The Unfinished Nation 7th Edition Midterm Study Guide
Is a distinct American culture emerging during this period as it relates to literature, science, education and law? Does colonial life diverge from life in England?
Literacy and Technology 1. White male Americans achieved a high degree of literacy int he 18th century 2. By the Revolution, well over half of all white men could read and write 3. Market for widely circulated publications other than the bible - the Almanacs 4. Almanacs - provided medical advise, navigational and agricultural information, practical wisdom, humor, etc. 5. Most famous - Poor Richard's Almanac published by Benjamin Franklin 6. Printing technology grew 7. More towns in America with printers than there were in England 8. First newspaper - Publick Occurrences in Boston in 1690 9. Why Stamp Act created such a furor was because printing technology had become central to colonial lift Education 1. High value on formal education 2. Massachusetts law required every town to support a school - modest network of public schools 3. Quakers and other - church schools 4. Slaves and natives, outside white educational system 5. Harvard, first American college established in 1636 by Puritans theologians who wanted to create a training center for ministers 6. William and Mary, Yale, Princeton, University of Pennsylvania, Columbia, Brown 7. After 1700, entire educations in America rather than attending university in England, but higher education still only for white affluent males Science 1. Scientific knowledge 2. Benjamin Franklin and his experiments with electricity 3. Cotton Mather and smallpox inoculation 3a. By mid 18th century, inoculation had become a common medical procedure in America Law and Politics 1. Legal system adopted most of the essential elements of the English system 2. Difference between American and British political systems 10. Founding of new light colleges: Dartmouth, Brown, Rutgers and Princeton 11. Laid the foundation for anti-intellectualism as part of the American character 12. Education 12a. New England was most fervently in favor of education 12b. Stressed Bible reading 12c. Primary and secondary schools established early 12d. Literacy higher in New England than the Chesapeake region Middle Colonies 13a. Had primary and secondary education 13b. Many well-to-do families sent their sons to college in England South 14a. Educational opportunities limited for most except the privileged 14b. Population dispersed 15. Higher Education 15a. Primary focus on training new clergy, not academics 15b. Emphasis placed on religion and on the classical languages 15c. Improvement in higher education occurred with what became Univ of Pennsylvania 15d. Benjamin Franklin helped to establish 15e. First American college free from denominational control 15f. Harvard, William and Mary, Yale, Princeton, Pennsylvania, Columbia, Brown, Rutgers, and Dartmouth 16. Most Americans too busy working to survive to spend time on art 16a. Phillis Wheatley exception - First important African American writer is America 1
Explain Calhoun's theory of nullification and his defense of it. Why did Jackson oppose putting it into practice? What does this opposition tell us about Jackson's attitude toward political authority?
1. According to the South, the federal government was a collection of independent states that had united under the name United States to get a few things done. If states felt like disuniting over a certain issue, they could just sit that game out (or even leave the team if necessary). Nullification meant any state could just refuse to follow (as in nullify or declare null and void) any federal law with which it didn't agree. When states talked about nullification if they didn't get their way - Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable! 2. Nullification over selling cheap land to settlers in the west. Jackson supported cheap land. 3. Jackson was stuck with John Calhoun as his Vice President (Calhoun was VP for John Quincy Adams too) 4. Calhoun quit over a new tariff bill and ant home to South Caroline where he got an Ordinance of Nullification passed, ordering federal customs officials in that state to stop following federal laws 5. President Jackson, in turn, had Congress authorize a Force Bill to use the army to enforce the collection of taxes 5a. Jackson talked about hanging his former VP 5b. Jackson in the end offered some cuts in the tariffs 5c. Both sides claimed victory
Describe how the industrial revolution and factory system altered family life and the social and economic roles of women
1. Families from farms to urban areas 2. income earners left home each day to work in a shop, mill or factory 3. Distinction between between the public world of the workplace and the private world of the family 4. Family now dominated not by production but by housekeeping, child rearing and domestic concerns 5. Decline in birth rates 6. Most women remained under the virtually absolute authority of their husbands 7. Couldn't go above primary level of education 8. Middle class women learned to place a higher value on keeping a clean, comfortable and well-appointed home 9. Lady's literature began to emerge 9a. romantic books, magazines,
What were some of Thomas Jefferson's major achievements during his presidency?
1. Acted like an ordinary citizen 2. Impressed most of those who knew him 3. Active architect, educator, inventor, farmer, and philosopher-scientist 4. Shrewd and practical politician 5. Jefferson used his powers of appointment as an effective political weapon 6. He believed that federal offices should be filled with men loyal to the principles and polices of the administration 6a. By the end of his 2nd term, practically all federal jobs were held by loyal Republicans 7. Abolish all internal taxes. leaving customs duties and the sale of western lands as the only sources of revenue for the government 8. Cut the national debt in half 9. Scaled down the armed forces 10. Established the United States Military Academy at West Point 11. When troubled started brewing overseas, he began again to build up the fleet 12. Louisiana Purchase 13. Embargo 13a. prohibited American ships from leaving the US for any foreign port anywhere in the world. 13b. Depression throughout most of nation 14. Reduced government programs, pardoned the martyrs to the expired Alien and Sedition Acts and had the government return many of their fines 15. New naturalization act again let immigrants become citizens after only 5 years 16. What was Thomas Jefferson's political approach? Jefferson reduced the activities of the federal government 17. Jefferson didn't like John Marshall, who Adams appointed to the supreme court but he couldn't get rid of him
Why did relations between whites and Native Americans deteriorate during the Jackson presidency? What was Andrew Jackson's policy towards Native Americans?
