Challenges of the First Five Presidents

Battle of Tippecanoe

Battle in which Native Americans united by Tecumseh and Prophet fought against General William Henry Harrison's forces and lost. Americans on the frontier blamed Britain for initiating the rebellion (1811)

Steam Boat

Boat that had a powerful steam engine; these enabled boats to travel upstream on rivers, thus increasing trade while at the same time improving interstate transportation

Missouri Compromise

Compromise arranged by Henry Clay; temporary truce over slavery issue; 3 parts: Missouri added as a slave state, Maine added as a free state, above 36°30' line =free, below =slave; remained law until negated by Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854

Popular Sovereignty

Constitutional principle that identifies that the reason that our government has power is because the people gives it power by voting

precedents of George Washington

Created the Presidential Cabinent (group of advisors), Bank of the United States, neutrality in foreign wars, 2 term limit, farewell address

Lowell Mill System

Developed in the textile mills of Lowell, Massachusetts, in the 1820s; these factories as much machinery as possible was used, so that few skilled workers were needed in the process; workers were almost all single young farm women, who worked for a few years and then returned home to be housewives; managers found these young women were the perfect workers for this type of factory life

Louisiana Purchase

Doubled size of US; opened up land for expansion; Jefferson changed his interpretation from strict to loose on this issue

Market Revolution

Drastic changes in transportation (canals, RRs), communication (telegraph), and the production of goods (more in factories as opposed to houses)

Corps of Discovery Expedition

Expedition to explore and map newly acquired Louisiana Purchase lands; Lewis and Clark guided by Sacajawea

John Marshall

Federalist Chief Justice of the Supreme Court who established the doctrine of judicial review and served as Chief Justice for 34 years

Election of 1800

First peaceful transition of power between political parties; the Federalist party suffered criticism after Sedition Act and lost election

Alexander Hamilton

Great political leader; youngest and brightest of Federalists; "father of the National Debt"; from New York; became a major general; military genius; First Secretary of the Treasury (1789-1795); established plan for economy that went in to affect in 1790 including a tariff that passed in 1789, the assumption of state debts which went into effect in 1790, an excise on different products (including whiskey) in 1791, and a plan for a national bank which was approved in 1791

National Bank

Hamilton's big idea; fiercely opposed by Jefferson and Democratic-Republicans; the bank would regulate money and draw investors; showed that the constitution could be interpreted in different ways; resulted in the development of political parties

Federalists

Hamilton, Adams, Jay, Marshall: wanted an economy based on commerce, strong federal government, loose interpretation of the Constitution, believed the national bank was necessary, and wanted an alliance with Great Britain

American System

Henry Clay's idea to unify the economy through: strengthening the Second Bank of the United States, internal improvements, and tariffs; more successful in unifying the North and Midwest than South

Whiskey Rebellion

In 1794, farmers in Pennsylvania rebelled against Hamilton's excise tax on whiskey, and several federal officers were killed in the riots caused by their attempts to serve arrest warrants on the offenders. In October, 1794, the army, led by Washington, put down the rebellion. The incident showed that the new government under the Constitution could react swiftly and effectively to such a problem, in contrast to the inability of the government under the Articles of Confederation to deal with Shay's Rebellion.

Limited Government

In this type of government everyone, including all authority figures, must obey laws. Constitutions, statements of rights, or other laws define the limits of those in power so they cannot take advantage of the elected, appointed, or inherited positions.

Democratic Republicans

Jefferson, Madison: wanted an economy based on agriculture, stronger state governments, a strict interpretation of the government, thought that a national bank was merely desirable, and wanted an alliance with France

James Madison

"Father of the Constitution," Federalist leader, and 4th President of the United States; favored a strict interpretation of the Constitution

Alien and Sedition Acts

(1798) Contains four parts: 1. raised the residence requirement for American citizenship from 5 to 14 years; 2. Alien Act: gave the President the power in peacetime to order any alien out of the country; 3. Alien Enemies Act: permitted the President in wartime to jail aliens when he wanted to; 4. The Sedition Act: key clause provided fines and jail penalties for anyone guilty of sedition (was to remain in effect until the next Presidential inauguration)

