Land of Liberty? | A Wikibox Timeline

[Atlas of Independence]

Land of Liberty? | A Wikibox Timeline​

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The Democratic-Republicans (and later Democrats) had long held dominance over American politics, dating as far back to the 1800 election, where Thomas Jefferson led the Republicans to victory, triumphing over John Adams' Federalists. This set in motion an era of political dominance by the Democratic-Republicans, of whom would hold absolute power across the country, with the Federalists unable to escape their New England bubble, forever relegated to a regional party until it's demise. Yet such dominance can not last forever, and Monroe's attempts to expand the Democratic-Republicans backfired, with the party growing bloated and fatigued, eventually exploding into multiple factions and cliques in the 1824 Presidential Election. Four candidates stood, those being; Speaker of the House Henry Clay, a proponent of his American System plan of economics, John Quincy Adams, the Secretary of State and former Federalist, Secretary of War John C. Calhoun, a firebrand Nationalist from South Carolina, and finally William H. Crawford, the Secretary of the Treasury and the Democratic-Republican candidate for President. While Crawford would be nominated by the House caucus, only 66 of the 240 Democratic-Republican members of Congress attended the caucus, which was widely attacked as undemocratic. Thrust into the Presidential contest was Andrew Jackson, the hero of New Orleans and an American war hero, widely popular across the country for his heroics at the Battle of New Orleans. His adventures into Florida earned him the ire of Clay and Crawford, of whom would remain steadfast opponents of his presidential bid.

A Corrupt Bargain would follow, and the Jacksonian movement would be born, flourishing and becoming a powerful national force. The Democratic Party was born, and their candidate of Jackson triumphed over Adams, winning the Presidency in 1828. What would follow was twelve years of national rule by Democrats, culminating in the election of Jackson protégé and ally Martin Van Buren in '32, amidst a fractured opposition. Unable to agree upon a candidate of whom could unite the Nullifiers, Nationalists, Federalists, and Anti-Masons within the shaky coalition, the Whigs ran split tickets, with the goal of throwing the election to the House. This ended in complete failure, as Van Buren would win, though the margins would be relatively close and with 1840 open for a Whig victory, anything was possible. Going into their convention, the Whigs were split between three main candidates; William Henry Harrison, Henry Clay, and Winfield Scott. While Scott loomed as a possible candidate to break a deadlock, Harrison and Clay battled for the nomination, their surrogates on the ground dueling it out. Slowly multiple state delegations, all voting a bloc, began to sway to Scott, with neither Clay nor Harrison unable to achieve a majority. Connecticut fell to Scott, with Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, and Michigan as well. Breaking into the south Delaware and Scott's home-state of Virginia would also follow him, and with Pennsylvania's defection to him, gave Old Fuss and Feather's the Whig nomination. In an effort to placate western and southern Clay men, the convention turned to nominate a known supporter of Clay for the Vice Presidency, with including John J. Crittenden, John Bell, and Willie P. Mangum all declining. Finally Edward Bates, a former member of the House of Representatives from Missouri, would be nominated.

The Democrats, much like the economy itself, were in a dire state. With the Panic of 1837, the Whigs had made major gains, coming close to capturing congress in the 1838 midterms and winning multiple state elections, flipping many state legislatures and governor seats. Incumbent President Van Buren was widely unpopular, and the Whigs would take advantage of this, running on a Jacksonian strategy of portraying their candidate as a relatively apolitical war hero, with Scott having served in the War of 1812 with distinction. Scott himself took the unusual step of campaigning in person, making speeches on his own behalf at certain points during the campaign, of which the public was generally lukewarm about, with the general taboo of personal campaigning hampering Scott's outreach. With this Scott discredited the Whig's attempts to brand him as apolitical, of which only damaged his campaign, though with Van Buren's mass unpopularity, it's unclear how much damage this did to Scott's campaign. Nonetheless, Scott would win in a landslide, easily defeating Van Buren with large popular and electoral vote majorities.

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Hello and welcome to Land of Liberty? a wikibox timeline created by @Atlas of Independence and @TheRockofChickamauga. The main premise of this TL is that we both switch turns, and we are not aware of what the other one has planned, requiring us to change and adapt as the series goes on, and relatively wacky (but realistic!) results will come. The name is the way it is because I quite literally do not know what is to come next, so by the end either America will be a shining beacon of freedom upon a hill, or a washed up failed experiment. Next entries will likely have less text, but I wanted to set the stage for the opening part. Hope you all enjoy!

 

[Veranius]

A very cool idea for a TL, both story-wise and mechanically. Looking forward to how it develops!

 

[Atlas of Independence]

A very cool idea for a TL, both story-wise and mechanically. Looking forward to how it develops!

Thank you! Your work has definitely been an inspiration.

 

[TheRockofChickamauga]

After having existed for merely seven years, the Whig Party had managed to reach the highest echelons of American political power, and the general public of the nation eagerly watched how they would handle this new authority. After the disastrous Van Buren years, they expected that life could not get much worse, although that certainly did not equate to a strong belief that it would grow much better under the Whigs. Consequently, the election of Scott could be viewed more as a repudiation of Van Buren than an endorsement of Scott, especially considering his rather lackluster campaign. With both the House of Representatives and the Senate firmly in Whig hands, however, the cause did not matter so much to the Whigs as the effect, which they hoped would be the total and unimpeded enactment of their agenda by a government trifecta. In this, they would face a rude awakening.

