History Commons^™

Governing New Jersey: Reflections On The Publication Of A Revised And Expanded Edition Of 'The Governors Of New Jersey', Michael J. Birkner

History Faculty Publications

New Jersey’s chief executive enjoys more authority than any but a handful of governors in the United States. Historically speaking, however, New Jersey’s governors exercised less influence than met the eye. In the colonial period few proprietary or royal governors were able to make policy in the face of combative assemblies. The Revolutionary generation’s hostility to executive power contributed to a weak governor system that carried over into the 19th and 20th centuries, until the Constitution was thoroughly revised in 1947. Before that date a handful of governors, by dint of their ideas and personalities, affected the polity in meaningful …

The New York-New Jersey Boundary Controversy: John Marshall And The Nullification Crisis, Michael J. Birkner

History Faculty Publications

In 1832 a long-standing boundary dispute between New York and New Jersey complicated the work of Chief Justice John Marshall and President Andrew Jackson. Long reviled by southern states' rights advocates, including the president, Marshall in 1832 faced the prospect of having the Court's decisions ignored by the state of Georgia. Federal authority was further challenged in the fall of 1832, when South Carolina nullified the tariff of 1828, thereby provoking a constitutional crisis. On December 10, 1832, to the amazement of many observers, Jackson issued a proclamation rejecting nullification and secession, and threatening military action if South Carolina did …

Samuel L. Southard And The Origins Of Gibbons V. Ogden, Michael J. Birkner

History Faculty Publications

On January 12, 1815, the former Federalist governor of New Jersey, Aaron Ogden, wrote a brief letter to a young political antagonist, Samuel L. Southard, requesting Southard's "professional aid in a hearing before the Legislature, which I expect will take place on Tuesday next." Observing that he had the relevant documents organized so that Southard could get quickly acquainted with the facts of the matter at issue, Ogden added that "the cause will be entertaining and interesting, and as to compensation, you will please to name your own sum."

A good deal of history lay behind these remarks, and the …

Journalism And Politics In Jacksonian New Jersey: The Career Of Stacy G. Potts, Michael J. Birkner

History Faculty Publications

The year was 1831, and the President of the Bank of the United States, Nicholas Biddle, was preparing for a difficult campaign to win the re-charter of his institution. Facing the hostility of Andrew Jackson, and the partisan newspapers that supported him, Biddle was determined to put his own views before the American public. [excerpt]