Historical Research Library
Discover the people, events, and key documents that shaped the Founding Era.
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“Jefferson is in every view less dangerous than Burr,” 1800
Hamilton’s support of Jefferson over Burr in the contested election of 1800—one factor in Burr’s 1804 challenge
Supporting Document
“The Nature and Importance of True Republicanism,” 1801
A treatise by Haynes that expresses his only public statement during his lifetime on race or slavery
Supporting Document
Alexander Hamilton on Peggy’s Death, 1801
A letter carrying news of Peggy’s death to Eliza and offering his warm condolences
Supporting Document
Burr Writes to Jefferson about Hamilton, 1801
A letter on political matters and Hamilton's reaction to Democratic-Republican success in New York races
Supporting Document
John Adams on the Abolition of Slavery, 1801
A letter discussing the growth of slavery and advising caution about radical abolitionism
Supporting Document
John Quincy Adams’s Poetic Message to Thomas Jefferson, 1802
A poem mocking Thomas Jefferson for his affair with Sally Hemings
Supporting Document
“A Valedictory Discourse,” 1804
An anti-slavery poem delivered in speech to Revolutionary War veterans
Supporting Document
Hamilton-Burr Duel, 1804
A fatal confrontation between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr that stemmed from political and personal animosities and shaped American political history
Event
A Letter from Abigail Adams to Thomas Jefferson on the Presidency, 1804
A letter rebuking Thomas Jefferson for his unflattering words about John Adams
Supporting Document
Newspaper Account of the Duel, August 2, 1804
An anti-dueling article in an Antifederalist newspaper three weeks after the Burr–Hamilton duel
Supporting Document
Article II of the Constitution and the Twelfth Amendment
The initial rules for electing the president and vice president and the constitutional amendment that resolved some issues arising in 1796 and 1800
Supporting Document
Burr’s Coded Letter about the Duel, 1804
A letter about the possibility of criminal charges against the vice president
Supporting Document