Winfield Scott had not been the first choice of many Whigs. In a party dominated by the likes of Henry Clay and Daniel Webster, this attitude was not very surprising. His nomination had ultimately come more of out of desperation to finally crack the deadlock between Clay and Harrison than any strong desire to see "Old Fuss and Feathers" in the executive mansion. Strong national conditions against the Democrats had ensured his election in spite of his blunders in campaigning, and by the time his inauguration day had come many both in the party and the populace expected Scott to be subservient to the dictates of Whig grandees behind the scenes. Scott, however, did not hold this impression and was intent on making that clear to everyone within the nation.

In one of the defining moments of his presidency, Scott would nominate Caleb Cushing to serve as his Secretary of State. Almost all within the nation (and certainly every well-connected Whig) had expected the position to go to one of the grand old men of the party; if not Clay or Webster than perhaps Mangum or Bell or McLean. Although Cushing had been slated to assume the chairmanship of the Foreign Affairs Committee within the House, the three-term Massachusetts representative could hardly be considered noteworthy. In choosing him, Scott hoped to make clear that he was to be no man's puppet. Furthermore Scott did not wish to set up a successor (or perhaps challenger) in waiting within his administration, as he well aware of the State Department's traditional role as a stepping stone to the presidency and believed that appointing a man with presidential ambitions to the post in his administration would only undermine it.

This general trend of the competition between Scott and the establishment politicians for the control of the party would be the over-arching theme of his presidency. Although many aspects of the American System would be implemented, such as higher tariffs and federal funding for public infrastructure, it would always be bitterly litigated behind the scenes over degrees of responsibility and minor variances in opinion. The relations between the executive and legislative would degrade to such a point that Scott and Clay refused to even might privately with each other. In spite of this party conflict, however, the national conditions (especially economic) would improve as the public hoped. The general's steady guiding hand proved reassuring to many citizens, who saw only the Whig Party's exterior as the champions of economic restoration rather than their interior of intense internecine squabbling.

By the time of the 1844 United States presidential election, many citizens clamored to re-elect "Old Fuss and Feathers" to the presidency. Scott, however, would decline the opportunity out of both a general disdain for the office and the fear of the public humiliation of being denied re-nomination by his own party. In his absence, a glut of Whigs would enter the nominating convention. As expected both Clay and Webster would join, bring with them their vast legions on enthralled supporters. Associate Justice John McLean was not fair behind them, and behind the scenes Scott encouraged both Cushing and Thomas Corwin--his secretary of the treasury-- to enter the contest. In the end, none of these men would carry the day. As ballot after unresolved ballot passed, the Whigs grew anxious for a resolution. For this, they would turn to a man who had been contesting along, but to very little success thus far. Willie P. Mangum had firmly controlled the delegations of both North Carolina and South Carolina over the ballots, but never accumulated more than a dozen delegates from other states. On the eleventh ballot, however, his luck would change. Vast swathes of the South would fall behind him, followed soon thereafter by the western states. By the thirteenth ballot, he had accumulated enough support to win the nomination. Eager to balance the ticket regionally, the Whigs would place Governor John Davis of Massachusetts as his running-mate.

The Democrats, for their own part, faced their own internal struggles. Still coming to grips with the stinging national rebuttal they had received during the years of Van Buren, they were uncertain how to proceed. They had failed to regain either chamber of congress in 1842 despite the Whig's internal struggles. For the first time in their existence, they had no clear leader. Allies of Van Buren would push the candidacy of Senator Silas Wright of New York, while surrogates of Jackson would attempt to push former secretary of state Edward Livingston of Louisiana to the fore. Regional favorites would arise in the form of former ambassador Lewis Cass and senator John C. Calhoun, representing the West and South respectively. Just as with the Whigs, however, none of the immediately apparent Democratic candidates would be chosen, with the party eventually selecting the unoffensive ticket of Senator Levi Woodbury of New Hampshire and Representative George C. Dromgoole of Virginia after seven ballots of indecision.

A lack of Whig excitement over Mangum and a spirited campaign from Woodbury helped narrow the odds, but it was clear from the outset that the election was the Whig's to lose. Mangum's surrogates merely pointed to the recent good years to encourage voters to remain loyal to the Whigs, and by-in-large this proved to be a successful strategy. There was some national provocation over the issue of Texas, but Woodbury was fearful to address the issue to directly lest his sectional coalition collapsed (a view shared by Mangum). Therefore, the election became mostly a referendum on the incumbent administration, which the majority of Americans were willing to give a passing grade. Mangum's victory over Woodbury would represent a significant narrowing of Scott's margin. Combined with the Whigs managing the continue to control both the House and the Senate (albeit by a single seat majority in the latter chamber), the public looked forward once more to another four years of Whig rule.

