 Welcome to Maine Historical Society. My name is Kathleen Newman. I'm the manager of education here. And on behalf of MHS and Greater Portland Landmarks, thank you so much for joining us for an evening with President Monroe. On Sunday, June 1st, 1817, just three months after his inauguration as fifth president, 59-year-old James Monroe in a small entourage embarked on a tour of the Northern States. The tour would display the hands-on management style of the new president, as well as his support for strengthening military defenses and a desire for national unity. This last was especially important in the Northern States. Monroe was a Democratic Republican, and New England was largely a Federalist. In mid-July, Monroe reached Maine, stopping in the towns of York, Wells, Kennebunk, Bideford, Soco, Scarborough, Stroudwater, South Morwick, and Portland. Tonight, 200 years to the day of Monroe's stop in Portland, Maine Historical Society and Greater Portland Landmarks commemorate this historic tour with an interview with Monroe, followed by a short walking tour of the neighborhood focusing on Monroe's visit to Portland. We will close out the evening at the Portland Observatory for cameras and conversation, where you are all invited to come and have your photo taken as the president, ask questions, and enjoy refreshments, as well, of course, of the views from the observatory. So now, without further ado, please join me in welcoming historian and former state representative, Kerr Adams, and very shortly, our very special guest, President James. Ladies and gentlemen, it is my distinct privilege to present to you the fifth president of the United States of America, the honorable James Monroe of Virginia. Thank you, thank you very much. In a democracy, it is the chief magistrate's honor to take his hat off to the people. Thank you, Mr. President. Please be seated. Now, Mr. President, I must say, you appear very well and hearty, although it's been 200 years since you've last visited us in this town. Well, before we get started, I just wanted to let you know, as a former president, we are allowed certain things. One of them is to look at the questions you're going to ask me ahead of time. In advance, that's right. And so, what I did was I made some notes of my own because it's been 200 years, number one, and you say, well, I'm looking pretty good, not remembering that well. Well, Mr. President, then, proceed as you see fit. I would really like to say I feel great. It is the great vigor of this young nation with such ardent people as yourself that really keeps me going. Your name, Adams. Sir. Yes. Any relation to my former Secretary of State, John Quincy Adams? Distant, sir. Distant. Well, got a little bit more hair than him. Yes, yes, that is so, sir. Modern times, Mr. President, some things have changed. For instance, do you have a Twitter account, sir? Do you tweet? Hmm, do I tweet? I'm a president. I don't talk to birds. It would be foolish for a president to talk to birds. Quite so, Mr. President. Unless he's not saying. Ah, I see, Mr. President. Well, in your present existence, sir, do you use email? Another strange word that you're using here today. Email. Number one, I don't know your Mr. E. And number two, I don't know his mailing address. So I would have to say, what is this email? Is it better than Dr. Franklin's email system? No, sir, not quite as good, perhaps. But I understand today that you shall visit the Portland Observatory as you did when you were here in 1817. Yes. I absolutely look forward to going up to that beautiful seaward vista. It's just a magnificent place built in 1807 and the views are just spectacular and I cannot wait. But I understand transportation mode has changed just a little bit. Yes, sir, indeed. And it's this hoarseless carriage that I've been seeing as I wandered through the different towns here. I've noticed that, well, are the horses smaller? Or are they invisible? Ah, well, another invention of the modern day, Mr. President. A convenience, as it were. As is this picture. Yes, I do. I remember it very, very well. And it was my honor to stand behind George Washington holding the flag. I was just 18 years old when that happened. Ah. Now, I thought you would be duly impressed by the mitral candle power that is necessary to throw such images upon the screen behind us. Well, that's exactly what I'm wondering as I kind of look around here. I'm thinking that, what do you call this? Well, this is called a projection, Mr. President. It is an illusion, in a sense. It seems to be a lot of illusions in the state of this time. That's what I've noticed. Things were a little bit different 200 years ago. Quite so, sir. Some would say this is an age of illusions. But, Mr. President, this is an illustration of the night of the 25th of