nineteenth century?

• 23. What purchase did Jefferson make while President?

• 24. Describe the Lewis and Clark expedition.

• 25. What territory did President Monroe purchase from Spain?

• 26. Who led the Texans in their war for independence?

• 27. State the cause of the Mexican War.

• 28. What part did Virginians take in this war?

• 29. Who was Matthew Fontaine Maury?

• 30. How did he benefit mankind?

• 31. What is said of Virginia's influence upon other states?