- 516.726.5696
Joshua Smith
US Merchant Marine Academy, Humanities, Faculty Member
- History of Customs and Smuggling, Coastal Maine, Coastal and Island Archaeology, History of the State of Maine, Naval History, U.S. history, and 29 moreMaritime History, Early Republic--American History, War of 1812, Maritime Studies, Maritime Piracy and Transnational Criminal Organizations, Maritime and Oceanic History, Maritime and Underwater Archaeology, Humanities, Military History, World War II, Early American Republic, New England (History), New Brunswick History, Fisheries, Atlantic World, Slave Trade, Ships, Smuggling, American Merchant Marine History 1870 - 1970, Maritime, Shipping, Nautical Archaeology, Maritime Archaeology, British naval history, Privateering, Historical GIS, Maritime Piracy, Naval Warfare, and Seafarersedit
- Joshua M. Smith grew up on Cape Cod and coastal Maine. He holds degrees from the University of St. Andrews, Maine Ma... moreJoshua M. Smith grew up on Cape Cod and coastal Maine. He holds degrees from the University of St. Andrews, Maine Maritime Academy, East Carolina University, and the University of Maine. He is author of "Borderland Smuggling: Patriots, Loyalists, and Illicit Trade in the Northeast, 1783-1820," which won the John Lyman Award in American Maritime History in 2007, and edited "Voyages: Documents in American Maritime History, 1492-Present," a two-volume sourcebook in maritime history created in conjunction with the National Maritime Historical Society. He has also written a small monograph with a Canadian perspective entitled "Battle for the Bay: The Naval War of 1812," published by the Gregg Centre for the Study of War and Society. He is currently writing a monograph on Maine and the War of 1812 entitled "Yankee Doodle Upset." Smith lives with his family in New York City, and is a professor of Humanities at the United States Merchant Marine Academy, as well as Interim Director of the American Merchant Marine Museum, both in Kings Point, New York.edit
As the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812 approaches, a chapter in the history of the war is being opened for the first time. Although naval battles raged on the Great Lakes, combat between privateers and small government vessels also... more
As the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812 approaches, a chapter in the history of the war is being opened for the first time. Although naval battles raged on the Great
Lakes, combat between privateers and small government vessels also boiled in the Bay of Fundy and the Gulf of Maine. Three small warships - the Provincial sloop Brunswicker, His Majesty's schooner Bream, and His Majesty's brig of war Boxer — played a vital role in defending the eastern waters of British North America in
this crucial war.
The crews of these hardy ships fought both the Americans and the elements — winter winds, summer fog, and the fierce tidal currents of the Bay of Fundy — enduring the all-too-real threats of shipwreck and possible capture and imprisonment. Now, for the first time, Joshua M. Smith tells the full story of the battle for the bay.
Lakes, combat between privateers and small government vessels also boiled in the Bay of Fundy and the Gulf of Maine. Three small warships - the Provincial sloop Brunswicker, His Majesty's schooner Bream, and His Majesty's brig of war Boxer — played a vital role in defending the eastern waters of British North America in
this crucial war.
The crews of these hardy ships fought both the Americans and the elements — winter winds, summer fog, and the fierce tidal currents of the Bay of Fundy — enduring the all-too-real threats of shipwreck and possible capture and imprisonment. Now, for the first time, Joshua M. Smith tells the full story of the battle for the bay.
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Overview "Full of revealing episodes vividly told, Joshua Smith's book will contribute to the emerging attention to the Canadian-American borderland, an attention that challenges the narrow, nationalist historical traditions which ignore... more
Overview
"Full of revealing episodes vividly told, Joshua Smith's book will contribute to the emerging attention to the Canadian-American borderland, an attention that challenges the narrow, nationalist historical traditions which ignore the important and continuous exchange of people and goods that transgressed the boundary."--Alan Taylor, University of California at Davis
Passamaquoddy Bay lies between Maine and New Brunswick at the mouth of the St. Croix River. Most of it (including Campobello Island) is within Canada, but the Maine town of Lubec lies at the bay's entrance. Rich in beaver pelts, fish, and timber, the area was a famous smuggling center after the American Revolution. Joshua Smith examines the reasons for smuggling in this area and how three conflicts in early republic history--the 1809 Flour War, the War of 1812, and the 1820 Plaster War--reveal smuggling's relationship to crime, borderlands, and the transition from mercantilism to capitalism.