1. American renewal = American Indian removal 2. Jackson made his reputation as a frontier American Indian fighter 3. Signed a bill called the Indian Removal Act in 1830 3a. Federal budget to have Army force all the American Indian tribes out tot the fertile river valleys the settlers wanted and into dusty prairies west of the Mississippi 4. Indians were forced to go west, many died. This was called the Trail of Tears
What was the Missouri Compromise and what do you think Jefferson meant when he said "but this momentous question, like a fireball in the night awakened and filled me with terror. I considered it at once as the knell (sound) of the Union"
1. Balance of power between the Northern and Southern States 2. Each had 11 states, balance of power in the Senate was equal 3. Missouri wanted to be admitted as a slave state, which would throw the balance of power to the south 4. Henry Clay, the Great Compromiser, was seen as neutral - he came up with the Missouri Compromise 4a. Missouri would come in as a slave state but Maine would enter as a free state ti keep that balance 4b. From then on, an imaginary line would cross the middle of the US. Any territory north of that line would be free, sour would be open to slavery - Mason-Dixon Line 5. The founders had understood the inconsistency between recognition of natural rights for all men and the practice of slavery. Southern states faced a situation where the majority or near majority of the population were negro slaves. Their economies relied on slavery. Yet, many from the south , such as Jefferson, Madison, and Washington, recognized the hypocrisy, and hoped for a better day when the necessities of slavery would give way to the realization of the revolutionary ideals. The Constitution was neither a racist document, nor a meaningless compromise. It was a mechanism to achieve the promises of the Declaration. The new Federal Government would have the power to outlaw the slave trade after twenty years. This was in fact done at the earliest possible moment with the Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves of 1807. During the period of the Articles, slavery had been prohibited in the territory governed by the Northwest Ordinance. The idea was to limit slavery to only those states with large slave populations, to cut off the flow of new slaves, and over time (with growth of non-slave populations) to dilute the impact from an eventual abandonment of the slave system. The Missouri Compromise was, for the first time, expanding slavery into a territory. Rather than continued progress to the extinction of a pernicious system, we had voices actually justifying slavery and advocating its long term existence. Jefferson was well aware of where this would lead.
What monster was Jackson determine to destroy? Why?
1. Bank of the United States had financial power many in government didn't like 2. Jackson hated it because it was tight about loaning money that expansion-minded Americans needed 3. He abolished the bank and sold Western land to settlers on a low payment plan 4. When money and good land started to run out, Jackson changed the rules to cash-only 5. That move burst the real-estate bubble, and the country went into a recession that lasted for years beyond Jackson's presidency (and made voters think twice about tough-guy presidents)
What were the causes of the War of 1812 (Second War of Independence) and how did this war impact America (during and after).
1. British not eager for an open conflict with the US 2. Even after American declared war, Britain ignored for a time 3. Fall of 1812, Napoleon launched a catastrophic campaign against Russia that left his army in disarray 4. By late 1813, with the French Empire on its way to final defeat, Britain was able to turn its military attention to America 5. Summer 1812 - American forces invaded Canada through Detroit and failed 6. On the seas, US won early battles over Britain but in 1813, Britain was counterattacking and sent the US to cover 7. The immediate causes of the War of 1812 were a series of economic sanctions taken by the British and French against the US as part of the Napoleonic Wars and American outrage at the British practice of impressment, especially after the Chesapeake incident of 1807. In response to the 1806 British Orders in Council, which crippled American trade, the US (under Jefferson) first tried various retaliatory embargoes. These embargoes hurt the US far more than they did Britain, angering American citizens and providing support to War Hawks in Congress like Henry Clay. In 1812, with President Madison in office, Congress declared war against the British. 8. The war began with an attack on Canada, both as an effort to gain land and to cut off British supply lines to Tecumseh's Indian confederation, which had long troubled the US. The initial battles in Canada were not as easy as the War Hawks hoped, and the inexperienced American soldiers were pushed back rapidly. In fact, only by virtue of clutch naval victories by Oliver Hazard Perry on Lake Erie and Thomas Macdonough on Lake Champlain was a serious northern- front invasion of the United States, including New York, prevented. General William Henry Harrison's forces did manage to kill Tecumseh at the Battle of the Thames in 1813, in the midst of a decisive victory against the British General Isaac Brock's smaller force. 9. On the Mid-Atlantic Coast, British troops landed in the Chesapeake Bay area in 1814, and marched towards Washington. US General William Winder made an attempt to stop the British forces, commanded by General Robert Ross, at Bladensburg. The US troops were badly routed. The city of Washington was evacuated, and the British burned the Capitol and the White House, along with most of nonresidential Washington. 10. The British pressed onward, and Admiral Cochrane sought to invade Baltimore. General Ross was killed as his forces advanced towards the city, and their movement stalled. Cochrane's forces bombarded Fort McHenry, which guarded Baltimore's harbor, but were unable to take it. This event inspired Francis Scott Key, an American lawyer detained on one of Cochrane's ships, to write the Star-Spangled Banner. Unsuccessful at Baltimore, Cochrane's damaged fleet limped to Jamaica for repairs, and made preparations for an invasion of New Orleans, hoping to cut off American use of the Mississippi River. 11. By mid 1814, the War of 1812 was turning out to be tougher fighting than either side expected. Britain, caught up in the costly Napoleonic Wars, began to look for a way to extricate itself from its American commitment. In the Belgian city of Ghent, American negotiators (including John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay) met with British diplomats. After considerable bickering, the negotiators signed the Treaty of Ghent on December 24, 1814, officially ending the war. The treaty returned US-Britain relations to the same status as they had been before the war. The US neither gained nor lost any territory. Impressment went unaddressed. 12. The war was officially over, but news traveled slowly across the Atlantic Ocean. In New Orleans, Cochrane landed the British troops, who were still waiting for their replacement commander for Ross, General Packenham, to arrive from Britain. On January 8, 1815, Andrew Jackson's ragtag army soundly defeated the British at the Battle of New Orleans. Even though this battle had been fought unnecessarily (the treaty was already signed) the US celebrated wildly, manifesting an upsurge in American nationalism. 13. Although the war had sheltered New England manufacturing from British competition, New England merchant shipping had been seriously hurt, and a group of Federalists met at the Hartford Convention in late 1814 to discuss their grievances. A few talked of secession from the Union, but most just wanted to make it hard for the US to declare war or impose embargoes in the future. When the news of the treaty from Ghent arrived, it made the Federalists look silly, or even treasonous. The Hartford Convention spelled the end of the Federalist Party. 14. Death of Tecumseh, who was serving as a brigadier general in the British Army 15. Battle of the Thames resulted in no lasting occupation of Canada, but weakened and disheartened the Indians of the Northwest 16. Indians of the Southwest - The Creek - Battle of Horseshoe Bend, terrible revenge on the Indians, slaughtering women, children and warriors 16a. Tribe agreed to cede most if its land to the US and retreated westward 17. Military efforts of the US between 1812 nd 1815 had failed 18. Republican government became increasingly unpopular 18a. In NE, opposition both to the war and to the Republicans was so extreme that some Federalists celebrated British victories 18b. Federalists were in the minority in the country but the majority in NE. Some began to dream of creating a separate nation 18c. Talk of secession reached a climb in the winter of 1814-1815
What were the rapid developments concerning transportation and communication during the antebellum period? How did such innovations change/impact America? What system changed America more?
