Christopher P Magra | University of Tennessee Knoxville (original) (raw)
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Books by Christopher P Magra
The American Revolution was deeply moored in Atlantic matters. Dramatic events on and around the... more The American Revolution was deeply moored in Atlantic matters. Dramatic events on and around the Atlantic Ocean shaped the contours of this formative event. British naval impressment supported the rise of Great Britain’s seaborne empire, then it contributed to its decline.
The state appropriated free laborers to man the warships that defended overseas colonies and maritime commerce. Mariners resented the ways in which impressment jeopardized their earning potential and occupational mobility. Maritime employers were bitter about the detrimental effect of manpower losses on trade.
British press gangs took mariners into military service around the Atlantic World. Why, then, did impressment only contribute to a revolution in North America? Extensive new archival research demonstrates that a sea of shared resentment and particular American concerns about imperial policy changes largely explain why impressment is listed in the Declaration of Independence as one of the foremost grievances Americans had with the British government.
In the first book-length examination of the connections between the commercial fishing industry i... more In the first book-length examination of the connections between the commercial fishing industry in colonial America and the American Revolution, Christopher Magra places the origins and progress of this formative event in a wider Atlantic context. The Fisherman's Cause utilizes extensive research from archives in the United States, Canada, and the U.K. in order to take this Atlantic approach. Dried, salted cod represented the most lucrative export in New England. The fishing industry connected colonial producers to transatlantic markets in the Iberian Peninsula and the West Indies. Parliament's coercive regulation of this branch of colonial maritime commerce contributed to colonists' willingness to engage in a variety of revolutionary activities. Colonists then used the sea to forcibly resist British authority. Fish merchants converted transatlantic trade routes into military supply lines, and they transformed fishing vessels into warships. Fishermen armed and manned the first American navy, served in the first coast guard units, and fought on privateers. These maritime activities helped secure American independence.
Papers by Christopher P Magra
This thesis analyzes efforts among frontier settlers of Upper East Tennessee to resist particular... more This thesis analyzes efforts among frontier settlers of Upper East Tennessee to resist particular elements of state-craft from the 1750s until 1820. Building on the work of James C. Scott, this study suggests that some residents of the area may have resisted acceding to what they considered the negative aspects of residing within state sovereignty. These included, taxation, land enclosure, organized religion, and regulation of economic activity. Analyzing from outside the lens of the state, this study attempts to explore why organized government remained largely ineffective and widely disregarded in the Upper East Tennessee region even as governance rapidly and effectively took hold both in the Tidewater and central piedmont of Virginia and North Carolina, as well as middle Tennessee and Kentucky. The topography of the region, coupled with the anti-state stratagems the settlers adopted, enabled the area to retain a dimension of practical autonomy
The International Review of Social History, 58:21 (Special Issue, 2013): 131-151.
International Journal of Maritime History, Vol. 22, No. 2 (December 2010), 113-128., Dec 2010
The International Journal of Naval History, Vol. 8, No. 1 (April 2009)., Apr 2009
The Northern Mariner/ Le Marin Du Nord, Vol. 17, No. 1 (January, 2007; actual printing January, 2008), 1-15., Jan 2008
International Journal of Maritime History, Vol. 19, No. 1 (June 2007), 87-106., Jun 2007
New England Quarterly, Vol. 78, No. 4, (December 2004), 531-562., Dec 2004
Book Reviews by Christopher P Magra
The American Historical Review 118:5 (December, 2013): 1473-1475., Dec 2013
The Latin Americanist 57:3 (September 2013): 104-106.
The American Historical Review 117:5 (December 2012): 1663-1664., Dec 2012
The Tennessee Historical Quarterly 71:3 (Fall 2012): 262-264., 2012
Nautical Research Journal 57:4 (Winter 2012): 245., 2012
New England Quarterly 84:4 (December 2011): 737-739., Dec 2011
The Northern Mariner/ Le Marin Du Nord 21:4 (October 2011): 410-411., Oct 2011
International Journal of Maritime History 23:1 (June 2011): 365-367., Jun 2011
The Northern Mariner/ Le Marin Du Nord 20:4 (October 2010): 433-435., Oct 2010
International Journal of Maritime History 22:2 (December 2010): 381-383., Dec 2010
The American Revolution was deeply moored in Atlantic matters. Dramatic events on and around the... more The American Revolution was deeply moored in Atlantic matters. Dramatic events on and around the Atlantic Ocean shaped the contours of this formative event. British naval impressment supported the rise of Great Britain’s seaborne empire, then it contributed to its decline.
