The Essex Junto was a group of lawyer

Lawyer

A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...

s and merchant

Merchant

A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...

s from Essex County, Massachusetts

Essex County, Massachusetts

-National protected areas:* Parker River National Wildlife Refuge* Salem Maritime National Historic Site* Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site* Thacher Island National Wildlife Refuge-Demographics:...

. These Federalists supported Alexander Hamilton

Alexander Hamilton

Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury...

 and the Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

 radicals. When Hamilton was offered a place in the plot to secede New England

New England

New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...

 from the Union, he denied the offer. Consequently, the Essex Junto tried to vie support from Aaron Burr

Aaron Burr

Aaron Burr, Jr. was an important political figure in the early history of the United States of America. After serving as a Continental Army officer in the Revolutionary War, Burr became a successful lawyer and politician...

, who accepted the offer from the Junto. The first attempt to break off New England from the Union failed since it was unable to gain support from the major power brokers in the state of New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

.


After Hamilton's death, they became even more extreme. During the War of 1812

War of 1812

The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...

, they were called "Blue Lights

Blue light federalists

Blue-light Federalist was a derogatory term used by those who believed certain Federalists to have made friendly signals to British ships in the War of 1812 to warn the British of American blockade runners, the specific event supposedly happening in 1813, in New London, Connecticut, when Commodore...

" because of the common belief and reports from the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 that they would shine blue lights to alert the British blockading ships of escaping American ships, or to alert British ships to come ashore and carry out illegal trade. They supported the Hartford Convention

Hartford Convention

The Hartford Convention was an event spanning from December 15, 1814–January 4, 1815 in the United States during the War of 1812 in which New England's opposition to the war reached the point where secession from the United States was discussed...

's disaffection with the War of 1812

War of 1812

The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...

 and proposed secession of New England. Some members of the Essex Junto were Timothy Pickering

Timothy Pickering

Timothy Pickering was a politician from Massachusetts who served in a variety of roles, most notably as the third United States Secretary of State, serving in that office from 1795 to 1800 under Presidents George Washington and John Adams.-Early years:Pickering was born in Salem, Massachusetts to...

, George Cabot

George Cabot

George Cabot was an American merchant, seaman, and politician from Boston, Massachusetts. He represented Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate and as the Presiding Officer of the Hartford Convention.-Early life:...

, Fisher Ames

Fisher Ames

Fisher Ames was a Representative in the United States Congress from the 1st Congressional District of Massachusetts.-Life and political career:...

, Francis Dana

Francis Dana

Francis Dana was an American lawyer, jurist, and statesman from Massachusetts. He served as a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1777-1778 and 1784. He signed the Articles of Confederation.-Biography:...

, Nathan Dane

Nathan Dane

Nathan Dane was an American lawyer and statesman who represented Massachusetts in the Continental Congress from 1785 through 1788...

, Benjamin Goodhue

Benjamin Goodhue

Benjamin Goodhue was a Representative and a Senator from Massachusetts.Goodhue was born in Salem, Massachusetts and graduated from Harvard College in 1766. He worked as a merchant and became a member of the State house of representatives 1780-1782 and later a State senator in 1783 and 1786-1788...

, Stephen Higginson

Stephen Higginson

Stephen Higginson was an American merchant and shipmaster from Boston, Massachusetts. He was a delegate for Massachusetts to the Continental Congress in 1783...

, Jonathon Jackson, John Lowell

John Lowell

John A. Lowell was an American lawyer, selectman, jurist, delegate to the Congress of the Confederation and federal judge....

, Israel Thorndike

Israel Thorndike

Israel Thorndike was a sailor and merchant, born in Beverly, Massachusetts. He went to sea at an early age, commanded a privateer during the American Revolution, and became active in the early China trade. He was elected to the Massachusetts legislature 13 times. In 1810 he moved to Boston, and...

, Nathaniel Tracy, and Theophilus Parsons

Theophilus Parsons

Theophilus Parsons was an American jurist.Born in Newbury, Massachusetts, and the son of a clergyman, Parsons was one of the early students at the Dummer Academy before matriculating to Harvard College from which he graduated in 1769, was a schoolmaster in Falmouth from 1770–1773; he studied law,...

.

External links

• Essex Junto, article from 1899 Cyclopaedia of Political Science
  Cyclopaedia of Political Science
  The Cyclopaedia of Political Science, Political Economy, and the Political History of the United States by the Best American and European Writers was an encyclopedia edited by John J. Lalor, first published in New York in 1881 by Maynard, Merrill and Co.....
  
  
• Essex Junto, article from Encyclopaedia Britannica