YOUR OBEDIENT SERVANT: GOVERNMENT CLERKS, OFFICESEEKING, AND THE POLITICS OF PATRONAGE IN ANTEBELLUM WASHINGTON CITY By Heath J. Bowen A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY History 2011 ABSTRACT YOUR OBEDIENT SERVANT: GOVERNMENT CLERKS, OFFICESEEKING, AND THE POLITICS OF PATRONAGE IN ANTEBELLUM WASHINGTON CITY By Heath J. Bowen This dissertation examines the social, political, and gendered components of public office and government employment during the antebellum era. Historians have invoked Andrew Jackson‟s system of spoils to demonstrate the rise of political democratization and the emergence of a federal bureaucracy. But few studies have attempted to examine at any length the public servants and citizens who were implicated into political parties and connected to government institutions through patronage. My research on public servants shows that officeseeking was a highly complex and contested phenomenon that was intimately connected to nineteenth-century political and moral economy. Its connection to the rise of partisan politics and its lure of men from more independent and manly professions worked to create a popular perception of government employment as a social evil. What is more, public office was regularly sought through elite Washington political networks accessible only to applicants with a relative close proximity to political power. My dissertation argues that these developments created a common ambivalence toward public life and a cultural hurdle to the development of a professional ideal within the federal government. How government clerks understood this dynamic and how they made sense of their place within the unique political and social environment of the nation‟s capital, is of central importance to this study. Officeseeking emerged as a gendered middle-class experience, and clerking in the federal government offered an alternative livelihood to the diverse antebellum labor market. Many government officeseekers experienced decreased opportunities for independent employment and hoped to protect their family‟s financial future with a clerk‟s salary. In their efforts to claim a respectable professionality, Washington clerks articulated an understanding of the relationship between the federal government and its employees that challenged popular patronage rationality, setting the tone for future debates regarding civil service reform in the years following the Civil War. For Julie and Doug Bowen, my parents And In memory of my Grandmother Gloe Anderson iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS It gives me great pleasure to acknowledge those who helped me complete this project. First and foremost, I am grateful to my graduate and dissertation advisor, Thomas Summerhill. Professor Summerhill encouraged me to pursue this project without reservation and forced me to ask questions that I otherwise would not have considered. His patience, critical eye, and scholarly enthusiasm kept me moving forward and returning to places for revision. He has truly been the best sort of mentor, always providing assistance and advice when needed and without hesitation. I am in debt to his unwavering acts of benevolence and professionalism over the years. Thank you so much, Thomas. I want to thank the faculty members at Michigan State University who have enriched my educational experience. Without them, this project would not have been possible. I especially want to thank my dissertation committee: David Bailey, Maureen Flanagan, Peter Knupfer, and Kenneth Lewis. David‟s academic curiosity, knowledge of history, and ability to ask unanticipated questions has undoubtedly and positively influenced the outcome of this dissertation. Maureen is a wonderful historian and sharp critic. My time spent with her both within and outside the classroom has informed this dissertation in ways more than she can imagine. Peter, a brilliant antebellum historian, offered determined support and inspiration in this project. His enthusiasm as an educator and kind words gave me confidence and strengthened my resolve when it was needed. Kenneth Lewis served as the Dean‟s representative to the committee. His interdisciplinary perspective forced me to clarify and reconsider some of my ideas and claims for the better. I also want to thank John Beck, who, v although unable to serve on my committer, read chapters and commented on them extensively. To all of these scholars, I am sincerely grateful. I am grateful to the Department of History at Michigan State University for providing an academic environment that allowed me to grow as a historian. The Department took care of me in ways above and beyond my expectations. Research and conference grants were plentiful, as were the numerous talks, lunches, and hallway conversations. Big thanks to all the