​

 

[Atlas of Independence]

The Mangum Presidency was highlighted by infighting between the President and congressional Whigs, and a growing sense of unsatisfaction to the governing Whig trifecta. Willie P. Mangum, a former Senator from North Carolina, and now President of the United States, was long a figure in the 2nd Party System, and now at the country's helm he sought to continue the relative prosperity that had begun during the Scott Presidency. He himself was no friend of the Clay wing of the party, a known sympathizer of Nullification, that crisis over South Carolina causing his breakaway from the Jacksonians. Still, Mangum was a solid Whig, and he stood steadfast in his defense of the 3rd National Bank from Democrat attacks, of which was created during his predecessors term. The President still was however a former Jacksonian, and once a Jacksonian--always a Jacksonian. He bucked his party on the issue of the protective tariff, leading to strong opposition from the Clay wing, of whom remained a pain in his side. Despite his bickering with his own party, Mangum was an astute political leader, an effective debater, and a powerful campaigner with personal charm and magnetism, allowing himself to retain the necessary support he needed for passing legislation.

However, growing discontent bubbled during Mangum's Presidency, particularly over the issue of Texas. The President gave the issue little mind at first, primarily focusing on acquiring a beneficial treaty over Oregon country, though the Texas issue soon exploded into something much more important. Mangum was worried that the hypothetical annexation of Texas would exasperate the already ongoing sectional tensions within the Union, threatening major conflict between the Slave and Free states. To divert the country's attention away, Mangum shifted his priority to Oregon, where the United States and Great Britain were in a vicious dispute over territory. A supporter of annexing Oregon, Mangum and his Secretary of State Abel P. Upshur entered into negotiations with British diplomats, finding success in achieving a settlement establishing the border between British North America and the United States along the 49th parallel until the Strait of Georgia, where the marine boundary curved south to exclude Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands from the United States. The American annexation of Oregon was one of the few notable accomplishments of Mangum's Presidency. Following the Whig tradition of a single term, Mangum made clear to his supporters and opponents within the Whig Party that he had little interest in seeking another term as President, citing Scott's one term precedent. However the President's reasonings were truthfully deeper, his refusal to run once largely due to his personal belief that he would be unlikely to be renominated at the convention, seeking to avoid the humiliation that failure would bring, much like Scott before him. Had Mangum run for another term it is incredibly likely that both the Scott and Clay wings would have thwarted him, though Mangum did not wish to see his influence on the party diminish either. He pushed for his Secretary of State Upshur to succeed him, though Upshur himself was reluctant.

Whigs gathered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for their nominating convention. Both the shadows of Henry Clay and Mangum held high over the convention, though neither men were actually running. Clay himself made it clear he had no interest in the nomination but still sought to influence the convention, leading his clique of Nationalists from the outside, supporting the candidacy of former Vice President Edward Bates. While no one was particularly excited about Bates, he was a good middle ground choice between the Clay, Scott, and Mangum wings of the party, able to not offend any. Bates was chosen as Scott's running-mate in 1840 to balance the ticket with a Clayite, though during Clay's feud with Scott over various policy and personal issues, Bates remained silent, privately condemning Clay as being petty. Still, the former Vice President was in the good graces of the Clay wing, and was easily nominated on the first ballot, his candidacy being backed by many Scott Whigs as well. While Bates saw little substantial opposition to his nomination, Senator Daniel Webster would again throw his hat in the ring, to very limited success, with Justice John McLean also receiving support. A second ballot was called to crown Bates, though loyal Upshur delegates would refuse to support Bates, leaving him without the unanimous support of the convention. Staunch Clay ally and New Yorker Millard Fillmore would be nominated to serve as Bates' running-mate.

​

The Democrats, suffering from two devastating defeats in a row, were determined to retake the White House after eight years shut out from power. The 1846 Midterm elections had saw quite large Democratic victories, showcasing the general discontent that was held towards the Whigs by the public, with the need for change mandatory. Many leading Democrats recognized that the issue of Texas was growing, and believed that after the failure of running two ambiguously anti-slavery candidates, it was necessary for the party to nominate a relatively pro-slavery candidate in a pivot to appealing to the south. While many candidates were possibly acceptable, many had baggage. Former Governor of Tennessee James K. Polk was floated as a possible candidate, though his recent electoral woes and status as a southern slave holder made many believe he would be unable to carry the necessary support from the north that was needed to win, and thus looked elsewhere. Enter George M. Dallas and Lewis Cass, the two major candidates for the nomination. Cass was a longtime supporter of Jackson, and prominent proponent of "Popular Sovereignty'' on the slavery issue, though was unpopular with southerners, this would come to later damage his candidacy. Then there was George Mifflin Dallas, son of former Secretary of the Treasury Alexander J. Dallas, of whom served under President Madison. Dallas was a political veteran, previously the leader of the Family Party, a sub-group of the Democrats in his native Pennsylvania, of which generally supported nationalistic economic programs like protective tariffs and the national bank. He had previously supported Van Buren in 1844 for the nomination, gaining him the trust of many former northern Van Buren supporters.