1. Canals 1a. Founded by the states 1b. Erie Canal 1c. Connected Chicago with NYC 1d. Moved more commerce 2. Railroads 2a. became primary transportation for the US 2b. Invention of tracks, creation os steam=powered locomotives, trains to carry goods and people 3. Funding from government - mostly federal with public land grants 4. Where railroads went, towns, ranches, and farms grew rapidly along their routes 5. Goods transported year round 6. Cut shipment time and travel time Railroads were much more than a fast and economically attractive form of transportation. They were also a breeding ground for technological advances, a key to the nation's economic growth, and the birthplace of the modern corporate form of organization. They became a symbol of the nation's technological prowess. To many people railroads were the most visible sign of American progress and greatness 3. Telegraph 3a. Samuel Morse 3b. Congress approved funding for experimental telegraph line 3c. Transmitted James K Polk's nomination for the presidency over the wires 4. Journalism 4a. Telegraph allowed papers to share their reporting 4b. Associated Press 4c. Richard Hoe invented the steam-powered rotary printing press 4d. New York Sun 5. Commerce and Industry 5a. Expansion of Business 5b. Important innovations in management 5c. Individuals or limited partnerships continued to operate most businesses, and the dominant figures were still the great merchant capitalists 5d. Corporations developed 5e. General incorporation laws 6. The most profound economic development in the mid-19th century was the rise of the factory 6a. Before 1812, most occurred within households or small workshops 6b. NE textile manufacturers began using new water-powered machines that allowed them to bring their operations together under a single roof 6c. This factory system soon penetrated the shoe industry and other industries as well 6d. 1840-1860, value of manufactured goods was roughly equal to that of agricultural products 6e. Northeast produced more than 2/3 of the manufactured goods
What can we learn from Alexis de Tocqueville's insights from this time period?
1. De Tocqueville came from France to America in 1831. He observed democracy in government and society. His book (written in two parts in 1835 and 1840) discusses the advantages of democracy and consequences of the majority's unlimited power. First to raise topics of American practicality over theory, the industrial aristocracy, and the conflict between the masses and individuals. 2.
Detail the political responses to immigration in mid-nineteenth century America, and consider possible parallels to immigration today
1. Democratic politicians courted the support of new immigrants 2. Older citizens were not happy 2a. racially inferior 2b. corrupted politics by selling their votes 2c. Stealing jobs from native workforce 2d. Protestants worried Irish population would increase power of Catholic church 2e. Would become a radical force in politics 3. Out of these fears and prejudices emerged a number of secret societies to combat the alien menace 4. Native American Association/Native American Party/Supreme Order of the Star-Spangled Banner 4a. banning Catholics or aliens from holding public office 4b. enacting more restrictive naturalization laws 4c. establishing literacy tests for voting 4d. Strict code....I know nothing 4e. Created new political organization call the American Party 4f. Did well in the NE - after 1854 they party disappeared Today: 1. Stealing jobs 2. Radical religious beliefs
Why could the 1780s be considered the Critical Period?
1. Diplomatic failures with Great Britain and Spain after the war and the Confederation's inability to pay of its enormous post-war debts to its own soldiers, other nations, etc offer an immediate example of the short comings of the loose confederation system in early America. A strong form of government would be needed to match the ideas and the potential of the new United States 2. Americans were dissatisfied with their confederation of colonies 3. A decade earlier, Americans facing tyranny from abroad had purposely avoided a strong national government, but now had to rethink that idea
Who were the Federalists and Anti-Federalists and what does their dispute have to do with the Constitution or our government?
1. Federalists: wealthy well educated people who like the strong central government called for by the new Constitution 1a. Federalist Papers - series of essays put together in a book, which explained the constitution 1b. Franklin, Washington, Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay 2. Federalists called their critics Anti-Federalists 2a. Lead by Patrick Henry and Samuel Adams 2b. Believed the Constitution would increase taxes, weaken states, wield dictatorial powers, favor the well-born over the common people and abolish individual liberty. 2c. Biggest complaint - the Constitution lacked a bill of rights
Andrew Jackson
1. First president to come from a Western State (Tennessee looked Western back then) 2. He fought the American Indians, nullification and the Bank of the United States 3. Jackson was NOT a founder of the US
What was the big deal with Federalist?
1. For twelve years, Federalists retained firm control of the new government 2. Because George Washington always envisioned a strong national government 3. Federalists offered more than a vision of a stable new government. They offered a vision of the sort of nation America could become, a nation with a wealthy enlightened ruling class, a vigorous independent commercial economy and a thriving manufacturing sector
Why has Andrew Jackson been called the American Lion?
1. If he were on your side, he would do all he could to protect you. If he believed you a foe, then he was a ferocious and merciless predator.
Describe the political philosophy of Andrew Jackson and how it was reflected in the policies and actions of this administration. How does he change the presidency?