faculty and administrators I shared my thoughts and interests with, whether brief or extensive, you know who you are, and especially to those who don‟t. My graduate student colleagues, especially Carlos Alemán, Joe Genetin-Pilawa, Dan Dalrymple, and Jamie Dalrymple, made the process much more interesting and awarding. All of the awards, events, scholars, and friends, greatly benefited my intellectual and professional development in ways that I will continue to reflect upon throughout my career. I am enormously grateful to all the librarians, archivists, and historians who assisted and commented on my research and the institutions that helped make research for this project possible. Librarian Michael Unsworth guided me through the extensive resources at Michigan State University. Mathew Gilmore, whose knowledge of Washington resources, was invaluable from the onset. And to all the archivists from the institutions that filled the first portion of this dissertation‟s bibliography, thanks! I thank Richard John, Brian Balogh, and David Henkin for commenting on my work at conferences. I am grateful for the financial support provided by the American Historical Association, which came in the form of The Albert J. Beveridge Grant. Dissertation research was further funded by a Research Enhancement Fellowship from the History Department and a Dissertation Completion Grant from the College of Social Science at Michigan State University. vi Throughout the graduate and dissertation process, my parents, Julie and Doug, have offered their unconditional support and love. While my educational and career endeavors have continually carried me further away from my familial roots in South Dakota, my thoughts continually return to that place. Thank you so much, Mom and Dad, for all that you have given me! Big thanks as well to my supportive and lovely sisters, Tessa and Kelsey, who each recently brought a new member and bundle of joy to our family. Finally, I want to offer a very special thanks to Sonia Robles. Sonia‟s patience with me and assistance in all things that have to do with life made the completion of this dissertation possible. Your kindness, support, and love have been with me for virtually every step in the process, and for that I am truly grateful! vii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES………………………………………………………………………………ix INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………………...............1 CHAPTER 1 A NATION OF OFFICE HUNTERS: OFFICESEEKING, PUBLIC SERVICE, AND MANLY LABOR IN THE AGE OF SPOILS…………………………………………..............................31 CHAPTER 2 PEN-PUSHERS AND THINKING MEN: WASHINGTON‟S CLERKING CLASS AND THE PROFESSIONALIZATION OF GOVERNMENT LABOR……………………………………76 CHAPTER 3 THE SOCIAL EXPERIENCE OF OFFICESEEKING: PUBLIC RELATIONSHIPS, SOCIABILITY, AD PARTISAN DISTINCTION IN WASHINGTON CITY………………..132 CHAPTER 4 “FOR A POOR MAN TO REALIZE A COMPETENCY”: OFFICESEEKING MEMOIRS, HONEST FAILURE, AND THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF IMPORTUNING FOR OFFICE…………………………………………………………………………………………181 CHAPTER 5 “TO LIVE IN ANY BETTER STYLE THAN MECHANICS AND LABOURERS?”: PERSONAL INDEPENDENCE, DOMESTIC CRISIS, AND THE PUSH FOR MERIT-BASED REFORM PRIOR TO THE CIVIL WAR……………………………………………………...235 EPILOGUE SOMEBODY, NOBODIES…………………………………………………………………….290 BIBLIOGRAGHY……………………………………………………………………...............301 viii LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE 1: Office-Seekers in Washington, 1861………………………………………………179 FIGURE 2: John Beck‟s Application, 1853……………………………………………………180 FIGURE 3: Shaking Hands with Treasurer Spinner……………………………………………234 ix Introduction On December 5, 1814, Joseph Winborn Hand, a graduate of Yale College, arrived in Washington City from his home in Connecticut to work as a clerk in the General Post Office, a job he took in order to offset the cost of his legal training. Success, which Hand believed could be achieved through a respected profession, is what he sought. And at the age of 22, Hand found himself situated among “relations more of high rank and standing in society” than he had ever imagined. Hand‟s two uncles, Josiah Meigs and Return J. Meigs, Jr., both Democratic- Republicans, occupied prominent official positions in Washington and were socially influential. After serving a brief stint as Surveyor General of the United States, Josiah assumed the more lucrative position of Commissioner of the General Land Office from 1814 to 1823. From 1814- 1823, Return served as Postmaster General of the United States. Familial connections placed Hand in the position to garner a clerkship in Washington and study law in the office of Elias B. Caldwell, co-founder of the American Colonization Society and distinguished Washington 1 resident. Hand‟s days were “uniformly spent.” He woke up, went