In this discussion, Peter Kastor, a history professor and founder of a digital project on early U.S. governance, unpacks how the federal government took shape from 1789 to 1829. He reveals the fascinating growth of federal employees during George Washington’s presidency, and the personal stories behind early government roles. Kastor also spotlights the contributions of marginalized groups in a predominantly male structure, and explores how the founding fathers' cautious views could have altered the path of American history.
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question_answer ANECDOTE
Thomas Melville's Lifelong Federal Career
Thomas Melville, a revenue official, begged Washington to keep his job and then served until 1829.
Melville's federal career likely influenced his grandson Herman Melville's work at a customs house.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Nominations Found In An Ammo Box
Peter found Thomas Jefferson's nomination records in an ammo box full of handwritten sheets.
Jefferson's simple nomination lists illustrated the repetitive, hands-on nature of early personnel management.
insights INSIGHT
Steady State Near 30,000 By 1820s
By the 1820s the federal system stabilized around roughly 30,000 employees including military and postmasters.
The workforce fluctuated sharply with wars and territorial expansion but trended upward overall.
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When we think about the founding of the United States, we often focus on the Constitution, the Founding Fathers, and those first landmark elections.
But how did the United States actually build its federal government, the entire apparatus of state that could collect revenue, manage international diplomacy, provide law and order, and extend its reach across a rapidly expanding nation?
Who were the people who made that government work? And how did their service to the nation shape what it meant to be an American citizen?
Peter Kastor, a Professor of History and American Cultural Studies at Washington University in St. Louis, and the Founder of the Creating a Federal Government, 1789-1829 digital project, joins us to explore the remarkable and often overlooked story of how the United States built its federal government between 1789 and 1829.
Ben Franklin's World 