Smith astutely interprets smuggling as created and provoked by government efforts to maintain and regulate borders. In 1793 British and American negotiators framed a vague new boundary meant to demarcate the lingering British empire in North America (Canada) from the new American Republic. Officials insisted that an abstract line now divided local peoples on either side of Passamaquoddy Bay. Merely by persisting in trade across the newly demarcated national boundary, people violated the new laws. As smugglers, they defied both the British and American efforts to restrict and regulate commerce. Consequently, local resistance and national authorities engaged in a continuous battle for four decades.
Smith treats the Passamaquoddy Bay smuggling as more than a local episode of antiquarian interest. Indeed, he crafts a local case study to illuminate a widespread phenomenon in early modern Europe and the Americas.
Joshua M. Smith is associate professor of humanities at the United States Merchant Marine Academy.
"Full of revealing episodes vividly told, Joshua Smith's book will contribute to the emerging attention to the Canadian-American borderland, an attention that challenges the narrow, nationalist historical traditions which ignore the important and continuous exchange of people and goods that transgressed the boundary."--Alan Taylor, University of California at Davis
Passamaquoddy Bay lies between Maine and New Brunswick at the mouth of the St. Croix River. Most of it (including Campobello Island) is within Canada, but the Maine town of Lubec lies at the bay's entrance. Rich in beaver pelts, fish, and timber, the area was a famous smuggling center after the American Revolution. Joshua Smith examines the reasons for smuggling in this area and how three conflicts in early republic history--the 1809 Flour War, the War of 1812, and the 1820 Plaster War--reveal smuggling's relationship to crime, borderlands, and the transition from mercantilism to capitalism.
Smith astutely interprets smuggling as created and provoked by government efforts to maintain and regulate borders. In 1793 British and American negotiators framed a vague new boundary meant to demarcate the lingering British empire in North America (Canada) from the new American Republic. Officials insisted that an abstract line now divided local peoples on either side of Passamaquoddy Bay. Merely by persisting in trade across the newly demarcated national boundary, people violated the new laws. As smugglers, they defied both the British and American efforts to restrict and regulate commerce. Consequently, local resistance and national authorities engaged in a continuous battle for four decades.
Smith treats the Passamaquoddy Bay smuggling as more than a local episode of antiquarian interest. Indeed, he crafts a local case study to illuminate a widespread phenomenon in early modern Europe and the Americas.
Joshua M. Smith is associate professor of humanities at the United States Merchant Marine Academy.
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A two-volume anthology of source readings for maritime history courses "An indispensable resource for anyone interested in teaching American maritime history. This well-organized and edited collection of primary documents will... more
A two-volume anthology of source readings for maritime history courses
"An indispensable resource for anyone interested in teaching American maritime history. This well-organized and edited collection of primary documents will significantly advance students' knowledge of the fundamental role the sea has played in our nation's past."--Christopher P. Magra, California State University at Northridge
"The sources in these volumes vividly illustrate the rich maritime tradition that forms the core of American social, economic, political, military, and diplomatic development over two centuries."--Kenneth J. Blume, author of Historical Dictionary of U.S. Diplomacy from the Civil War to World War I
"This is the most comprehensive collection of maritime history documents ever published. Drawn from a wide variety of sources, they survey virtually every aspect of American maritime history including maritime exploration, fishing and whaling, labor, diplomacy and warfare, trade and travel, and ecology."--James C. Bradford, Texas A&M University
Intended as a text for college and advanced high school students, Voyages covers the entirety of the American maritime experience, from the discovery of the continent to the present. Published in cooperation with the National Maritime Historical Society, the selections chosen for this anthology of primary texts and images place equal emphasis on the ages of sail and steam, on the Atlantic and Pacific, on the Gulf Coasts and the Great Lakes, and on the high seas and inland rivers.
The texts have been chosen to provide students with interesting, usable, and historically significant documents that will prompt class discussion and critical thinking. In each case, the material is linked to the larger context of American history, including issues of gender, race, power, labor, and the environment.
