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Period: 600 BCE to
Beginnings to Exploration
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500
Dark Ages
The Dark Ages was the period of history between classical antiquity and the Italian Renaissance. There were three reasons as to the beginning of the Dark Ages and they are that markets disappeared, roads deteriorated, and workers started to move into rural areas. It happened after the Fall of Rome life was chaotic in Western Europe. Without the organization of a central government, trade and communication collapsed. -
1300
The Renaissance
The Renaissance was the great rebirth of art, literature, and learning in the 14th-16th centuries which marked the transition from the medieval to modern periods of European history. A new way of thinking which lead to future reforms for the catholic church and ultimately different religions. The Renaissance moved from Italy to France, the German States, Holland, and England. Their were 2 Renaissances, a Southern one for Italy and a Northern one for the rest of western Europe. -
1346
The Black Death
The Black Death was a plague that came to Europe. The Black Death was a terrible epidemic which killed around 25 million people in Europe (1/3). It was a plague spread by fleas sucking on the poisonous rat blood and spreading the disease. The plague was said to have been introduced by Sicilian merchants returning on boats from China in 1347. People believe that the Jews caused the epidemic. They believed it was transmitted by bad smells. People treated it by bloodletting. -
1492
Columbian Exchange
The Columbian Exchange is the sharing of cultures that transformed the lives of two continents. It was a two-way process with people, goods, and ideas moving back and forth. The three main parts of the Columbian Exchange were plants, animals, and diseases. The most negative effect for the Indian people during the exchange was disease. Europeans caught malaria very easily. -
1494
Treaty of Tordesillas
The Treaty of Tordesillas was 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. Portugal could claim lands east of the Tordesillas treaty line and Spain could claim lands west of the Tordesillas treaty line. -
1517
Martin Luther
In 1517 Martin Luther wrote 95 theses, or statements of belief attacking the church practices. Luther's letter was ignored by the archbishop so he wrote out 95 Theses against the sale of Indulgences. Thanks to the Printing Press, Luther's theses were translated into German and were now all over Germany. The pope was angered by this and instructed Luther to withdraw his claims. Luther refused, earning him more supporters. -
Roanoke
Roanoke was the first English settlement in the new world was on the island of Roanoke, off the coast of North Carolina, established in 1587. Virginia dare, the first English child born in America, was born on Roanoke Island. The settlement failed, and no one knows what became of the people who first settled there. Roanoke wasn't re-supplied for 3 years because the war with Spain prevented the colony from being re-supplied. -
Chesapeake Colonies
The Chesapeake Colonies consisted of Jamestown/Virginia and Maryland. Jamestown started as a private charter from the English Crown in 1606. It started with 105 settlers due to exaggerations of wealth and gold in Virginia. Only 32 people survived the first winter due to disease. Early on, tobacco wasn't a cash crop because the settlers were so focused on finding gold and silver. Later on though, tobacco became the main cash crop. Slaves and indentured servants soon became the source of labor. -
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English Colonial Societies
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New England Colonies
The New England Colonies consisted of Plymouth, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. The Plymouth Colony was made up of Puritans. They believed England and Holland were too corrupt so they sailed on the Mayflower. They landed hundreds of miles North and legally made settlement known as Mayflower Compact. In the Massachusetts Bay Colony Charles I dissolved Parliament which led to 20,000 upset Puritans. Life here was very different from Chesapeake Colonies, family was the most important thing to them. -
Caribbean Colonies
The Caribbean Colonies consisted of Barbados, Jamaica, and other English-held islands. Sugar was and is the most important thing in the region. Europeans loved sugar and they used it for everything. England, Spain, France, and Holland all had stakes in the region. They basically took turns of the islands possession. But, Barbados was in full English possession. Barbados had a population of 26,000. Island labor was needed which soon led to slaves outnumbering whites. -
Navigation Acts
The Navigation Acts are laws that restricted the use of foreign shipping. Britain was the only country that was allowed to trade with the colonies. Great Britain benefited from the Navigation Acts because England became a ship building center which led to many new jobs. American colonies benefited from the Navigation Acts because colonial merchants had no competition with foreign merchants. But, many colonists disliked the Acts because it favored English merchants, this led to smuggling. -
Glorious Revolution
The Glorious Revolution was the overthrow of King James II by Parliament. James was a Roman Catholic who that had little respect for Parliament. England had a possibility of facing a dynasty of Roman Catholic Monarch. After the birth of James' son Parliament invited William, Mary's husband, to England. In 1689, Parliament voted to give the throne to William and Mary. Parliament passed laws that established its power over the monarch. -
Salem Witch Trials
The Salem Witch Trials began when three young girls in Massachusetts claimed to be possessed by the Devil, they also accused local women of witch craft. Older women or women who were seen as vulnerable in the community were usually the ones accused, it was usually the young women that claimed to be possessed that accused them. A special court in Salem would hear the cases and would decide if the accusations were true. The governor ended the trials when his wife got accused of witch craft. -
