AP US History
Stalwarts
A political faction of the Republican Party; favored the spoils system and political machines. *Leaders:* Roscoe Conkling
Perestroika
A political movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during 1980s; widely associated with the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. Its literal meaning is "restructuring", referring to the restructuring of the Soviet political and economic system.
Bleeding Kansas (1854-61)
A series of violent events involving abolitionists and pro-Slavery elements that took place in Kansas-Nebraska Territory.
Panic of 1893
A serious economic depression triggered over-speculation in the railroad industry and a run on the gold supply. *Historical Significance:* Led to *Coxey's Army* and a wave of strikes including he *Pullman Strike*.
New Amsterdam
A settlement established by the Dutch near the mouth of Hudson River and the southern end of Manhattan Island. Annexed by the English in 1664.
Louisiana Purchase (1803)
A territory in the west central U.S. purchased from France for $15 million; extended from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from the Gulf of Mexico to Canada. *Historical Significance:* Protected trade access to the port of New Orleans and free passage on the Mississippi River; contributed to the growing slavery debate in the U.S.
Pentagon Papers (1971)
A top-secret United States Department of Defense history of the United States' political-military involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967 first brought to the attention of the public on the front page of the New York Times in 1971.
George Kennan
American adviser, diplomat, political scientist, and historian, best known as "the father of containment" and as a key figure in the emergence of the Cold War.
Shays' Rebellion (1786-87)
An armed uprising that took place in central and western Massachusetts protesting mortgage foreclosures. Historical Significance: Highlighted the need for a strong national government.
Erie Canal
An artificial waterway connecting the Hudson river at Albany with Lake Erie at Buffalo; supported by New York Governor *Dewitt Clinton*. *Historical Significance:* Lowered shipping costs, fueling an economic boom in upstate New York and increasing the profitability of farming in the Old Northwest.
Levittown
Four large suburban developments created in the U.S. featuring large numbers of similar houses that were built easily and quickly, allowing rapid recovery of costs.
Fort Duquesne
French fort that was site of first major battle of French & Indian War; General Washington led unsuccessful attack on French troops & was then defeated at Fort Necessity, marking beginning of conflict.
Edmond (Citizen) Genêt
French minister to the U.S. during the French Revolution; recruited and armed American privateers against Britain and organized American volunteers to fight Britain's Spanish allies in Florida, endangering American neutrality in the war between France and Britain.
Alexis de Tocqueville
French political writer whose 1831 study of American society was chronicled in the 2-volume *Democracy in America*.
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (1964)
Gave U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson authorization, without a formal declaration of war by Congress, for the use of conventional military force in Southeast Asia.
Proclamation of 1763
Forbade British colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains & required any settlers already living west of the mountains to move back east.
Currency Act (1764)
Forbade colonists from printing their own currency & instead required them to use hard currency (gold & silver) which was in short supply in the colonies.
Sedition Act (1918)
Forbade the use of "disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or abusive language" about the United States government, its flag, or its armed forces or that caused others to view the American government or its institutions with contempt.
National Republican Party (1825-1833)
Formed as the Democratic-Republican Party began to fracture following the Election of 1824. *Leaders:* John Q. Adams, Henry Clay *Major Ideas:* Supported modernization, industrialization, and economic nationalism.
Whig Party (1833-1856)
Formed in opposition to the policies of Andrew Jackson and his Democratic Party. *Leaders:* Henry Clay, Daniel Webster *Major Ideas:* Supported the supremacy of Congress over the presidency and favored a program of modernization and economic protectionism.
Know-Nothing Party (1845-1860)
Formed in response to the increase in Irish and German immigration. *Leaders:* Few prominent leaders *Major Ideas:* Characterized by political xenophobia, anti-Catholic sentiment, and occasional bouts of violence against the groups the nativists targeted.
National Grange
Formed to educate its members about new developments in agriculture and to create a social and culture bond among farmers. *Historical Significance:* Led to the passage of *"Granger Laws" regulating the railroads and grain elevator operators; challenged in a series of landmark Court decisions.
Booker T. Washington
Former slave who promoted economic independence and a slow transition for blacks into free society; founded the *Tuskegee Institute*.
Spanish Civil War (1936-39)
Fought from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939 after a military rebellion, led by a group of conservative generals under the authority of Francisco Franco, went against the elected government. The conservative generals received the support of Nazi Germany and the Fascist Italy while the Soviet Union intervened in support of the socialist Republicans.
Declaratory Act (1766)
Passed at the same time that the Stamp Act was repealed; declared that Parliament had the power to tax the colonies "in all cases whatsoever" & that the colonists possessed virtual representation.
Thomas Paine
Patriot and writer whose pamphlet *Common Sense* convinced many Americans that it was time to declare independence from Britain.
Hiroshima & Nagasaki (1945)
Two major cities that US decided to drop atomic bombs upon. Resulted in the surrender of Japan and end of World War II.
Al Smith
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Annexation of Hawaii
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Apollo 11
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Ballinger-Pinchot Controversy (1909-10)
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Big Stick Diplomacy
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Black Panthers
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Bonus Army
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Brain Trust
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Butler v. US (1936)
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Camp David Accords (1978)
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Causes of the Great Depression
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Charles Coughlin
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Civil Rights Act of 1964
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Civil Works Administration (CWA)
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Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)
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Communist Revolution in China (1949)
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Court-Packing Scheme
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César Chávez
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DeLome Letter
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Division of Germany
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Dollar Diplomacy
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Election of 1912
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Election of 1932
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Election of 1948
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Election of 1968
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Emergency Quota Act (1921)
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Emilio Aguinaldo
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Esch-Cummins Act (1920)
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Farmers' Holiday Association
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Federal Emergency Relief Act (FERA)
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Federal Home Loan Bank Act
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Federal Housing Administration (FHA)
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Federal Trade Commission Act (1914)
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First Hundred Days
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Foraker Act
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Fordney-McCumber Tariff
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Formal Imperalism
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Fourteen Points
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Francis Perkins
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Francis Townsend
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Glass-Steagall Act
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Great Society Legislation
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Harlem Renaissance
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Hawley-Smoot Tariff
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Hepburn Act (1906)
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Home Owners' Refinancing Act
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Hoover's Response to the Depression
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Huey Long
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Hundred Percenters
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Immigration Act (1882)
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Informal Imperialism
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Installment Buying
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Insular Cases
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Iranian Hostage Crisis (1979-1980)
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Jeanette Rankin
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John Maynard Keynes
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Jones Merchant Marine Act (1920)
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Keating-Owen Act (1916)
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Korean War (1950-1953)
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League of Nations
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Legacy of the New Deal
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Literacy Test Act (1917)
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Lusitania
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Malcolm X
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Mann-Elkins Act (1910)
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McNary-Haugen Bill (1927 & 1928)
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Meat Inspection Act (1906)
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Mellon Tax Plan
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Mining in the West
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Moderate v Radical Unionism
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Modern v Traditional Art Forms
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Moral Diplomacy
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National Bank Holiday
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National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA)
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New Freedom
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New Nationalism
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North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
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Northern Securities v. United States (1904)
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Open Door Policy
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Ostend Manifesto
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Palmer Raids
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Panama Canal
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Panama Canal Treaty (1977)
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Payne-Aldrich Tariff (1909)
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Platt Amendment
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Proclamation of Neutrality
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Progressive Economic Reforms
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Progressive Party
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Progressive Political Reforms
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Progressive Social Reforms
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Pure Food and Drug Act (1906)
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Ranching in the West
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Reconstruction Finance Corporation
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Red Scare
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Relief, Recovery, Reform
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Resettlement Administration (RA)
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Return to Normalcy
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Robert LaFollette
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Rural Electrification Administration (REA)
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Sacco & Vanzetti Trial
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Saturday Night Massacre
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Schechter Poultry Corporation v. US (1935)
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Science v Religion
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Scopes Trial
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Securities & Exchange Commission
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Seward's Folly
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Silent Majority
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Social Concerns of the 1970s & 1980s
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Social Security Act
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Socialist Party
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Southern Christian Leadership Conference
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Stock Market Crash
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Suburbanization
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Sussex Pledge
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Teapot Dome Scandal
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Teller Amendment
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Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)
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Tet Offensive (1968)
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US Intervention in Guatemala (1954)
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US Intervention in Nicaragua (1979)
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USS Maine
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Underwood Tariff (1913)
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Upton Sinclair
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Urban v Rural Tensions
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Vietnam War
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Volstead Act
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Voting Rights Act of 1965
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Warsaw Pact
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Watergate
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Whip Inflation Now (WIN)
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Woodward & Bernstein
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Works Progress Administration (WPA)
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Clayton Anti-Trust Act (1914)
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Coal Mine Strike of 1902
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Federal Reserve Act (1913)
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Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire (1911)
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Farmers' Alliance
A Farmers' organization founded in late 1870s; worked for lower railroad freight rates, lower interest rates, and a change in the governments tight money policy. *Leaders:* Mary Elizabeth Lease
New France (1608)
A French colony in North America. Fell to the British in 1763.
Grant Administration Scandals
*Black Friday* (1869) - Financial tycoons Jim Fisk and Jay Gould bribed officials in Grant's cabinet to ignore their attempts to corner the gold market; led to the Panic of 1869. *Tweed Ring* (1871) - *Crédit Mobilier* (1872) - *Whiskey Ring* (1875) -
Election of 1860
*Candidates:* Abraham Lincoln (Republican) vs. John C. Breckinridge (Southern Democrat) vs. John Bell (Constitutional Union) vs. Stephen Douglas (Northern Democrat) *Results:* Lincoln carried the North, winning with less than 40% of the popular vote nationwide. *Historical Significance:* Prompted the South Carolina's secession, followed by six other Deep South states.
Election of 1828
*Candidates:* John Q. Adams (National Republican) vs. Andrew Jackson (Democrat) *Results:* Jackson won a landslid victory. *Historical Significance:* Marked the beginning of modern American politics, with the decisive establishment of democracy and the formation of the two-party system.
Election of 1824
*Candidates:* John Q. Adams vs. Andrew Jackson vs. William H. Crawford vs. Henry Clay *Results:* No candidate won the required number of electoral votes, throwing the election into the House of Representatives where Clay offered his support to Adams who was elected on the first ballot. *Historical Significance:* Led to accusations of a "corrupt bargain."