While Dallas' views on the tariff and bank were unpopular within the wider party, he had the powerful support of the southern delegations, owing to his support of slavery and expansionism. Crafting a powerful alliancing going into the convention, Dallas had little substantial opposition, achieving a plurality on the first ballot. His closest rivals were Cass and Polk, along with Governor of New York Silas Wright, a close ally of former President Martin Van Buren. No one came close to toppling Dallas, though he did see powerful opposition, with intra-party rival James Buchanan seeking to halt his momentum and achieve his own nomination for the Presidency. Unable to unite behind a sustainable coalition to oppose Dallas the opposition crumbled, and Cass, seeing his efforts as futile, withdrew in favor of Dallas, gaining a promise from Dallas surrogates that Cass would be included in the cabinet against Dallas' own wishes. With opposition no more, Dallas would win the nomination on the sixth ballot. The Vice Presidency was a hotly contested debate, with Dallas suggesting the nomination of Robert J. Walker of Mississippi. However, meddling from Buchanan would see the nomination of his close friend and ally William R. King of Alabama, much to the frustration of Dallas.

​

The Presidential campaign quickly heated up following the conventions, exploding into a real battle for the Presidency. Each candidate's stances on the Texas issue were made priority, with the Democrats speaking out in support of annexation while Whigs campaigned against. Bates for his part waffled on the issue of Texas annexation, this being in stark contrast to Dallas, of which campaigners made clear to prioritize. However Bates' opposition to annexation and western slavery expansion served him well amongst northern Whigs, where the attitude against slavery was more felt, while Whig results in the south plummeted due to his opposition. In the south, Democrats played racial politics, accusing Bates of holding private abolitionist sentiment and highlighting his involvement in the freedom suit of Lucy Ann Berry, daughter of Polly Berry and a freewoman of color. Mounting pressure built upon the Whig campaign, and by election day it had effectively collapsed. A well run campaign on behalf of the Democrats largely swept key regions, with Dallas winning comfortably over his opponent Bates. The closest states of the election, those being; Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, North Carolina, and New York, all came down to the wire. Many scholars point to Bates' inability to finesse the Texas issue well as his campaign's major folly, being perhaps the major reason he lost.

 

[TheRockofChickamauga]

In the days leading up to the inauguration of the first Democratic president in eight years, much was weighing on the public mind in terms of what to expect from the George M. Dallas administration. There was, of course, the question of how he would respond to the raft of Whig legislation that had been passed under the Scott and Mangum years, but foremost within most minds was the Texas issue. The keystone to his victory, Dallas had promised to bring the young republic into the union, marking a stark contrast with the waffling of the Whigs. Once in office, however, Dallas would go on to lead a surprising administration. He would announce the annexation of Texas as his first priority, as was widely expected (and broadly demanded) by the general public. In its almost two decades of existence, the Republic of Texas had always served as a major thorn in relations between the United States of America and Mexico. On March 4, 1849, as his first official public act, George M. Dallas would announce his appointment of Washington Irving as a special diplomatic envoy to Mexico to resolve the Texas Crisis.

Understandably, this would cause quite the reaction. To think that America would approach Texas annexation from a diplomatic perspective and include Mexico in the proceedings shocked the nation, with the literary luminary to head the proceedings only adding to the effect. Many had expected Dallas to act unilaterally, but he explained his decision on the basis of his firm desire to avoid conflict between the two nations. Thus, Irving would arrive in the court of President Antonio López de Santa Anna in Mexico City. Affable, Irving proved skilled in lowering tensions between the two nations and forming the agreement that would ultimately become known as the Treaty of Mexico City. In it, Mexico would agree to allow the United States to annex the Republic of Texas without protest in exchange for assurances of nonaggression and that the territory of Mexico would be respected. Although Dallas would be pleased with the results, it would be fiercely met in the Senate. Many Southerners decried its limitations upon America's "Manifest Destiny", all but calling for war against Mexico in the process. In one final grand coalition, however, the titans of the Senate Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, and Thomas Hart Benton would collaborate to see it successfully ratified. Although both Clay and Webster would be dead by the end of 1850, Dallas' diplomatic vision would not pass with them; instead by enshrined with the Treaty of Mexico City.

Although the treaty would perhaps be the most defining element of Dallas' administration, the result of his first term in office continued to provide the nation with surprises. Texas would finally be brought into the union on January 1, 1850. To accompany the new slave state, Dallas hoped to bring the Oregon Territory in a balancing free state as well. In earlier decades, this compromise would have likely been well-received, but in the fiercely partisan sectional divides over slavery it was bitterly rejected. Ultimately Dallas would agree to the statehood of Texas without an accompanying Oregon, although through his voices in the Senate (primarily Benton and Daniel Sturgeon of Pennsylvania) he warned of the growing national divide that it would foster.

This would prove to be a prescient vision, especially among the Whigs. Given a taste of an mildly anti-slavery candidate in the form of Bates in 1848, a growing Free Soil movement within the party began to become evident. Three newly-elected Whigs within the Senate would ultimately plot for its rise in the lead up to the 1852 Whig national convention. All elected in 1849, William H. Seward of New York, Truman H. Smith of Connecticut, and Edward Bates of Missouri would use the four years of the Dallas administration to secure their position within the party. They too would play a crucial role in the success of the treaty, namely by rallying northerners to its cause. By the time that the Whigs gathered in Baltimore, Maryland to nominate their presidential candidate, the three men had built a fearsome political apparatus. All three would decline to seek the presidential nomination themselves (being seen as too radical by their fellow party members), but would instead rally behind Senator Thomas Corwin of Ohio. Corwin was known to sympathize with their views, but was respected enough by the party at large to prevent the image of a northern-dominated ticket. There would still be some resistance to his candidacy, with Senators James Pearce and George E. Badger of Maryland and Georgia respectively, Governor John W. Crockett of Tennessee, and former governor Edward Everett of Massachusetts all running as moderate alternatives. The impetus was behind Corwin, however, and by the third ballot he was triumphant. In a show that they were not a regional party, however, the Whigs would place Representative John M. Botts of Virginia onto the ticket with him.

