New Hampshire Crossroads; Amos Tuck and the Birth of the Republican Party, A New Hampshire Crossroads Special

Following is a New Hampshire crossroads special. I. Am. A garden took people in 19th century clothing. Republicans all. Well nearly all. These are members of the Amos Tuck society gathered today in the garden of their eponymous benefactor. For this is the home of Amos talk. In Exeter New Hampshire and this gathering is to celebrate the founding of the Republican Party. On this day here in Exeter one hundred and forty two years ago

you see. It was Amos talk. That had the idea in the first place. Least we think so. Now we say we think the Republican Party was created here in Exeter New Hampshire. We say we think because officially the Republican Party claims Rippon Wisconsin to be the birthplace of the party not Exeter. And before this program is over we will consider the Rippon claim. But right now Exeter New Hampshire is celebrating its claim to be. In the public and party was definitely an equivocally there's no question about it was

founded in New Hampshire on October 12th 1853 ex-addict Hampshire in what was then Blake's tavern. You Greg is the former governor of New Hampshire and the founder of the Amos stark society. At that time people were concerned about slavery and slavery and abolition of slavery was a big issue in the north and that was why people were fed up with it with the Democrats in New Hampshire. This was a particularly good incubator for the whole situation because in New Hampshire at that time the Democrats were the strongest party in the state of any state in the nation. It is the stronghold of the Democratic Party and all of it's hard to believe today. It's true back then we had a Democratic governor and the president was Franklin Pierce also a Democrat. Franklin Pierce was of course the only president to come from New Hampshire. His boyhood home in Hillsborough has been preserved as well as his manse in Concord and Franklin Pierce was so

strong not only in New Hampshire but in New England as a political force. And what he thought was very important in terms of America and keeping America strong as a country was compromise. And they all believe in continuation of slavery in one form or another. And that's why these people who thought they ought to do away with slavery like talking Don't be hail came into focus. So you have Franklin Pierce whose middle name is almost a compromise we must compromise with the South. We must keep the Southern Democrats happy. We must appease them. And then you have somebody like Amos talk and John hell who will not compromise. Now this program is about Amos talk. But to understand Amos talk you ought to first know some things about John Parker Hale. John Parker was one of the first congressman to speak out against slavery.

He lived here in his home in Dover which is now part of the woodmen Institute. Kathy Bodie is an historian and a librarian in Dover and she agreed that in his outspokenness against slavery John Parker Hale was well ahead of his time. He was way of of time and that sort of promoted him to speak out further against slavery. He was elected to Congress voting for two. He had to say that he would oppose the fixation of Texas. Because it would be extending the slave territory. To. Worried about Texas in 1846 the United States went to war with Mexico. United States had annexed Texas the year before and sent troops to enforce the plan. Not incidentally among those troops was a young private fight valiantly and emerge from the war General. That man was Franklin Pierce.

It was during the Mexican War that the phrase manifest destiny was first used and a lot of people believed in manifest destiny. Many Americans felt that grabbing territory was not just moral but divinely ordained. In the south of course was all for it because Texas would come into the Union a slave state. But too many especially in the north. Slavery and manifest destiny both morally reprehensible. Hale felt this way. Vehement in his hatred of slavery. He spoke out against it at every opportunity. Now nobody wanted a war and many felt that if the issue of slavery was pushed too far and the war could result in so in the early 1900s most politicians were pussyfooting around the issue but not hail.

So when he was due to be nominated again he was name was withdrawn by the members of the Democratic Party. He was solidly read out of the pile. So John Parker Hale was drummed out of the Democratic Party. Because of his stand against slavery and the Mexican War. And it appeared that his political career was over. But it turned out the were some Democrats in New Hampshire who sympathized with Hale. And one of the guys wasn't a missed talk. And he was talking John P. Hale about a perfect combination. For each had strengths and weaknesses. I think some of the surprising things for me about talk was the fact that he was a great organizer he seemed to be a great organizer but unlike somebody like hail from Rochester who was a great speech maker he was not someone who necessarily stood out in the limelight all the time with took the stage. He did. I mean he gave speeches and all but there was something there was an energy

there where he was able to rally people and rally important people around him for his cause. Well that was talk. As for John Hale he was known to be a great off the cuff speaker. He was not effective at pushing legislation through or effectively planning the route of a bill in order to get it inaugurated. But he was always ready to speak on any issue. And so the charismatic but organized John P. Hale found the great organizer he needed in Amos talk. The result was a meeting called by talk at the Congregational Church in Exeter 10:00 in the morning in 1825 on George Washington's birthday. A meeting of Democrats opposed to slavery in the Mexican War. The result was a new party. Called the Independent Democrats