Act of Union 1707
The Act of Union 1707 merged England and Scotland into Great Britain. Although Scotland and England were brought together, Scotland was still able to maintain some of their old institutions so that they wouldn't lose all power. The most important outcome of the Act of Union 1707 is that it combined England and Scotland into one, now known as Great Britain. The Act of Union is important in general because it is still in place today. -
Slavery In The Colonies
The Atlantic Slave Trade was the transportation by slave owners of enslaved Africans usually from Africa to the Americas. It was the new source of labor for Europeans which increased in the late 1600's. In the lower South 2/3 of the region were slaves and African heritage was still preserved. In the upper South culture was harder to preserve, slaves were treated better, and slavery replaced indentured servitude. Northern slavery was not as vital because Northerners generally disliked slavery. -
Colonial Economies
England profited from colonial trade by making money from taxes. Resources, industries, and hard work were the foundation of colonial economies. New England had forest and coastlines which led to fishing, forestry, and shipbuilding being important to their economy. Middle colonies had good soil and ports, so farming and business centers were important to their economy. Southern colonies had good soil and a humid climate. Therefore, cash crops was what its economy was known for. -
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Colonial America
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The Enlightenment
The Enlightenment was a intellectual movement based on rationalism and natural law in Europe. It also followed and added on to the ideas of the Scientific Revolution. The Enlightenment and Scientific Revolution opened up a path for independent thought, mathematics, philosophy, medicine, etc. A vast amount of knowledge was emerging. The Enlightenment was a time when people started thinking and making decisions with their mind. Philosophers started using reason to seek truths about human nature. -
Triangular Trade
The Triangular Trade was a triangular shaped trading route between the Americas, Africa, and Europe. They traded manufactured goods, slaves, and cash crops. Europe imported sugar, slaves, and cloth while they exported pots, rum, silver, copper, and weapons. Africa imported weapons, cloth, and metal while they exported slaves. The Americas imported industrial equipment, slaves, and pots while they exported crops like tobacco. There was such a large amount of slaves due to industrial revolution. -
Great Awakening
The Great Awakening was a religious movement that swept through Europe and the colonies during the mid 70's. It was the reaction to the Enlightenment. The Awakening led to Americans seeking out their beliefs while sharing common values with others.The Great Awakening focused on human decisions made based off of religion and morality. People respected each other's feelings and emotions. John Edwards was credited in starting this Awakening and George Whitfield was an emotional speaker in this era. -
French and Indian War/ 7 Years War
The French and Indian War was fought between England and France for control over the Ohio River Valley and Canada. The British wanted to settle in the Ohio River Valley to trade with the Native Americans so the French built forts in order to protect their trade with the Indians. Britain then declared war on France for the control over the valley. Britain sent more soldiers to America which helped defeat the French. In 1763, Britain and France ended the war by signing the Treaty of Paris 1763. -
Virtual Representation
Virtual Representation was the idea that every member of Parliament represented all British subjects, even Americans who had never voted for a member of the London Parliament. Virtual Salutary neglect refers to the British policy of avoiding strict law enforcement. Britain stepped back and let the colonies be free with little or no restrictions. Salutary neglect left colonies to themselves which led them to developing their own regional economies. -
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Revolutionary War
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Acts of Parliament
The Acts of Parliament consist of the Sugar Act, Stamp Act, Quartering Act, Declaratory Act, Townshend Act, Tea Act, and Intolerable Acts. The Sugar Act taxed the import of sugar, molasses, and other goods. The Stamp Act required colonists to pay a tax on paper. The Quartering Act made colonists house British troops and provide them with their needs. The Declaratory Act declared Parliament's right to make laws for the colonies. The Tea Act required colonist to buy tea from one company. -
Boston Massacre
The British soldiers were in Boston to enforce the Townshend Acts. The message behind the Townshend Acts was that England had the right to tax the colonies. The massacre started as a brawl between the soldiers and colonists. The colonists were taunting and throwing rocks and snowballs at the soldiers, this led to the soldiers firing and killing 5 colonists. After the massacre the tax on paper, lead, and paint was repealed but not the one on tea because it preserved the right to tax the colonies. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was when a group of around 70 men dressed up as Indians boarded three British ships in the Boston Harbor and threw their tea cargo in the ocean. The reason as to why the drunk Bostonians did this was because they didn't like the Tea Act of 1773. Even though the Tea Act lowered the cost of tea in America the colonists still didn't want to pay taxes for tea. The result of the Boston Tea Party was that Parliament passed the Intolerable Acts which shut down the Boston harbor. -
Battles
