Consulate Of The United States, Liverpool
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The United States Consulate in Liverpool,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, was established in 1790, and was the first overseas consulate founded by the then fledgling
United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguo ...
.
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
was at the time an important center for transatlantic commerce and a vital trading partner for the former
Thirteen Colonies The Thirteen Colonies were the British colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America which broke away from the British Crown in the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), and joined to form the United States of America. The Thirteen C ...
. Among those who served the United States as consul in Liverpool were the writer
Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne (né Hathorne; July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. His works often focus on history, morality, and religion. He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, from a family long associat ...
, the spy Thomas Haines Dudley, and John S. Service, who was driven out of the
United States Foreign Service The United States Foreign Service is the primary personnel system used by the diplomatic service of the United States federal government, under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of over 13,000 professionals carr ...
by McCarthyite persecution. After
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, as Liverpool declined in importance as an international port, the consulate was eventually closed down. The American Consulate in Liverpool was situated on the third floor of the Cunard building on the Pierhead and permanently closed in 1975.


History

The first consul was James Maury, who held the office from 1790 to 1829, and whose portrait still hangs today in
Liverpool Town Hall Liverpool Town Hall stands in High Street, Liverpool, High Street at its junction with Dale Street, Castle Street, and Water Street, Liverpool, Water Street in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for E ...
. In 1801 Maury chaired the inaugural meeting of the American Chamber of Commerce in Liverpool, representing Liverpool merchants trading with the United States. Maury was the first signatory to the society's rules and was its first President. Maury held the position of consul for 39 years, until 1829, when he was removed from office by President
Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...
.Liverpool Athenaeum
Retrieved June 1, 2010
The consulate stood on the quayside of Steers Dock and the Pool of Liverpool. The building was decorated with a golden
bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche ...
, the national symbol of the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
and a reassuring sign to American sailors or travellers arriving at Liverpool docks. According to Edwin Williams's New York Annual Register, published in 1835, United States Consuls were not paid, but were: :"in effect, agents for commerce and seamen. They receive no yearly salaries... and their compensation is derived from the fees which they are allowed by law. heyare principally occupied in verifying, in various forms, the legality of the trade of the United States with foreign nations, and in relieving and sending home American seamen, who by accident or misfortune are left destitute".


Consul Nathaniel Hawthorne

Among other notable consuls was the author
Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne (né Hathorne; July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. His works often focus on history, morality, and religion. He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, from a family long associat ...
, appointed by President
Franklin Pierce Franklin Pierce (November 23, 1804October 8, 1869) was the 14th president of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. A northern Democratic Party (United States), Democrat who believed that the Abolitionism in the United States, abolitio ...
in 1853, shortly after the publication of Tanglewood Tales. The position was considered the most lucrative foreign service position at the time, and was described by Hawthorne's wife as "second in dignity to the Embassy in London". However, life in Liverpool was evidently expensive, and Hawthorne complained to the Secretary of State that he was underpaid, and asked for living expenses of $7,500, arguing that a consul: :"cannot possibly live here with a family (unless he secludes himself from society and forgoes all the social advantages of a residence in England). A man might be comfortable with this in a New England village, but not, I assure you, as the representative of America in the greatest commercial city in England". In 1855 this was done. Congress passed a law fixing the salary of the consul at Liverpool at $7,500 per year. Hawthorne described in his journal the American seamen with whom he dealt as "most rascally set of sailors that ever were seen - dirty, desperate, and altogether pirate-like in aspect". It appears that he often found his consular duties to be a burden: :"the duties of the office carried me to prisons, police-courts, hospitals, lunatic asylums, coroner's inquests, death-beds, funerals, and brought me in contact with insane people, criminals, ruined speculators, wild adventurers, diplomatists, brother-consuls, and all manner of simpletons and unfortunates, in greater number and variety than I had ever dreamed of as pertaining to America, in addition to whom there was an equivalent multitude of English rogues, dexterously counterfeiting the genuine yankee article." Hawthorne was retired from the position in 1857, having apparently discharged his duties in a "prudent and efficient manner"


American Civil War

During the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
(1861–65), consul Thomas Haines Dudley made strenuous efforts to prevent ships from Liverpool from breaking the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
blockade of Confederate ports. Great Britain remained officially neutral throughout the war but there were many Confederate sympathisers in Liverpool. The commerce raider CSS ''Alabama'' was a screw sloop-of-war built for the
Confederate States Navy The Confederate States Navy (CSN) was the Navy, naval branch of the Confederate States Armed Forces, established by an act of the Confederate States Congress on February 21, 1861. It was responsible for Confederate naval operations during the Amer ...
at
Birkenhead Birkenhead () is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liverpool. It lies within the Historic counties of England, historic co ...
in Merseyside in 1862 by John Laird Sons and Company. She was eventually sunk by the in 1864. British merchants in Liverpool financed blockade runners that sent munitions and luxuries through the
Union blockade The Union blockade in the American Civil War was a naval strategy by the United States to prevent the Confederate States of America, Confederacy from trading. The blockade was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln in April 1861, and required ...
to Confederate ports in return for cotton and tobacco. In 1865, following the assassination of U.S. President
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...
by
John Wilkes Booth John Wilkes Booth (May 10, 1838April 26, 1865) was an American stage actor who Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, assassinated United States president Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. A member of the p ...
, vice consul Wilding notified his masters in Washington that
John Surratt John Harrison Surratt Jr. (April 13, 1844 – April 21, 1916) was an American Confederate States of America , Confederate spy who was accused of plotting with John Wilkes Booth to kidnap U.S. President Abraham Lincoln; he was also suspected of ...
, one of Booth's conspirators, had taken refuge in Liverpool.Eisenschiml, Otto, p.200, ''Why Was Lincoln Murdered?''
Retrieved July 18, 2010
Surratt had fled to Europe with the help of Confederate agents, booking passage under an alias and landing at Liverpool in September 1865, where he went into hiding in the oratory of the Church of the Holy Cross. Curiously, the United States Government chose not to pursue Surratt any further, despite having offered a $25,000 for information leading to his arrest, and no request was ever made to the British authorities to detain him. In any event Surratt did not stay long in Liverpool, but went on to serve for a brief time in the Ninth Company of the Pontifical Zouaves in the
Vatican City Vatican City, officially the Vatican City State (; ), is a Landlocked country, landlocked sovereign state and city-state; it is enclaved within Rome, the capital city of Italy and Bishop of Rome, seat of the Catholic Church. It became inde ...
under the name John Watson. Consul Dudley wished to retire after the war and return to his law practice in
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
, but such was his knowledge of Confederate assets in Liverpool that he stayed on as consul, seizing Confederate ships and returning the proceeds of sale to the victorious United States Government. Relations between Britain and the United States were tense after the war, in part because of the role of Liverpool blockade runners and commerce raiders and the widespread perception in America that Britain had been sympathetic to the defeated Confederacy. The claims arising out of these disputes, especially the Alabama Claims, would not be settled until the 1871 Treaty of Washington.


20th century

After
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Liverpool declined in importance as a trading partner with the United States, and the consulate was eventually closed down. Among the last holders of the office were George H. Steuart and John S. Service. The latter had been driven out of the
Foreign Service Foreign Service may refer to: * Diplomatic service, the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country * United States Foreign Service, the diplomatic service of the United States government **Foreign Service ...
by Senator
Joseph McCarthy Joseph Raymond McCarthy (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957) was an American politician who served as a Republican Party (United States), Republican United States Senate, U.S. Senator from the state of Wisconsin from 1947 until his death at age ...
on suspicion of
communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...
sympathies. Eventually the building fell into disuse, and for a period of time became The Eagle pub.


Restoration and repair

Maury's former office now sits amid Liverpool's newest and largest shopping centre,
Liverpool One Liverpool ONE is a shopping, residential, and leisure complex in Liverpool, England. The project involved the redevelopment of 42 acres (170,000 m2) of land in Liverpool City Centre, the city centre. It is a retail-led development anchored by ...
. Once derelict and empty, it was the first building purchased by The
Grosvenor Group Grosvenor Group Limited is an internationally diversified property group, which traces its origins to 1677 and has its headquarters in London, England. Previously (from 1841) based at 66-68 Brook Street & 53 Davies Street, it is now based at 7 ...
in preparation of " The Paradise Street Project", an extensive redevelopment of Liverpool's central business district. The building, and the eagle which adorned it, were restored by the
Grosvenor Group Grosvenor Group Limited is an internationally diversified property group, which traces its origins to 1677 and has its headquarters in London, England. Previously (from 1841) based at 66-68 Brook Street & 53 Davies Street, it is now based at 7 ...
in 2008. The building has since been converted into a retail unit, leased by The Liverpool Sony Centre, and in addition houses three luxury apartments. Since December 2014 it has housed a branch of Cote Bistro. The
bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche ...
which now graces the facade may or may not be the original carving installed when the building was first erected. The original carving is likely to have been imported from the United States, probably fashioned by shipwrights skilled in the carving of ships' figureheads. In any event, what remained of the 200 kg eagle was removed for renovation in 2008 and taken to the
National Conservation Centre The National Conservation Centre, formerly the Midland Railway Goods Warehouse, is located in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It stands in a block surrounded by Victoria Street, Crosshall Street, Whitechapel, and Peter Street. After it closed ...
(part of National Museums Liverpool) for cleaning and restoration. The sculpture, by now in an advanced state of decay, had to be dried out for several months, following which a new head was carved, based on photos (the original head having been lost), and in addition new wing tips and a new lower base. The restored eagle was re-attached to the building in October 2008, during a small ceremony. David Whitty, who supervised the restoration of the eagle, was quoted as saying that it "should be good for another 200 years".


Notable Consuls

*1790–1829 James Maury *1853–1857
Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne (né Hathorne; July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. His works often focus on history, morality, and religion. He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, from a family long associat ...
*1861–1872 Thomas Haines DudleyOnline Archive of California
Retrieved July 18, 2010
*1878–1885 Stephen B. Packard *1959–1962 John S. Service


References

*McFarland, Philip (2004). ''Hawthorne in Concord''. New York: Grove Press. . *Mellow, James R. (1980). ''Nathaniel Hawthorne in His Times''. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. .


External links


''The Eagle Has Landed'', article by Peter Elson on the restoration of the original consulate eagle, at the Liverpool Daily Post, October 2008
Retrieved July 12, 2010

Retrieved July 12, 2010

Retrieved July 12, 2010


Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Consulate Of The United States In Liverpool
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
United Kingdom–United States relations Buildings and structures in Liverpool