with Andrew Sola and Prof. Alec Z. Reichardt (U. of Missouri)

“He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.”

In this episode we explore Grievance #4 of the Declaration of Independence and the importance of Colonial infrastructure–the roads, ports, cities, and other communication structures and information systems that helped the Colonies thrive. Topics include the following:

-the importance of the 7 Years’ War in accelerating the development of infrastructure throughout the Colonies and into the interior

-the Braddock Expedition against the French in 1755

-the expansion of the Colonial/Imperial post office, led by Benjamin Franklin

-the inauguration of the monthly packet boat from Falmouth to London in 1755, with the purpose of strengthening information sharing around the British Empire

-the presence of Native American infrastructure throughout North America

-the “pathways of paperwork” and the centralization of British Imperial bureaucracy in New York, which set the foundation for more effective infrastructure projects

-how Patriots captured and instrumentalized British Imperial infrastructure for their own political and military ends

-the expansion of knowledge or information infrastructure throughout the Colonies between the end of the 7 Years’ War and the start of the War for Independence

-the symmetries forming between newspapers and an ever more efficient postal service

-tensions between supporters of the free press and ministers who preferred censorship and who used the Stamp Act and its tax on newspapers to curtail the free spread of ideas throughout the Colonies

-the development of infrastructure that was independent from the British Empire, such as the Committees of Correspondence and the Post Office, which was authorized by the Second Continental Congress in July 1775

-the rebel takeover of the Imperial postal networks

-the importance of infrastructure in the expansion of the United States after independence

Prof. Reichardt’s book can be found here. Roads to Power, Roads to Crisis

The cover image is a map of Braddock’s Road, conceived in 1755 during the 7 Years’ War as a way to help seize the Ohio Valley from the French.