A Jackson Man: Amos Kendall and the Rise of American Democracy.

A Jackson Man: Amos Kendall and the Rise of American Democracy. By Donald B. Cole. Southern Biography Series. (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, c. 2004. Pp. xvi, 332. $49.95, ISBN 0-8071-2930-5.)

Donald B. Cole has written a fascinating study of Amos Kendall. Kendall is often stereotyped as the cadaverous fourth auditor of the United States Treasury who wielded power behind the throne as a member of Andrew Jackson's so-called Kitchen Cabinet. Cole brings forth a much fuller picture of Kendall as "the classic American self-made man" (p. 4). A native of Massachusetts and graduate of Dartmouth College, Kendall moved to Kentucky in 1814 and spent almost all of the rest of his life there or in Washington, D.C. Cole demonstrates that Kendall both contributed to and was shaped by the tremendous changes that the country faced during his lifetime. In particular, he focuses on Kendall's relationship with the rise of white men's democracy and the development of market capitalism.

Regarding the onset of democracy, Cole stresses Kendall's important role in creating the Democratic Party, ranking him behind only Jackson and Martin Van Buren as key players in the party's development. Though raised as a republican who stressed morality, feared the multitude, and distrusted political parties, Kendall, as an editor in the rough-and-tumble world of Kentucky politics, embraced democratic values and party organization. As part of this transition, he spurred the use of the corrupt bargain charge to aid Jackson in defeating John Quincy Adams in the 1828 presidential election. For Kendall's role in the campaign, Jackson rewarded him with official positions in the treasury and later the post office. In these posts, Kendall was an effective administrator and, paradoxically, one who helped introduce the idea of patronage as a way to strengthen the Democratic Party. Perhaps more important, Jackson depended on Kendall's advice in his unofficial Kitchen Cabinet. Because their views on the economy and the power of the common man dovetailed and because of Kendall's trenchant writing ability, Jackson relied on Kendall to write key drafts of several of his messages, including the famous bank veto. Though the author denies contemporary enemies' claim of Kendall's omnipotent influence on Jackson, he contends that Kendall indeed "had his finger in almost every pie" in the administration (p. 156).

According to Cole, as dramatic as the political changes were in Kendall's lifetime, they might have been exceeded by the nation's economic transformation. As a venturesome conservative, Kendall, concomitant with his assault on the pernicious national bank, sought to make himself wealthy through a succession of mostly ill-fated endeavors. Cole contends that "Kendall's constant shifting of plans is breathtaking," with strategies including studying law, newspaper editing, land speculation, and telegraph ownership (p. 51). For most of his life, these efforts simply pushed Kendall further into debt, but in the 1850s, his involvement with Samuel F. B. Morse and the telegraph finally elevated him to the fabulous wealth he had always sought.

Thoroughly researched and well written, Cole's book deftly balances the life of Kendall with his times. While some may quibble about this Yankee transplant's inclusion in the Southern Biography series, Kendall's life in Kentucky and his connections to Jackson and the Democratic Party justify his placement here. Other readers might find that Cole falls into the common trap of biographers in attributing too much influence to their subjects. Given Jackson's character, one wonders whether Kendall influenced him as much as Cole gives him credit for or if Kendall merely reflected Jackson's views. Nevertheless, this criticism is a minor one, for the book's many strengths will make it the standard Kendall biography for years to come. Cole's book, however, is more than that. It is valuable not only for those interested in Kendall but also for anyone interested in studying the impact of the dramatic economic and political changes of the antebellum period.

Emporia State University 

JOHN M. SACHER