Marbury v. Madison

(1803) Court case in which William Marbury sued James Madison for not delivering John Adam's commission ("Midnight Judges") about Marbury becoming a judge; Marshall ruled, that under the Judiciary Act, Marbury would get the job, but that the Judiciary Act was unconstitutional, setting up the doctrine of judicial review

Erie Canal

(1825) This was opened as a toll waterway connecting New York to the Great Lakes. This helped connect the Northern cities to the agrarian West. The transportation of food from the midwest farms especially allowed for the growth of New York.

John Adams

A Federalist who was Vice President under Washington in 1789, and later became President by a small margin in 1796; known for his quarrel with France (Quasi-War), and was involved in the XYZ Affair

Washington's Farewell Address

A document by George Washington in 1796, when he retired from office. It wasn't given orally, but was printed in newspapers. It did not concern foreign affairs; most of it was devoted to domestic problems. He stressed that the US should stay away from permanent alliances with foreign countries; temporary alliances wouldn't be quite as dangerous, but they should be made only in "extraordinary emergencies." He also spoke against partisan bitterness. The document was rejected by the Jeffersonians, who favored the alliance with France.

Cotton Gin

A machine which could separate cotton from its seeds; this invention made cotton more profitable for the Southern economy; increased production of cotton after its development in 1791 by Eli Whitney signaled the exponential increase in slavery until its abolition after the Civil War

Thomas Jefferson

A member of the House of Burgesses; wrote the Declaration of Independence; was ambassador to France; 3rd President of the United States of America; with the Declaration of Independence he declared the colonies' freedom from England; while President, he bought the Louisiana Purchase and had Lewis and Clark to explore it

Era of Good Feelings

A name for President Monroe's two terms, a period of strong nationalism, economic growth, and territorial expansion; since the Federalist party dissolved after the War of 1812, there was only one political party and no partisan conflicts

Republicanism

A philosophy of limited government with elected representatives serving at the will of the people. The government is based on consent of the governed.

Federalism

A system in which power is divided between the national and state governments

War of 1812

A war between the US and Great Britain caused by American outrage over the impressment of American sailors by the British, the British seizure of American ships, and British aid to the Indians attacking the Americans on the western frontier. The war strengthened American nationalism and encouraged the growth of industry

XYZ Affair

Adams sent delegates to meet with French foreign minister Talleyrand in the hopes of working things out. Talleyrand's three agents told the American delegates that they could meet with Talleyrand only in exchange for a very large bribe. The Americans did not pay the bribe, and in 1798 Adams made the incident public, substituting the letters "X, Y and Z" for the names of the three French agents in his report to Congress.

John Jay

American delegate who signed Treaty of Paris, wrote 5 essays for the Federalist Papers; New York lawyer and diplomat who negotiated with Britain and Spain on behalf of the Confederation; he later became the first chief justice of the Supreme Court and negotiated the Jay Treaty

Monroe Doctrine

Mostly the work of Secretary of State, John Quincy Adams, this declared that Europe should not interfere in the affairs of the Western Hemisphere and that any attempt at interference by a European power would be seen as a threat to the US; it also declared that a New World colony which has gained independence may not be recolonized by Europe (It was written at a time when many South American nations were gaining independence)

George Washington

Served as a general and commander-in-chief of the colonial armies during the American Revolution, and later became the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797

Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions

These were were put into practice in 1798 by Jefferson and James Madison. These resolutions were secretly made to get the rights back taken away by the Alien and Sedition Acts. These laws took away freedom of speech and press guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. These resolutions also brought about the later compact theory which gave the states more power than the federal government.

Individual Rights

Theses are protected by the Bill of Rights and include economic rights related to property, political rights related to freedom of speech and press, and personal rights related to bearing arms and maintaining private residences.

Cumberland Road

This was the first highway built by the federal government. Constructed during 1825-1850, it stretched from Pennsylvania to Illinois. It was a major overland shipping route and an important connection between the North and the West.