Election of 1876
*Candidates:* Rutherford B. Hayes (Republican) vs. Samuel Tilden (Democrat) Results in Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina were disputed leading first to an Electoral Commission followed by the *Compromise of 1877*. *Historical Significance:* Reconstruction came to a sudden end.
Election of 1896
*Candidates:* William McKinley (Republican) vs. *William Jennings Bryan* (Democrat) *Results:* McKinley carried the large industrial Northern states, winning the election. *Historical Significance:* Last election for the Populist Party.
Early Industrial Era Court Cases
*Fletcher v. Peck* (1810) *Dartmouth v. Woodward* (1819) *McCulloch v. Maryland*(1819) *Gibbons v. Ogden* (1824) *Charles River Bridge v. Warren Bridge* (1835)
Marshall Court
*Leader:* Chief Justice John Marshall *Historical Significance:* Strengthened the power of the federal government over that of the states.
Nullification Crisis (1828-33)
*Leaders" John C. Calhoun *Events* *Tariff of 1828* - The "Tariff of Abominations." *Tariff of 1832* - Reduced tariffs to remedy the conflict created by the Tariff of 1828. *Ordinance of Nullification* - Declared the Tariffs of 1828 and 1832 null and void within the state borders of South Carolina. *Force Bill* - Authorized the president to use whatever force necessary to enforce federal tariffs. *Tariff of 1833* - Proposed gradually reducing tariffs back to their 1816 rates.
Federalist Party
*Leaders:* Alexander Hamilton *Major Ideas:* Represented the interests of the capitalist class. Favored expansion of the federal government's power and a loose interpretation of the Constitution. Held that the future of the nation was dependent on developing manufacturing and industry. Favored Great Britain.
Virginia Plan
*Leaders:* James Madison and Edmund Randolph *Provisions:* Called for a strong national government with three branches and a two-chamber legislature with each state's representation based on its population.
Moderates at the 1CC
*Leaders:* John Dickinson, George Washington *Ideas:* Believed that the relationship between the colonies and Great Britain could be repaired.
Conservatives at the 1CC
*Leaders:* John Jay, Joseph Galloway *Ideas:* Were not prepared to make an aggressive response but did favor a mild rebuke of the British; Galloway proposed a union of colonies under British authority with a colonial "grand council" with the power to veto British acts.
Anti-Federalists
*Leaders:* Patrick Henry, John Hancock, George Mason *Characteristics:* Support came mainly from the backcountry and agricultural areas and debtors. *Ideas:* Opposed a central government that did not guarantee protection of individual rights.
Radicals at the 1CC
*Leaders:* Patrick Henry, Sam Adams, John Adams, Charles Thomson *Ideas:* Believed that the colonies' relationship with Britain had already passed a point of no return.
Democratic-Republican Party
*Leaders:* Thomas Jefferson, James Madison *Major Ideas:* Represented the interests of the common man, the farmer. Was anti-capitalistic. Favored limitations on the power of the federal government and a strict interpretation of the Constitution. Held that the future of the nation was dependent on maintaining an agrarian society. Favored support of France.
Federalists
*Leaders:* Washington, Hamilton, Madison, Franklin *Characteristics:* Support came mainly from coastal and urban areas and the upper class. *Ideas:* Favored a strong central government to maintain peace and stability.
New Jersey Plan
*Leaders:* William Patterson *Provisions:* Called for a unicameral legislature in which each State would be equally represented.
Farmers Organize
*Major Causes:* The new time- and labor-saving technology required significant expenditures, which often had to be borrowed with interest charged by the banks. The availability of land was limited because so much had been granted to railroad companies or sold to land speculators. States often rewarded railroad and grain companies with reduced taxes with the remainder paid for by private citizens. The high cost to store and ship grains and crops.
The Bank War (1832-1836)
*Major Events:* Erupted when Henry Clay sought to renew the Bank's charter before the Election of 1832. Jackson vetoed the bill then ordered all federal deposits in the bank to be withdrawn. Two Secretaries of the Treasury refused and were removed from office. Jackson was censured by the U.S. Senate. Bank president *Nicholas Biddle* called in loans from across the country resulting in a financial crisis. The Bank lost its charter in 1836 and went out of business five years later.
Impeachment of President Johnson (1868)
*Major Events:* Johnson dismissed Secretary of War Edwin Stanton. The House of Representatives charged Johnson with 11 "high crimes and misdemeanors." The Senate fell one vote short of removing him from office.
Mexican-American War (1846-48)
*Major Events:* The U.S. annexed Texas and sought to acquire the California-New Mexico region. President James K. Polk sent *John Slidell* to negotiate with Mexico, but his proposal was rejected. Polk sent troops into the disputed area near the Nueces River and the Rio Grande. The U.S. declared war on Mexico after 16 soldiers were killed near the disputed territory. The American forces - led by Generals *Zachary Taylor* and *Winfield Scott* - took control of the entire southwest. *Historical Significance:* Taylor emerged as a war hero; contributed to the growing slavery debate in the U.S.
Texan Independence (1835-36)
*Major Events:* The newly formed Mexican government offered immigrants the opportunity to own land. Thousands of Americans, including *Stephen Austin*, migrate into Mexico. The Mexican government required all settlers to convert to Catholicism and end slavery - American settlers ignored the law. *General Santa Ana* proclaimed himself the dictator of Mexico. The American settlers declared themselves independent from Mexico and selected *Sam Houston* as the commander of the Texas military. The Texans fought for - and won - their independence in spite of such early defeats as the *Battle of the Alamo*.
Hamilton's Economic Program
*Major Features:* 1) Tariff of 1789 2) Report on Public Credit 3) Report on Manufactures 4) Bank of the United States
Articles of Confederation
*Major Features:* A unicameral legislature No authority for Congress to impose taxes One vote in Congress for each state No national court system No provision for a uniform national currency No chief executive A requirement that 9 of the 13 states approve passage of certain legislation Unanimity for amendments to the Articles of Confederation No authority for Congress to regulate either interstate or foreign commerce
Contract Theory of Government
*Major Ideas:* The people, not the states, created the Union. The federal government is supreme. Thus, federal laws and actions take precedence over state laws and actions. *Examples:* John Locke's Second Treatise on Government Marshall Court Texas v. White (1869)
Compact Theory of Government
*Major Ideas:* The states, not the people, created the national government. The laws of the states are supreme when in conflict with the laws and actions of the federal government. The states can declare the laws of the federal government null and void if they deem it necessary and appropriate. The logical conclusion of this theory - if taken to the extreme - is secession. *Examples:* Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions (1798) Hartford Convention (1815) Nullification Crisis (1832)
Antebellum Reform Movements
*Major Reform Movements:* *Penitentiary and Mental Health Reform* - Dorothea Dix *Temperance Movement* - Frances Willard *Educational Reform* - Horace Mann *Women's Movement* - Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton *Abolition Movement* - William Lloyd Garrison, Frederick Douglass
Gilded Age Court Cases
*Munn v. Illinois* (1877) - Allowed states to regulate certain businesses within their borders, including railroads, and is commonly regarded as a milestone in the growth of federal government regulation. Wabash v. Illinois (1886) - Severely limited the rights of states to control interstate commerce; led to the creation of the *Interstate Commerce Commission*. United States v. E. C. Knight Company (1895) - Limited the government's power to control monopolies. The Court ruled that manufacturing was a local activity not subject to congressional regulation of interstate commerce.
Great (Connecticut) Compromise
*Provisions:* 1) A state's representation in the House of Representatives was to be based on population. 2) The states' representation in the Senate would be equal. 3) All money bills would originate in the House. 4) Direct taxes on states were to be assessed by population.
Townshend Acts (1767)
*Provisions:* Imposed a tax - to be paid at American ports - on items produced in Britain & sold in the colonies, including paper, glass, lead, paint, & tea. Suspended the New York Assembly for refusing to provide British troops with supplies. Established an American Board of Customs & admiralty courts to hear cases of smuggling. Issued Writs of Assistance. *Historical Significance:* Led to a boycott of British goods, the Circular Letters, John Dickinson's "Letters from a Pennsylvania Farmer," and unrest in Boston.
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
*Provisions:* The Northwest Territory would be divided into 3-5 separate territories. A methodical process would advance each territory to statehood. Unorganized territories would be overseen by officials appointed by Congress. Once the population of the territory reached 5000 it could be organized as a territory where residents would elect members to a state legislature and send a delegate to Congress.
Commerce Compromise
*Provisions:* The South agreed to federal control over foreign and interstate trade. The importation of slaves would be permitted for 20 years, until 1808. The federal government was given the authority to collect import taxes, but there would be no duties on exports.
Three-Fifths Compromise
*Provisions:* Three-fifths of a state's slave population would be counted for purposes of taxation and representation. A fugitive slave law required that runaway slaves who escaped to a free state must be returned to their owners.
Land Ordinance of 1785
*Provisions:* Townships 6 miles square would be surveyed then divided into sections equaling 1 square mile. The sections were to be sold in lots of 640 acres at no less than $1 per acre. The revenue from the sale of one section for each township would be used to develop public education.
Alien Acts (1798)
*Terms:* Allowed the president to expel any foreigner determined to be a threat to the nation; offenders could be jailed or deported during wartime, and the residency requirement for citizenship was extended from 5 years to 14 years. *Historical Significance:* Led to the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions; contributed to the debate concerning constitutional rights in times of war.
Sedition Act (1798)
*Terms:* Made it illegal to defame or criticize the president or the government; aimed at war newspapers critical of the Federalist policies; Jeffersonians viewed it as proof that individual liberties were threatened if the central government was too strong. *Historical Significance:* Led to the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions; contributed to the debate concerning constitutional rights in times of war.
1980 Olympics
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Gilded Age Presidents
*Ulysses S. Grant* (1869-77) - Plagued by a variety of scandals. *Rutherford B. Hayes* (1877-81) - Tried to restore honesty to the government after the corruption of the Grant Administration. *James Garfield* (1881) - Assassinated. *Chester A. Arthur* (1881-1885) - Supported civil service reform to address the *patronage* problem. *Grover Cleveland* (1885-89) - Won the support of reform-minded *Mugwumps*. *Benjamin Harrison* (1889-93) - Overshadowed by a powerful *Billion Dollar Congress*. *Grover Cleveland* (1893-97) - Lost the support of the of labor unions & the agrarian wing of the Democratic Party.