1. Jackson was committed to remaining a MAN OF THE PEOPLE, representing and protecting the Common Man. He possessed a commanding presence, a strong will, and a personality that reflected his strength and decisiveness. Jackson had a lot going for him in the view of the electorate. 2. Jackson relied on his "KITCHEN CABINET," an unofficial group of friends and advisers. 3. Jackson felt that the Congress was not representing the people — that they were acting like an aristocracy. Jackson took the view that only the President could be trusted to stand for the will of the people against the aristocratic Congress. Jackson's weapon was the veto. "ANDY VETO" used this power more often than all six previous Presidents combined. 4. Jackson espoused the "SPOILS SYSTEM" in awarding government offices. In his view, far too many career politicians walked the streets of Washington. These people had lost touch with the public. Jackson believed in rotation in office. America was best served with clearing out the old officeholders and replacing them with appointees of the winning candidates. This "spoils system" would eventually lead to considerable CORRUPTION. To Jackson, rotating the officeholders was simply more democratic. 5. Jackson transformed the Office of the President into one of dynamic leadership and initiative. His direct appeal to the people for support was new and has served as a model for strong Presidents to this day.
What was the Era of good feelings and why was it given that name? Does it end anything?
1. James Monroe, the last of the Revolutionary War heroes to be president, served two terms that were free of enough controversy, the years were call the Era of Good Feelings 2. Monroe did face plenty of debate about tariffs, the Bank of the United States, where and how to build canals and roads, and how much to charge for the sale of the millions of acres of public lands that were up for grab
What were the events that led to a break with the mother country?
1. January 1776 - Thomas Paine's revolutionary tract argued persuasively that because English and American interest were so different, and because the Crown and Parliament had acted "tyrannically" toward the colonies, it was only common sense for the colonies to break with the mother country. 1a. Common Sense 1b. a republic in which power came from the people, not from some self-serving king 2. News that England was sending Hessian mercenaries (hired foreign troops) to the colonies to enforce unpopular laws accelerated the movement of public opinion toward independence
What insights can we derive from Jefferson's draft? - class
1. Jefferson wrote all mean re created equal with the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. He called these natural rights, not theoretical, British, or pie-in-the-sky-when-we-die rights. 2. Jefferson's Declaration of Independence has served as a role model for progressive people around the world ever since.
What were the major technological advances in industry? On farms? How did they help both unify and contribute to divisions of the nation?
1. Machine Tools 1a. Turret lathe (for cutting screws) 1b. milling machine (replaced hand chiseling) 1c. precision grinder (construction of sewing machines) 1d. All developed - to supply military 1e. Machine tools in US were better than most European factories 2. Interchangeable parts 2a. lead to bikes, seeing machines, typewriters, cash registers, and car 3. New sources of energy 3a. coal 4. American inventors 4a. Charles Goodyear - vulcanizing rubber - rubber industry 4b. Elias Howe - sewing machine 4c. Isaac Singer - made improvements to sewing machine 4d. manufacture ready-to-wear clothing
Explain how the two court cases of McCulloch v Maryland and Maryland and Gibbons v Ogden demonstrated an increase in national power. What does John Marshall have to do with this?
1. McCulloch v Maryland held for implied powers in 1819. If the Marshall court hadn't established implied powers, the federal government wouldn't be building roads or flying rockets because these and a thousand more activities are not specific listed in the Constitution 2. Gibbons v Ogden held that the US government has the right to regulate interstate commerce. Determined the federal government had jurisdiction over trade that crossed state lines 3. John Marshall was the chief justice on the supreme court from 1801 to 1835. These are just two key decisions from the era when he was chief
Explain how the War of 1812 stimulated the national economy
1. The United States had time to develop its own industries and the government was involved in the growth of American business from the beginning of the country 2. Following the war, Congress passed the protective Tariff of 1816 which taxed foreign imports to make American goods more competitive 3. Congressman Henry Clay championed the American System, which included easy credit, increased tariffs, and support for roads and canals to move American products. Roads and canals were the most important way to encourage settlement of the West
French and Indian War/Seven Years' War/First Global War: What were the goals of the British and the Americans in the French and Indian War? Why did the British think that a reorganization of the empire was necessary of 1763? How did the war affect American colonial attitudes toward the larger empire? What changed?
1. Most important of the colonial wars 2. Main issue was the Ohio Valley 2a. British were pushing west into it, wary of French influence in North America 2b. French needed to retain it to link Canadian holdings with the lower Mississippi valley and Caribbean 3. George Washington was defeated and forced to surrender 3a. Washington triggered a world war 4. British retaliated by clamping down in Nova Scotia 5. Albany Congress 5a. Called leaders from all the colonies to meet in Albany 6. British sought to make Iroquois allies 6a. Iroquois refused to commit to British 7. British purpose: greater colonial unity, strong defense against France 8. Albany Plan for Union: Benjamin Franklin created plan for colonial home rule: delay with defense and Indian affairs 9. British launched full scale invasion of Canada in 1756 but failed 10. William Pitt - leader of British gov't. 10a. Focus on France in North America in order to win the war 11. Battle of Quebec 11a. One of the most significant battles in British and American history 12. Peace of Paris 1763 - 12a. France was removed from North America 13. Great Britain emerged as the dominant power in North American as as the leading naval power in the world 14. Colonies emerged from the war with increased confidence in their military strength 15. British upset that American shippers traded with enemy ports of Spain and French West Indies 16. American westward colonial expansion increased significantly after the war 16a. French barrier west of the Appalachians was removed 16b. Settlers no longer as dependent on British protection in the frontier 17. Pontiac's rebellion 17. Refused to surrender land. Huge lose of British forces 17. Britain - germ warfare to control 18. Proclamation of 1763 18a. George III created royal colonies in all newly acquired lands in the Treaty of Paris 18b. Prohibited colonials to move west of the Appalachians 18c. British aim: Settle land disputes with Indians fairly to prevent more bloody episodes like Pontiac's uprising and organize eventual settlement and defense 19. Colonials infuriated: viewed edict as being permanent 20.Colonials generally ignored the Proclamation
Detail how agriculture in the North changed as a result of industrialization and urbanization. How did these changes help draw the Northeast and Northwest closer together?
