"This is the first scholarly biography of William Henry Harrison in more than sixty years and the first to take full advantage of the microfilm of Harrison's territorial papers. Thomas Jefferson, who was president from 1801 to 1809, found in Harrison the ideal agent to carry out his administration's ruthless campaign to extinguish Indian land titles. To this day, we live with the echoes of Harrison's proclamations, the boundaries set by his treaties, and the ramifications of his actions. Mr. Jefferson's Hammer offers a reappraisal of Harrison's impact on the nation's development and key lessons for understanding American sentiments in the early republic."--Jacket.

A son of Virginia -- Rustic gentility -- Indiana and its governor take shape, 1803-1804 -- 1805 : the pivotal year -- Close calls and eerie calm : 1806-1809 -- A frontier society : Indiana, 1800-1812 -- Dueling visionaries -- Return to arms -- Conclusion : the Grandee of North Bend.