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Missouri Compromise
-Agreement from Henry Clay that allowed Missouri to enter the Union as a slave state and Maine to enter the Union as a free state.
-Divided the new Louisiana Territory into two areas, one north and one south. All territory north of this line was free territory.
-Any territories that became states from this area would enable African-Americans to be free.
-Encouraged people in the north to return runaway slaves to their homes. -
Monroe Doctrine
-Proclamation by President James Monroe that warned European nations not to get involved in political matters in Central and South America.
-Intended to show that the United States was the only country that could influence such political matters.
-Several countries in South American had recently had revolutions against their European colonial owners and became republican governments.
-US wanted to protect these newly free nations -
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Battle of the Alamo
-People of Texas had declared themselves independent from Mexico.
-Alamo was a church that Texians occupied
-Mexican army attacked, led by General Santa Anna
-Texians outnumbered 20 to 1
-Huge Mexican victory, regained territory -
Panic of 1837
-First Depression in America
-Bankruptcies, foreclosures, unemployment
-Country lost faith in President Martin van Buren
-Recession continued for 7 years
-System of State banks never fully recovered -
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Trail of Tears
-Result of 1830 Indian Removal Act
-1000 mile route that indians were forced to travel, from their homelands in the Southeastern United States to reservations in present day Oklahoma
-Tribes consisted of Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Seminole and Chickasaw indians
-People died from the cold, malnutrition, starvation, and disease
-Trail took six months
-One of the harshest attempts to remove natives -
Sutter's Fort
-Agricultural and trade colony in the Mexican Alta California Province
-First non-Indigenous community in the California Central Valley
-Only stopping place for settlers in its area
-Eventually became Sacramento -
Pre-Emption Act
-Grants settlers the right to purchase at $1.25 per acre 160 acres of public land which they have cultivated for at least 12 months
-Offered squatters protection against speculators who purchase lands they have already improved -
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US- Mexican War
-Took place in Texas, New Mexico, California and Central, Northern and Eastern Mexico
-Caused by border disputes and goal of expansion
-Ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
-Mexico ceded Upper California and New Mexico to the United States that covered 525,000 square miles for $15,000,000
-Mexico waived all claims to Texas and recognized the Rio Grande as America’s southern boundary
-Increased popularity of belief in the Manifest Destiny -
Bear Flag Revolt
-Launched by American settlers known as the Bear Flaggers against Mexico in the Mexican territory of Alta California
-California was declared a Republic; lasted a month due to the California Annexation by the United States
-The Bear Flag was the original emblem of the California Republic
-Paved the way for the United States to seize control of the Pacific Coast -
Compromise of 1850
-Attempt to smooth out disputes between the slave states of the South and the free states of the North regarding the status of new territories
-Seen as favoring the south
-Popular Sovereignty in the Compromise of 1850 led to a demand for a similar provision for the Kansas Territory, caused 1854 Kansas-Nebraska Act which caused the event known as Bleeding Kansas -
Fugitive Slave Law
-Law passed as part of the Compromise of 1850
-Demanded stricter punishment for runaway slaves and those that helped them
-US enforced the law by arresting or returning runaway slaves
-Led to the formation of slave patrols -
Gadsden Purchase
-Agreement to buy a strip of land in the present day southern United States area in order to build a railroad to the Gulf of California
-James Gadsden was the U.S. Minister to Mexico
-He agreed to pay Mexico $10 million for 45,535 square miles of territory
-Continued westward expansion and gave the US possesion of Mesilla Valley
-Southerners approved, northerners did not
-Established the southern border of the present-day United States
-Further encouraged Manifest Destiny -
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Bleeding Kansas
-Series of violent confrontations in Kansas, and the neighboring border towns of Missouri, following the passing of the 1854 Kansas-Nebraska Act
-Involved conflicts between Anti-slavery and Pro-slavery militant activists
-Led to the road to the Civil War -
Dred Scott Decision
-Slave named Sam Scott traveled with owner into a free state and then claimed to be a free man
-Owner refused so Scott sued him
-A federal court ruled that Scott was a citizen, Supreme Court didn't
-Chief Justice Roger Taney said that African-Americans could never become United States citizens and that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional
-Anti-slavery supporters in the North were furious
-One of the causes of the Civil War -
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Harper's Ferry
-John Brown led a group of 21 armed men to seize weapons and ammunition from a federal armory at Harpers Ferry
-Intended to arm slaves
-John Brown was captured by U.S. marines and was tried and found guilty of murder, treason, and inciting a slave insurrection. He was hung on December 2, 1859
-Significant cause of the Civil War
-Southerners began fearing the election of Lincoln and started contemplating secession -
South Carolina Secedes
-The South Carolina convention met in Institute Hall in Charleston, SC on December 17, 1860. Three days later the convention declared their secession after an unanimous 169 to 0 vote.