1. Northeastern Agriculture 1a. Moved west themselves 1b. moved to mill towns to be laborers 1c. remained on the land and turned to what was known as truck farming - supplying food to the growing cities 1d. Growth of factories in the Northeast 2. Old Northwest (Midwest) 2a. Agricultural region 2b. Sold most of its products to the Northeast and became an important market for the products of eastern industry 2c. A strong economic relationship was emerging between the two sections that was profitable to both West 1. Timber industry 2. Wheat, corn, potatoes, oats and livestock New techniques 1. New seeds 2. Better breeds of animals 3. Improved farm tools 4. JOhn Deere - farm plows 5. automatic reaper 6. Thresher One reason may rural Americans looked back nostalgically on country life once they moved to the city was that they sensed that in the urban world they had lost some control over the patterns of their daily lives
Whiskey Rebellion
1. Protest on the western Pennsylvania frontier against the tax Hamilton had gotten passed on liquor 2. Tax was more than most could pay 3. The new federal government showed it could use force to back up laws. But in places without soldiers, the tax was difficult to collect and it was repealed in 1803
What forces combined to produce dramatic economic growth in the United States in the 1820s and 1830s? How was this growth reflected in urban areas such as NYC?
1. Rapid population increase, 2. Movement westward 3. Growth of towns and cities where demand for work was expanding Improvements in public health,High birth rate, African American population grew at a slower pace Growth in the cities:1. Northern cities grew faster than southern
Strengths and weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation? Why is this document important to our history?
1. Set up by 2nd Continental Congress in light of exigencies 2. need to organize a nation and an army 3. maintain civil order and establish international recognition and credit 4. defend its territory from the British 5. Resolve internal quarrels and competition Pros 1. Formally united the colonies as independent sovereign nations 2. Ordinances of 84 and 85 Cons 1. Differences between the colonies 2. Didn't provide the authority to regulate trade, draft troops or levy taxes directly 3. No separate executive branch 4. 9 states, each holding one vote had to authorize a law 5. all 13 state legislatures had to amendment the article itself
Which American leaders and organizations played the most significant roles in converting popular discontent into effective political action between 1765 and 1775?
1. Stamp Act 1765 - for every piece of printed paper to raise money to support British Troops in America 2. Sons of Liberty - 3. Townshend Act - import tax on glass, lead, paper, paint and tea 4. Boston Massacre 5. Boston Tea Party - Townshend Act combined with granting monopoly on tea to the British Tea Company - citizens dumped tea into the Boston Harbor 6. Intolerable Acts - Closed Boston Harbor unit Boston paid Britain back for all the tea lost. Took away rights of the legislature and of town meetings and allowed for Americans who killed a Brit to be tried in England 7. Samuel Adams - organized Committee of Correspondence which set the groundwork for the first Continental Congress 8. First Continental Congress passed a Declaration of Rights 9. First Continental Congress also established The Association to oversee a boycott of everything British 10. John Hancock and John Adams - protest leaders who the British tried to arrest. 10a. British met colonial militia in Lexington and Concord 10b. Militia pushed British back
What was the "middle ground"? How did it change/shift during the colonial Period or throughout our history? Who are the major players in developing such areas?
1. Struggle for North American was not just with European empires. It was also a series of contests among the many different people who shared the continent - the Spanish, English, French, Dutch and other colonists on one hand and the many Indian tribes with whom they shared the continent, on the other 2. New England area - English settlers fairly quickly established their dominance, displacing/killing most natives until they had established societies that were dominated almost entirely by Europeans 3. Other regions, the balance of power was for many years far more precarious. Along the western borders of English settlements, the Europeans and Indians lived together in regions in which neither side was able to establish clear dominance. In these middle bounds, two populations - despite frequent conflicts, carved out ways of living together with each side making concessions to each other 4. European settlers, and the soldiers scattered in forts throughout these regions to protect them, were unable to displace the Indians. So they had to carve out their own relationships with the tribes. 5. In those relationships, the Europeans found themselves obligated to adapt to tribal expectations at least as much as the Indians had to adapt to European ones 6. To the Indians, the European migrants were both menacing and appealing. They feared the power of the guns, rifles, their forts, but they also wanted the French and British to behave like fathers to them, to help them mediate their own internal disputes, to offer them gifts, to moderate their conflicts 7. Europeans learned to fulfill at least some of their expectations - to settle disputes among tribes, to moderate conflicts within tribes, to participate solemnly in Indian ceremonies and to offer gifts as signs of respect 8. After 1776, the balance of power between Europeans and natives shifted. Newer settlers had difficulty adapting to the complex rituals that the earlier migrants had developed. The stability of the relationship between the Indians and whites deteriorated 9. By the 19th century, the middle ground had collapsed, replaced by a European world in which Indians were ruthlessly subjugated and eventually removed. 10. The relationship between whites and Indians was not a simply a story of conquest, but also - in some regions - a story of difficult but stable accommodation and tolerance 11. 17th century - before many English settlers entered the interior, French were adapt at creating successful relationships with the tribes 11a. Fur trading 11b. Marry within the tribe 11c. understood treating tribal chiefs with respect and channeling gifts and tributes through them 11d. by mid-18th century, French influence in the interior declined and British settlers became dominant 12. Eventually British learned the lessons the French long ago absorbed, commands and raw force were ineffective to dealing with the tribes 12a. They has to learn to deal with Indians leaders through gifts and ceremonies and mediation 13. Great lakes regions - peace with Brits and Indians for several decades
Explain the significance of Andrew Jackson's presidential victory in 1828
1. The 1828 election was portrayed by Jackson's Democrats as proof of the "common people's right" to pick a President. No longer were Virginia Presidents and northern money-men calling the shots. Class systems were breaking down. To that end, some states had recently abolished property requirements for voting. These poorer folk supported General Jackson.
