In this Book
- The Boy Governor: Stevens T. Mason and the Birth of Michigan Politics
- Book
- 2012
- Published by: University of Michigan Press
summary
In 1831, Stevens T. Mason was named Secretary of the Michigan Territory at the tender age of 19, two years before he could even vote. The youngest presidential appointee in American history, Mason quickly stamped his persona on Michigan life in large letters. After championing the territory's successful push for statehood without congressional authorization, he would defend his new state's border in open defiance of the country's political elite and then orchestrate its expansion through the annexation of the Upper Peninsula---all before his official election as Michigan's first governor at age 24, the youngest chief executive in any state's history. The Boy Governor tells the complete story of this dominant political figure in Michigan's early development. Capturing Mason's youthful idealism and visionary accomplishments, including his advocacy for a strong state university and legislating for the creation of the Soo Locks, this biography renders a vivid portrait of Michigan's first governor---his conflicts, his desires, and his sense of patriotism. This book will appeal to anyone with a love of American history and interest in the many, larger-than-life personalities that battled on the political stage during the Jacksonian era.
Table of Contents
Download Full Book
- Acknowledgments
- pp. vii-viii
- 1. The Early Years
- pp. 5-19
- 2. The Michigan Frontier
- pp. 20-35
- 3. Mason—Boy in Charge
- pp. 36-47
- 4. Statehood and the Toledo War
- pp. 48-74
- 5. Building a State
- pp. 75-89
- 6. The Financial Panic of 1837
- pp. 90-101
- 7. The Patriot War
- pp. 102-110
- 8. The Five-Million-Dollar Loan
- pp. 111-120
- 10. Final Disheartenment
- pp. 138-156
- 11. Death and Remembrance
- pp. 157-177
Additional Information
ISBN
9780472028788
Related ISBN(s)
9780472071586
MARC Record
OCLC
830023554
Pages
224
Launched on MUSE
2012-10-19
Language
English
Open Access
No