Joshua Smith, associate professor of humanities at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, is the author of Borderland Smuggling: Patriots, Loyalists, and Illicit Trade in the Northeast, 1783-1820, winner of the North American Society for Oceanic History's John Lyman Book Award for Best U.S. Maritime History.
"An indispensable resource for anyone interested in teaching American maritime history. This well-organized and edited collection of primary documents will significantly advance students' knowledge of the fundamental role the sea has played in our nation's past."--Christopher P. Magra, California State University at Northridge
"The sources in these volumes vividly illustrate the rich maritime tradition that forms the core of American social, economic, political, military, and diplomatic development over two centuries."--Kenneth J. Blume, author of Historical Dictionary of U.S. Diplomacy from the Civil War to World War I
"This is the most comprehensive collection of maritime history documents ever published. Drawn from a wide variety of sources, they survey virtually every aspect of American maritime history including maritime exploration, fishing and whaling, labor, diplomacy and warfare, trade and travel, and ecology."--James C. Bradford, Texas A&M University
Intended as a text for college and advanced high school students, Voyages covers the entirety of the American maritime experience, from the discovery of the continent to the present. Published in cooperation with the National Maritime Historical Society, the selections chosen for this anthology of primary texts and images place equal emphasis on the ages of sail and steam, on the Atlantic and Pacific, on the Gulf Coasts and the Great Lakes, and on the high seas and inland rivers.
The texts have been chosen to provide students with interesting, usable, and historically significant documents that will prompt class discussion and critical thinking. In each case, the material is linked to the larger context of American history, including issues of gender, race, power, labor, and the environment.
Joshua Smith, associate professor of humanities at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, is the author of Borderland Smuggling: Patriots, Loyalists, and Illicit Trade in the Northeast, 1783-1820, winner of the North American Society for Oceanic History's John Lyman Book Award for Best U.S. Maritime History.
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A two-volume anthology of source readings for maritime history courses "An indispensable resource for anyone interested in teaching American maritime history. This well-organized and edited collection of primary documents will... more
A two-volume anthology of source readings for maritime history courses
"An indispensable resource for anyone interested in teaching American maritime history. This well-organized and edited collection of primary documents will significantly advance students' knowledge of the fundamental role the sea has played in our nation's past."--Christopher P. Magra, California State University at Northridge
"The sources in these volumes vividly illustrate the rich maritime tradition that forms the core of American social, economic, political, military, and diplomatic development over two centuries."--Kenneth J. Blume, author of Historical Dictionary of U.S. Diplomacy from the Civil War to World War I
"This is the most comprehensive collection of maritime history documents ever published. Drawn from a wide variety of sources, they survey virtually every aspect of American maritime history including maritime exploration, fishing and whaling, labor, diplomacy and warfare, trade and travel, and ecology."--James C. Bradford, Texas A&M University
Intended as a text for college and advanced high school students, Voyages covers the entirety of the American maritime experience, from the discovery of the continent to the present. Published in cooperation with the National Maritime Historical Society, the selections chosen for this anthology of primary texts and images place equal emphasis on the ages of sail and steam, on the Atlantic and Pacific, on the Gulf Coasts and the Great Lakes, and on the high seas and inland rivers.
The texts have been chosen to provide students with interesting, usable, and historically significant documents that will prompt class discussion and critical thinking. In each case, the material is linked to the larger context of American history, including issues of gender, race, power, labor, and the environment.
Joshua Smith, associate professor of humanities at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, is the author of Borderland Smuggling: Patriots, Loyalists, and Illicit Trade in the Northeast, 1783-1820, winner of the North American Society for Oceanic History's John Lyman Book Award for Best U.S. Maritime History.