The Battle of Lexington and Concord was considered the first battle of the Revolutionary War, there was no victor but colonists seemed to have more of a lead which made the British retreat. This battle turned the conflict into an open war. The Battle of Bunker Hill was the first real battle of the war, the British won. The Battle of Saratoga is known as the turning point of the war because it convinced the French to help the colonial cause. The Battle of Yorktown ended the war, the colonies won. -
Olive Branch Petition
The Second Continental Congress sent the Olive Branch Petition to King George III. The petition was requesting to settle their differences peacefully without having to go to war. However, the King rejects the petition because he believes that the colonies were being rebellious. Since King George III thought the colonies were rebellious he issued more rules as punishments. After rejecting the petition the King enforced the Prohibitory Act, this made the colonists want freedom even more. -
The Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence is a document that declared independence from Britain and started the formation of a new country, The United States. John Adams asked Thomas Jefferson to write the Declaration of Independence. The Second Continental Congress edited and adopted the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration of Independence was completed on July 2nd, but signed on the July 4th. -
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The Constitution
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Massachusetts Constitution
The Massachusetts Constitution was a less democratic state constitution that had a clear separation of powers among the various branches of government. The directly elected governor could veto acts of the legislature and judges served for life. The Massachusetts state constitution was different from most of the other state constitutions because most of the other state constitutions made the legislature supreme while Massachusetts divided the power among the three branches of government. -
Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation was the nation's first constitution, it was adopted by the Second Continental Congress during the Revolution. It was written because the colonies knew they needed some type of official government that united the thirteen colonies, they wanted to have written down rules that all states agreed to. The Articles were weak because it gave the government no power to raise money through taxes and the state governments had more power than the federal government. -
Problems with the British
The British were still in the Ohio Valley, therefore they did not live up to the terms of the Treaty of Paris 1783. Their debts remained unpaid and the British still kept their forts. The Native Americans were not being represented in the Treaty of Paris 1783 which is why the Native Americans and Americans continued to fight. The Spanish denied access to Mississippi River and they did not trade with the United States. -
Treaty of Paris 1783
The countries involved in the treaty were the United States and Britain. The reason for this treaty was for the United States to gain independence from Britain, become its own country, and have its own government. The Treaty of Paris 1783 also establishes the northern border with British North America/Canada and both nations will still have access to the Mississippi River. The United States also agreed to return all rights and property taken from the loyalists and to pay back debts to Britain. -
Shay's Rebellion
Shay's Rebellion was a revolt by farmers to protest the high taxes led by Daniel Shay. It all started when the Massachusetts government decided to raise taxes to pay off its debt. The taxes fell heavily on farmers, many farmers found it impossible to pay taxes and their mortgages. In result of the high taxes the farmers rebelled by closing down county courthouses. They also went to the state arsenal intending to seize weapons. This rebellion proved how weak the Articles of Confederation were. -
American Virtue
American Virtue celebrated the ideals of Republicanism. Republican ideals spread such as their unique styles in architecture and furniture. The British style ended up dying out and the Greek style was coming in. American Virtue involved everyday citizens. Childhood education was beginning to arise during American Virtue. People started education the citizens. This eventually lead to the Enlightenment where education became more important than religion. -
Constitutional Convention
The Constitutional Convention also known as the Philadelphia Convention begun in May of 1787, it was the meeting of delegates to revise the Articles of Confederation which led to the production of the United States Constitution. All states sent delegates except Rhode Island, 7 out of the 13 states had to be present for a meeting. They all agreed to abandon the Articles of Confederation. Two plans were introduces, the New Jersey Plan and the Virginia Plan. The New Jersey Plan was rejected. -
Northwest Ordinance
The Northwest Ordinance was a law that described how the Northwest Territory was to be governed. It settled the rules in which territories would be settled and the procedures in which territories would become states. Originally, people in a territory had little political rights so government officials would be appointed. As the population grew people would be allowed to elect their local legislature. Once it grew even more then they could apply to become a state. -
Election of 1788
The Election of 1788 was the very first presidential election under the Constitution. George Washington received one vote from each of the electors and was elected unanimously. However, North Carolina and Maryland did not cast votes because they had not yet ratified the Constitution. George Washington ended up winning the election and his Vice President was John Adams. George Washington was seen as a god-like figure and he was mainly everyone's choice for president. -
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New Republic
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Whiskey Rebellion