The state appropriated free laborers to man the warships that defended overseas colonies and maritime commerce. Mariners resented the ways in which impressment jeopardized their earning potential and occupational mobility. Maritime employers were bitter about the detrimental effect of manpower losses on trade.
British press gangs took mariners into military service around the Atlantic World. Why, then, did impressment only contribute to a revolution in North America? Extensive new archival research demonstrates that a sea of shared resentment and particular American concerns about imperial policy changes largely explain why impressment is listed in the Declaration of Independence as one of the foremost grievances Americans had with the British government.
In the first book-length examination of the connections between the commercial fishing industry i... more In the first book-length examination of the connections between the commercial fishing industry in colonial America and the American Revolution, Christopher Magra places the origins and progress of this formative event in a wider Atlantic context. The Fisherman's Cause utilizes extensive research from archives in the United States, Canada, and the U.K. in order to take this Atlantic approach. Dried, salted cod represented the most lucrative export in New England. The fishing industry connected colonial producers to transatlantic markets in the Iberian Peninsula and the West Indies. Parliament's coercive regulation of this branch of colonial maritime commerce contributed to colonists' willingness to engage in a variety of revolutionary activities. Colonists then used the sea to forcibly resist British authority. Fish merchants converted transatlantic trade routes into military supply lines, and they transformed fishing vessels into warships. Fishermen armed and manned the first American navy, served in the first coast guard units, and fought on privateers. These maritime activities helped secure American independence.
This thesis analyzes efforts among frontier settlers of Upper East Tennessee to resist particular... more This thesis analyzes efforts among frontier settlers of Upper East Tennessee to resist particular elements of state-craft from the 1750s until 1820. Building on the work of James C. Scott, this study suggests that some residents of the area may have resisted acceding to what they considered the negative aspects of residing within state sovereignty. These included, taxation, land enclosure, organized religion, and regulation of economic activity. Analyzing from outside the lens of the state, this study attempts to explore why organized government remained largely ineffective and widely disregarded in the Upper East Tennessee region even as governance rapidly and effectively took hold both in the Tidewater and central piedmont of Virginia and North Carolina, as well as middle Tennessee and Kentucky. The topography of the region, coupled with the anti-state stratagems the settlers adopted, enabled the area to retain a dimension of practical autonomy
The International Review of Social History, 58:21 (Special Issue, 2013): 131-151.
International Journal of Maritime History, Vol. 22, No. 2 (December 2010), 113-128., Dec 2010
The International Journal of Naval History, Vol. 8, No. 1 (April 2009)., Apr 2009
The Northern Mariner/ Le Marin Du Nord, Vol. 17, No. 1 (January, 2007; actual printing January, 2008), 1-15., Jan 2008
International Journal of Maritime History, Vol. 19, No. 1 (June 2007), 87-106., Jun 2007
New England Quarterly, Vol. 78, No. 4, (December 2004), 531-562., Dec 2004
The American Historical Review 118:5 (December, 2013): 1473-1475., Dec 2013
The Latin Americanist 57:3 (September 2013): 104-106.
The American Historical Review 117:5 (December 2012): 1663-1664., Dec 2012
The Tennessee Historical Quarterly 71:3 (Fall 2012): 262-264., 2012
Nautical Research Journal 57:4 (Winter 2012): 245., 2012
New England Quarterly 84:4 (December 2011): 737-739., Dec 2011
The Northern Mariner/ Le Marin Du Nord 21:4 (October 2011): 410-411., Oct 2011
International Journal of Maritime History 23:1 (June 2011): 365-367., Jun 2011
The Northern Mariner/ Le Marin Du Nord 20:4 (October 2010): 433-435., Oct 2010
International Journal of Maritime History 22:2 (December 2010): 381-383., Dec 2010
Nautical Research Journal 56:2 (Summer 2011): 119-120., 2011
Journal of Social History 44:4 (Summer 2011): 1286-1287., 2011
New England Quarterly 84:1 (March 2011): 194-196., Mar 2011
International Journal of Maritime History 21:2 (December 2009): 369-370., Dec 2009
The Northern Mariner/ Le Marin Du Nord 19:4 (October 2009): 458-460., Oct 2009
Nautical Research Journal 54:3 (Fall 2009): 183-185., 2009
International Journal of Maritime History 21:1 (June 2009): 382-383., Jun 2009
History: Reviews of New Books 37.2 (Winter/January 2009): 75-76., Jan 2009
International Journal of Maritime History 20.2 (December 2008): 456-457., Dec 2008
The New England Quarterly, 2010
The Journal of Interdisciplinary History, 2010
Syllabus for a new grad seminar on capitalism and slavery
