Webster–Ashburton Treaty
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The Webster–Ashburton Treaty, signed August 9, 1842, was a treaty that resolved several border issues between the
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and the British North American colonies (the region that later became the
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). Negotiated in the US federal
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of
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, it was signed August 9, 1842, under the new administration of US President
John Tyler John Tyler (March 29, 1790 – January 18, 1862) was the tenth president of the United States, serving from 1841 to 1845, after briefly holding office as the tenth vice president of the United States, vice president in 1841. He was elected ...
, who as the former
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, had just recently succeeded and became chief executive upon the unexpected death of his running mate and predecessor,
William Henry Harrison William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was the ninth president of the United States, serving from March 4 to April 4, 1841, the shortest presidency in U.S. history. He was also the first U.S. president to die in office, causin ...
, who had only served a single month in office. The
Daniel Webster Daniel Webster (January 18, 1782 – October 24, 1852) was an American lawyer and statesman who represented New Hampshire and Massachusetts in the U.S. Congress and served as the 14th and 19th United States Secretary of State, U.S. secretary o ...
Lord Ashburton negotiations and newly drawn-up 1842 treaty resolved many of the issues of the recent border conflicts and skirmishes between Americans and New Brunswickers in the Aroostook War of 1838–1839. It arose from disputes and controversies over the vague indefinite terms and text of the old peace agreement of the Treaty of Paris of 1783, which ended the
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. The provisions of the 1842 treaty between Britain and the United States included: * The settlement of the location of the
Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...
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international border, which was the primary cause of the Aroostook War. * Establishment of the international border between
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and the Lake of the Woods, originally defined in the Treaty of Paris in 1783 * Reaffirmation of the location of the border (at the 49th parallel) in the westward frontier up to the far western
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defined in the previous Treaty of 1818 * Definition of seven crimes subject to
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* Agreement that the two parties would share use of the
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* Agreement that there should be a final end to the slave trade on the high seas The treaty also retroactively confirmed the southern boundary of the
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that land surveyors John Collins and Thomas Valentine had marked with stone monuments in 1771–1773. The treaty intended that the international border be fixed at the 45 degrees north parallel of latitude, but the border is in some places nearly north of the 45th parallel. The treaty was signed by US Secretary of State
Daniel Webster Daniel Webster (January 18, 1782 – October 24, 1852) was an American lawyer and statesman who represented New Hampshire and Massachusetts in the U.S. Congress and served as the 14th and 19th United States Secretary of State, U.S. secretary o ...
, and British diplomat Alexander Baring, 1st Baron Ashburton..


In the East

An arbitration of various border issues in the East before King
William I of the Netherlands William I (Willem Frederik; 24 August 1772 – 12 December 1843) was King of the Netherlands and List of monarchs of Luxembourg, Grand Duke of Luxembourg from 1815 until his abdication in 1840. Born as the son of William V, Prince of Orange, ...
in 1831 had failed to yield a binding decision. The Treaty of Paris had established the 45th parallel as part of the northern boundary of modern-day New York and Vermont. Most of that portion of the boundary had previously been surveyed in the early 1770s, but the survey line was inaccurate. Since " Fort Blunder"—an unnamed U.S. fort in what is now part of northeastern New York—had been constructed north of the actual 45th parallel, the United States wanted to follow the old survey line, and the Webster–Ashburton treaty incorporated this change, leaving the half-finished fort on U.S. soil. Following the signing of the treaty, the U.S. resumed construction on the site. The new project replaced the aborted 1812-era construction with a massive third-system masonry fortification known as Fort Montgomery. This treaty marked the end of local confrontations between lumberjacks (known as the Aroostook War) along the Maine border with the British colonies of Lower Canada (which later became Quebec) and New Brunswick. The newly agreed border divided the disputed territory between the two nations. The British were assigned the Halifax–Quebec road route, which their military desired because Lower Canada had no other connection in winter to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The treaty adjusted portions of the border to give the United States a little more land to the north. It also resolved issues that had led to the Indian Stream dispute as well as the ''Caroline'' Affair. The Indian Stream area was assigned to the United States. The Webster–Ashburton Treaty failed to clarify ownership of
Machias Seal Island Machias Seal Island is an island in disputed water between the Gulf of Maine and the Bay of Fundy, about southeast from Cutler, Maine, and southwest of Grand Manan Island, New Brunswick. Canada has had a permanent settlement on the island s ...
and nearby North Rock, which remain in dispute. Additionally, the signing of the treaty put an end to several building improvements planned for Upper Canadian defense forts such as Fort Malden in
Amherstburg Amherstburg is a town near the mouth of the Detroit River in Essex County, Ontario, Canada. In 1796, Fort Malden was established here, stimulating growth in the settlement. The fort has been designated as a National Historic Site. The town ...
, which the British government later abandoned, as they no longer served a defensive purpose.