"An indispensable resource for anyone interested in teaching American maritime history. This well-organized and edited collection of primary documents will significantly advance students' knowledge of the fundamental role the sea has played in our nation's past."--Christopher P. Magra, California State University at Northridge
"The sources in these volumes vividly illustrate the rich maritime tradition that forms the core of American social, economic, political, military, and diplomatic development over two centuries."--Kenneth J. Blume, author of Historical Dictionary of U.S. Diplomacy from the Civil War to World War I
"This is the most comprehensive collection of maritime history documents ever published. Drawn from a wide variety of sources, they survey virtually every aspect of American maritime history including maritime exploration, fishing and whaling, labor, diplomacy and warfare, trade and travel, and ecology."--James C. Bradford, Texas A&M University
Intended as a text for college and advanced high school students, Voyages covers the entirety of the American maritime experience, from the discovery of the continent to the present. Published in cooperation with the National Maritime Historical Society, the selections chosen for this anthology of primary texts and images place equal emphasis on the ages of sail and steam, on the Atlantic and Pacific, on the Gulf Coasts and the Great Lakes, and on the high seas and inland rivers.
The texts have been chosen to provide students with interesting, usable, and historically significant documents that will prompt class discussion and critical thinking. In each case, the material is linked to the larger context of American history, including issues of gender, race, power, labor, and the environment.
Joshua Smith, associate professor of humanities at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, is the author of Borderland Smuggling: Patriots, Loyalists, and Illicit Trade in the Northeast, 1783-1820, winner of the North American Society for Oceanic History's John Lyman Book Award for Best U.S. Maritime History.
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A short detailed History of Fort Edgecomb, a small second system fortification built in 1808-1809 on the Maine coast. This work explores the fort's construction, the lives of its soldiers, the garrison's interaction with the community,... more
A short detailed History of Fort Edgecomb, a small second system fortification built in 1808-1809 on the Maine coast. This work explores the fort's construction, the lives of its soldiers, the garrison's interaction with the community, and its use as a prisoner of war camp during the War of 1812. Published by the Friends of Fort Edgecomb as part of their bicentennial celebrations in 2009.
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This paper looks at the British attack on the American privateer "General Armstrong" in September 1814 in Faial Harbor in the Azores. While the Royal Navy successfully destroyed the brig, it suffered horrific casualties in so doing.... more
This paper looks at the British attack on the American privateer "General Armstrong" in September 1814 in Faial Harbor in the Azores. While the Royal Navy successfully destroyed the brig, it suffered horrific casualties in so doing. American writers, poets, painters and others seized on this event to create an iconography celebrating privateering as a viable form of naval warfare in the early republic.
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Published in the Journal of the Royal Nova Scotia Historical Society, Vol. 18 (2015), 65-76. This paper was originally presented at a conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia in August, 2014. It considers Maritimers who were imprisoned by... more
Published in the Journal of the Royal Nova Scotia Historical Society, Vol. 18 (2015), 65-76. This paper was originally presented at a conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia in August, 2014. It considers Maritimers who were imprisoned by Americans during the War of 1812, and offers two models of popular accounts: the clever escape, and the victimized prisoner.
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A more polished approach to what maritime historians do than "Far Beyond Jack Tar." My thanks for the kind assistance from the always impressive Marcus Rediker and his graduate students in attempting to establish this taxonomy.
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This article is based on a paper entitled “Maritime Narrative and Nationalist Interpretations,” given at the 2011 annual meeting of the North American Society for Oceanic History at Old Dominion University. This paper examines some recent... more
This article is based on a paper entitled “Maritime Narrative and Nationalist Interpretations,” given at the 2011 annual meeting of the North American Society for Oceanic History at Old Dominion University. This paper examines some recent trends in maritime history, why some scholars do not consider themselves maritime historians, and the emphasis on international or blue water topics. The author posits that maritime historians fall into two groups: Traditionalists, who concern themselves solely with an academic audience and graduate training, and Utilitarians, who are much more concerned with shaping maritime policy.
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In post-Revolutionary Massachusetts, the militia was a well-respected institution. So when the commonwealth expanded into the far-flung District of Maine, Jeffersonians and Federalists battled one another for the plum. As external forces... more
In post-Revolutionary Massachusetts, the militia was a well-respected institution. So when the commonwealth expanded into the far-flung District of Maine, Jeffersonians and Federalists battled one another for the plum. As external forces bred internal dissent, the militia fell into disarray just as the country drifted toward another war with England.