26th Amendment
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Horatio Alger
19th-century American author, best known for his many formulaic juvenile novels about impoverished boys and their rise from humble backgrounds to lives of middle-class security and comfort through hard work, determination, courage, and honesty.
38th Parallel
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Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA)
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Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)
A confrontation among the Soviet Union, Cuba and the United States in October 1962, during the Cold War.
Horizontal Integration
A corporate expansion strategy in which companies acquire their competitors.
Halfbreeds
A political faction of the Republican Party; favored civil-service reform and the merit system. *Leaders:* James G. Blaine
Scalawags
A derogatory term for white Southerners who supported Reconstruction following the Civil War.
Closed Shop
A form of union security agreement under which the employer agrees to only hire union members, and employees must remain members of the union at all times in order to remain employed.
Morrill Tariff (1861)
A high protective tariff enacted to protect and encourage industry and the high wages of industrial workers and to raise revenue during the American Civil War.
Political Objectives of the North
A high tariff to protect its growing industries. Federal aid for the development of infrastructure, including roads, canals, bridges, and railroads. A loose immigration policy which would provide access to cheap labor. Availability of free or cheap land in the West for settlement and investment opportunities, thereby creating new markets for its manufactured goods. The containment of slavery.
New Frontier Legislation
A label for the Kennedy Administration's domestic and foreign programs. Included:
Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
A landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional.
Radical Republicans
A loose faction of Republicans who sought to punish the South for the American Civil War and demanded civil rights for freedmen; engaged in a bitter struggle with President Johnson. *Leaders:* Charles Sumner, Thaddeus Stevens
Massive Retaliation
A military doctrine and nuclear strategy in which a state commits itself to retaliate in much greater force in the event of an attack.
Chesapeake-Leopard Affair (1807)
A naval engagement between the British warship HMS Leopard and American frigate USS Chesapeake during which the crew of the Leopard pursued, attacked and boarded the American frigate looking for deserters from the British Navy. *Historical Significance:* Led to the Embargo Act of 1807.
A Century of Dishonor (1881)
A non-fiction book by *Helen Hunt Jackson* that chronicles the experiences of Native Americans in the U.S. *Historical Significance:* Led to the passage of the *Dawes Act* in 1887.
Carpetbaggers
A northerner who went to the South immediately after the Civil War; especially one who tried to gain political advantage or other advantages from the disorganized situation in southern states.
Era of Good Feelings (1815-1825)
A period in the political history of the United States that reflected a sense of national purpose and a desire for unity among Americans; closely associated with Monroe's presidency.
Peace with Honor (1973)
A phrase U.S. President Richard M. Nixon used in a speech on January 23, 1973 to describe the Paris Peace Accord to end the Vietnam War.
Open Shop
A place of employment at which one is not required to join or financially support a union as a condition of hiring or continued employment.
Vietnamization
A policy of the Richard M. Nixon administration, as a result of Tet, to "expand, equip, and train South Vietnam's forces and assign to them an ever-increasing combat role, at the same time steadily reducing the number of U.S. combat troops."
Truman Doctrine (1947)
A policy set forth by U.S. President Harry S Truman stating that the U.S. would support Greece and Turkey with economic and military aid to prevent their falling into the Soviet sphere.
Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955)
A political and social protest campaign that started in 1955 in Montgomery, Alabama, USA, intended to oppose the city's policy of racial segregation on its public transit system.
Iran-Contra Affair
A political scandal in the United States that came to light in November 1986. During the Reagan administration, senior Reagan Administration officials secretly facilitated the sale of arms to Iran, the subject of an arms embargo in hopes of securing the release of hostages and allowing U.S. intelligence agencies to fund the Nicaraguan Contras.
Totalitarianism
A political system where the state, usually under the power of a single political person, faction, or class, recognizes no limits to its authority and strives to regulate every aspect of public and private life wherever feasible.
Spoils System
A practice where a political party, after winning an election, gives government jobs to its voters as a reward for working toward victory and as an incentive to keep working for the party.
Coxey's Army (1894)
A protest march by unemployed workers; led by Ohio businessman Jacob Coxey.
Sunbelt States
A region of the United States generally considered to stretch across the South and Southwest.
Ghost Dance
A ritual dance performed by some members of the Sioux tribe in an effort bring back the buffalo and return the Native American tribes to their land. *Historical Significance:* Contributed to the *Wounded Knee Massacre* in 1890.
Pacific Railway Act (1862)
A series of laws that promoted the construction of the *Transcontinental Railroad* authorizing the issuance of government bonds and the grants of land to railroad companies.
Second Great Awakening
A series of religious revivals starting in 1801; stressed a religious philosophy of salvation through good deeds and tolerance for all Protestant sects. *Leaders:* Charles Finney *Historical Significance:* Influenced the antebellum reform movements.
Navigation Laws
A series of strict British trade policies designed to promote English shipping & control colonial trade in regard to important crops (such as tobacco) & resources, which had to be shipped exclusively on British ships.
Panic of 1873 (1873-1879)
A severe international economic depression triggered by overproduction of railroads, mines, factories and farm products. *Historical Significance:* Led to the *Railroad Strike of 1877*.
Dixiecrats
A short-lived segregationist, socially conservative political party in the US that originated as a breakaway faction of the Democratic Party in 1948, determined to protect what they portrayed as the Southern way of life beset by an oppressive federal government.
Capture of Fort Ticonderoga (1775)
A small force of *Green Mountain Boys* led by *Ethan Allen* and *Benedict Arnold* overcame a small British garrison at the fort. *Historical Significance:* Colonists transported cannons and other armaments from the fort to Boston fortifying Dorchester Heights and breaking the standoff at the Siege of Boston.
Communism
A sociopolitical movement that aims for a classless and stateless society structured upon common ownership of the means of production, free access to articles of consumption, and the end of wage labour and private property in the means of production and real estate.
Circular Letters
A statement written by Samuel Adams & passed by the Massachusetts House of Representatives; argued that the Townshend Acts were unconstitutional because the colony of Massachusetts was not represented in Parliament. *Historical Significance:* Led to the dissolution of the Massachusetts Assembly & the occupation of Boston.
Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)
A strip of land running across the Korean Peninsula that serves as a buffer zone between North and South Korea.
Cuban Revolution (1959)
A successful armed revolt by Fidel Castro's 26th of July Movement that overthrew the U.S.-backed Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista on 1 January 1959.
Committees of Correspondence
A system of communication between patriot leaders in New England & throughout the colonies, providing the organization necessary to unite the colonies in opposition to Parliament; organized by Sam Adams.
Copperheads
A vocal group of Northern Democrats who opposed the American Civil War, wanting an immediate peace settlement with the Confederates. *Leaders:* Clement L. Vallandigham who was eventually court-martialed and sentenced to imprisonment until Lincoln commuted the sentence to banishment behind Confederate lines.
Civil Rights Act of 1957
A voting rights bill that sought to ensure that all African Americans could exercise their right to vote.
Ten Percent Plan (1863)
Abraham Lincoln's proposed plan for Reconstruction; introduced before the end of the War allowing Louisiana, Tennessee, and Arkansas to establish fully functioning governments by 1864. *Provisions:* Called for states to be reintegrated into the Union when 10% of their 1860 voters had taken an oath of allegiance to the U.S. and pledged to abide by emancipation.
Olive Branch Petition (1775)
Adopted by the Continental Congress in an attempt to avoid a full-blown war with Great Britain. *Provisions:* Affirmed American loyalty to Great Britain and entreated the king to prevent further conflict. *Historical Significance:* Rejected and the colonies were formally declared in rebellion.
Fascism
Advocates the creation of a totalitarian single-party state that seeks the mass mobilization of a nation and the creation of an ideal "new man" to form a governing elite through indoctrination, physical education, and family policy including eugenics.
Compromise of 1850
Agreement designed to ease tensions caused by the expansion of slavery into western territories. *Leaders:* Henry Clay *Provisions:* California entered the Union as a free state. The *Fugitive Slave Law* was strengthened. The slave trade was banned in Washington, DC. Land taken from Mexico would be divided into two new territories - New Mexico and Utah - with the slavery question determined by *popular sovereignty*.
Missouri Compromise (1820)
Agreement designed to establish a line between the admission of free and slave states in the western territories. *Leaders:* Henry Clay *Provisions:* Missouri entered the union as a slave state, Maine entered the union as a free state, prohibited slavery north of latitude 36˚ 30' within the Louisiana Territory.
George Wallace
Alabama governor best known for his pro-segregation attitudes during the Civil Rights Movement.
American Federation of Labor
Alliance of skilled workers in craft unions; focus was bread-and butter issues such as higher wages, shorter hours, and better working conditions. *Leaders:* Samuel Gompers
Tea Act (1773)
Allowed the British East India Company to sell its low-cost tea directly to the colonies *Historical Significance:* Undermined colonial tea merchants; led to the Boston Tea Party.
Frederick Jackson Turner
American historian in the early 20th century best known for his essay *"The Significance of the Frontier in American History"* in which he argued that the spirit and success of the United States was directly tied to the country's westward expansion.
Eugene V. Debs
American union leader, one of the founding members of the International Labor Union and the *Industrial Workers of the World* (IWW), and several times the candidate of the Socialist Party of America for President of the United States.
Whiskey Rebellion (1791)
American uprising over the establishment of a federal tax on liquor; was quickly ended by George Washington and 13,000 troops. *Historical Significance:* Demonstrated that the new national government had the willingness and ability to suppress violent resistance to its laws.
Medger Evers
An African American civil rights activist from Mississippi involved in efforts to overturn segregation at the University of Mississippi before being shot & killed in June 1963.
Rosa Parks
An African-American civil rights activist who, in 1955, refused to obey bus driver James Blake's order that she give up her seat to make room for a white passenger.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
An American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African American civil rights movement best known for using using nonviolent methods to bring about change.
William Penn
An English Quaker who founded Pennsylvania in 1682 as a "holy experiment" based on religious tolerance.
Treaty of Tordesillas (1494)
An agreement between Portugal and Spain which declared that newly discovered lands to the west of an imaginary line in the Atlantic Ocean would belong to Spain and newly discovered lands to the east of the line would belong to Portugal.
Munich Agreement (1938)
An agreement permitting the Nazi German annexation of Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland; it is widely regarded as a failed act of appeasement toward Nazi Germany.
