WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) today introduced a resolution to recognize the 225th anniversary of Alexander Hamilton’s “Report on the Subject of Manufacturers” that urged Congress to promote manufacturing in the newly independent nation. At Coons’ request, the National Archives Museum in D.C. will display the original text of Hamilton’s report throughout December and January.
Coons also authored an oped in Sunday’s News Journal about the report titled, “The economy of Alexander Hamilton.” Read the full oped below:
News Journal: Coons: “The Economy of Alexander Hamilton”
By Senator Chris Coons
“Hamilton,” the musical, rightly celebrates the extraordinary life and work of Alexander Hamilton, a founding father and our nation’s first Secretary of the Treasury. But of his many contributions to U.S. history, there’s at least one unsung accomplishment missing from the chart-topping soundtrack: Hamilton’s efforts to promote American manufacturing.
Exactly 225 years ago, on Dec. 5, 1791, Hamilton delivered to the U.S. Congress a “Report on the Subject of Manufactures.”
This remarkably detailed report followed a request from President George Washington, who argued in his first annual message to Congress that the people of the United States should promote manufacturing to make sure the newly independent nation wouldn’t have to depend on other countries for essential supplies and equipment, particularly when it came to the military.
The following December, Hamilton, in his role as Secretary of the Treasury, issued his groundbreaking report, which stressed the importance of a diversified national economy in which manufacturing, alongside agriculture, would play a crucial role in the country’s economic health.
Given the desire of many of the founders that the United States remain a primarily agricultural nation, Hamilton’s report wasn’t just a work of extraordinary research, detail, and length – it was also highly controversial.
Like so many of his ideas, Hamilton was ahead of his time. The Report on Manufactures promoted a modern economic vision based on investment, industry, internal improvements, and expanded commerce that has ultimately served as a driving force for centuries of economic growth and security.
But Hamilton’s report might not have happened without some important Delaware ties.
Two of Hamilton’s friends, who also influenced the development of his economic principles, were Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours, an early proponent of a system of property rights that eventually became the U.S patent system, and his son, the Delawarean E. I. du Pont, himself an entrepreneur and founder of the company that became DuPont.
The du Ponts impressed upon Hamilton an appreciation for the importance of manufacturing and securing for inventors a right to profit from their inventions. Today, a respect for intellectual property rights continues to serve as a foundational principle of our modern economy.
The concepts Hamilton outlined in his report – a diversified economy, strong manufacturing and innovation capabilities, intellectual property protections, and a solid financial infrastructure – are some of the most important structural pillars that have enabled our country to thrive and grow as a land of opportunity.
More than two centuries after Hamilton delivered his report, manufacturing remains a critical component of the American economy, contributing over $2 trillion each year. Twelve million Americans are directly employed in manufacturing jobs, with another 17 million jobs indirectly supported by it. More than 27,000 Delawareans work directly in manufacturing, with thousands others in supporting sectors.
Hamilton understood an appropriate role for central government in the United States, and he worked tirelessly to define that role. His report recommended government promotion of manufacturing through incentives to encourage risk taking and innovation, reflecting an idea that was new at the time and that remains true today: The federal government can play a constructive role supporting and sustaining innovation in the manufacturing sector.
Hamilton was right.
Today, manufacturing represents 11 percent of our entire economy – but it accounts for 70 percent of industry-funded research and development, leading to game-changing innovations in materials and processes from composites and nanomaterials to advanced robotics and additive manufacturing (better known as 3-D printing).
The federal government continues to support R&D and innovation through a variety of entities, including the National Institute of Standards and Technology, National Laboratories, the Manufacturing Extension Partnership, and the Patent and Trademark Office.
Like Alexander Hamilton himself, manufacturing has played a tremendous role in making the United States the country it is today – all foreshadowed by a report to Congress delivered 225 years ago tomorrow.
Manufacturing remains one of my top priorities in the Senate. To honor this anniversary and highlight the ongoing importance of manufacturing to the American economy, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina has joined with me to introduce a Senate Resolution celebrating this document.
I’ve also introduced a series of bipartisan bills to strengthen U.S. manufacturing. One proposal encourages universities to focus engineering programs on advanced manufacturing by designating 25 “Manufacturing Universities” for grant eligibility. This bipartisan bill passed the Senate this summer and may become law before the end of the year.
My Manufacturing Jobs for America initiative seeks to engage like-minded colleagues in the Senate in efforts to modernize America’s manufacturing sector and equip workers in Delaware and across the country with the skills to succeed.
In addition, at my request, the National Archives in Washington will display the original text of Hamilton’s report throughout December and January. If you’re able to visit D.C. over the next two months, I hope you’ll make the time to visit and view this important, if unsung, piece of American history.
Chris Coons is the junior United States Senator from Delaware and a member of the Democratic Party.