Ohio History Journal

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STATE SOVEREIGNTY IN OHIO

STATE SOVEREIGNTY IN OHIO.

 

BY JEAN DICK CHEETHAM.

The doctrine of state sovereignty was the natural outgrowth

of conditions which existed in the American colonies;1 in the

Articles of Confederation the doctrine assumed definite form,

each state was to "retain its sovereignty, freedom and independ-

ence," and this was the element of weakness that undermined

the Confederation; it hindered the acceptance of the Constitu-

tion by the States and delayed their union; it was made the

battle cry in the political revolution of 1798-1800; it tainted the

political life of the Republic and was the predisposing cause of

most of the ills of our body politic for the first three-quarters

of a century of our national existence, but the civil war struck

the death blow to the doctrine.

Ohio did not escape this malign influence. The story of the

conflict between this State and the United States Bank-

between the State government and the Federal government-

is exceedingly interesting to the student of political history. In

her youth Ohio not only advocated state rights, but nullification,

and went so far as to prove her faith by her works.

Her blunder was a serious one, but nation, state or individ-

ual is the greatest that "Can win the most splendid victories by the

retrieval of mistakes."

Ohio was admitted to the Union in 1803, during the admin-

istration of President Jefferson, and for the first twenty-five years

of her statehood, the Democratic-Republican was the dominant

 

1 "As separate states they were all agreed that they should con-

stitute and govern themselves. The revolution under which they were

gasping for life * * * * had been kindled by the abuse of power

-the power of government. An invincible repugnance to the delega-

tion of power, had thus been generated, by the very course of events

which had rendered it necessary; and the more indispensable it became,

the more awakened was the jealousy and the more intense was the distrust

by which it was to be circumscribed."-J. Q. ADAMS, Jubilee of the Con-

stitution, p. 10.

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