Joseph Blunt first came into notice by writing on the Missouri question in 1820. Soon afterward he wrote an article on the Laibach circular, published in the "North American Review", which attracted the attention of politicians. In 1825, he published a "Historical Sketch of the Formation of the American Confederacy" (8 vol.), and from 1827 to 1835 he edited the "American Annual Register". He also published "Speeches, Reviews, and Reports" (1843) and "Merchants' and Shipmasters' Assistant" (1829 and 1848).