and their candidate for U.S. Senate John Parker hailed. Along with John Parker hailed the ticket. Also nominated for a seat in Congress. And. A stock. That would be the first time in U.S. history that any state would elect to the Senate and the Congress men whose major platform was the abolition of slavery. It was talk. Now a congressman. And when he went down to the House of Representatives he served three terms. The Democrats were waiting for him and they said you're not going to sit with us. Your New Bolton from this party and the maverick as such and we're not going to get

anything to do with you you find a place to sit. So talk had to do that he ended up in the back row overall by the Whigs side of the aisle in the chambers. Next day Abraham Lincoln. Tuck said Blenkin an awkward tall congenial fellow that was his description of Lincoln when he first met he didn't recognize Lincoln's greatness originally but he did of course very shortly. So that's how that all started. This is Dr. Malcolm Wetherbee Ph.D. You may notice the dark weather he has the same last name as your narrator and the fact is we spell our names the same too and we both live in New Hampshire. Dr. Weatherley alas is not a direct relative.

Now back to our narrative What do you suppose are the odds of this happening. The first congressman elected pledged to the abolition of slavery gets to the House of Representatives and is seated directly next to Abraham Lincoln. And the two become fast friends. Well that's just what happened to Congressman Amos Tuck as to Senator John Parker Hale. There were 23 Democrats and 23 Whigs in the Senate. Who was the only one that would stand alone. He was not allowed to serve on any committees he was on and he counsels the North had contempt for him and the South totally ignored him whatsoever and this sort of freed him as the lone isolationist there to stand out and rail against slavery even more because he had nothing to lose. He was the only one. Who. Was independent candidates. Aimless talk and

John Parker Hale Bowles served six years in the United States Congress 1847 1853. Three congressional terms for talk. One Senate term for Hale. In 1852 John Parker Hale was a candidate of the Free Soil Party for president of the United States. His opponent. Democrat Franklin Pierce. Imagine two candidates. From New Hampshire. Hail of course was trounced. The next year old hail and talk her out of office. Now one of the reasons that the Democrats were so strong at this time was the fact that most of their opposition was splintered. There were dozens of small political parties in

America most of which advocated the abolition of slavery along with the free spoiler's and the independent Democrats that were the American independence. The Know-Nothings and the Whigs had become a splinter party itself. The time was ripe and the man the man was again Amos talk. He was wise enough to realize that there were enough dissidents out there there are enough people who wanted to make a stand. Against slavery and so he called that meeting off free soil's of know nothings of wings of independent Democrats putting them all together which was a stroke of genius politically. They decided that what they ought to do is get all these splinter groups and there were a lot of them. It was the American party they were the Know-Nothings they were the Whigs The Independent Democrats. They got to get them all together. The leaders of that party did have a meeting and decide what to

do about all these factional groups which if organized would be very strong. So Tuck who was the real leader of the thing called us meeting Blake's hotel and he invited 14 leaders from these various groups the Whigs and Know-Nothings the American party. The result of the meeting was that when it was all over it was agreed among the group that they would drop the Appalachians they'd head for their particular parties and call themselves Republican. And that's why it was the first real meeting to do something to create a party and talk because who might consider the father of our party had been talking this way since 1845. So that's the reason for all that to do on this 12th day of October in the town of Exeter New Hampshire. Because on this day in 1853 a man named Amos tock called together 14 men from all over the state

of New Hampshire. Men who had differences of opinion on a great many matters. But all agreed on one principle. That slavery. Was evil. And these men emerged from this meeting calling themselves Republicans on Democratic Republicans as Jefferson and Madison had called themselves but simply. Republicans. And by the way as to Blake's tavern the buildings still exist. Blake's hotel became the swarms got hotel then Philip Dexter Academy bought it and it became Gorham hall and now it's in private enterprise. It's a business office. However the plaque which was put up there in 1929 is still there and you can see it and I hope you get a good picture of that. And you may wonder who has authenticated this first meeting of Republicans. Well

Horace Greeley authenticated it. Horace Greeley was the editor of the most powerful newspaper of the time the New York Tribune and Greeley had been born in New Hampshire in Amherst and has a boy he'd lived in Londonderry. And in December of 1853 Horace Greeley had come to Londonderry to stay at the home of a boyhood friend Daniel Homer Batchelor And Dr. Batchelor had been one of the 14 men present at the meeting called by Amos talk and he told Greeley about the meeting and about the name they had chosen Republican. And then when he was really heard about it he said that was a good choice and names Amos because it sounds a little Jeffersonian and a little Madisonian and that's good for the country. So what does all this about Rippon Wisconsin being the birthplace of the Republican Party.

