In Hamilton, Aaron Burr asks Hamilton, “How do you write like you need it to survive?” In some respects, he did. But those squiggles-and his competence making them-played a role in Hamilton’s unlikely rise. What was considered clear script in the 18 th century is now archaic and unfamiliar. To many today, his lowercase G’s and capital M’s are still elegant, but they are also somewhat illegible. Thanks to librarians who have been digitizing Hamilton’s letters, you can now see Hamilton’s handwriting online. The output is startling, perhaps verging on hypergraphia or graphomania, an obsessive need to write. It was costly, too: His accounts show he spent a large amount of money on quills, parchment, penknives, slate pencils, wax, and other writing supplies. His vision included a strong central government led by a vigorous executive branch, a strong commercial economy, government-controlled banks, support for manufacturing, and a strong military.Chernow notes that Hamilton “must have produced the maximum number of words that a human being can scratch out in 49 years.” Dozens of volumes of his letters and papers have been published, and archives around the country contain more still. He took the lead in the federal government's funding of the states' debts, as well as establishing the nation's first two de facto central banks, the Bank of North America and the First Bank of the United States, a system of tariffs, and friendly trade relations with Britain. As the first secretary of the treasury, Hamilton was the main author of the economic policies of George Washington's administration. Constitution, as well as the founder of the nation's financial system, the Federalist Party, the United States Coast Guard, and the New York Post newspaper. He was an influential interpreter and promoter of the U.S. He was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. An exceptional set.Īlexander Hamilton was an American statesman, politician, legal scholar, military commander, lawyer, banker, and economist. Octavo, 7 volumes, bound in half leather, gilt titles and elaborate tooling to the spine, raised bands, frontispiece of Hamilton. He served as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention and is also celebrated as a co-author of The Federalist Papers, a series of essays that are still used. Francis & Company, 1851.įinely bound set of the works of Alexander Hamilton. Published From the Original Manuscripts Deposited in the Department of State, By Order of the Joint Library Committee of Congress. The Works of Alexander Hamilton: Comprising His Correspondence, and His Political and Official Writings, Exclusive of the Federalist, Civil and Military.

Writings by alexander hamilton