December, 1776, one of the most fateful nights of the American Revolution. And that, indeed, is an image of yourself standing behind His Excellency, George Washington. Would you honor us with your memories of that night? I remember it well. And I wrote it down many, many years ago as I was an old man, recalling exactly what happened. So if you don't mind, I'm going to read from my notes. Quite so, sir. And what a great, great night it was. Our army was bewildered and wary. Our enlisted men were to expire on the 31st, and we would have no more. So we needed to make our affairs run faster before we were ruined by no enlisted men. One hour before the day was fixed for our attempt upon Trenton. Across the Delaware, over the ice, we crossed on Christmas morning. And I see the details in this particular image. And I remember just how cold and icy and the sleet hitting us as we crossed over. We actually had boats that were arranged by General Knox, okay, from Maine. And George Washington commanded us all from his horse. At dawn, we fell upon the cursed Hessians, those mercenaries of George III, still in their night shirts and drunk from the celebrations of Christmas. Sure, we drove them before us like sheep. We turned two of their own cannons on them, okay? The drums were beating, the Hessians were crying. The enemy, the enemy, we drove them all the way to Princeton and took the troops. Around George Washington, everybody cheered, waving their hats in the air. Yes, it was a great, great victory. The French became our allies and a good friend of mine was Lafayette. Yes, what a time it was to be a young man and what a time it was to be so proud. Mr. President, you admit to mention that you were gravely wounded at the Battle of Trenton, sir. That night, you were the last president of the United States to be wounded in the Revolution and to serve as president. Sir, many men were gravely wounded. It has been my honor as I travel through these towns of York, Saco, Bitterford and now here in Portland to meet the former vets, honor them. They are gems. They need to be celebrated at all times. Never, ever forget our vets. It is my understanding that at one of the large dinners presented to you in Portland, in fact, you met General Pellig Wadsworth, who may have mentioned to you his grandson. His young grandson of 10 prides himself as being a writer from General George Washington. His name is Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and from what I understand, 200 years later, that little boy of 10 years old who called himself a writer back then became quite famous in the house right next door. You don't say, General. Well, thank you for telling us that. Most interesting and I'm glad to know that he is known to you and remembered by you. Now, Mr. President, during your visit here, there was much talk, if not agitation, in favor of main statehood, that is independence from Massachusetts. Now, what was your opinion about that? Well, let me tell you, at that time for struggle for independence, I favored it for all people. However, sir, we must keep in mind the balance of the nation in our union. At that time, there were 11 states in our union, which ban, shall we say, involuntary servitude. Our own national constitution so well expressed it, there were 11 others relied upon particular institutions, as we call it, in my state of Virginia. Therefore, the Senate of the United States was perfectly balanced. Its votes were tied. No extremism on either side. And that's the way it should remain, sir. We need to keep cool heads. Well, now, Mr. President, it would have seemed to me that the complications of statehood being one state, such as Maine at the door and the other, such as Missouri, perhaps, being at the door, would have made it rather complicated for yourselves. Well, it was rather complicated. But what we try to do, as I always say, we need to keep cool heads in such instances as inducting two states, one a free state and one a slate of particular institution. That is a balance. And that's a balance that I feel when I was president need to stay. Well, then, Mr. President, what of those states and what of slavery, as some of us call it, in the lands west of the Mississippi, in the Louisiana purchase, which you yourself helped negotiate as Mr. Jefferson's Minister to Friends. I really do believe the word slavery should not be used in a conversation between gentlemen. Ah, well, sir. Particular institution is what we refer to. I see. I see. And those that may be of color, shall we say, who achieve freedom in this country, what are their alternatives? Well, back then, their alternatives were to be in states that were free. That's what we wanted. That's what we wanted for them. But in certain states, that just wasn't going to happen. We could not agitate to the