Lawrence Peskin, a history professor at Morgan State University in Baltimore, is in Tangier to research the life of James Simpson, America’s first consul to Morocco (1797-1820). He is doing so as part of a larger book project that traces the development of the Early National American community in the Mediterranean region by studying the lives and networks of three consuls. In addition to Simpson, he is studying Robert Montgomery of Alicante, Spain and Thomas Appleton of Livorno, Italy.In addition to the many sources in the library at TALIM, he has benefitted from the opportunity to be able to walk around Tangier and understand the local geography. In doing so he has struggled to identify the remains of the 18th and early 19th century town and, particularly, the various consular houses in which members of the roughly 150-member European community resided.In the pod cast and in a more detailed blog post (http://legation.ipower.com/blog/?p=2085,) he discusses his efforts to find the location of the first American consular house (before the current American Legation) and Simpson’s country villa, “Mount Washington.”

Further Reading:Luella J. Hall, The United States and Morocco 1776-1956 (NJ, 1971)Frank Lambert, The Barbary Wars: American Independence in the Atlantic World (NY, 2005)Richard B. Parker, Uncle Sam in Barbary (Florida, 2004)Priscilla H. and Richard S. Roberts, Thomas Barclay (1728-1793):Consul in France, Diplomat in Barbary (PA 2008)