Well we can have fun with rebind because they got a lot of weaknesses in their case. One of the things the first meeting they had in Ripon was in February of 1854 bearing in mind ours was in October of 1853. And it was held in a little church and it was a small meeting. It's all recorded then the following month in March they had a larger meeting but not much larger than the schoolhouse. And they've picked the schoolhouse as a basis for the party in the birthplace of the party. Now the people who gave the schoolhouse did the very same thing really that we did in New Hampshire only there were that many months later. But they picked the schoolhouse right instead of the church site which I think is sort of interesting and I think the reason for that is I'm not sure about this. I think the reason is I still got the schoolhouse. It's very picturesque. I've got a big plaque on it and it's very nice. Some of the groups in Iowa and other places in the country talked about it but it was Alan Beauvais who actually you know walked the walk and talk the talk and actually get the

Republican Party officially recognized and sanctioned and ratified by the National Convention. Brian Christiansen is the director of the Wisconsin Republican Party. He speaks of Alan Bovey because Alan Bovey is to rip on what talk is to Exeter. The man who got some people together who called themselves Republicans the little white school house where the meeting took place is on the National Historic Register. Now the differences between the Ripon and the Exeter meetings are that the Rippon meeting happened five months after the exit or meeting was held and the ribbon meeting was local or as the Exeter meeting was statewide. Alan Bovey said he got the idea of calling the movement Republican while he was visiting with Horace Greeley in New York. Earlier that year and that was by the way after Grealy had been to New Hampshire. Now Allen Bovey did not claim that Horace Greeley suggested the name to him. In fact Bovey claimed he suggested the name to Grealy

and all of this is part of the official Republican history written by Professor George Miller of Rippon college. There is a lot frankly for Wisconsin to lose here. Even the state Republican Party stationery has the Rippon logo on it. It's. Wasn't President in 1861 that could be argued that Abraham Lincoln never would have been president of the United States. If it hadn't been for his talk. Framus stock was on the board of the Exeter Academy Abraham Lincoln's oldest son Robert was in trouble.

Scholastically Abraham Lincoln wanted the best possible education for his son. The rail splitter who had read his books by the light of the fireside walked all those miles to return the box he wanted the best education. So he decided to send rodded to heaven. So Robert came up probably early September of 1859. And you had to take 16 exams at that time. That would be Greek Latin mathematics algebra some history. And Robert flunked 15 of the 16. Now Robert in fact. Was very reluctant throughout his adult life to ever talk publicly about his father. But one thing he would say often was if I didn't have that terrible flunk out of Harvard my father would never be president of the United States. So got advice to go to Exeter from President Walker of Harvard but also Amos Tuck was one of the directors one of the trustees of Academie a close friend of

Abraham Lincoln's. So. He came Robert came and stayed with talk till he found a place of his own which was found by the Amos Tuck son Edwin crossed the river which is now a Symeon Folsom house and. The motivation for Lincoln to come to New Hampshire was to visit. This was of course Abraham Lincoln's 1861 trip to the east. On his way to New Hampshire. Lincoln stopped in New York. Where he made one of the most important speeches of his career. The Cooper Union speech. This speech was carried in all the Eastern newspapers and historians say that before this speech Lincoln was a regional candidate. After the speech. He was a national candidate. This was the speech. That made him president. He gave the same speech a number of times.

Here in New Hampshire but he inherited some. In fact he had one illustration about the snake in bed with the children. Here we have this nation and we have a snake. These terrible. Immoral kind of behavior of slavery in our midst. It's in bed with the children with our Southern brothers and sisters. By the way spoke to the exoteric cademy from the stage of the town hall. No one had seen him before. The fact is he looked well strange that night in Exeter when the students first saw a link and they felt very bad for Robert. They said oh my goodness this strange figure of this person a robin's father. But of course when you stood up to speak. Then they began to listen all the way at the beginning. They were kind of restless but by the time Lincoln had spoken by ten minutes they were mesmerized and the whole room was just taken and by him he was he peppered his very serious speech

with humor and he just embraced the whole crowd. And by the end of the evening everybody just loved him. Well that's a story. Franklin Pierce served one term as president. Came home to Concord. He died in 1869. Sixty five. John Parke or Hale went back to the Senate as a Republican. From 1855 to 1865. After that he was ambassador to Spain. He died back in Dover in 1873. He was sixty seven. And Amos talk. Lincoln considered a cabinet post for. Talk. But. He decided on getting well for a number of reasons and he appointed as the naval officer in charge of the

Portland Boston. Performed creditably notably there. And then later he went into the railroad business and got in. And today today the famous society is putting forth its claim that Exeter New Hampshire is the place where Republicanism was born. There's a party and a parade speeches even a world premiere of an original play. Well-fought the story of talk by Paul Morasca performed by professional equity actors on the very stage with Lincoln himself spoke 142 years of call he goes can't leave the Senate a pass they are men but they aren't treated as such.

You forget you live in the north Mr. Tuck and you forget you live in the United States Senate. PEARCE. Didn't come here for a damn geography lesson. The fact is many places claim to be the birthplace of Republicanism not just Exeter in Wisconsin Massachusetts and Iowa Michigan. The question is was the party really founded here in New Hampshire. The answer is maybe. Yes.

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