Raid on Harpers Ferry (1859)
An attempt by white abolitionist *John Brown* to start an armed slave revolt by seizing a United States Arsenal at Harpers Ferry in Virginia; defeated by a detachment of U.S. Marines led by Robert E. Lee; Brown was found guilt of treason and was hanged. *Historical Significance:* Brown became a martyr to many Northerners, which in turn made many Southerners suspect that they were involved in - or at least supportive of - violent slave rebellions.
Seneca Falls Convention (1848)
An early and influential women's rights convention at which the push for women's suffrage first gained national prominence. *Leaders:* Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton *Accomplishment:* *Declaration of Rights and Sentiments*
Direct Primary
An election in which party members select people to run in the general election.
Specie Circular (1836)
An executive order issued by Andrew Jackson requiring payment for government land to be in gold and silver. *Historical Significance:* Led to inflation and rising prices; blamed for the *Panic of 1837*.
Boston Massacre (1770)
An incident in which British soldiers fired into a crowd of colonists who were teasing and taunting them; five colonists were killed. *Historical Significance:* Boston's radicals used to incident to wage an Anti-British propaganda war.
Bay of Pigs Invasion (1961)
An unsuccessful action by a CIA-trained force of Cuban exiles to invade southern Cuba, with support and encouragement from the U.S. government, in an attempt to overthrow the Cuban government of Fidel Castro.
Presidential Reconstruction
Andrew Johnson's plan for Reconstruction. *Provisions:* Similar to Lincoln's Ten Percent Plan. Gave Johnson the power to pardon former Confederates.
Alfred T. Mahan
Author who argued in 1890 that the economic future of the United States rested on new overseas markets protected by a larger navy; wrote "The Influence of Sea Power Upon History."
Newlands Reclamation Act (1902)
Authorized the use of federal funds from public land sales to pay for irrigation and land development projects, mainly in the dry Western states.
Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (1968)
Banned the transfer of nuclear weapons to nonnuclear nations.
Force Act (1870)
Banned the use of terror, force or bribery to prevent people from voting because of their race.
Battle of Little Big Horn (1876)
Battle at which *Colonel George Custer*'s forces clashed with nearly 4000 well armed Sioux warriors led by *Crazy Horse* and *Sitting Bull*; Custer and more than 250 of his men were killed; U.S. reinforcements chased Sitting Bull to Canada where he received political asylum until hunger forced him to return.
Battle of Trenton (1776)
Battle that ended with an American victory against the Hessian mercenaries hired by the British. *Historical Significance:* Boosted American morale and inspired re-enlistments.
George Grenville
Became the Prime Minister of England in 1763; proposed the Sugar & Stamp Acts to raise revenue in the colonies in order to defray the expenses of the French & Indian War & to maintain Britain's expanded empire in America.
Eli Whitney
Best known for inventing the cotton gin; pioneered the use of interchangeable parts in the manufacture of muskets. *Historical Significance:* Made cotton a profitable crop, strengthening the economic foundation of slavery.
Yalta Conference (1945)
Between Stalin, Roosevelt, and Churchill. Confirmed what was discussed in the Tehran Conference about setting up United Nations. Stalin promised to allow democratic elections in countries taken by Russia. Promise was reneged, however.
Molasses Act (1733)
British legislation which taxed all molasses, rum, & sugar imported from countries other than Britain & her colonies; British had difficulty enforcing the tax; most colonial merchants did not pay it.
Intolerable Acts (Coercive Acts) (1774)
British response to the Boston Tea Party *Provisions:* *Boston Port Act* - Closed the port of Boston and relocated the customs house so that some important supplies could enter Massachusetts. *Massachusetts Government Act* - Limited town meetings and replaced the Massachusetts judiciary and council members with Crown appointees. *Administration of Justice Act* - Required that trials of royal officials accused of serious crimes in the colonies be held in Britain. *Quartering Act* - Required all colonists to house British troops when ordered.
Civil Rights Act of 1875
Called for full equality in all public facilities; ruled unconstitutional in 1883.
W.E.B. Dubois
Challenged Washington's ideas on race relations and encouraged blacks to resist systems of segregation and discrimination; leader of the *Niagara Movement* in 1905; founding member of the *NAACP*.
Haymarket Square Riot (1886)
Chicago labor protest organized to protest the treatment of workers at the McCormick Harvester Company as well as methods used by police in dealing with protestors; ended abruptly when an unknown assailant threw a bomb that killed 7 police officers; 8 anarchists were convicted of conspiracy. *Historical Significance:* The public blamed trade unions for the violence.
Casablanca Conference (1943)
Churchill and Roosevelt stated that the Allies would only accept an unconditional surrender from the Axis Powers.
Freedom Riders
Civil rights activists that rode interstate buses into the segregated southern United States to test the United States Supreme Court decision Boynton v. Virginia (1960).
Boston Tea Party (1773)
Colonial response to the Tea Act; 30-130 colonists - dressed as Mohawk Indians - boarded British ships and dumped the tea into Boston Harbor *Historical Significance:* Led to the Intolerable Acts.
Zimmerman Telegram
Communication intercepted by U.S. officials stating that Germany would help Mexico take back territory lost if they declared war on the United States.
Appomattox Courthouse (1865)
Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrender to General Grant effectively ending the war; Lincoln was assassinated five days later by Confederate sympathizer *John Wilkes Booth*.
Powers of the Legislative Branch
Congress has the power of the purse - power to set and collect taxes, borrow money, regulate trade, coin money. Congress was to set up a postal service and issue patents and copyrights. War must be authorized by Congress. Congress is responsible for raising and maintaining an army and a navy.
Powers of the Judicial Branch
Congress was to establish a Supreme Court and lower courts. The kinds of cases that could be heard in federal courts was specified. The Supreme Court's jurisdiction was outlined. Treason was defined; requirements for conviction were set; and punishment was to be in the hands of Congress.
John Dickinson
Conservative leader who wrote "Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania"; advocated for colonial rights but urged conciliation with England & opposed the Declaration of Independence; helped to write the Articles of Confederation.
Pendleton Act (1883)
Created the *Civil Service Commission* to ensure that hiring of federal employees was based on examinations and merit rather than political patronage. *Historical Significance:* Significantly reduced federal patronage from powerful office-seekers thus forcing politicians to look increasingly to corporations for campaign funds.
Battle of Saratoga (1777)
Decisive colonial victory in upstate New York; considered to be the turning point of the American Revolution. *Historical Significance:* Caused France to openly support the colonies with military forces in addition to the supplies and money already being sent.
Texas v. White (1869)
Declared that secession was an illegal act and asserted the right of Congress to reframe state governments, thus endorsing the Radical Republican point of view.
Neutrality Proclamation (1793)
Declared that the U.S. would remain neutral in the conflict between France and Great Britain and threatened legal proceedings against any American providing assistance to any country at war.
Treaty of Utrecht (1713)
Ended the War of Spanish Succession & recognized France's Philip V as Kind of Spain, but prohibited the unification of the French and Spanish monarchies; gave England profitable lands in North America from France.
Tenure of Office Act (1867)
Denied the president the power to remove any executive officer who had been appointed by a past president without the advice and consent of the Senate; passed over Johnson's veto.
Tariff of 1789
Designed to protect domestic manufacturing; discouraged competition from abroad and compelled foreign competitors to raise prices on their commodities. *Historical Significance:* Provided the U.S. government with much-needed revenue.
Potsdam Conference (1945)
Divided Germany into 4 military regions each controlled by the US, France, Great Britain, and the USSR after World War II. Berlin was also divided in the same manner.
Popular Sovereignty
Doctrine that allowed the residents of U.S. territories - and not Congress - to decide whether or not to accept or reject slavery.
Soviet Bloc
Eastern European nations under Soviet control; included East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Poland, Albania,& Romania.
Panic of 1819
Economic panic caused by extensive speculation and a decline of European demand for American goods along with mismanagement within the Second Bank of the United States; often cited as the end of the Era of Good Feelings. *Historical Significance:* Marked the end of the economic expansion that had followed the War of 1812 and ushered in new financial policies that would shape economic development.
Laissez-Faire Economics
Economic philosophy described by *Adam Smith* in Wealth of Nations; based on the principle that business and the economy would run best with no interference from the government.
Manhattan Project (1942-46)
Effort made by the U.S., Canada, and Great Britain to construct an atomic bomb; led by Robert Oppenheimer.
Homestead Act (1862)
Encouraged westward expansion by allowing a settler to acquire as much as 160 acres of land by living on it for 5 years, improving it, and paying a nominal fee of about $30.
Peace of Paris (1763)
Ended French and Indian War *Terms:* Britain gained all of French Canada & all territory south of Canada & east of the Mississippi River. France & Spain lost their West Indian colonies. Britain gained Spanish Florida. Spain gained French territory west of the Mississippi, including control of the port city of New Orleans.
Treaty of Versailles
Ended World War I Terms:
Treaty of Paris (1783)
Ended the American Revolution *Terms:* Britain recognized U.S. independence, The boundaries of the U.S. were established. American fishing ships were given unlimited access to the waters off Newfoundland. The U.S. government agreed it would not interfere with British creditors and merchants seeking to collect debts owed to them by Americans. The U.S. government agreed to compensate Loyalists whose property had been confiscated during the war.
Treaty of Guadalupe Hildago (1848)
Ended the Mexican-American War. *Terms:* Mexico recognized the American claims to the area north of the Rio Grande. Mexico ceded California and New Mexico to the U.S. in return for $15 million. The U.S. agreed to assume approximately $3 million in debts Mexico owed to American citizens.
Treaty of Portsmouth (1905)
Ended the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905); signed in Portsmouth, New Hampshire after negotiations brokered by Theodore Roosevelt (for which he won the Nobel Peace Prize).
Treaty of Ghent (1814)
Ended the War of 1812 *Terms:* Largely restored relations between the U.S. and Great Britain to status quo ante bellum.
Puritans
English religious sect who hoped to "purify" the Anglican church of Roman Catholic traces in practice & organization.
Gospel of Wealth
Essay written by *Andrew Carnegie* in which he described the responsibility of philanthropy by the new upper class of self-made rich.
Mercantilism
European government policies of the 16th-18th centuries designed to promote overseas trade between a country & its colonies and accumulate precious metals by requiring colonies to trade only with their motherland country.
