Ohio History Journal

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THE AARON BURR CONSPIRACY IN THE OHIO

THE AARON BURR CONSPIRACY IN THE OHIO

VALLEY.

 

 

MISS LESLIE HENSHAW, CINCINNATI.

 

What the movement known as the Burr Conspiracy really

was, will probably never be accurately known. It might have

been one of three things; first, a filibustering expedition directed

against Spain; second, a plan to revolutionize the West and

join this section with Louisiana to form a new republic; third, a

scheme to join the Western States and Louisiana with Spanish

America to form an empire. To Burr's contemporaries whose

attitude was influenced and intensified by the press of the day,

it was a "Napoleonic" scheme to separate the Western States

from the East, join them with Louisiana and Spanish America

to form an empire with Burr as the Emperor and Wilkinson as

second in command. Before this time, individuals and groups

of individuals had turned with longing eyes towards Mexico

but this affair marks the close of the period of wavering and by

bringing patriotism to a head, solidified the attitude of the

West in favor of centralization, so that from then on, we have

the United States of America with no danger of any defection

on the part of the West, a gradual decline of the old sectionalism

with the new sectionalism from the standpoint of the North

and South taking its place. The Ohio Valley was the leading

section in the West at this time, therefore the "Burr Conspiracy"

may be treated from that standpoint alone.

After the Hamilton-Burr duel and during the completion of

Burr's term as Vice-President in Washington, a great intimacy

had developed between Burr and General James Wilkinson

and variety was added to their boarding house existence by dis-

cussing routes in the far Southwest and examining and drawing

maps of that district. Before Burr's departure for the West,

he had been concerned with Wilkinson, John Smith of Ohio,

John Brown and General John Adair of Kentucky in an effort

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