Explain the reasons for the proclamation of the Monroe Doctrine and describe the impact this has had on the US relations with other nations in the hemisphere. How does this serve national interests?
1. The Monroe Doctrine was a declaration issued by President James Monroe warning European powers not to establish any more colonies in the New World 2. That is worked in the 1800s was more bark than bite, since the US lacked the power to back it up, but the Monroe Doctrine established a precedent till cited to this day
Why were most Americans content with their role(s) within the British Empire as of the 1750's? What evidence of discord did exist? What was the probability of revolution as seen from the perspective of 1754?
1. The colonies in the 1750's represented many religious denominations, disliked aristocrats from England but were okay with the king, and were receptive to settlement by non-English people. 2. Few Americans objected to their membership in the British Empire. 3. The imperial system provided many benefits to the Americans and for the most part of the English government left the colonies alone 4. By the mid-1770's, however, the relationship between the American colonies and their British rulers had become so strained that the empire was on the verge of unraveling
How did the thirteen colonies win their independence from one of the most powerful nations (and navies) on earth?
1. They were fighting at home 2. They were more committed to the conflict 3. Received support from those who wished to see the British fall (France) Only British miscalculations and transformation of the war actually gave to colonies a fighting chance at victory
Impact of the Ordinance of 84, 85, and 87
1. Unified the way land was surveyed and sold 2. Divided the western continental territories up 3. Gave territories a clear path to achieving independent statehood 3a. Was slow due native america land conflicts 4. 84: divided the western territory into ten self-governing districts, each which could petition Congress for statehood when its population equaled the number of free inhabitants of the smallest existing state 5. 85: created a system for surveying and selling the western lands. 5a. Rectangular townships - 36 identical sections 6. 87: Abandoned the ten districts established in 1784 and created a single Northwest Territory
Why is this document considered groundbreaking/radial for the time?
1. Viewed the world as being rational, made for humans, and capable of being improved by people. Children of the Enlightenment, a giant wake-up call that started in Europe in the early 1700's and spread around the world. Despite the continued presence of fear and intolerance, people today are still working on carrying out the ideas of the Enlightenment
What were the major compromises (or questions debated) of the Constitutional Convention of 1787?
1. Were concerned the people would rise up and over throw the new government just created 2. Need a central government to control the whims of the people 3. Large state plan and small state plan 4. Under the Articles of Confederation, rule had been one state, one vote 5. Big states wanted by size - Virginia Plan 6. Great Comprise 6a. Big states got the House of Representatives based on population 6b. Small states got the Senate - two senators for every state, no matter how small 7. All tax and revenue bills had to start in the house 8. Strong president who could appoint judges and other officials, sere as commander in chief of the military and veto legislation 9. President to be chosen by the people indirectly through an electoral college as a supposed safeguard against mob rule 10. Executive president branch of government was balanced with the legislative Congress and judicial Courts branches
Trail of Tears? Could the removal been prevented? What alternatives were there to Jackson's Indian removal policy? Why did he not follow them?
5. Worcester v Georgia - Supreme Court struck down the Georgia law that limited the authority of Cherokee had over their own lands, stating that only the federal government, and not the states, had authority in Indian affairs. 5a. A lot of anti-manifest Destiny people applauded this decision, but that didn't stop President Jackson 5b. While Worcester v Georgia might have given the tribes the right to fight eviction, President Jackson wanted none of that 5c. He declared that Chief Justice John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it 6. After gunpoint negotiations, Cherokee families were forced to leave their home and walk the 1200 mile Trail of Tears to barren land in Oklahoma. With no supplies, half of the families died on the forced march
In 1804
Alexander Hamilton was killed in a duel with Jefferson's vice president Aaron Burr. Burr fled the country
Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions
Championed states' rights against the Alien and Sedition Acts
Origins and significant aspects of the Declaration in Independence
DoC 1. First part - theory of John Locke: the theory that governments were formed to protect what Jefferson called "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" 2. Second part - listed the alleged crimes of the king, who with the backing of Parliament, had violated his contract with the colonists and thus forfeited all claim to their loyalty 3. Declaration launched a period of energetic political innovation, as one colony after another reconstituted itself as a state.
Describe how the industrial workforce changed between the 1820s and 1830s?
Factory labor came primarily form the native-born population 1. Most lived on farms 2. Improvements in agricultural production meant each region no longer had to feed itself; it could import the food it needed. As a result rural people from relatively unprofitable farming areas of the East began leaving the land to work in the factories
What were Hamilton's and Jefferson's visions for the new America?
Hamilton 1. Treasury secretary wanted to pay off the national debt 2. Wanted to pay all investors back as government were not worth much 3. He got congress to approve a duty on foreign imports and US made luxury items such as whiskey and carriages 4. Credit of the US improved 5. Hamilton supported the development of a national bank, partially funded by the government, that could keep money in circulation and help boost the economy 6. He wanted to give subsidies to business, but Congress didn't approve 7. Hamilton's policies were seen by poorer farmers as serving the rich Eastern merchants 8. Hamilton took a broad interpretation view of the Constitution. He thought the Constitution had implied powers, which allowed the government to do whatever was necessary to carry out the general tasks assigned in the Constitution 9. Hamilton followers: Federalists Jefferson 1. Argued against the Bank of the US 2. Believed that anything not specifically mentioned in the Constitution was prohibited to the federal government 3. Believed in more individualism and less government 4. Jefferson followers: Democratic-Repiblicans
What are the European motives for establishing colonies in America?