point of extremism on both sides. We needed to try to keep cool heads. Looking back on it, I think it was rather a mistake. And to those that achieved freedom, it was my understanding that in West Africa, a state was established, especially for them, called Liberia. Yes, yes, in their capital was Monrovia. For? For myself. I see, sir. Well, Mr. President, General Washington, today appears upon our one dollar bill. And Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton appears upon our $10 bill. Now, did you know him? No, I almost shot him. Oh, okay. In 1796, I revealed that Secretary Hamilton was having an awful affair with a tempter named Ms. Reynolds, and he was paying her blackmail. Well, he challenged me to a duel, and I accepted Hamilton back down. I'm from Virginia. I'm a good shot. But let me tell you, my second duel was to be with Senator Aaron Burr in 1804. Himself shot Hamilton in a duel. I do say he did us all a favor. Well, Mr. President, did you know that currently there is playing in the city of New York a famous hip-hop musical Hamilton? Looking at my notes, I'm thinking to myself, hip-hop musical, pardon me, sir, but hip-hop like bunny rabbits? Oh, well. A theatrical presentation with songs? Yes. For me, there is only one song. I, I Yankee Doodle Dandy. Ah, very good, sir. And as for Mr. Hamilton, one shot was all I wanted. Well, Mr. President, in your present existence, are you aware that the 200th anniversary of your national tour with us is celebrated upon Facebook? I'm puzzled. All of this language that you're using, we had Mr. E, his email. Yes, Facebook, a book face, or I'm really not sure which one that was. And I'm wondering, hip-hop, book face, why are these words so strange? And what do they mean? Well, Mr. President, in today's history books, you are best remembered for the Monroe Doctrine. Please tell us about that. It proclaimed rightly, sir, that the Western Hemisphere is an American responsibility and that other nations must stay out of its affairs, for they are rightly our affairs. It lives to this day. Ambitious presidents, since myself, have used and misused the doctrine. But let me tell you something, whenever an American interests are threatened, presidents use it to wave that rattlesnake flag of my old Virginia regiment. Don't fret on me. In the afterlife, sir, do you old presidents still meet and debate this? And who would be president in the afterlife of the old president's club? His Excellency, George Washington, is always president. But we do find about who's vice president. Ah. In your return, after so long away, Mr. President, has anything surprised you in particular? Well, a nation of eight million, this side of the river of Mississippi, now a nation of 300 million and more, a stride, a contendent, indeed, a world rich with goods. Such prosperity we have, such abundance. There must be none left in America who are to go hungry or to go without a home without having the proper liberties that we so enjoy. I fought for liberty. Mr. President, if only it were so. I don't understand why it can't be. As I fought for liberty, I fought for the happiness of the folks. And I clearly do not understand why it is different today. Mr. President, we of today have no good answer. Democracy sometimes can be disappointing. Well, if I think about it, and I don't understand why. You know, Mr. President, our time today is nearly done. We are grateful that you have come back after so long to share yourself and your thoughts with us. Have you anything that you feel important to tell us, the citizens, of this day? Well, as I said before, looking over your questions, I had made notes throughout and wanted to make sure that my points were very, very accurate. And so I wrote just a little close here that I'd like to read to the folks. To my fellow countrymen, it has been a long time since I last year and maybe a long time before I ever returned again. I have traveled over 2,000 miles on this journey thus far and have many more miles to go. But the distinguished reception I have received, the friendly treatment I have experienced, has made such an impression on me that I can never thank you enough. Discord does not belong in our system. The American people, the constitution of this great states and families' common interests must always be upheld in your bounty, in your blessings, in your prosperity. Cherish such thoughts as they are more gold to the national treasure. Tomorrow, at dawn, I leave for the Great Lakes and then to the country beyond where I now dwell, in which I hope you hither bond upon as well. Until then, I would like to say thank you very much for your hospitality, thank you all. It is my humble, is your humble servant to thank you all, James Monroe. Thank you, Mr. President. We're joining us again. Thank you.