The Whiskey Rebellion was one of the first serious challenges to Washington's authority as a president. The rebellion was the immediate result of the resentment felt by western farmers to a federal tax on whiskey. The tax on whiskey affected western farmers the most because western farmers raised more grain than they could eat and transformed their surplus into product that was easier to transport over long distances. The western farmers believed that the tax was an attack on their livelihood. -
Bank of the United States
The First Bank of the United States was chartered by the United States Congress after being proposed by Alexander Hamilton, the secretary of the treasury. The purpose of the bank was to handle the financial requirements and needs of the new central government and the newly formed United States. This was very significant because the colonies each had their own banks, currencies, and financial institutions. -
Bill of Rights
The first 10 amendments to the Constitution make up the Bill of Rights which were written by James Madison. They were added to the Constitution because people were afraid that the new government did not protect the rights of people. The amendments in order are freedom of speech, right to bear arms, no quartering of troops, no unlawful search and seizure, right against self-incrimination, right to a speedy trial, trial by jury, no excessive bail, rights reserved for the people, and state power. -
Election of 1796
In the Election of 1796 George Washington decided not to run for a third term. The Federalist party candidates were John Adams and Thomas Pinckney and the Democratic Republican candidates were Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr. John Adams won the presidency and the second place candidate, Thomas Jefferson, was Vice President. Washington gave his farewell address stated that two terms was it for him, that he didn't want "permanent" alliances, and that he wanted to avoid United States conflicts. -
Adam's Presidency
John Adams' vice president was Thomas Jefferson. Under John Adams, Congress was controlled by the Federalists. During John Adams' presidency he passed the Alien and Sedition Acts. The Alien Act was that the president could deport or imprison immigrants considered dangerous to the United States. The Sedition Act was when someone would write, publish, or say anything against the Congress or the President will be fined or imprisoned. -
Kentucky Resolutions
The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions were political statements in which the the Kentucky and Virginia legislatures took the position that the Alien and Sedition Acts were unconstitutional. The Resolutions argued that the states had the right to declare any acts of the Congress that were not authorized by the Constitution unconstitutional. This was the foundation of states' rights and it was the idea of Jefferson. -
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Age of Jefferson
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Hamilton vs. Burr
The Hamilton vs. Burr Duel began when they started to insult each other in public. Hamilton accuses Burr of plotting treason. Burr lost New York election, so he blames Hamilton. This all led to Burr challenging Hamilton. At the duel, Hamilton fires first and misses on purpose because he knows it would make Burr look bad if he kills him. Burr shoots Hamilton in the lower abdomen above the right hip. Hamilton will die on the next day after the duel. Burr will go on and be charged for treason. -
Technological benefits of War of 1812
The technological benefits of the War of 1812 include the cotton gin, fire arms, steam engines, and mass productions. War embargo cause innovation, this is where firearms, steam engines, agriculture, and mass production originate. Another major technological uprising was the cotton gin. The cotton gin was invented by Eli Whitney, it easily removed seeds from cotton which made it easier to produce and sell cotton. The cotton gin revolutionized cotton agriculture and it made slavery come back. -
War of 1812
The president the the War of 1812 was James Madison. The causes of the War of 1812 were American's resentment of Britain, American "War Hawks" wanting to annex Florida and Canada, American belief that British were arming Native Americans and inciting them to riot, and Britain's seizure of American ships and impressment of sailors. The results of the War of 1812 were that it inspired nationalism, it ended the Federalist party, and made Andrew Jackson a hero after the Battle of New Orleans. -
Changes in Transportation
The Changes in Transportation were the inventions of steamboats, modern roads, canals, and railroads. Canals were artificial waterways that linked unconnected rivers, lakes, and ports. They also linked farms in the Midwest to markets in the East, leading to tremendous growth in agriculture. Railroads provided the most dramatic transportation growth. Steamboats revolutionized water travel, they shortened a trip up the Mississippi from New Orleans to Louisville from months to days. -
Changes in Communication
New communication devices were being created that allowed messages to be sent from manufacturers, resource suppliers, distributors. and even the general population faster. New form of communication such as printing, and the invention of the telegraph that allowed news to travel quicker. The telegraph was different than than any other form of communication at the time because it allowed immediate response. -
Slavery
Slavery was economically failing out in the South. The cotton gin made that completely turn around. The cotton gin allowed more cotton to be processed, which allowed from clothing. This brought slavery back up because they needed more slaves for more crops. Although the South states were slave states there was some free black communities in the South. The Southern free black communities were under more scrutiny, but it gave them better economic opportunity. -
Changes in Agriculture
Changes in Agriculture were inventions such as the iron plow, crank churns, and the cotton gin. Agricultural machinery changed farming by needing less farm workers, many went to cities to find work, increased population in cities created demand for more food. However, the cotton gin increased slavery. The only reason as to why it increased slavery was because cotton was a cash crop. The cotton gin made it easier to produce cotton but slaves were still needed. -
Southern Society
The Southern Society had classes built within it. The classes from top to bottom are planters, yeoman farmers, tenant farmers, and slaves. Planters usually only had around 1-9 slaves, but most planters didn't even own slaves. 75% of yeoman farmers didn't own slaves and they formed militias to catch runaway slaves. Tenant farmers had fraternalism with slaves but planters encouraged them that even though they were at the bottom of the class that they still were above slaves because they're white. -
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American Industrial Revolution
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Panic of 1819
The Panic of 1819 was the first major financial crisis in the United States. It featured widespread foreclosures, bank failures, unemployment, and a slump in agriculture and manufacturing. It marked the end of the economic expansion that had followed the War of 1812. The economic disaster was largely the fault of the Second Bank of the United States, which had tightened credit in an effort to control inflation. The depression was the most severe in the West. -
McCulloch vs. Maryland
Maryland Levied a tax on all banks not chartered in the State, the United States Bank is the only bank this applies to. McCulloch refused to pay the tax so the Maryland court convicted McCulloch. After McCulloch was convicted, the United States appealed to the United States Supreme Court and the case was decided on 1819. The Supreme Court favored McCulloch and the United States government. This led the South to more radical views of State’s Rights. -
Temperance Movement
The Temperance Movement was a reform movement that begun in the 1800's. It fought to ban alcohol in the United States. This movement led to the passage of the 18th Amendment in 1920. The 18th Amendment banned the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol. The 18th amendment lasted 14 years. Society believed that family violence, crime, and poverty were all results of alcohol abuse. The American Temperance Society and the American Union Society helped spread the word to stop hard drinking. -
Growing Cities
The cities started to grow due to many reasons such as work opportunities, and immigration. Many people began to flock the cities. Urban growth brought the first slums, the first working-class neighborhood, multiple family dwellings, and segregated neighborhoods. Cities were small in the 1800's, but by 1850 the cities were sprawling metropolises. Mass transportation helped a lot with this trend. Another source of the grand population boom is immigration and migration. -
Revivalism
Charles G. Finney was the most famous preacher of the era. He inspired emotional religious faith, held revivals in 1820s-30s.
His listeners shrieked, moaned, and fainted. He also led the Second Great Awakening. The Second Great Awakening was a 19th century religious movement in which individual responsibility for seeking salvation was emphasized along with the need for personal and social improvement. Revivalism was a religious gathering designed to reawaken faith through impassioned preaching. -
Greek Revival
Greek Revival first appeared with public buildings in Philadelphia in 1820. From 1830 to 1850 the style soon became popular for residences, new public or private buildings. -
Second Great Awakening
The Second Great Awakening was a Christian renewal movement that swept through the United States. Charles Finney was one of the most important leaders of this movement. It caused a new interest in religion to spread and it renewed religious faith throughout America. Finney taught new converts to prove their faith by good deeds. Renewed religious faith often led to involvement in movements to reform alcohol abuse. Social reformers tackled prison, education, and slavery reform. -
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Cultural Changes
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Missouri Crisis
When Missouri applied to enter the union as a slave state, the slave to free state ratio unbalanced. Congress proposed an emancipation of slaves in Missouri, but they rejected the proposal. As a result, the Southerners in the Senate used their power to withhold statehood for Maine. This led to the creation of the Missouri Compromise which set up a balance between slave and free states. The drew and imaginary line at 36 30 latitude, states above line were free and states below line line were not. -
Monroe Doctrine
The Monroe Doctrine was a policy stated by President Monroe that stated that the United States opposed further European colonization of and interference with independent nations in the Western Hemisphere. The Monroe Doctrine was created because the United States and Britain were concerned over the possibility of European colonial expansion in the Americas. The Monroe Doctrine is important because it was a foreign policy statement that created American influences. -
Election of 1824
In the Election of 1824 Henry Clay, Andrew Jackson, John Quincy Adams, and William Crawford ran for the election. Andrew Jackson ended up winning the most popular votes, but not the electoral college. The election went to the House despite the fact that Andrew Jackson won the most popular votes, where Henry Clay, who received the least amount of popular votes, used his iinfluence to secure votes for John Quincy Adams. -
Age of the Common Man
The Age of the Common Man was a term for Jackson's presidency. He felt that the government should be ran by the common people, a democracy based on self-sufficient middle class with ideas formed by liberal education and a free press. All white men could now vote, and the increased voting rights allowed Jackson to be elected. Jackson saw himself as a spokesman of the common people. -
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Age of Jackson
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Presidency of John Q. Adams
John Quincy Adams was a nationalist because he supports the government spending money on roads and canals, and proposed that the government build an astronomical observatory. The Southerners dislike John Q. Adams because the government would need money which would lead to tariffs. The Southerners opposed tariffs because it signifies the government's intervention in state issues and they don't want the government to intervene in slavery. -
Election of 1828
The Election of 1828 was a very mean election involving lots of mudslinging and showed how they would say rude things to win the election. Adams was accused of using taxpayers' money for personal benefit and of offering up an American servant girl to satiate the desires of the Czar of Russia. He was also accused of being a pimp. Jackson was accused of being a gambler, a duelist and a slave trader. He and his wife were also labeled adulterers. They called him a murderer. -
Jackson Administration
The spoils system was a system of public employment based on rewarding party loyalists and friends. The Nullification Crisis was a sectional crisis during the presidency of Andrew Jackson created by South Carolina's 1832 Ordinance of Nullification. It declared that the federal Tariff of 1828 and of 1832 were unconstitutional and South Carolina just wasn't going to follow them. South Carolina didn't want to pay taxes on goods it didn't produce. This led to South Carolina seceding. -
Slavery
The American Colonization Society proposed that slaves be freed gradually and transported to Liberia, a colony founded on 1822 in the west coast of Africa. Immediatism was the practice of gaining a desired end by immediate action, in other words, the immediate end to slavery. The American Anti-American Society wanted the African Americans to be free and have racial equality. They also, wanted to stop the use of slavery and the abuse of slaves living in the United States (mostly the South). -
Millenialism
Much of the religious enthusiasm of the time was based on the widespread belief that the world was about to end with the 2nd coming of Christ. Preacher William Miller gained thousands of followers by predicting a specific date when the second coming would occur. The Church of Latter-Day Saints was founded by Joseph Smith in 1830 tracing a connection between the Native Americans and the lost tribes of Israel. This appealed to farmers, traders, and people who didn't do well in the new economy. -
Election of 1832
In the Election of 1836, Jackson, a strong defender of states' rights won the presidency. Nicholas Biddle operated the Bank of the United States. Many opposed the Bank because it was big and powerful. Jackson tried to destroy the Bank by vetoing a bill to recharter the Bank. He removed the federal government's deposits from the Bank. Biddle tightened up on credit and called in loans, hoping for a retraction by Jackson, which never occurred. A financial recession resulted. -
Election of 1836
Martin van Buren served as secretary of state during Andrew Jackson's first term, VP during Jackson's second term, and president in 1836. In the Election of 1836, the Whigs ran 3 sectional candidates in order to deprive Van Buren of a majority. However, the strategy failed and Van Buren won the election. The Panic of 1837 was the economic downturn. When Jackson was president state banks received government money that had been withdrawn from the Bank of the U.S. -
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Westward Expansion
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Election of 1844
The Election of 1844 candidates were James K. Polk for the democrat party, Henry Clay for the Whig party, and James G. Birney for the Liberty Party. Polk favored expansion, and demanded that Texas and Oregon be added to the US and Clay spoke out against annexation.The third's party impact was that Birney drew enough votes away from Clay to give Polk New York, which led to Polk winning the election. -
Manifest Destiny
Many Americans believed that the United States should expand from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. They did not care who owned the land before them, whether it was the Native Americans or the Mexicans/Spanish. The United States thought that Manifest Destiny meant that they had the God-given right to take the land. Economic reasons motivated Americans the most to expand West. Positive effects of this was that they were able to expand the United States, making it a bigger nation. -
Annexation of Texas
The United States made Texas a state in 1845. Joint resolution - both houses of Congress supported annexation under Tyler, and he signed the bill shortly before leaving office. Texas seceded from Mexico and declared independence in response to Mexican abolition of slavery. The United States annexes Texas because Southern states support Texas slavery. The North feared expansion of slavery and war with Mexico. Mexicans feared that the United States would also take over more Mexican land. -
Immigration
Rural migration and European immigration were the sources of population boom. There was a vast amount of European immigrants coming in for many different reasons. The Irish were coming in because they had a potato famine which left them with no food, leading to them immigrating to the United States. The Germans were immigrating to the U.S. because they had poor harvests and political turmoil. The Scandinavians and the British were immigrating to the U.S. due to better economic opportunities. -
Mexican American War
The Texas revolt was the first conflict in between Mexico and the United States. The Mexican American War was the result of the Texas revolt. The original dispute of the Texas' southern border was the main reason of the war. The war started when Mexican troops fired, and the U.S. troops broke out. The Americans ended up declaring victory in the war. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was a peaceful end to the Mexican American War. -
Wilmot Proviso
The Wilmot Proviso was started and led by David Wilmot in 1846. It was designed to prohibit slavery from spreading to the territory acquired from Mexico after the war, because they wanted to show that slavery was not allowed in the West. The main significance of the Wilmot Proviso is that it wasn't passes. The fact that it wasn't passed, proved that neither side could agree on slavery. The Wilmot Proviso wasn't passed because the South had a bigger representation. -
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was a treaty between Mexico and the United States. It ended the Mexican American war peacefully. In the treaty, Mexico agreed to give up Texas and Mexican Cession. The Mexican Cession gave up California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and parts of Colorado and Wyoming. The U.S. agreed to pay Mexico $15 million and protect the 80,000-100,000 Mexicans living in the Mexican Cession, but the promise was not kept. Senators ratified the treaty by a vote of 38 to 14. -
Election of 1848
The candidates of the election of 1848 were Zachary Taylor and Martin Van Buren. Zachary Taylor was a part of the Whig party and he was very popular because he was the hero of the Mexican war. Taylor was popular in the North because he was a Whig and he was popular in the South because he owned slaves. Van Buren was a part of the Free Soil Party, it made slavery an issue. Zachary Taylor ended up winning the election and became President. He later on died in office and his VP took over. -
Suffrage
The Women's Movement was an organized effort for equal rights for women. The Seneca Falls Convention took place in Seneca Falls, New York in 1848. Women and a few men went on the 2nd day to discuss the rights of women. Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton called the first women's right convention in New York. The Declaration of Sentiments was written and addressed women's concerns, particularly the right to vote. -
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Sectionalism
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California Gold Rush
In 1848, gold was discovered by James Marshal in California. News of the discovery spread rapidly, resulting in many people coming to California. These early gold-seekers, called "forty-niners," traveled to California by sailing boats and in covered wagons across the continent, often facing hardships on the trip. San Francisco grew from a small settlement to a megalopolis. A system of laws and a government was created leading to the admission of California as a state in 1850. -
Compromise of 1850
California wanted to become a part of the Union as a free state so Henry Clay came up with the Compromise of 1850. The results of the Compromise of 1850 were that California would be admitted as a free state and the territories of New Mexico and Utah would be organized under the principle of popular sovereignty and new fugitive slave laws were passed. The fugitive slave laws required all citizens to aid in the capture of runaway slaves and if you didn't you would be fined and imprisoned. -
Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was a system that helped enslaved African Americans follow a network of escape routes out of the South to freedom in the North or Canada. It was not an actual railroad, it was a network of houses and buildings that slaves would pass through. The Underground Railroad was mostly used right before he civil war and was still running during the civil war. Historians believe between 60,000 and 100,000 slaves escaped to freedom using the Underground Railroad. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska, opening new lands for settlement, and had the effect of repealing the Missouri Compromise of 1820 by allowing settlers in those territories to determine through popular sovereignty whether they would allow slavery within each territory. It was meant to organize the territory above the 36, 30 line, and repeal the Missouri Compromise. It also created the Republican party and the fugitive slave law was ignored. -
Bleeding Kansas
Bleeding Kansas was a sequence of violent events involving abolitionists and pro-slavery elements that took place in Kansas territory where new pro-slavery and antislavery constitutions competed.The dispute further strained the relationship of the North and the South, making civil war right around the corner. Bleeding Kansas proved that people were willing to kill other people over the issue of slavery. Over 200 people died when pro-slavery groups fought with abolitionists. -
Dred Scott vs. Sanford
The issue all started with the definition of citizenship. Dred Scott was an enslaved African American. Scott sued for his freedom, arguing that since he had lived in a free state and a free territory, he was a free man. In 1854, a federal court found against Scott, ruling that he was still a slave. The Court ruled that no African American could be a citizen and that the Missouri Compromise of 1820 was unconstitutional. -
John Brown's Raid
In 1859, a group of men attacked Harper's Ferry in Virginia. They planned on seizing weapons to give to slaves so that they can start a rebellion. The group gained control of the arms but were surrounded by General Lee's men. 10 of the men were killed and the leader, John Brown, was captured and tried for treason. He was sentenced to death, he was trialed and hanged. The North viewed him as a martyr and rang the bells for him. The South viewed him as a terrorist and was outraged with the North. -
Women at Work
Clara Barton was the first woman to go onto a battlefield in the United States to nurse the wounded soldiers. She later, set up the American Red Cross. The American Red Cross was a society organized to help the wounded and homeless during wars and such disasters as floods, earthquakes, and hurricanes. In the North, women worked in factories and in the South they took over men's roles in nursing and teaching. Some fought on battlefields, disguised as men. -
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The Civil War
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Fort Sumter
Considered by some to be the first confrontation of the civil war after President Lincoln refused to let the arsenal in the fort fall into confederate hands. His efforts to re-supply the union garrison there led to a bloodless attack by confederate forces. The Battle of Sumter resulted in a Confederate victory, and the beginning of the Civil War. It all started because the South states seceded from the union and they considered themselves independent. -
Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Northern soil. It was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with almost 23,000 casualties. After this "win" for the North, Lincoln announced the Emancipation Proclamation. The Battle of Antietam was fought because Robert E. Lee wanted to carry the war into the Northern states and then George McClellan went to Maryland to stop him. -
Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation declared all salves in confederate territory free. This did not free many slaves because their land was under confederate control so the union had trouble freeing them. This law also said that that northern slaves were not free. Lincoln didn't want to free all slaves because he thought he didn't have the constitutional power to do so. This weakened the south and made the civil war into a war of liberation. -
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg lasted a total of three days. The Battle of Gettysburg was the turning point of the war because it forced General Lee and his army to begin a slow, defensive campaign to retreat to their home country for supplies and a fresh stock of soldiers. It kept the Confederates from reaching the nation's capital. The Union army ended up winning this battle. Abraham Lincoln went to Gettysburg to see the damage of the battle. He later gave a speech, the Gettysburg Address. -
Freedom Amendments
The thirteenth amendment abolished slavery everywhere in 1865, slavery was no longer legal. The fourteenth amendment stated that all people born in the United States are legal citizens. The fifteenth amendment gave the right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be interfered with on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. This was a drastic change to from how slaves were treated before. -
White Resistance
The Ku Klux Klan was a group started by 6 civil war officers, the purpose of the group was to kill and intimidate blacks. The dressed in white sheets so they would look like the ghosts of dead confederate soldiers. Reconstruction was the time right after the Civil War when the north was bringing the southern states back into the Union and were rebuilding the south. The KKK believed they were on a moral crusade to protect decent American values. -
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Reconstruction
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Appomattox Court House
Lee was leading the Confederates and Grant was leading the Union soldiers. After being surrounded by General Grant and his men, General Lee was forced to surrender at Appomattox Court House. General Grant was generous enough to allow Lee and all his men to leave armed with their weapons and horses. The significance of this was that after 4 long years the war was finally over. The Union was saved and the slaves were free. -
Abraham Lincoln Assassination
Shortly after 10 p.m. on April 14, 1865, actor John Wilkes Booth entered the presidential box at Ford's Theatre in Washington D.C., and fatally shot President Abraham Lincoln. As Lincoln slumped forward in his seat, Booth leapt onto the stage and escaped through the back door. A doctor in the audience rushed over to examine the paralyzed president. Lincoln was then carried across the street to Petersen's Boarding House, where he died early the next morning. -
Freedmen's Bureau
Freedmen's Bureau was started by Oliver Otis Howard. Freedmen's Bureau was an experiment in government social policy. Freedmen's Bureau was an experiment in government social policy. Bureau agents were supposed to establish schools, provide aids to the poor and aged, settle disputes between whites and blacks, and secure former slaves. Freedmen's Bureau was taking place mainly in the South. It was created to aid former black slaves and poor whites in South after the Civil War. -
Panic of 1873
The Panic of 1873 was caused by too many railroads and factories being formed than existing markets could bear and the over-loaning by banks to those projects; main causes, over-speculation and too much credit. This was the worst panic that the nation had seen in its history. It happened as this famous banking company failed because it had invested too much money in railroad building. The federal government's response was to print more money. -
Election of 1876
The Election of 1876 was one of the most controversial elections in United States history. Neither candidate reached number of electoral votes to win. Electoral Commission created and chooses Republican Hayes to be President. Republicans make a deal with the Democrats and ended Reconstruction. Congress set up a special commission to resolve the crisis because of the errors that took place in the election. -
Jim Crow
The Jim Crow Laws were laws written to separate blacks and whites in public areas/meant African Americans had unequal opportunities in housing, work, education, and government. Jim Crow laws were state and local laws passed from the end of Reconstruction in 1877 through the mid-1950s by which white southerners reasserted their dominance by denying African Americans basic social, economic, and civil rights, such as the right to vote. -
Compromise of 1877
The Compromise of 1877 was an unwritten informal deal between the republican and democrats of congress to recognize this republican president if the following action took place, removal of all federal troops from southern states, appointment of at least one southern democrat into Hayes administration, construction of a second transcontinental railroad in the south, or if legislation enacted to help industrialize the south. It ended the reconstruction era.