Sand Creek Massacre (1864)
Event at which *Colonel John Chivington* and his troops attacked and destroyed a village of friendly Cheyenne and Arapaho encamped in southeastern Colorado Territory; killed over 150 inhabitants, about two-thirds of whom were women and children.
Hartford Convention (1814-1815)
Event at which New England Federalists met to discuss their grievances concerning the ongoing War of 1812 and the political problems arising from the domination of the Federal Government by Presidents from Virginia. *Historical Significance:* Led to the collapse of the Federalist Party.
Utopian Societies
Experimental societies whose supporters believed that they could further their own moral and spiritual development through cooperative communities. *Examples:* Brook Farm New Harmony Shakers Oneida Community
Quebec Act (1774)
Extended Quebec's boundary to the Ohio River, recognized Catholicism as its official religion, and established a non-representative government for its citizens. *Historical Significance:* Colonists feared a precedent had been established in regards to the type of government that had been established in Quebec and resented the expansion of its borders into territory to which they had been denied access by the Proclamation of 1763.
War Labor Board
Federal agency created in order to arbitrate disputes between workers and employers in order to ensure labor reliability and productivity during the World War I; it was disbanded after the war in May 1919.
Civil Rights Act of 1866
Federal law granting citizenship to former slaves; passed over Johnson's veto.
Cornelius Vanderbilt
Financier whose family dominated the railroad industry.
Monitor and Merrimac (1862)
First engagement between two iron-clad naval vessels. *Historical Significance:* Rendered wooden fleets obsolete and prompted the Union to build a fleet of ironclad warships which it used to gain control of important waterways and defeat Confederate forts that guarded important rivers.
Sandra Day O'Connor
First female Supreme Court Justice; appointed by Ronald Reagan in 1981.
First Battle of Bull Run (1861)
First major battle of the American Civil War; Confederate victory. *Historical Significance:* Proved that the war would be longer and more brutal than either side had imagined.
Battle of Bunker Hill (1775)
First major battle of the American Revolution; ended in colonial defeat. *Historical Significance:* The British suffered heavy casualties, including a notably large number of officers.
Railroad Strike of 1877
First major post-Civil War strike; employees of the Baltimore and Ohio struck when the company lowered their wages; turned violent; President Hayes called out the U.S. army to suppress the strike. *Historical Significance:* Indicative of the labor unrest following the war.
Jamestown (1607)
First permanent English settlement in the New World located in Virginia on the Chesapeake Bay/James River; settled by the Virginia Company of London. *History:* Original settlers suffered from disease (especially malaria), internal strife, & starvation. *Leaders:* *John Smith* - Demanded that "He who does not work, will not eat." *John Rolfe* - Introduced tobacco to the colony.
War Industries Board
Government agency established to coordinate the purchase of war supplies during World War I.
John Winthrop
Governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony who was instrumental in forming the colony's government and shaping its legislative policy; envisioned the colony as a "city upon a hill" from which Puritans would spread religious righteousness throughout the world.
Pilgrims
Group of Puritan separatists who established Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts to seek religious freedom after having lived briefly in the Netherlands.
Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630)
Home to many Puritans who left England because of the persecution they faced from the Anglican Church. *History:* Developed into a theocracy in which the church was central to all decisions; became the first English colony to establish the basis for a representative government. *Leaders:* *John Winthrop* - Envisioned the colony as a "City upon a Hill."
Mikhail Gorbachev
Head of the Soviet Union from 1985 to 1991. His liberalization effort improved relations with the West, but he lost power after his reforms led to the collapse of Communist governments in eastern Europe.
Worcester v. Georgia (1832)
Held that Native Americans were entitled to federal protection from the actions of state governments which would infringe on the tribe's sovereignty; ignored by the Jackson administration.
Annapolis Convention (1786)
Held to discuss the barriers that limited trade or commerce between the largely independent states under the Articles of Confederation. *Historical Significance:* Led to the Constitutional (Philadelphia) Convention in 1787.
American System
Henry Clay's plan for a profitable domestic market to be used to knit the country together economically and politically. *Provisions:* Support for a high tariff to protect American industries and generate revenue for the federal government. Maintenance of high public land prices to generate federal revenue. Preservation of the Bank of the United States to stabilize the currency and rein in risky state and local banks. Development of a system of internal improvements (such as roads and canals) which would knit the nation together and be financed by the tariff and land sales revenues.
Charles Beard
Historian who argued that the Constitution was designed to protect the economic self-interest of the Framers.
Berlin Blockade & Airlift (1948-1949)
In an attempt to consolidate their control of East Germany, the Soviets ordered the access roads into West Berlin closed. In response, the US & Britain launched a year-long airlift that numbered one thousand planes per day & successfully provided 2 million West Berliners with basic necessities.
D-Day (1942)
June 6, 1944. Began the invasions on Normandy to liberate the French from Nazi control.
Sumner-Brooks Affair (1856)
Incident in which Preston Brooks (SC) beat Charles Sumner (MA) into unconsciousness with his cane on the Senate floor; followed speech Sumner had made two days before about the Kansas issue. *Results:* Brooks survived an expulsion vote in the House but resigned his seat; he was reelected. Sumner was unable to return to his Senate duties for more than three years while he recovered.
Gaspee Affair (1772)
Incident in which members of the Sons of Liberty attacked, boarded, looted, & torched a British ship that had run aground in shallow water near Warwick, RI. *Historical Significance:* Officials threatened to charge those involved with treason,moving their trials to England; led to the formation of the Committees of Correspondence.
XYZ Affair (1797)
Incident that precipitated an undeclared war with France when three French officials demanded that American emissaries pay a bribe before negotiating disputes between the two countries. *Historical Significance:* Led to the Quasi-War with France; convinced John Adams to strengthen the U.S. navy.
Supporters of Hard Money
Included bankers, entrenched capitalists, creditors, and investors who thought this would: Allow currency to hold its value, since gold-backed money is less susceptible to inflation. Increase the value of gold as the population expanded.
Supporters of Soft Money
Included expectant capitalists, debtors, and farmers because this would enable them to: Borrow money at lower interest rates. Pay of their loans faster with inflated dollars. Increase prices for the goods they produced.
John D. Rockefeller
Industrialist whose Standard Oil Company controlled 90 percent of U.S. refineries and pipelines; criticized for his use of predatory pricing and collusion with railroads in order to gain a monopoly in the industry; led to the passage of anti-trust laws in the U.S.
Second Bank of the United States
Institution chartered in 1816 under President Madison and became a depository for federal funds and a creditor for state banks. *Historical Significance:* Blamed for the Panic of 1819; especially unpopular among the western land speculators and farmers who supported Andrew Jackson.
Bank of the United States
Institution proposed by Alexander Hamilton in order to stabilize and improve the nation's credit, and to improve handling of the financial business of the U.S. government under the newly enacted Constitution. *Historical Significance:* Highlighted the growing political rivalry between Hamilton (Federalist) and Jefferson (Democratic-Republican) and the debate concerning the scope of the federal government.
NAACP
Interracial organization founded in 1909 to abolish segregation and discrimination and to achieve political and civil rights for African Americans.
Cyrus McCormack
Inventor of the mechanical reaper; founder of the International Harvester Company. *Historical Significance:* Greatly improved farm productivity.
J.P. Morgan
Investment banker who eliminated business rivals by driving down prices; founded *U.S. Steel* - the nation's first billion dollar corporation.
Kent State Shootings (1970)
Involved the shooting of unarmed college students by members of the Ohio National Guard on Monday, May 4, 1970.
Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions (1799)
Jefferson and Madison's response to the Alien and Sedition Acts; promoted the states' right to nullify federal laws they considered to be unconstitutional. *Historical Significance:* Established the Nullification Doctrine.
Yellow Journalism
Journalism that exploits, distorts, or exaggerates the news to create sensations and attract readers. *Leaders:* William Randolph Hearst, Joseph Pulitzer
Strategic Defensive Initiative (1983)
Known as *Star Wars*; a satellite defensive system that would theoretically destroy incoming missiles.
Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (1969-1972)
Known as SALT I; aimed to prevent the expansion of U.S. & Soviet nuclear arsenals. SALT II sought further reductions, but when the Soviets invaded Afghanistan, the Senate refused to ratify the treaty.
Strategic Arms Reduction Talks (1982)
Known as START; sought to reduce long-range nuclear missiles.
Samuel Slater
Known as the "Father of the American Industrial Revolution" and "Father of the American Factory System"; escaped Britain with the memorized plans for the textile machinery; oversaw construction of the nation's first successful water-powered cotton mill.
Achievements of the Articles of Confederation
Land Ordinance of 1785 Northwest Ordinance of 1787
Bonanza Farms
Large, 15,000-50,000 acre, single crop farms; came to dominate agricultural life in much of the West in the late 1800s.
Battle of Gettysburg (1863)
Largest and bloodiest battle of the American Civil War; Union victory; considered - when coupled with *General Ulysses S. Grant*'s victory in Vicksburg the next day - to be the turning point of the war. *Historical Significance:* Lincoln used the dedication ceremony for the Gettysburg National Cemetery to honor the fallen Union soldiers and redefine the purpose of the war in his historic *Gettysburg Address*.
Battle of Yorktown (1781)
Last major battle of the American Revolution. *Historical Significance:* Prompted the British government to negotiate an end to the conflict.
Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)
Law that established the Kansas and Nebraska territories with the slavery question determined by *popular sovereignty*. *Leaders:* Stephen Douglas *Historical Significance:* Led to the *Bleeding Kansas* conflict (1854-61).
Interstate Commerce Act (1887)
Law that was designed to regulate the railroad industry; created the *Interstate Commerce Commission* to railroads and ensure that they complied with the new regulations.
Black Codes
Laws passed by Southern states at the end of the Civil War to control the labor, migration and other activities of newly-freed slaves.
Neutrality Acts
Laws that were passed by the United States Congress in the 1930s, in response to the growing turmoil in Europe and Asia that eventually led to World War II. They were spurred by the growth in isolationism and non-interventionism in the US following its costly involvement in World War I, and sought to ensure that the US would not become entangled again in foreign conflicts.