In England 1. sought permanent colonies of land and the spirit of mercantilism drove their exploration 1b. 1497 John Cabot sailed to the north eastern coast of North America 2. Mercantilism - nations have the right to grow and prosper through land and resource acquisition 2a. Colonies would funnel monies into the nation to help ensure military strength against other naval powers 3. As Spain threatened England on the high seas, the notion of distant and profitable colonies became desirable Internally: Religious and idealogical turmoil in England turned reformers into puritans (or separatists) 1a. People against the religious order in England 2. Anglicanism was the religious order of England 2a. People who didn't practice this were forced to leave the country 3. Religious non-conformers where trying to go elsewhere - avoid persecution 4. As new land if plotted out, people are drawn to the new ideology of the more you do to spread the gospel, the better chance you have of going to heaven 5. So people get on the ships to come to the Americas Europeans 1. Wanted to put people on the land in America to claim resources and land 2. Create a small England or small Spain overseas 3. Can tax them, have them send their goods to us 4. Have profitable outposts all over the world 5. Help us be more powerful against European rivals
What impact did the industrial revolution have on society?
Industrial revolution was making the United States both dramatically wealthier and increasingly unequal. It was transforming social relationships at almost every level 1. Wealthier got richer, but the slaves, unskilled workers, Indians, etc - didn't share in any increase 2. Significant population of destitute people also emerged in the growing urban cities 3. Worst victims were the free blacks. 4. Middle class grew 5. Housing changed - more stylish 6. Indoor plumbing
Explain who benefited from Jacksonian democracy, and who suffered... Jacksonian Democracy or Jacksonian Inequality
JACKSONIAN DEMOCRACY represented a provocative blending of the best and worst qualities of American society. On the one hand it was an authentic democratic movement that contained a principled egalitarian thrust, but this powerful social critique was always cast for the benefit of white men. This tragic mix of egalitarianism, masculine privilege, and racial prejudice remains a central quality of American life and to explore their relationship in the past may help suggest ways of overcoming their haunting limitations in the future 2. Blacks, Indians suffered the most. Then women
Which event best illustrates Andrew Jackson's idea of expanded democracy?
Jackson saw the Bank of the US as a rip-off by rich guys (and he wasn't too far off). His abolition of the bank is an example of his view of expanded democracy
It has been argued that the age of Jackson should have be called the age of egalitarianism. After reading the text, do you agree with this assertion? What evidence supports it? What does not?
No. Jackson forced the Indians out and believed in slavery. How is that being equal? Yes Jackson was the first president elected by white men who didn't specifically own land, but again, it was only white men that voted. And yes Jackson was more like the common folk, he didn't common from an elite background. But Jackson was a rough fighter and in a sense a bully.
What was the big deal of the alien and sedition acts of 1798? Why were they implemented? What does this tell us about political rivalries at this time?
Purpose: Federalists passed a series of oppressive laws in 1798 that would reduce power of Jeffersonian foes and silence anti-war opposition Alien Acts: 1. Attack on pro-Jeffersonian "aliens" 2. Most immigrants lacked wealth and were welcomed by Jeffersonians 3. Scorned by Federalists who did not want the dregs of Europe voting in US 4. Raised residence requirements for US citizenship from 5 yrs to 14 yrs 5. President empowered to deport dangerous foreigners in time of peace and to deport or imprison them in time of hostilities 6. Aliens Acts never enforced but some frightened foreign agitators left Sedition Act 1. Anyone who impeded the policies of govt or falsely defamed its officials, including the president, would be liable to a heavy fine and imprisonment 2. Direct violation of the 1st Amendment of the Constitution 2a. Federalist Supreme Court not interested in declaring it unconstitutional 3. Many outspoken Jeffersonian editors were indicted/tried/convicted 4. Law expired in 1801, the day before Adams left office 4a. Demonstrated dubious intentions of bill (in case of Federalist was not elected in 1800, Republicans would not have the Sedition Act to prosecute Federalists) Popular support for Alien and Sedition Acts significant 1. Anti-French hysteria played into the hands of the Federalists 2. Largest ever Federalists victory in 1798-1799 congressional elections 3. Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions 3a. Republicans convinced Alien and Sedition acts were unconstitutional 3b. Jefferson and Madison secretly created a series of resolutions 3c. States had the right to nullify unconstitutional laws passed by Congress 3d. Aim not to break up the union but preserve it by protecting civil liberties These acts made criticizing the president a crime, raised the waiting time for citizenship from 5 to 17 years, and allowed the government to deport any non citizens it didn't like
Early US Diplomacy
The new nation was wisely avoiding war and slowly gaining respect. If the US had fought a war with France in 1800, the French surely wouldn't have sold America the Louisiana Purchase in 1803
What was the importance of the case of Marbury v Madison?
This decision gave the Supreme Court the power to review all laws for their constitutionality 1. Jefferson's small-governemtn followers tried to strike back by filing impeachment charges against a judge they didn't like. Congress dropped the charges and the principles of independent judicial review and separation of powers became the law of the land
Describe the types of workers recruited and the conditions they faced in America's early factories. How and why did workers and conditions changed from the 1820s to the 1840s, and what were the consequences of those changes?
Two Systems 1. mid-Atlantic states: brought whole families from the farm to work together in the mill 2. Massachusetts: enlisted young women, mostly farmers' daughters in their late teens and early twenties. 2a. Lowell or Waltham system after the towns where started 2b. woman worked for many years, saved their wages, then returned home to marry and have children 3. Good labor conditions 4. Lowell , fair wages, lived in dorms. Hard adjusted from farm to mills, but no choice - no work on the farm 5. Competitive textile market - found it hard to maintain the high living standards and reasonably attractive working conditions 5a. Wages declined, hours of work lengthened, living conditions became bad 6. Lowell - union formed 6a. two strikes, both failed. Recession destroyed union 7. Lowell - Female Labor Reform Association 7a. asked for 10 hour days and improvements at mill 7b. Mill girls moving to other occupations - teachers, domestic service, etc 7c. Textile manufactures turned to immigrants
What factors contributed to the emergence of the second party system? Compare and contrast the philosophies, constituencies and leadership of the Whigs and Democrats during the 1830's
Van Buren, perhaps even more than Jackson, helped to create the new Democratic party that centered upon three chief qualities closely linked to Jacksonian Democracy. 1. it declared itself to be the party of ordinary farmers and workers. 2. it opposed the special privileges of economic elites. 3. to offer affordable western land to ordinary white Americans, Indians needed to be forced further westward. 4. Democrats stressed the new forms of dependence that it created The WHIG PARTY soon arose to challenge the Democrats with a different policy platform and vision for the nation. 1. Whigs' favored active government support for economic improvement as the best route to sustained prosperity. 2. Whigs defended economic development's broad benefits Thus, the Whig-Democrat political contest was in large part a disagreement about the early Industrial Revolution. Whigs defended economic development's broad benefits, while Democrats stressed the new forms of dependence that it created. The fiercely partisan campaigns waged between these parties lasted into the 1850s and are known as the SECOND PARTY SYSTEM, an assuredly modern framework of political competition that reached ordinary voters as never before with both sides organizing tirelessly to carry their message directly to the American people.
