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Mental Maps of the Founders: How Geographic Imagination Guided America's Revolutionary Leaders
The Founding Fathers were men of high intellect, steely integrity, and enormous ambition—but they were not all of one mind. They came from particular places in already diverse colonies, and they all sought their futures in different horizons. Without reliable maps of even nearby terrain, they contributed in different, and sometimes conflicting, ways to the expansion of a young republic on the seaboard edge of a continent of whose vast expanses they were largely ignorant. Mental Maps of the Founders explores the geographic orientation—the mental maps—of six of the Founders. Three were Virginians, who vied to expand their new nation toward different points of the compass. One, a refugee from Puritan Boston to more tolerant Philadelphia, built a commercial and journalistic empire spanning seaboard colonies and the West Indies. Two came from buzzing commercial entrepots of glaringly different character, the sugar-and-slave island of St. Croix in the Caribbean and the stern Swiss Calvinistic city-state of Geneva. These disparate origins informed their foundation and management of a financial and taxation system that enabled the new republic’s commerce to thrive. Inspired by the many wonderful books about the Founding Fathers, the journalist, map lover, and longtime co-author of The Almanac of American Politics Michael Barone set out to explore the geographical orientation—the mental maps—of the Founders. In a series of reflective essays, Barone shows how the Founders’ mental maps helped develop the contours and character of a young republic whose geographical features and political boundaries were yet unknown.
234 pages, Hardcover
Published November 28, 2023
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About the author
Michael Barone
52 books16 followersMichael Barone, a political analyst and journalist, studies politics, American government, and campaigns and elections. The principal coauthor of the annual Almanac of American Politics (National Journal Group), he has written many books on American politics and history. Barone is also a senior political analyst for the Washington Examiner. Barone has also written for many major market publications, including The Economist, The New York Times, The Detroit Press, American Enterprise and The Daily Telegraph of London.
He graduated from Harvard University in 1966 and Yale Law School in 1969.
He graduated from Harvard University in 1966 and Yale Law School in 1969.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 4, 2024
Political analyst and author, Michael Barone, has produced a fine, new book (2023) that touches knowledgeably on a large number of topics, primarily geography and history. These two topics I have long felt are so closely related as to be opposite sides of the same coin. Barone's focus here is on six men, all among the founders of the new American nation, and the interlaced roles they played in the establishment of the United States of America. The time span covers the two decades before the Revolution, the Revolution, and the following two decades. The men he chronicles are Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and Albert Gallatin. The common theme that Barone articulates is the geographic vision, the "Mental Maps" that these individuals held of the forming, and growth of the land that started as part of British North America.
Barone has studied, and harvested from, the extensive vineyard of scholarly writing and official records of these men and their time. He has produced from this harvest focused portraits of his subjects. His portraits are not comprehensive of all that his subjects said and did, nor the lives they led. There is no mention, for instance of Hamilton's wandering eye for the ladies, nor to the fatal duel than ended his career so early. Ron Chernow's massive biography of Hamilton does cover these bits. Barone does show important formative factors and intellectual achievements of each man. Primarily, what Barone presents ties to his theme, the geographic vision of his subjects.
Some of the intellectual achievements are surprising and significant, however. Ben Franklin, for instance, was a brilliant man learned in many fields, among them science. We have all heard about the kite. What amazed me however, was that he was writing about demographics in 1754, specifically, the rapid growth of population in the colonies. (His "Observations Concerning the Increase of Mankind, Peopling of Countries, etc." is available on the National Archives Founders Online website.) The only old timer I remember addressing population growth was Malthus, who saw it as the coming doom of mankind. Franklin, however, hailed the growth, as he saw these new people coming to settle the lands West of the Appalachian Mountains.
The "mental map" of each man is detailed, but a clue is given in the chapter heads. Franklin's is "Join or Die," tied to his famous illustration of the severed snake, each segment carrying the name of one of the colonies. His vision called for unification of what then existed.
Washington's chapter is subtitled, "West by Northwest," a direction he favored viewing from Mount Vernon as it bore memories of his early surveying and diplomatic/military adventures in that direction, as well as the challenge of dealing with the Northwest Territories that came to the United States under the Revolutionary War peace treaty.
Jefferson, too, looked westward "From the Top of the Little Mountain," Monticello.
Hamilton was the only one characterized as looking Eastward, "Across the Sea Lanes," reflecting his international trade orientation derived from his childhood work experience directing shipping from the island of St. Croix, itself a fascinating account.
Madison pivoted a bit, drawing the "West by Southwest" subhead because of his concern with navigational rights on the Mississippi and access to shipping facilities in New Orleans, then the property of a hostile Spain.
Gallatin: "Ever Westward," which seems appropriate for the Treasury Secretary who wrote the checks to pay for the Lewis and Clark expedition: which returned the favor by naming a range of Mountains in present day Wyoming and Montana the Gallatin Range (whose highest peak is in Yellowstone National Park). Webster's "New Geographical Dictionary" also lists the Gallatin River, The Gallatin Gateway, and Gallatin Mountain. Perhaps the explorers wanted to make certain their return tickets were covered.