In the West

The border between
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and the Lake of the Woods in the
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needed clarification because the faulty Mitchell Map used in the negotiations for the
Treaty of Paris (1783) The Treaty of Paris, signed in Paris by representatives of King George III of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and representatives of the United States on September 3, 1783, officially ended the American Revolutionary War and recognized ...
was inadequate to define the border according to the terms of that British-American treaty. Ambiguity in the map and treaty resulted in
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's Arrowhead region being disputed between the two nations years later, and previous negotiations had not resolved the question. The treaty had the border pass through Long Lake, but did not state that lake's location. However, the map showed the lake flowing into Lake Superior near Isle Royale, which is consistent with the Pigeon River route. The British, however, had previously taken the position that the border should leave Lake Superior at ''Fond du Lac'' (the "head of the lake") in modern
Duluth, Minnesota Duluth ( ) is a Port, port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County. Located on Lake Superior in Minnesota's Arrowhead Region, the city is a hub for cargo shipping. The population ...
, proceed up the Saint Louis and Embarrass rivers, across the height of land, and down Pike River and Lake Vermilion to the Rainy River. To counter this western route, the U.S. side advocated for an eastern route, used by early French explorer Jacques de Noyon in 1688, and the later a well-used fur traders' route after 1802. This way headed north from the lake at the site of Fort William up the Kaministiquia and Dog Rivers to Cold Water Lake, crossed the divide by Prairie Portage to Height of Land Lake, then went west by way of the Savanne, Pickerel, and Maligne rivers to Lake La Croix, where it joined the present international border. The Mitchell map had shown both of those routes, and also showed the "Long Lake" route between them.. Long Lake was thought to be the Pigeon River (despite the absence of a lake at its mouth). The traditional traders' route left the lake at Grand Portage and went overland to the Pigeon, up that river and a tributary across the Height of Land Portage, and thence down tributaries of the Rainy River to Lac La Croix, Rainy Lake and River, and Lake of the Woods. This is finally the route the treaty designated as the border. The treaty clarified the channel that the border would follow between Lake Huron and Lake Superior, awarding Sugar Island to the U.S. Another clarification made in this treaty resulted in clarifying the anomaly of the
Northwest Angle The Northwest Angle, known simply as the Angle by locals, and coextensive with Angle Township, is a pene-exclave of northern Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota. Excluding surveying errors, it is the only place in the contiguous United States ...
. Again, due to errors on the Mitchell Map, Treaty of Paris reads "... through the Lake of the Woods to the most northwesternmost point thereof, and from thence on a due west course to the river Mississippi ..." In fact, a course due west from the Lake of the Woods never intersects the Mississippi. The Anglo-American Convention of 1818 defined the boundary about Lake of the Woods to the Rocky Mountains. This 1842 treaty reaffirmed the border and further defined it by modifying the border definition to instead read as: The Webster–Ashburton Treaty failed to deal with the Oregon question, although the issue was discussed in negotiations.


Other issues

Article 10 of the Webster–Ashburton Treaty identified seven crimes subject to extradition: "murder, or assault with intent to commit murder, or piracy, or arson, or robbery, or forgery, or the utterance of forged paper." It did not include slave revolt or mutiny. In addition, the United States did not press for the return or extradition of an estimated 12,000 fugitive slaves who had fled the U.S. going north and reached British territory in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
.. While agreeing to call for a final end to the slave trade on the high seas, Secretary Webster and Lord Ashburton agreed to pass over the ''Creole'' case of 1841 in the
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, which was then in contention. In November 1841, a slave revolt on the American merchantman brig ''Creole,'' part of the coastwise slave trade, had forced the ship to call at the port of Nassau in the
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. British / Bahamian colonial officials eventually emancipated all 128 slaves who chose to stay in Nassau, as Britain had already abolished slavery in its colonies, effective seven years before in 1834. The
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initially demanded return of the slaves and then compensation. A settlement was made in 1855 as part of a much larger claims treaty of 1853, which covered claims by both nations dating back to 1814. The treaty laid down minimum levels of joint anti-slaving naval activity off the
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coast by warship squadrons of both the
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and the British
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. It formalised levels of co-operation that had briefly existed in 1820 and 1821. It fell short of providing greater co-operation in suppression of the slave trade; there was, for instance, no mutual right for the two countries to inspect vessels flying each other's flag even when the United States flag / colours were being flown fraudulently by a slaver from a third country. The treaty, therefore, had only a minimal effect for the time in reducing the trans-Atlantic slave trade.