The Democratic convention would be less contentious, although only slightly. Although glad that he had returned them to the executive mansion after eight years of Whig rule, Dallas had managed to annoy many sections of his party. Adherents of Manifest Destiny were stunned by his refusal to actively pursue southwestern territory beyond Texas while Southerners began to question his loyalty because of the Oregon dispute and loyal party men fumed that he had failed to roll back signature Whig achievements like the 3rd National Bank or protective tariffs. Through skillful maneuvering and political deal-making, Dallas would be able to avoid the humiliation of a contested convention. He would not be out of the wilderness yet, however.

Frustrated by the perceived timidity of both the Whigs and Democrats when it came to expansion, many Southerners from both parties would announce a break off movement. Founding a new party called the "Expansion Party", their sole objective for the overturning of the Treaty of Mexico City and the expansion of the United States into the southwestern territories. Implicit within their platform and southern demeanor was that those conquests would be open to slavery. Hoping to represent both parties, George W. Crawford -- the former Whig governor of Georgia -- would be nominated for president alongside Jefferson Davis -- the Democratic representative from Mississippi. On the other side of the political spectrum would be the nascent Free Soil Party. Formed out of the fears of slavery's encroachment into any potential new territories, both Dallas' foreign policy and the Whig's increasingly anti-slavery bent went far in assuaging their fears. In a small private convention, party leaders agreed not to field a ticket and left it to the conscience of their supporters whether to support Dallas or Corwin.

It would soon become clear to the candidates that any and all support was needed. With the Expansion Party harnessing the desire for Manifest Destiny and drawing backers from both the Democrats and Whigs, those who remained loyal to their parties struggled to fill the subsequent gaps. The voters would be faced with a question of choosing a slavery leaning candidate in Crawford, a free-soil leaning candidate in Corwin, and the closest approximation to moderation with Dallas. It would be a close election, but by a narrow electoral margin the voters would decide to select the third choice. Consequently, Dallas would be elected to a second term in office although only by an extremely narrow electoral majority. For the moment, the people of the United States had chosen moderation, although the demand for a resolution to the issue of slavery was becoming increasingly evident.

​

 

[Wendell]

I figured the western border of the U.S./Texas in this timeline would be the Pecos.

 

[Atlas of Independence]

I figured the western border of the U.S./Texas in this timeline would be the Pecos.

It will be, the map isn’t correct in that regard.

 

[Atlas of Independence]

American politics had become volatile and violent during the course of the Dallas Presidency, with slavery becoming one of the country's top issues. Dallas was tired of the slavery debate, and to moderate like himself slavery in the territories was not a matter for Congress to resolve; he argued that the people in each territory, like those in each American state, were the sovereigns thereof and should determine the status of slavery. He was reluctant to search for more territory that could inflame the sectional divisions that plagued the country, though southerners grew desperate for new slave territory, fearing that they were slowly running out of new slave land under the Missouri Compromise line that could be turned into states. To solve this problem Dallas turned to Popular Sovereignty, and he courted the support of influential allies Stephen A. Douglas and Lewis Cass, both serving in the Senate. In January 1854, he proposed to organize two new territories: Nebraska Territory, located west of Iowa, and Kansas Territory, located south of Nebraska Territory and west of Missouri. Under the doctrine of popular sovereignty, the citizens of each territory would determine the status of slavery, effectively eliminating the Missouri Compromise, much to the horror of northerners.

Whigs would decry Dallas as a puppet of the slave states, though support for Douglas' proposal was strong within the Democratic Party. With it's passage shook America, and the cracks of disunion began. The Democrats, still recovering from the Kansas-Nebraska act, were to go into the next election uncertain of their prospects, while the Whigs were energized, though not united. At the Democratic convention, many would throw their hats into ring; powerful men like the previously mentioned Douglas and Cass, but also James Buchanan, Sam Houston, among others. On the 48th ballot, after efforts to nominate Secretary of War Franklin Pierce had fallen short, Virginia dramatically switched its votes from Pierce to Daniel S. Dickinson, the Minister to the United Kingdom. The enthusiastic reaction in the hall immediately caused a swift delegate-stampede to Dickinson, of whom was entirely unconnected to the convention being in London at the time of the balloting, and thus was unable to comment on ongoing political debates, leaving him as a popular moderating choice. To appeal to westerners and southerners, former President of Texas Sam Houston was chosen as his running-mate.

​

As compared to the Democrat's battle for the nomination and the war they conducted at the convention, the Whigs would be a simple crowning of their nominee; William H. Seward. A prominent Senator from New York, Seward was a leading Conscience Whig since the 1830s, and was incredibly popular with that wing of the party, though he still counted many opponents. His history in politics tallied up a long voting history and he had made his opinion known on many policies, alienating voters of whom were on the opposite stance on those issues. This hurt him in key areas, notably the western states like Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan, all of which were to varying degrees of sympathetic to Popular Sovereignty, while Seward was staunchly opposed.