Dawes Severalty Act (1887)
Legislation that allotted each head of household 160 acres of land; land deemed to be "surplus" beyond what was needed for allotment was opened to white settlers with the proceeds invested in education programs; designed to encourage the breakup of the tribes and promote the *assimilation* of Native Americans into American society. *Historical Significance:* Native Americans lost about 90 million acres of treaty land.
Political Objectives of the South
Low tariffs to protect its cotton trade with Britain. The expansion of slavery for political, economic, and ideological reasons. Opposition to a cheap public land policy which would force the planter-slaveholder to compete politically, economically, and ideologically with the independent farmer in the West.
Second Continental Congress (1775)
Managed the colonial war effort, and moved incrementally towards independence - finally adopting the *Declaration of Independence* in 1776.
Battle of Fort Sumter (1861)
Marked the beginning of the American Civil War. *Historical Significance:* Seen as a military victory in the South and a political victory for the Lincoln administration because the South had opened hostilities.
First Continental Congress (1774)
Met to discuss a response to the Intolerable Acts; adopted the *Declaration and Resolves* in which they: Declared the Intolerable Acts null and void. Recommended that colonists arm themselves and that militias be formed. Recommended a boycott of British imports.
Jacob Riis
Muckraking journalist and photographer who exposed the poverty, disease, and crime that afflicted many immigrant neighborhoods in New York City in his work *How the Other Half Lives*.
Lincoln Steffens
Muckraking journalist who exposed the corruption of political machines in the cities in his book *The Shame of the Cities*.
Ida Tarbell
Muckraking journalist who exposed the corruption of the oil industry in her work *A History of Standard Oil*.
Sherman's March to the Sea (1864)
Name commonly given to *William Tecumseh Sherman*'s campaign from the captured city of Atlanta to the port city of Savannah; Union victory. *Historical Significance:* Inflicted significant damage - particularly to industry and infrastructure - as well as to civilian property; destroyed much of the South's physical and psychological capacity to wage war.
Great White Fleet
Name for the steam-powered ships of the enlarged and modernized American Navy of the early 1900s.
Buffalo Soldiers
Name given to African American soldiers who served in the U.S. Army on the western frontier and fought in the Indian Wars (1854-1890).
Exodusters
Name given to the former slaves who migrated from the South to the West following the Civil War.
Causes of World War I
Nationalism Imperialism Militarism Alliances
War Hawks
Nationalist members of Congress - primarily from southern and western states - who strongly supported war with Great Britain on the eve of the War of 1812. *Leaders:* Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun
American Protective Association
Nativist organization that attacked "New Immigrants" and Roman Catholicism in the 1880s and 1890s.
Settlement Houses
Neighborhood centers established to provide help to needy families, combat juvenile delinquency, and assist recent immigrants in learning English and in becoming citizens. *Leaders:* Jane Addams of the Hull House Settlement in Chicago
Kitchen Cabinet
Nickname for the small group of Jackson's friends and advisors who were especially influential in the first years of his presidency.
Spot Resolutions (1847)
Offered by Abraham Lincoln requesting that Polk provide Congress with the exact location (the "spot") upon which blood was spilt on American soil; called into question Polk's conduct during the Mexican-American War.
Marshall Plan (1947)
Officially the European Recovery Program; U.S. economic program for rebuilding and creating a stronger economic foundation for the countries of Europe.
Eighteenth Amendment (1919)
One of the Progressive Amendments Provisions:
Nineteenth Amendment (1919)
One of the Progressive Amendments Provisions:
Seventeenth Amendment (1913)
One of the Progressive Amendments Provisions:
Sixteenth Amendment (1913)
One of the Progressive Amendments Provisions:
Fourteenth Amendment (1868)
One of the Reconstruction Amendments *Provisions:* *Citizenship Clause* - Granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the U.S. *Due Process Clause* - Prohibited state and local governments from depriving persons of life, liberty, or property without certain steps being taken to ensure fairness. *Equal Protection Clause* - Required each state to provide equal protection under the law to all people within its jurisdiction.
Thirteenth Amendment (1865)
One of the Reconstruction Amendments *Provisions:* Outlawed slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime.
Fifteenth Amendment (1870)
One of the Reconstruction Amendments *Provisions:* Prohibited the government from using a citizen's race, color, or previous status as a slave as a voting qualification.
Homestead Strike (1892)
One of the largest disputes in U.S. labor history; involved workers at the Carnegie Steel Company and ... *Historical Significance:*
Nonintercourse Act (1809)
Opened trade with all nations except Britain and France.
Executive Order 9066 (1942)
Ordered by President Franklin Roosevelt in February, 1942. Declared that large military zones could be set up to exclude current residents who were believed to be a threat to security.
Indian Removal Act (1830)
Ordered the removal of Indian Tribes still residing east of the Mississippi to newly established Indian Territory west of Arkansas and Missouri; those resisting eviction were forcibly removed by American forces, often after prolonged legal or military battles.
American Colonization Society
Organization established with the goal of transporting free blacks to a colony in Africa; founded Liberia in 1821-22. *Leaders:* Charles Fenton Mercer, Henry Clay, John Randolph, Richard Bland Lee
Chief Pontiac
Ottawa Indian who led a rebellion against the British occupying the western parts of the American colonies after the French & Indian War.
Albany Plan of Union (1754)
Plan proposed by Benjamin Franklin that sought to unite the 13 colonies for trade, military, and other purposes; the plan was turned down by the colonies & the Crown.
Omaha Platform (1892)
Political agenda adopted by the Populist Party in 1892. *Provisions:* Called for unlimited coinage of silver (bimetallism), government regulation of railroads and industry, graduated income tax, and a number of election reforms.
Vertical Integration
Practice in which a single manufacturer controls all of the steps used to change raw materials into finished products.
Fair Deal Legislation
President Harry S. Truman's 21 point program of domestic legislation. Included: *National Mental Health Act* (1946) *National School Lunch Act* (1946) *Employment Act* (1946) *Water Pollution Law* (1948) *Housing Act* (1949) *Fair Labor Standards Act* (1949) *Social Security Act* (1950)
Salutary Neglect
Prime Minister Robert Walpole's policy in dealing with the American colonies. He was primarily concerned with British affairs & believed that unrestricted trade in the colonies would be more profitable for England than would taxation of the colonies.
Referendum
Procedure enabling voters to reject a measure passed by the legislature.
Initiative
Procedure whereby a certain number of voters may, by petition, propose a law or constitutional amendment and have it submitted to the voters.
Recall
Procedure whereby voters can remove an elected official from office.
Embargo Act (1807)
Prohibited all foreign trade. *Historical Significance:* Devastated the New England economy and led many to support Charles Pinckney, the Federalist candidate in the 1808 election.
Espionage Act (1917)
Prohibited any attempt to interfere with military operations, to support U.S. enemies during wartime, to promote insubordination in the military, or to interfere with military recruitment; upheld in *Schenck v. United States*.
Fair Employment Practices Committee (1941)
Prohibited racial discrimination in the national defense industry.
William Lloyd Garrison
Prominent white abolitionist; editor of *"The Liberator"*; founder of the American Anti-Slavery Society.
Wilmot Proviso (1846 and 1847)
Proposal to ban slavery in the territories as a result of the Mexican-American War; failed in the Senate.
Lecompton Constitution (1857)
Proposed Kansas state constitution; protected the rights of slaveholders already in Kansas and provided referendum in which voters could vote for the "Constitution with Slavery" or the "Constitution with no Slavery"; supported by President Buchanan but rejected by the House of Representatives.
Tariff of 1828
Protective tariff on imports that benefited the industrial North while forcing Southerners to pay higher prices on manufactured goods; called the "Tariff of Abominations" by Southerners.
Roger Williams
Puritan dissenter who advocated of religious freedom, the separation of church & state, & fair dealings with Native Americans; convicted of sedition & heresy & banished from the colony; founded Providence Plantation (RI) in 1636.
Anne Hutchinson
Puritan dissenter who challenged the authority of the ministers, exposing the subordination of women in the culture of colonial Massachusetts; tried, convicted, & banished from the colony in 1637.
Wade-Davis Bill (1864)
Radical Republican plan for Reconstruction that required 50% of a state's 1860 voters to take an "iron clad" oath of allegiance and a state constitutional convention before the election of state officials; pocket-vetoed by Lincoln.
Industrial Workers of the World
Radical union founded in 1905 to unite the American working class into one union; advocated social revolution; led several major strikes; associated with violence. *Leaders:* William "Big Bill" Haywood, Eugene V. Debs
Transcontinental Railroad
Railroad line that linked the eastern railroad system with California's railroad system; constructed by the *Central Pacific* and *Union Pacific* railroads; completed in 1869 at Promontory, Utah. *Historical Significance:* Established a mechanized transcontinental transportation network that revolutionized the population and economy of the American West.
Pullman Strike (1894)
Railroad strike that started when the Pullman Palace Car Company cut wages while maintaining high rents; led by Eugene V. Debs; ended when President Grover Cleveland called in federal troops. *Historical Significance:*
Railroad Strike of 1877
Railroad workers throughout the U.S. went on strike to protest the lowering of their salaries; when more than a hundred people died during violence related to the strike, Hayes used federal troops to suppress the uprisings.
Bacon's Rebellion (1676)
Rebellion of discontent former landless servants led by Nathaniel Bacon. *Historical Significance:* Led to a move from indentured servants to African slaves for labor purposes.
Freedmen's Bureau (1865-69)
Reconstruction agency established to protect the legal rights of former slaves and to assist with their education, jobs, health care, and landowning.
US Post-War Objectives
Reconstruction of Europe - US helped to rebuild the economies of Western European nations such as France, Great Britain, Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark, Greece, & Germany Military Superiority - Originally achieved through a nuclear monopoly, later through nuclear superiority Containment - US sought to stop the spread of communism
Soviet Post-War Objectives
Reconstruction of the Economy - Soviets demanded that Germany pay it $20 billion in war reparations Military Competition - Soviets sought to remain on par with the US militarily Self-Defense - Soviets wanted to make certain that they would no longer be surrounded by countries hostile to the USSR. They therefore create a buffer zone, referred to as the Soviet-bloc nations, in Eastern Europe.
"Corrupt Bargain"
Refers to the claim from the supporters of Andrew Jackson that John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay had worked out a deal to ensure that Adams was elected president by the House of Representatives in 1824.
Baby Boom
Refers to the dramatic post-World War II increased birth rate during which an estimated 78.3 million Americans were born.
"Waving the Bloody Shirt"
Refers to the practice of politicians referencing the blood of martyrs or heroes to criticize opponents.
Great Triumvirate
Refers to the three statesmen who dominated the United States Senate in the 1830s and 1840s: *Henry Clay* of Kentucky *Daniel Webster* of Massachusetts *John C. Calhoun* of South Carolina
First Great Awakening
Religious revival movement during the 1730s and 1740s; stressed the need for individuals to repent and urged a personal understanding of truth. *Leaders:* *George Whitefield* *Jonathan Edwards* - "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God *Historical Significance:* Reduced the number of church leaders and led to a schism within the Protestant Church.
Amnesty Act (1872)
Removed voting restrictions and office-holding disqualification against most of the secessionists who rebelled in the Civil War.
Sugar Act (1764)
Replaced the Molasses Act (1733). Reduced the duties on imported sugar, while the British made a concerted effort to enforce the act & punish smugglers.
Macon's Bill No. 2 (1810)
Replaced the Non-Intercourse Act of 1809; reopened trade with both Britain and France but held that if either agreed to respect America's neutrality in their conflict, the United States would end trade with the other.
Mugwumps
Republican Party activists who had switched to the Democratic Party because they did not like the financial corruption that was associated with the Republican candidate James G. Blaine in 1884.
Billion Dollar Congress (1889-91)
Republican-controlled Congress known for its lavish spending. *Key Legislation:* *McKinley Tariff of 1890* - Increased duties on foreign goods to about 50 percent. *Sherman Silver Purchase Act of 1890* - Allowed the government to buy more silver to produce currency. *Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890* - Prohibited certain business activities that reduce competition in the marketplace.
Quartering Act (1765)
Required colonists to provide food & supplies to British troops stationed in the colonies.
Selective Service Act (1940)
Required that men between the ages of 21 and 35 register with local draft boards; marked the first peacetime conscription in United States history.
Bland-Allison Act (1878)
Required the federal government to purchase and coin more silver, increasing the money supply and causing inflation; passed over Hayes's veto.
Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (1972)
Restricted the development of defense systems that could be used against strategic ballistic missiles.
Reagonomics
Ronald Reagan's economic program; founded on the belief that a capitalist system free from taxation and government involvement would be most productive, and that the prosperity of a rich upper class would "trickle down" to the poor.
Evil Empire
Ronald Reagan's nickname for the Soviet Union; illustrated an end to detente.
Roosevelt Corollary
Roosevelt's extension of the Monroe Doctrine stating that the United States has the right to protect its economic interests in South and Central America through the use of military force
Cherokee Nation v. Georgia (1831)
Ruled that Indians were dependent domestic nations which could be regulated by the federal government.
Dred Scott Decision (1857)
Ruled that no person descended from an American slave could ever be a U.S. citizen and that slavery could not legally be excluded from U.S. territories. *Historical Significance:* Strengthened Northern slavery opposition; divided the Democratic Party while strengthening the Republican Party; encouraged secessionist elements among Southern supporters of slavery to make bolder demands.
Slaughterhouse Cases (1873)
Ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment safeguarded a person's rights only at a federal level, not at a state level.
Sojourner Truth
Runaway slave who became a leader of the abolitionist and women's movements; best-known for her *Ain't I a Woman?* speech (1851).
Frederick Douglass
Runaway slave who became a leader of the abolitionist movement; known for his oratory and anti-slavery writings.
Harriet Tubman
Runaway slave who rescued more than 70 slaves using the network of antislavery activists and safe houses known as the *Underground Railroad*.
Andrew Carnegie
Scottish-American industrialist who dominated the U.S. steel industry; pioneered the use of *vertical integration*; retired after selling his corporation to J.P. Morgan.
Federalist Papers
Series of 85 essays written by James Madison, John Jay and Alexander Hamilton supporting the ratification of the Constitution.
Morrill Land-Grant Act (1862)
Set aside land & provided money for agricultural colleges.
Chief Tecumseh
Shawnee leader who tried to unite Native American groups in order to fight the migration of settlers into the Mississippi and Ohio River Valleys.
Populist Party
Short-lived political party based among poor, white cotton farmers in the South and hard-pressed wheat farmers in the Plains states. *Leaders:* James B. Weaver, Thomas E. Watson, William Jennings Bryan *Major Ideas:* Hostility to banks, railroads, and elites generally.
Free Soil Party (1848-54)
Short-lived political party made up of former anti-slavery members of the Whig Party and the Democratic Party. *Leaders:* Martin Van Buren *Major Ideas:* Opposed slavery in the new territories and sometimes worked to remove existing laws that discriminated against free blacks.
Monroe Doctrine (1823)
Statement delivered by President James Monroe stating that further efforts by European nations to colonize land or interfere with states in North or South America would be viewed as acts of aggression requiring U.S. intervention. *Historical Significance:* Persisted with only minor variations for almost two centuries. "Big Brother" Policy - 1880s "Roosevelt Corollary" - 1904 Clark Memorandum - 1928
Battle of Antietam (1862)
Single bloodiest day of the American Civil War; Union victory that turned back a Confederate invasion of the North. *Historical Significance:* Allowed Lincoln to issue the *Emancipation Proclamation* proclaiming the freedom of slaves in the ten states then in rebellion and shifting the war objectives of the North.
Lexington and Concord (1775)
Site of the first shots of the American Revolution.
Valley Forge
Site of the military camp of the American Continental Army over the winter of 1777-1778 during the American Revolutionary War.
Election of 1800
Sometimes referred to as the "Revolution of 1800." *Candidates:* John Adams (Federalist) vs. Thomas Jefferson (Democratic-Republican) *Results:* Jefferson and Burr tied; the election was thrown into the House of Representatives which elected Jefferson on the 36th ballot. *Historical Significance:* Led to the passage of the Twelfth Amendment in 1804.
Tallmadge Amendment
Sought to forbid the further introduction of slaves into Missouri and mandated that all children of slave parents born in the state after its admission should be free at the age of 25; failed to pass the Senate.
Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Balanced Budget Act (1985)
Sought to reduce deficits by providing automatic spending cuts. Declared unconstitutional in 1986.
Writs of Assistance (1767)
Special search warrants that allowed tax collectors to enter homes or businesses to search for smuggled goods.
Tehran Conference (1943)
Stalin urged Roosevelt and Churchill to open up a new front in Western Europe. Talked of a possible United Nations.
Jim Crow Laws
State and local laws mandating de jure racial segregation in Southern states. *Major Characteristics:* Political restrictions - such as *poll taxes*, *literacy tests*, and the *grandfather clause* - were imposed to circumvent the Fifteenth Amendment. Blacks were denied access to many public and municipal facilities such as parks, theaters, housing, and mass transit. Various economic sanctions were placed on blacks in order to maintain their status.
Pet Banks
State banks selected by the U.S. Department of Treasury to receive surplus government funds in 1833; also known as "Wildcat Banks." *Historical Significance:* Flooded the country with paper currency which became so unreliable that Jackson issued the Specie Circular in 1836.
Atlantic Charter (1941)
Stated the ideal goals of World War II as no territorial aggrandizement; no territorial changes made against the wishes of the people; restoration of self-government to those deprived of it; free access to raw materials; reduction of trade restrictions; global cooperation to secure better economic and social conditions for all; freedom from fear and want; freedom of the seas; and abandonment of the use of force, as well as disarmament of aggressor nations.
William Pitt
Statesman who led Britain during the French & Indian War; his decision to pour the full resources of the British Treasury onto the contest & dramatically increase the number of British forces fighting in North America was largely responsible for Britain's victory.
Elkins Act (1903)
Strengthened the *Interstate Commerce Act* by imposing heavy fines on railroads offering rebates and on the shippers accepting them
Stamp Act (1765)
Taxed all printed material in the colonies, including - but not limited to - stamps, legal documents, newspapers, playing cards, etc. *Historical Significance:* Led to the formation of colonial organizations such as the Stamp Act Congress, Sam Adams's Loyal Nine, & the Sons of Liberty & the suggestion that a complete break with Britain was essential to the colonies' future.
Four Freedoms Speech (1941)
Technically Franklin Roosevelt's 1941 State of the Union address in which he proposed four fundamental freedoms that people "everywhere in the world" ought to enjoy: Freedom of speech and expression Freedom of worship Freedom from want Freedom from fear
Manifest Destiny
Term coined by newspaper editor John O'Sullivan; implied that it was a God-given right and inevitability for the U.S. to spread its Protestant religion, capitalist economy, and democratic-republican political system across the continent. *Historical Significance:* Served to rationalize American foreign policy, create national unity, and counter criticisms raised by other nations.
Lowell Mills
Textile mills located in a *factory town* in Massachusetts; employed mostly women between the ages of 16 and 35 known as *Lowell Mill Girls*. *Historical Significance:* Workers actively participated in early labor reform by circulating legislative petitions, forming labor organizations, contributing essays and articles to a pro-labor newspaper, and participating in "turn-outs" or strikes.
Essex Decision (1805)
The British ruled that trade closed during peacetime could not be opened during wartime. *Historical Significance:* Prohibited U.S. trade with the West Indies.
Social Darwinism
The application of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution to the business world; used by industrialists and social conservatives to discourage any government regulation in society. *Leaders:* Herbert Spencer, William Graham Sumner
Brinkmanship
The act of pushing a situation to the verge of war, in order to threaten and encourage one's opponent to back down. Brinkmanship in the Cold War refers to the constant competition between the United States of America and the Soviet Union.
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Agreement (1987)
The U.S. and the Soviet Union agreed to eliminate all intermediate-range nuclear weapons from their arsenals.
Effects of the War of 1812
The U.S. economy was devastated. Large areas of the nation's capitol were destroyed. American nationalism intensified. The nation won foreign respect for its military capabilities. The Federalists and New England were discredited for their antipathy to the war and the actions they took to impede its efforts. Military careers were launched and enhanced by the war.
Japanese Imperialism
The conquering and annexing of neighboring countries by Japan; it was the result of a growing population and limited natural resources in Japan at the time.
Federalism
The division of power between the state and national governments.
James Meredith
The first African American student at the University of Mississippi.
Hiram Revels
The first African American to serve in the U.S. Congress.
Sputnik (1957)
The first Earth-orbiting artificial satellite. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957.
