|
Dr.
James G. Basker, 2004 stands beside
Alexander Hamilton,
1804 |
“Alexander
Hamilton:
The Man Who Made Modern America” at
NY Historical
Society
By Dorothy Davis
Education Update Publisher Pola Rosen
and I toured the blockbuster Alexander Hamilton exhibit at
the New-York Historical Society one recent morning with James
G. Basker, who was wearing his hat as its Project Director.
Under his other hats Dr. Basker is President of the Gilder
Lehrman Institute of American History and the Ann Whitney Olin
Professor of English at Barnard College, Columbia University.
As he stood beside the five foot six inch sculpture of Alexander
Hamilton in the Historical Society’s main hall, Basker
explained that “the average height of men in Revolutionary
times was 5’7”. George Washington at over 6’ towered
above most others.”
Hamilton, recreated by New Mexican sculptor
Kim Crowley, stands before us in the last instant in which
he will draw a pain-free breath, raising his dueling pistol
high, aiming at Éeternity.
He wears tinted glasses. Basker said, “This is the
only statue you’ll see of him in glasses. He was facing
the rising sun.”
He is bronzed as though glowing in its
light that long ago morning, July 11, 1804, which Basker pointed
out meant that 2004 was the Bicentennial year not only of Hamilton’s
death, but also of the founding of the N-YHS, in November
1804. Hamilton’s friends, including his physician Dr.
David Hosack, who attended him at the duel, were its founders. “Hamilton
would have been one of the founders too,” Basker assured
us.
Across the hall at the required number
of paces stands a bronze Aaron Burr, also 5’6” tall
and also sculpted by Kim Crowley. He was vice president of
the United States under Jefferson, but felt he would have been
president if Hamilton had not written letters against him to
Federalist members of the House of Representatives, who had
to break an Electoral College tie. “Jefferson is in every
view less dangerous than Burr,” Hamilton wrote. “Burr
loves nothing but himselfÉand will be content with
nothing short of permanent power in his own hands.”
Burr’s pistol is aimed directly
at Hamilton. The bullet that he is about to fire will not only
kill Hamilton but will ruin Burr’s reputation for all
time. “Hamilton
went into that duel knowing that whatever happened Burr was
finished,” said Basker. “If he killed Burr, Burr
would be done as a divisive political force in America and
if Burr killed him he was also done politically.”
“What if they both missed?” asked
Pola. “Good
question,” said Basker who opined that Burr was probably
anyway in political eclipse.
The actual pistols fired in the duel,
manufactured in about 1797 and modernized in the 1830s or 40s,
were displayed on the wall behind the duelers, on loan from
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
The rest of the fascinating exhibition,
which includes an original play, is filled with such things
as videos; artifacts, including the tiny leg irons of a 5-year
old slave; original documents and letters, such as Benjamin
Franklin’s copy of the
Constitution, and correspondence written by Hamilton as a
teenager; and portraits. “The 35 portraits,” said
Basker, “make this the leading portrait gallery of
the American founders anywhere in America right now. There
are more than $100 million worth of paintings in here. Eighty
percent of them are owned by the New-York Historical Society.”
Among the portraits: Alexander Hamilton
and his wife Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, “who came from
one of the richest landowning families in America,” said
Basker. Her sister Angelica Schuyler Church, “who was
rumored to be romantically involved with Hamilton”. George
Washington and his wife Martha, and James Madison and his wife
Dolley. “Although
Madison and Hamilton were enemies, their wives later spearheaded
the movement for the Washington Monument and for the building
of great monuments in Washington, D.C. John Marshall, the
most famous Chief Justice in the history of the Supreme Court
who said his own legal mind compared to Hamilton’s
was like a candle next to the sun.” John Jay, “famous
in many ways, who with Hamilton co-founded the Manumission
Society, the Abolition Society, in 1785. Hamilton and Jay
were very ardent opponents of slavery.” Albert Gallatin, “a
Swiss immigrant who became Secretary of the Treasury under
Jefferson [Hamilton had been Washington’s Secretary
of the Treasury] was asked by Jefferson to find the nefarious
schemes and illegal things he was sure were going on within
Hamilton’s work. Gallatin said, ÔI can find nothing
wrong. Hamilton’s systems are all perfect.’ It
must have really annoyed Jefferson politically but ironically
Jefferson’s Presidency benefited from Hamilton’s
strong treasury because the most important thing he did was
the Louisiana Purchase, and he could never have done that
without a strong presidency and a treasury that could fund
the purchase.”
“This exhibit deals with American
history, not a new direction for the New-York Historical
Society, according to Basker. “This institution was founded as the
historical society in New
York. Its founding mission statement says it was to collect and
preserve the history of the United States and New York, meaning
the state. It doesn’t mention the city. About twenty years
ago they started to do more New York centered things, but that
was actually a deviation from its mission. The Museum of the
City of New York was founded to focus on New York City.”
We happened to run into Susan Getting,
Assistant Principal of Townsend Harris High School who was
enthusiastic about the show, “It’s one of the best
exhibits I’ve
ever seen and kids are crazy about Alexander Hamilton. They
come away thinking he was terrific. It’s nice to have
an exhibit that enables students to embrace history,”she
said.
The Hamilton exhibit runs through February
28 and will tour the country for three years (with facsimiles
of the documents). This show is a must see for teachers and
students. Background multimedia and multipurpose kits are available.#
For a virtual exhibition and supporting
resource, go to
www.AlexanderHamiltonExhibition.org. For more about school visits, publications,
and all N-YHS programs, contact 212/873-3400 ext. 293, e-mail schoolprograms@nyhistory.org.
or visit the N-YHS online at www.nyhistory.org. For the Gilder Lehrman Institute
of American History go to www.gilderlehrman.org.