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Explores the idea that President Jefferson's plans to fortify the coast were intended as much to keep American ships in as British warships out.
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Explores how New England communities resisted Jefferson's Embargo by slowly escalating their level of protest, climaxing in the murder of a customs officer on a dark and stormy night.
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A 14-minute automated PowerPoint presentation I use in the first day of my elective on "Pirates in World History." Very little content on piracy, mostly about the use of multimedia presentations in class. It helps if you like Groucho... more
A 14-minute automated PowerPoint presentation I use in the first day of my elective on "Pirates in World History." Very little content on piracy, mostly about the use of multimedia presentations in class. It helps if you like Groucho Marx.
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Joshua Smith's Lecture, "Mapping the Maritime Past: Toward a Graphic Imaging of History " at Webb Institute on March 5th, 2012
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Historian Joshua M. Smith introduces the War of 1812 and its impact on Maine, Casco Bay, and Freeport. The lecture was presented on May 6, 2012 as part of our series "Free Trade and Sailors' Rights."
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November 2015 version, complete with assigned readings.
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The 2015 iteration of my "Pirates in World History" course.
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A new version of the syllabus for my "History of Sea Power" class at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, commencing November, 2014.
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A quip map that identifies the location of Mediterranean corsairing ports intended to underscore that primary ports were less likely to engage in corsairing than secondary ones, and that both Christians and Muslims engaged extensively in... more
A quip map that identifies the location of Mediterranean corsairing ports intended to underscore that primary ports were less likely to engage in corsairing than secondary ones, and that both Christians and Muslims engaged extensively in this practice.
Research Interests: Maritime History, Naval History, Mediterranean Studies, History of Piracy, History of the Mediterranean, and 8 moreCorsairs, Maritime Security, Seafarers, Pirates, Maritime Piracy, Merchant Shipping/Maritime Economics/shipbuilding/Mediterranean/Shipowners/Maritime Trade, Barbary Pirates, and Christian and Muslim Corsairs
Draft of a map showing the patrol of U-123 in American waters in early 1942.
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Map of the last voyage of the SS Robin Moor on May 21, 1941, and subsequent rescue of its passengers and crew, as well as the patrol of U-69. Prepared for the Exhibit "How to Abandon Ship: The Sinking of the SS Robin Moor, May 21, 1941"... more
Map of the last voyage of the SS Robin Moor on May 21, 1941, and subsequent rescue of its passengers and crew, as well as the patrol of U-69. Prepared for the Exhibit "How to Abandon Ship: The Sinking of the SS Robin Moor, May 21, 1941" which commences at the American Merchant Marine Museum in Kings Point, NY on May 20, 2016
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An early effort to demonstrate the enormous logistical effort that went into supporting American military operations in the First Gulf War. Not an entirely successful map, it should be revisited and accompanying text created.
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A map for a potential article on Canadian prisoners of war held in New England during the War of 1812. Maritimers were incarcerated at a number of facilities scattered along New England’s coastline, including county gaols, coastal... more
A map for a potential article on Canadian prisoners of war held in New England during the War of 1812. Maritimers were incarcerated at a number of facilities scattered along New England’s coastline, including county gaols, coastal fortifications, and prison ships.
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An imperfect start to a map detailing the partial replacement of ferry boats by highway bridges.
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Another element of the proposed "Atlas of American maritime History." An accompanying map is not shown at present.
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This is a short introduction to American merchant shipbuilding in World War II, with plenty of graphics, and a map. It is part of a project I call "The Atlas of American Maritime History," although I'm not sure I will ever complete it.... more
This is a short introduction to American merchant shipbuilding in World War II, with plenty of graphics, and a map. It is part of a project I call "The Atlas of American Maritime History," although I'm not sure I will ever complete it. I would be glad to receive advice in this regard.
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Another map effort for a potential textbook or atlas, portraying pirate executions in the Caribbean and North America, 1700-1730. One point of this map is to underscore that pirates weren't executed by ones and twos generally: these were... more
Another map effort for a potential textbook or atlas, portraying pirate executions in the Caribbean and North America, 1700-1730. One point of this map is to underscore that pirates weren't executed by ones and twos generally: these were mass executions of entire crews.