In an effort to make up for this, the convention would nominate Lt. Governor Thomas H. Ford of Ohio to be Seward's running-mate. However, Ford had lackluster name recognition, and his impact on the ticket was minimal at best. Southern Cotton Whigs had long grown tired of the increasing Conscience dominance of the party, and viewed Seward as a radical, believing his nomination as the final straw. They would triumphantly leave the party, though would encounter hurdles during the campaign, with most northern Whigs staying loyal to Seward, meaning the rump Whigs were almost entirely made up of southerners. John Bell, a prominent southern Cotton Whig, would be nominated, along with Alexander H. Stephens of Georgia for the Vice Presidency.

The campaign for the Presidency was vicious, with Democrats and Constitutional Unionists decrying Seward's election as a threat to the stability of the union itself, fearing southern secession were he to win. Meanwhile the Whigs primarily attacked the Kansas-Nebraska act, as well as the alleged corruption of the Dallas administration itself. Despite a spirited campaign on behalf of the Whigs, the Democrats were unable to achieve an electoral majority, falling slightly short, the ticket's weakness in the west dragging it down. The Democrats were surprisingly damaged by Bell's candidacy, it attracting sizeable moderate southern support from both parties, winning Tennessee, Kentucky, and Georgia. Dickinson narrowly carried the important states of Indiana and Michigan, the latter by a mere 119 votes. The result of the election was in doubt for days, but the end showed that no candidate had achieved a majority in the electoral college. To the Whig's dismay the Democrats held a strong majority of state delegations in the House of Representatives, leading to Dickinson's election to the Presidency.

 

[TheRockofChickamauga]

There is much danger in indecision, and perhaps no president in American history demonstrated that principle better than Daniel S. Dickinson. Seemingly a devout opportunist by nature, Dickinson's selection as the Democratic nominee had come as a result of his inoffensive nature to all ranks of the party. Similarly, it wasn't truly his firm beliefs and commitments that would bring him to the presidency, but rather a public retaliation against the perceived extremism of the Whig ticket. Even that would not be enough, however, as his victory ultimately came as a result of a contingent election rather than traditional means. Once in office, however, Dickinson believed he could continue a similar political strategy to navigate the increasingly hazardous rapids of the Washington political current. In less trying years, he likely would have been a passing if forgettable note in executive history. Instead, he would serve four years of flailing.

His cabinet was generally perceived as balanced and conciliatory, although some northerners would grip at how the overwhelming majority being representatives of slave states. As Dickinson himself would note, however, it was off the back of those states that he had been elected (not to mention that it further helped expedite the mass exodus of the Southern Whigs to the Democratic Party). It would seem that it would be the only well-received measure of his administration, however, as almost immediately the conflict over territories and expansion would rise again. Immediately, he still had to deal with the issue of the Nebraska and Kansas territories left to him by his predecessor. Dallas' hopes that popular sovereignty would be the peaceful solution were quickly squashed by reality. For four years Dickinson would struggle to maintain order, often switching out territorial governors in a feeble hope that one man might make a difference. The conflict between the pro-slavery Razors (given for their reputed preference to slash their opponent's throats at the dead of night) and anti-slavery Caravaners (given for the large groups in which they traveled) would rage on effectively unabated for his entire tenure. Even the appearance of the 8th United States Infantry under Colonel John Garland hardly halted the violence, with even some soldiers taking part in the depredations committed by both sides.

His issues expanded further when the debate over the Oregon territory was reignited. In 1858, the Whigs were returned to a House majority, although many began to note the increasingly stratified sectional divides in congressional representations. Generally, the Whigs had seized the northern seats while the Democrats secured the South, although small enclaves of loyal party support defied both rules. With Speaker of the House Edward Wade of Ohio now holding the reins of power, he immediately allowed a bill for Oregon's statehood onto the floor of the House. With several weeks of fiery debate culminating Whig Representative Owen Lovejoy of Illinois and Democratic Representative Roger A. Pryor

of Virginia pulling revolvers on each other, the bill would eventually secure a narrow passage through the House. Although easily stonewalled in the Democratic Senate, the prospect of free Oregon so alarmed the pro-slavery elements of the nation that they resolved to act.

Thus would come the Crabb-Kinney Expedition. Named after its leaders -- Henry A. Crabb and Henry Kinney --, it involved several hundreds Southerners filbustering west from Texas into Mexico's northern territories. Quickly making progress through the sparsely populated region, both nations would be shocked by their actions. As he organized his army to strike, President Santa Anna continually wired Dickinson asking him to denounce the little army. Fearful of the Southern response, Dickinson would attempt to pass the buck to his Secretary of State Robert M.T. Hunter. Hunter, however, had his own presidential ambitions and similarly feared offending any of his party's factions, so he left the ultimate decision to Dickinson. By the time that his administration managed to cobble together a response, the Mexican army was already bearing down on the filibusters. Reportedly, a messenger rode up to Santa Anna with the message just after he oversaw the execution of Crabb and Kinney. Needless to say, the South was outraged and demanded that Dickinson invade Mexico in response. Northern public opinion, however, quickly united against the filibusters, and consequently Dickinson once more temporized. He would recruit several hundred men into the American army, but failed to ever ask for a declaration of war to keep the crucial northern vote in line. For all of his posturing, ultimately nothing would come of his bluster.