The relationships among the subjects were varied and changed over time. Disputes arose over such issues as our relationship with Britain and France when the two were at war during Napoleon's time. Another area of conflict was the role of the central government. Washington and Hamilton
favored a standing army and navy; Jefferson, Madison, and Gallatin did not. The latter found having them convenient during the War of 1812. Washington and Hamilton supported a U.S. National Bank as a means of funding the Federal government; Jefferson and Gallatin did not. They were glad to have it when it came time to pay France 15 million dollars for the Louisiana Purchase .
Much the same as we see many issues playing out in America today, it seems.
Barone's style covers an immense amount of history in highly readable fashion in just 203 pages of text. His extensive references link to all the additional background anyone could want. Includes maps and index.
I found this book a delight, everything a great book should be. Recommended for general readers as well as specialists.
Barone has studied, and harvested from, the extensive vineyard of scholarly writing and official records of these men and their time. He has produced from this harvest focused portraits of his subjects. His portraits are not comprehensive of all that his subjects said and did, nor the lives they led. There is no mention, for instance of Hamilton's wandering eye for the ladies, nor to the fatal duel than ended his career so early. Ron Chernow's massive biography of Hamilton does cover these bits. Barone does show important formative factors and intellectual achievements of each man. Primarily, what Barone presents ties to his theme, the geographic vision of his subjects.
Some of the intellectual achievements are surprising and significant, however. Ben Franklin, for instance, was a brilliant man learned in many fields, among them science. We have all heard about the kite. What amazed me however, was that he was writing about demographics in 1754, specifically, the rapid growth of population in the colonies. (His "Observations Concerning the Increase of Mankind, Peopling of Countries, etc." is available on the National Archives Founders Online website.) The only old timer I remember addressing population growth was Malthus, who saw it as the coming doom of mankind. Franklin, however, hailed the growth, as he saw these new people coming to settle the lands West of the Appalachian Mountains.
The "mental map" of each man is detailed, but a clue is given in the chapter heads. Franklin's is "Join or Die," tied to his famous illustration of the severed snake, each segment carrying the name of one of the colonies. His vision called for unification of what then existed.
Washington's chapter is subtitled, "West by Northwest," a direction he favored viewing from Mount Vernon as it bore memories of his early surveying and diplomatic/military adventures in that direction, as well as the challenge of dealing with the Northwest Territories that came to the United States under the Revolutionary War peace treaty.
Jefferson, too, looked westward "From the Top of the Little Mountain," Monticello.
Hamilton was the only one characterized as looking Eastward, "Across the Sea Lanes," reflecting his international trade orientation derived from his childhood work experience directing shipping from the island of St. Croix, itself a fascinating account.
Madison pivoted a bit, drawing the "West by Southwest" subhead because of his concern with navigational rights on the Mississippi and access to shipping facilities in New Orleans, then the property of a hostile Spain.
Gallatin: "Ever Westward," which seems appropriate for the Treasury Secretary who wrote the checks to pay for the Lewis and Clark expedition: which returned the favor by naming a range of Mountains in present day Wyoming and Montana the Gallatin Range (whose highest peak is in Yellowstone National Park). Webster's "New Geographical Dictionary" also lists the Gallatin River, The Gallatin Gateway, and Gallatin Mountain. Perhaps the explorers wanted to make certain their return tickets were covered.
The relationships among the subjects were varied and changed over time. Disputes arose over such issues as our relationship with Britain and France when the two were at war during Napoleon's time. Another area of conflict was the role of the central government. Washington and Hamilton
favored a standing army and navy; Jefferson, Madison, and Gallatin did not. The latter found having them convenient during the War of 1812. Washington and Hamilton supported a U.S. National Bank as a means of funding the Federal government; Jefferson and Gallatin did not. They were glad to have it when it came time to pay France 15 million dollars for the Louisiana Purchase .
Much the same as we see many issues playing out in America today, it seems.
Barone's style covers an immense amount of history in highly readable fashion in just 203 pages of text. His extensive references link to all the additional background anyone could want. Includes maps and index.
I found this book a delight, everything a great book should be. Recommended for general readers as well as specialists.
February 18, 2024
DNF. Very disappointing; looking forward to a book about founders that wasn’t woke! Whole paragraphs are repeated in each chapter. Just an overview of each founder’s thoughts produced in many previous books.
August 25, 2025
A Different Perspective on the Founders
Barone’s “take” on the views of America’s Founding Fathers is an interesting, but repetitive one. For that reason, I didn’t find it a particularly compelling read.
Barone’s “take” on the views of America’s Founding Fathers is an interesting, but repetitive one. For that reason, I didn’t find it a particularly compelling read.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews