The Empire of Liberty and Native Nations: Jefferson's Strange Praise of Logan

• In Event: Empire, Republic, and Virtue in American Political Thought

Abstract

In his Notes on the State of Virginia, Thomas Jefferson recorded glowing praise of an address by Chief Logan, calling it superior to any speech coming from antiquity. Thirty years later, and two years after the Louisiana Purchase, Jefferson used his Second Inaugural to lament the injustice of European expansion onto Native lands. This paper examines these two understudied texts in Jefferson's writings in order to assess his declared commitment to Native sovereignty and his faith in the Enlightenment.

Author

• Jeremy D. Bailey, University of Oklahoma