How did the English colonies in the Chesapeake (Virginia) and New England (Plymouth/MCB) differ from one another? Consider purpose, administration and individual involved.
Virginia 1. Virginia founded in 1607 by Virginia Company 2. Jamestown 1607 - 1st permanent British colony in New World 3. Founded by Virginia Company that received charter in London from King James I 4. Main goals: 4a. promise of gold 4b. conversion of Indians to Christianity (just like Spain) 4c. new passage to the Indies 5. Virginia Charter 5a. Overseas settlers given same rights of Englishmen in England 5b. Became foundation for American liberties, rights extended to other colonies 6. Colony wrecked by tragedy during early years: famine, disease, war with Indians 6a. By 1625, only 1200 of nearly 80000 colonists survived 6b. Only 60 out of 400 settlers survived Starving time of 1610-1611 7. Captain John Smith organized the colony beginning in 1608 8. John Rolfe and tobacco crop economy 8a. Rolfe introduced new tough strain of tobacco 8b. Tobacco industry became cornerstone of Virginia's economy 8c. Planation system emerged 9. House of Burgesses authorized by London Company in 1619 9a. 1st miniature parliament in the British American colonies 9b. Representative self-government 9c. Most representatives were substantial property owners 10. Virginia Charter revoked by James I in 1624 11. Virginia became a royal colony directly under his control New England 1. Protestant Reformation and the rise of Puritanism 2. Martin Luther - 1517, breaks away from Catholic Church, birth of Protestantism 2a. Bible alone was the source of God's word 2b. Faith alone would determine salvation 3. John Calvin - 1536 3a. Elaborated on Luther's ideas 3b. God was all powerful and all-good 4. Church of England and the Puritans 4a. King Henry VIII broke ties with Catholic Church in 1530's and became head of Church of England (Anglican Church) 4b. Puritans were Protestants who wanted to purify the Anglican Church by removing all its Catholic elements and barring people from the church who were not committed 4c. Separatists were an extreme group of Puritans who wanted to break from the Anglican Church - later called Pilgrims 5. James I concerned Separatists challenged his roles as leader of the Church and threatened to force them out of England 6. Pilgrams to America - fist wave of Separatists 6a. Secured rights with Virginia Company to settle within its jurisdiction in Virginia 6b. Pilgrims agreed to work for 7 years in return for the support of the joint stock 7. Plymouth Bay settlement site 7a. Indian community killed off by plague earlier 7b. Outside jurisdiction of Virginia Company 7c. Settlers were squatters - no legal right to land and no recognized government 8. Mayflower Compact 8a. Legitimize Pilgrims' settlement outside Virginia by creating a secular document recognizing James I as their sovereign and creating a body of all the settlers with power to devise laws and elect leaders 8b. Plymouth colony never posed a charter, it was denied by the crown 8c. Agreement provided for majority rule among settlers (excluding servants and seamen) and became an important seed of democracy 9. Adult male settlers assembled to make laws and conduct open-discussion town meetings 10. Despite terrible 1st winter (1/2 died) no one left the colony 11. Squanto befriended the Pilgrims and showed them how to plant, fish 11a. Introduced to Massasoit, leader of Wampanoags 11b. Alliance between Pilgrims and Wampanoags for protection against other Indian tribes 12. Thanksgiving - thankful of harvest 13. Settled economically with fur, fish, and lumber 14. Religion remained paramount in the community 15. William Bradford - prominent leader - elect red Governor 30 times 16. Miles Standish - military leader hired to accompany Pilgrims 17. MBC (Massachusetts Bay Colony) founded in 1629 17a. Founded by non-Separatist Puritans out of fear for their faith and England's future 18. Great Migration (1630's) 19. John Winthrop - Governor of MBC 19a. Covenant Theology - believed Puritans had a covenant with God to lead new religious experiment in the New World 20. MBC became the biggest and most influential of New England 21. Economy: fur trading, fishing, shipbuilding, and some farming (corn and wheat) 22. Massachusetts Bible Commonwealth 23. Governing open to all free adult makes belonging to Puritan congregations 24. Early dissension in the MBC 25. Quakers - believed in an inner light and not in theology 26. Anne Hutchison - believed in antinomianism 26a. the elected didn't need to obey God's or man's ;aw because they were predestined for salvation 27. Roger Williams - Challenged legality of Plymouth and Bay Colony - land belonged to Indians
How and why does slavery develop within various regions in colonial America?
When the English came to colonial America: 1. They didn't just come to presented day east coast 2. They landed on different islands to practice different religions 3. When they got to these islands, they realized they could make a lot of money 4. So it wasn't just seeking religious freedom, it was also English and European business interest landing on islands. Once they got there, a lot of the natives were killed either intentionally or unintentionally by disease 5. Europeans realized very quickly they could plant sugar cane to make a lot of money off that sugar 6. Indentured servants didn't want to do all that hard work 7. The English colonists began to look at slave labor markets and import African slaves which they could buy legitimately from Africa but the rate at which the slaves were brought only accelerated because as tobacco became a more profitable industry in the American colonies, those tobacco growers started to buy slaves from the Caribbean from their fellow Englishmen in the Caribbean islands so all of the sudden we have a booming market and the pace of production of creating slaves can't even keep up with it.