The recent controversy over release of U.S. diplomatic cables via Wikileaks got us thinking about how Jefferson, the U.S.'s first Secretary of State under the Constitution, and his successors communicated with their ambassadors and consuls abroad.
Luckily, we knew just who to turn to: Jean Bauer, creator of "The Early American Foreign Service Database," a website that allows users to trace the early American governments' attempts to deploy and control their overseas representatives and provides access to biographical and professional information about all America's foreign service officers from 1775 through the administration of John Quincy Adams.
Earlier this month, we invited Ms. Bauer to our Robert H. Smith International Center for Jefferson Studies to talk with Eric Johnson, Monticello's New Media Specialist, and give us a little background on the subject. (Approx. 25 min. )