-Seceded due to Lincoln becoming president, they didn't want to give up owning slaves
-Caused six other states to secede
-Entered the confederacy on February 8, 1861 and was readmitted to the Union on July 9, 1868
-Major cause of the Civil War -
Mississippi Secedes
-Mississippi is the second state to secede
-Entered the confederacy on February 8, 1861 and was readmitted to the Union on February 23, 1870 -
Florida Secedes
-Florida is the third state to secede.
-Entered the confederacy on February 8, 1861 and was readmitted to the Union on June 25, 1868 -
Alabama Secedes
-Alabama is the fourth state to secede
-Entered the confederacy on February 8, 1861 and was readmitted to the Union on July 13, 1868 -
Georgia Secedes
-Georgia is the fifth state to secede
-Entered the confederacy on February 8, 1861 and was readmitted to the Union on July 15, 1870 -
Louisiana Secedes
-Louisiana is the sixth state to secede
-Entered the confederacy on February 8, 1861 and was readmitted to the Union on July 9, 1868 -
Texas Secedes
-Texas is the seventh state to secede
-Entered the confederacy on March 11, 1861 and was readmitted to the Union on March 30, 1870 -
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Civil War
-Fought from to determine the survival of the Union or independence for the Confederacy
-United States wanted to abolish slavery and reunite the states
-Caused the Reconstruction Era, the period in when the Southern States were occupied by Federal troops as the state governments, their economies and the infrastructures were rebuilt
-600,000 died as a result from the war
-End of the Civil War begins with the surrender of General Robert E. Lee to Union forces at Appomattox -
Virginia Secedes
-Virginia is the eighth state to secede
-Entered the confederacy on April 17, 1861 and was readmitted to the Union on January 26, 1870 -
Arkansas Secedes
-Arkansas is the ninth state to secede
-Entered the confederacy on May 6, 1861 and was readmitted to the Union on June 22, 1868 -
North Carolina Secedes
-North Carolina was the tenth state to secede
-Entered the confederacy on May 20, 1861 and was readmitted to the Union on July 4, 1868 -
Tennessee Secedes
-Tennessee was the eleventh and final state to secede
-Entered the confederacy on June 8, 1861 and was readmitted to the Union on July 24, 1866 -
Emancipation Proclamation
-Technical document issued by Lincoln that granted freedom to all slaves in all areas of the Confederacy still in rebellion
-Allowed for the popular use of African-Americans in the Union Army and Navy -
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Gettysburg
-The Battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania was fought by the Union Army of the Potomac led by General George Gordon Meade and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia led by General Robert E. Lee
-Fought between 94,000 Union soldiers and 72,000 Confederate troops
-Victory for the Union
-Largest number of casualties in the Civil War
-Considered to be the turning point of the Civil War -
Gettysburg Address
-2 minute speech given by President Lincoln in Gettysburg to dedicate the Soldiers' National Cemetery
-Stressed equality -
13th Amendment
-The 13th Amendment is about the Abolishment of Slavery and is also called the Slavery Amendment
-Wanted to make all forms of slavery illegal -
14th Amendment
-The 14th Amendment is about Citizenship Rights and is also called the Citizenship Clause or the Liberty Clause
-Stated that every person born in the US is a citizen -
15th Amendment
-About Race No Bar to Vote
-Stated that a citizen's right to vote cannot be taken away because of race, the color of their skin, or because they were previously slaves
-Intended to ensure the voting rights of of black male citizens and to nullify the Dred Scott decision