Results

As a result of the Webster–Ashburton Treaty of 1842, the United States ceded of disputed territory to the British colonies along the American-claimed northern Maine border, including the Halifax–Quebec Route, but kept of the disputed wilderness.. In addition, the United States received in compensation with the compromise of further west, which included the
Mesabi Range The Mesabi Iron Range is a mining district and mountain range in northeastern Minnesota following an elongate trend containing large deposits of iron ore. It is the largest of four major iron ranges in the region collectively known as the Iro ...
of mountains, west of
Lake Superior Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. Lake Michigan–Huron has a larger combined surface area than Superior, but is normally considered tw ...
. Shortly after the advice and consent process with the ratification of the Webster–Ashburton Treaty by the
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, the
Ojibwa The Ojibwe (; syll.: ᐅᒋᐺ; plural: ''Ojibweg'' ᐅᒋᐺᒃ) are an Anishinaabe people whose homeland (''Ojibwewaki'' ᐅᒋᐺᐘᑭ) covers much of the Great Lakes region and the northern plains, extending into the subarctic and thro ...
nations on the south shore of Lake Superior ceded land to the United States in the subsequent Treaty of La Pointe. However, the news of the ratification of the British-American international treaty did not reach either of the two parties further west, involved in negotiating the land cession. The Grand Portage Band was mistakenly omitted from the Ojibwe treaty council. In addition, the Grand Portage Band was misinformed on the details of the Treaty of Paris of 1783; they believed that the border passed through the center of Lake Superior to the Saint Louis River, placing both Isle Royale and their band in British territory. The Treaty of Paris specifically notes that Isle Royale is in the United States. Consequently, because of this misunderstanding / misinterpretation, a later Isle Royale Agreement was signed between the United States and the Grand Portage Band in 1844 as an adhesion / amendment to the Treaty of La Pointe, with other Ojibwa tribes reaffirming the treaty. Ten months of negotiations for the 1842 Treaty were held largely at Ashburton House, home of the British
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, facing on Lafayette Square, Washington, D.C. To make the controversial treaty more palatable and popular in the United States, Secretary of State Webster released a map of the Maine–Canada–New Brunswick border, taken from the national archives, which he claimed that
Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin (April 17, 1790) was an American polymath: a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher and Political philosophy, political philosopher.#britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the m ...
had drawn of the territory. It showed contested areas of that time during the original 1783 Paris treaty negotiations largely resolved in favor of the United States.


See also

* List of treaties * History of Canada–United States border agreements through 1908 * Timeline of United States diplomatic history *
Estcourt Station, Maine Estcourt Station (elevation: , pop. 4) is a village within the Big Twenty Township in the state of Maine. It is the northernmost point in the United States east of the Great Lakes. The ZIP Code for Estcourt Station is 04741. Although part of ...
* Slave Trade Acts *
Slavery in the United States The legal institution of human chattel slavery, comprising the enslavement primarily of List of ethnic groups of Africa, Africans and African Americans, was prevalent in the United States of America from its founding in 1776 until 1865 ...
*
United Kingdom–United States relations United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...
* Aroostook War *
New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
*
History of New England New England is the oldest clearly defined region of the United States, being settled more than 150 years before the American Revolution. The first colony in New England was Plymouth Colony, established in 1620 by the Puritan Pilgrims who were f ...
*
Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...
* History of Maine *
Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
* History of Massachusetts *
Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1628–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around Massachusetts Bay, one of the several colonies later reorganized as the Province of M ...
*
New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...
* History of New Brunswick *
Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
* History of Quebec *
Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...
* History of Nova Scotia *
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
*
History of Canada The history of Canada covers the period from the arrival of the Paleo-Indians to North America thousands of years ago to the present day. The lands encompassing present-day Canada have been inhabited for millennia by Indigenous peoples, with d ...


Notes


References


Works cited

* * * * * *


Further reading

* * (the standard scholarly history) * * * * * * * (shows the value of the iron range was not known when the treaty was drawn) * * *


External links


Text of the Webster–Ashburton Treaty
(The Avalon Project at Yale Law School)
Webster–Ashburton Treaty
(U.S. Department of State)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Webster-Ashburton Treaty Canada–United States treaties United Kingdom–United States treaties 1842 treaties Boundary treaties Canada–United States border History of the foreign relations of the United States Legal history of Canada Aroostook War North Maine Woods 1842 in Canada 1842 in the United States Treaties of the United Kingdom (1801–1922) Daniel Webster Eponymous treaties