Election of 1796
The first contested American presidential election. *Candidates:* John Adams (Federalist) vs. Thomas Jefferson (Democratic-Republican) *Results:* Adams was elected president while his opponent, Jefferson, was elected vice-president. *Historical Significance:* Led to the passage of the Twelfth Amendment in 1804.
National Labor Union
The first large-scale U.S. union; founded to organize skilled and unskilled laborers, farmers, and factory workers.
Maryland Toleration Act (1649)
The first law on religious tolerance in the British North America; allowed freedom of worship for all Christians - including Catholics - in Maryland, but sentenced to death anyone who denied the divinity of Jesus.
National Road
The first major improved highway in the U.S. to be built by the federal government; stretched from Cumberland, Maryland, on the Potomac River to Vandalia, Illinois.
Chinese Exclusion Act (1882)
The first major legal restriction on immigration to the U.S.; prohibited further unskilled Chinese immigration in order to reduce competition for jobs.
Plymouth (1620)
The first permanent English settlement in New England; established by religious separatists seeking autonomy from the church of England.
Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804-06)
The first transcontinental expedition to the Pacific Coast by the United States. *Goals:* To study the area's plants, animal life, and geography, and to discover how the region could be exploited economically.
Trail of Tears (1838)
The forced relocation of the Cherokee tribe to the Western United States; resulted in the deaths of an estimated 4,000 Cherokees.
Knights of Labor
The largest and one of the most important American labor organizations of the 1880s; promoted the social and cultural uplift of the workingman, rejected socialism and radicalism, demanded the eight-hour day, and promoted the producers ethic of republicanism. *Leaders:* Terence Powderly
Wounded Knee Massacre (1890)
The last major encounter between Native Americans and the U.S. Army. *Historical Significance:* Remembered today as one of the great injustices perpetrated against Native Americans by the U.S. government.
Stono Rebellion (1739)
The most serious slave rebellion in the the colonial period; inspired in part by Spanish officials' promise of freedom for American slaves who escaped to Florida. *Historical Significance:* Led to the Negro Act of 1740 prohibiting slaves from growing their own food, assembling in groups, earning money, or learning to read and making it more difficult to free slaves.
French & Indian War (1754-1763)
The name for the North American theater of the Seven Years War & was a successful attempt to move the French out of the Ohio Valley & to stop Indian raids on frontier settlements. *Historical Significance:* Colonists gained pride in their own military strength, felt more disconnected from Britain, & were left without fear of French a invasion.
Boland Amendment
The name given to three U.S. legislative amendments between 1982 and 1984, all aimed at limiting U.S. government assistance to the rebel Contras in Nicaragua.
St. Augustine (1565)
The oldest continually inhabited European settlement in United States territory.
Reagan Revolution
The policies of the first Reagan administration; based on *"supply side"* theory of growing the economy. Included: Increased defense spending Reduced social programs Tax cuts
Glasnost
The policy of maximal publicity, openness, and transparency in the activities of all government institutions in the Soviet Union, together with freedom of information, introduced by Mikhail Gorbachev in the second half of the 1980s.
Tyranny of the Majority
The potential of a majority to monopolize power for its own gain to the detriment of minority rights and interests.
McCarthyism
The practice of making accusations of disloyalty, subversion, or treason without proper regard for evidence. The term has its origins in the period in the United States known as the *Second Red Scare*, lasting roughly from the late 1940s to the late 1950s and characterized by heightened fears of communist influence on American institutions and espionage by Soviet agents.
Powers of the Executive Branch
The president carries out out and enforces laws passed by Congress. The president can veto congressional bills. The president makes treaties. The president is the commander in chief of the U.S. military. The president appoints federal officials.
Lend Lease Act (1941)
The program under which the US supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, China, France and other Allied nations with vast amounts of war material between 1941 and 1945.
Central High School
The site of forced school desegregation in September 1957.
Battle of Stalingrad (1941)
The turning point in World War II between Germany and the Soviet Union. Was the last major offensive attack on the Soviet Union. Germany lost. Germany was then on the retreat for the remainder of the war.
Compromise of 1877
The unwritten deal that settled the Election of 1876. *Provisions:* The removal of all federal troops from the former Confederate States. The appointment of at least one Southern Democrat to Hayes's cabinet. The construction of another transcontinental railroad using the Texas and Pacific in the South. Legislation to help industrialize the South. *Historical Significance:* Reconstruction came to a sudden end.
Barbary Wars (1801-05) and (1815)
Two wars fought between U.S. and the Barbary States in North Africa in order to end the Barbary pirates' demand for tribute from American merchant vessels in the Mediterranean Sea.
John Foster Dulles
U.S. Secretary of State under President Dwight D. Eisenhower from 1953 to 1959. He was a significant figure in the early Cold War era, advocating an aggressive stance against communism throughout the world.
Treaty of 1818
U.S. and Great Britain *Terms:* Allowed the Americans to share the Newfoundland fisheries with Canada and gave both countries a joint occupation of the Oregon Territory for the next 10 years.
Oregon Treaty (1846)
U.S. and Great Britain *Terms:* Extended the Oregon Territory-Canadian border along the 49th parallel.
Rush-Bagot Treaty (1817)
U.S. and Great Britain *Terms:* Provided for a large demilitarization of the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain, where many British naval arrangements and forts still remained; stipulated that the United States and British North America could each maintain one military vessel as well as one cannon on Lake Ontario and Lake Champlain.
Webster-Ashburton Treaty (1842)
U.S. and Great Britain *Terms:* Settled the boundary dispute between Maine and Canada. Ended the slave trade on the high seas.
Adams-Onis Treaty (1819)
U.S. and Spain *Terms:* The U.S. paid Spain $5 million for Florida, Spain recognized America's claims to the Oregon Country, and the U.S. surrendered its claim to northern Mexico.
Battle of New Orleans (1814)
U.S. forces - led by Andrew Jackson - defeated defeated an invading British Army intent on seizing New Orleans; widely regarded as the greatest American land victory of the war. *Historical Significance:* Jackson emerged as a war hero.
Battle of Horseshoe Bend (1814)
U.S. forces - led by Andrew Jackson - defeated the Red Sticks, a part of the Creek Indian tribe who opposed American expansion. *Historical Significance:* Effectively neutralized the Native Americans as British allies; Jackson emerged as a war hero.
Battle of Lake Erie (1813)
U.S. forces - led by Oliver Perry - defeated and captured six vessels of Great Britain's Royal Navy. *Historical Significance:* Ensured American control of the lake for the rest of the war, allowing the Americans to recover Detroit and win the *Battle of the Thames* to break the Indian confederation of Tecumseh.
Battle of Tippecanoe (1811)
U.S. forces - led by William Henry Harrison - defeated Tecumseh's confederacy then burned its headquarters at Prophetstown. *Historical Significance:* Tecumseh's confederacy allied with the British during the War of 1812; Harrison emerged as a war hero.
Battle of Baltimore (1814)
U.S. forces repulsed sea and land invasions of the busy port city of Baltimore, Maryland, and killed the commander of the invading British army forces; considered to be one of the turning points of the War of 1812. *Historical Significance:* Inspired *Francis Scott Key* to write "The Star-Spangled Banner."
Transcendentalist Movement
U.S. literary movement that stressed the relationship between human beings and nature, spiritual things over material things, and the importance of the individual conscience. *Leaders:* *Ralph Waldo Emerson* - "Self-Reliance" *Henry David Thoreau* - "Walden," "Civil Disobedience" *Historical Significance:* Influenced the antebellum reform movements.
Stimson Doctrine
U.S. policy calling for the non-recognition of international territorial changes that were executed by force.
Cash & Carry Policy (1939)
U.S. policy that allowed the sale of material to belligerents, as long as the recipients arranged for the transport using their own ships and paid immediately in cash, assuming all risk in transportation.
U-2 Incident (1960)
U.S. spy plane piloted by *Francis Gary Powers* was shot down over the Soviet Union forcing the Eisenhower administration to acknowledge responsibility for the surveillance mission.
Jay Treaty (1794)
US & Great Britain *Terms:* Stopped the search and seizure of American ships by the British, made America pay pre-revolutionary debts, and opened British ports.
Pinckney Treaty (1795)
US & Spanish Empire *Terms:* Established the 31st parallel as the border between the United States and Spanish West Florida.
Pearl Harbor
US naval base that was attacked on December 7, 1941 by the Japanese Empire bringing the U.S. into World War II.
Peninsula Campaign (1862)
Union *General George McClellan*'s failed effort to seize Richmond, the Confederate Capital; Confederate victory made possible by the leadership of *General Robert E. Lee*.
Siege of Vicksburg (1863)
Union victory; considered - when coupled with Robert E. Lee's surrender in Gettysburg the previous day - to be the turning point of the war. *Historical Significance:* Gave the Union control of the Mississippi River, effectively cutting the Confederacy in half.
Anaconda Plan
Union war plan devised by General Winfield Scott to blockade the South and restrict its trade to win the war.
Containment
United States policy using military, economic, and diplomatic strategies to stall the spread of communism, enhance America's security and influence abroad, and prevent a "domino effect."
Crittenden Compromise (1860)
Unsuccessful proposal aimed at resolving the secession crisis. *Provisions:* Guaranteed the permanent existence of slavery and proposed extending the Missouri Compromise line to the west with slavery prohibited north of the 36° 30′ parallel and guaranteed south of it.
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)
Upheld the constitutionality of state laws requiring racial segregation in public facilities under the doctrine of "separate but equal."
Nat Turner's Rebellion (1831)
Virginia slave revolt that resulted in the deaths of sixty whites and raised fears among white Southerners of further uprisings. *Historical Significance:* Led to new legislation making it unlawful to teach slaves, free blacks, or mulattoes to read or write.
Washington's Farewell Address (1796)
Warned against permanent foreign alliances and political parties, called for unity of the country, established precedent of two-term presidency
Declaration of Independence (1776)
Written by Thomas Jefferson; influenced by the Enlightenment philosophers of his day. *Provisions:* *Part 1* - Explains the necessity of independence for the preservation of basic laws and rights. *Part 2* - Lists a series of "abuses and usurpations" by the king and his government; Jefferson claimed that this treatment violated the social contract the British monarch had with the his colonies, thereby justifying the actions his American subjects felt compelled to take. *Part 3* - Ends with what is tantamount to a formal declaration of war.