By the time of the 1860 presidential election, Dickinson had effectively destroyed his good will with all factions of the Democratic Party. Nevertheless, he persevered in his hope for renomination. Coming into the convention, however, he found that he could not even control the entire New York delegation, and it was downhill from there. After he failed to win the nomination after the first ballot, serious candidates began jumping into to oppose him, ranging from Senator Stephen Douglas (who had narrowly avoided defeat for re-election, which he blamed on Dickinson) to Governor Paul Octave Hébert to even his own Secretary of State Robert M.T. Hunter. Dozens of ballots would occur, but no candidate would ever make a break-throw, or even any serious progress. Finally by the forty-eighth ballot, Douglas and Hunter began to approach each other to find a compromise candidate. They agreed that Dickinson could not be renominated, but also realized that they would need his delegates. Eventually, they would resolve upon Senator William K. Sebastian of Arkansas, a truly moderate senator from Arkansas. Reluctantly Dickinson would agree to throw his support to him if he was given a say on the vice-presidential nominee. The deal was struck, and Sebastian would surge to victory on the fifty-fourth ballot. Former governor William Bigler of Pennsylvania, a close ally of Dickinson, would be selected as his running-mate.

The Whigs, meanwhile, hoped to provide a united front going into the election and thus resolved to essentially decide on their nominee beforehand. There was significant support for once more backing Seward, but many feared that he was simply perceived as too radical for the American populace. Party notables Senator Truman Smith of Connecticut and Governor Charles Durkee of Wisconsin would see brief bubbles of support, and the last gasps of the moderates would throw their backing behind Rufus Choate. Ultimately, however, it would be the quiet but dutiful senator from Maine, William P. Fessenden, that the party leaders would rally behind. Notable, by the time that the Whig convention convened in Indianapolis, a large portrait of Fessenden stood to the left of Clay behind the podium. Easily selected on the first ballot, the real choice would be the vice-presidential nominee. Due in large part to home field advantage, it would ultimately go to Representative George W. Julian on the third ballot.

Thus, the tickets would be presented to the nation. Notably, Fessenden-Julian confirmed the growing trend of the Whigs becoming a solely Northern party. Abandoning the South to the Democrats, they hoped to sweep the free states (which would be enough for victory). Sebastian, meanwhile, hoped his moderate credentials would be enough to sway enough northern states to back his candidacy. Consequently, the election featured much fear-mongering over the Union, which only heightened sectional tensions. By the time that the final votes were tallied, the seemingly foreordained results would occur. Fessenden would win in the North, while Sebastian would win in the South. The nation could only hold its breath for the ultimate result as the next few weeks began to unfold.

​

 

[Wendell]

So Santa Fe is American?

 

[Atlas of Independence]

So Santa Fe is American?

It is.

 

[mr morbius]

I can't wait for the timeline to eventualy go from

,,1840 - Winfield Scott is elected"

,,2020 - GOD EMPEROR BĘDAM OF HYPERBOREA INVADES NEW MEXICO"

 

[TheRockofChickamauga]

I can't wait for the timeline to eventualy go from

,,1840 - Winfield Scott is elected"

,,2020 - GOD EMPEROR BĘDAM OF HYPERBOREA INVADES NEW MEXICO"

I'm not sure if it will reach that point, but even with no knowledge of what lies ahead I'm sure it will be interesting!

 

[mr morbius]

I'm not sure if it will reach that point, but even with no knowledge of what lies ahead I'm sure it will be interesting!

Just a quick question : will events outside the US of A be adressed? I mean, once 1870 or so (and definitly by 1900) rolls around we will most likely see the how the influence (or the lack of thereof, EKHM EKHM California) is shaping other countries.

 

[TheRockofChickamauga]

Just a quick question : will events outside the US of A be adressed? I mean, once 1870 or so (and definitly by 1900) rolls around we will most likely see the how the influence (or the lack of thereof, EKHM EKHM California) is shaping other countries.

I don't think there will be updates focusing specifically on foreign nations, but international developments will be addressed as they become relevant to the United States.

 

[Darth_Kiryan]

Just a quick question : will events outside the US of A be adressed? I mean, once 1870 or so (and definitly by 1900) rolls around we will most likely see the how the influence (or the lack of thereof, EKHM EKHM California) is shaping other countries.

I don't think there will be updates focusing specifically on foreign nations, but international developments will be addressed as they become relevant to the United States.

Seems to me that this is just a timeline concerning only US Presidents and their impact nationally

 

[mr morbius]

just a quick question : will there be ever any updates to this?

 

[Atlas of Independence]

just a quick question : will there be ever any updates to this?

Of course, but life must come first. I just haven’t had much time to give into writing the next update.

 

[Atlas of Independence]

13th. President of the United States
William P. Fessenden​

Tensions were immediately high upon the dawn of President Fessenden's entry into office. The Senator from Maine was a leading anti-slavery Whig during his days in congress, his speeches read widely across the nation, letting everyone know his stances on the issues of the day. Southerners immediately feared him as an abolitionist, his vice presidential selection of Radical George W. Julian of Indiana only further fueling these worries, but the newly inaugurated President sought a different more moderate course than what many had expected from him previously. While he denounced the expansion of slavery into new territories, he was more conciliatory than previously thought, upsetting radicals within his party like Benjamin Wade of Ohio and Zachariah Chandler of Michigan. He tapped former Presidential candidate Edward Bates of Missouri as his Secretary of State, upsetting Chandler and Wade for picking a conservative slaveholder and prominent southerner, causing a clear rift within the party between Fessenden's Moderates and the Radicals, echoing the Clay-Scott divide during the 1840s. Fessenden sought to lower sectional tensions by offering as a compromise to the south a low tariff, his allies in congress pushing through the Hamlin-Lane Tariff Bill, co-wrote by Henry S. Lane of Indiana and Hannibal Hamlin of Maine, of which lowered tariff rates from that of the Dallas-Dickinson years.

Fessenden himself favored low tariff rates, and worked with his allies in congress to get it passed. However, many radicals saw the President's tariff plan as a betrayal of common Whig economic policy, as well as too much of an overture to the south, and thus piled the bill with hundreds of amendments. More than a hundred were added, the bill becoming so crammed with amendments that nullified most of the reforms and raised rates again, much to the chagrin of the President and his congressional allies. Nonetheless, Fessenden believed the bill to be better than nothing at all, and he let it become law without his signature. Despite his overtures to the south in terms of taxation, on the larger political stage he was solidly with his party, advocating for and succeeding in seeing the statehood of free states Minnesota and Oregon, unbalancing the number of free and slave states, causing outrage across the south. His attempts at sectional unity had failed triumphantly, and he quietly returned to the party fold, seeing the passage of the Homestead Act. On Mexico he was silent, opting for a peaceful route with America's most prominent neighbor. His popularity with Whigs and Democrats alike low, the 1866 midterms would prove little better than his previous endeavors, with the Whigs narrowly retaining hold of the House and and Senate amid an onslaught of newly elected Democrats.

Following classic Whig tradition Fessenden declined to run for re-election, knowing his chances would be futile anyways. The Whig convention was incredibly chaotic, being held Chicago, Illinois, amid infighting between pro-Fessenden and anti-Fessenden Whigs battling for control. The President himself opted to not get involved, and left the debate for the convention and its delegates to decide, offering little advice to his disorganized and increasingly outnumbered supporters, many of which would throw their support behind either Sec. of State Edward Bates or Ambassador to Great Britain Charles F. Adams. Radicals backed a wide number of candidates, including Governor Austin Blair of Michigan, Vice President George W. Julian of Indiana, Representative William D. Kelley of Pennsylvania, and Elihu Washburne of Illinois, among others. Yet the man who would find success would be William L. Dayton, a relatively obscure former senator from New Jersey, radical enough to appease to the radicals but respected enough among the moderates to achieve the nomination. He had just ended his time in France as Minister, being relieved earlier that year, and thus did not have the time to become re-ingrained in national politics. The Whigs nominated Schuyler "Smiler" Colfax, a remarkably young but brilliantly bitter representative from Indiana, a noted radical to balance the ticket both geographically and politically.

​

While the Whig convention was chaotic, the Democrats enjoyed a relatively peaceful but tension filled convention. Frontrunner Stephen Douglas was opposed by many within the party, owing to his support for popular sovereignty, hated by southerners to a point of refusal to even support his candidacy against Dayton. With powerful Democrats standing against him, Douglas marched on, but was defeated by an Anti-Douglas coalition nominating James Guthrie, a Senator from Kentucky and a moderate, known for his support of the union but loyalty to his party and Democratic ideals. To balance the ticket of Guthrie the southerner would be Joseph Lane, a Senator from the newly admitted state of Oregon, a must-win. The campaign for the Presidency quickly delved into mudslinging and hate, with Democrats accusing the Whigs of abolitionist sentiment and sympathy, while they shot back against the Democrats as harbingers of slavery expansion and disunion. The elderly Guthrie was contrasted heavily with the youthful ticket of Dayton and Colfax. The election came down to a handful of states, those being Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Oregon, New York, New Jersey, and Ohio. Dayton carried his home-state along with New York and Ohio, though was weak in the more slavery accepting region of the Midwest, where Guthrie narrowly carried Illinois and Indiana by slim margins, while carrying Oregon with a healthy majority. Despite obtaining a majority in the popular vote, Guthrie tied Dayton at 154 electoral votes, forcing the election to a contingent election, much to the horror of the nation.

​

Despite the Democrats flipping both chambers of congress during the election, the Whigs held a majority in the House, and thus it was widely expected that Dayton should reasonably be elected before the new congress was inaugurated as a result. This would not be the case as history tells. He would unexpectedly die on December 1, 1864, throwing the entire election into even more chaos than before, with Whigs scrambling to choose a suitable replacement to become President. Many expected Colfax to be that successor, but his radicalism off put many others, thus putting the nation in an uncomfortable position with an unstable contingent election coming its way. During the counting of the electoral college, numerous Whigs refused to support Colfax, many voting for the deceased Dayton, Vice President Julian, former Senator John Bell, Minister to France Adams, Secretary of State Bates, among others. Meanwhile, pro-slavery rioters surrounded the capital amid voting, growing louder and louder with their accusations of fraud and an abolitionist conspiracy to steal the election from Guthrie, of whom for his party urged calm.