1850s - Sheet1 Flashcards
“The Scarlet Letter”
(1850) A controversial American novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and a transcendentalist watershed. Set in 17th century Puritan Boston, the author explores themes of legalism, sin, and guilt.
Compromise of 1850
Passed after Taylor’s death it included the following provisions: 1)Texas gave up it’s claims to New Mexico, and the United States inherited its debt. 2) California was admitted as a free state. 3) A strong Fugitive Slave Law was passed in the North. 4) New Mexico and Utah were given popular sovereignty to decide if they were a slave or free state. 4) New Mexico and Utah were given popular sovereignty to decide if they were a slave or free state.
Clayton-Bulwer Treaty
An 1850 treaty between the United States and Britain dealing with the creation of a Nicaragua Canal.
Fugitive Slave Act of 1850
A controversial part of the Compromise of 1850, it demanded that all slaves must be returned to their owners.
Harriet Tubman
A conductor of the Underground Railroad and armed scout and spy for the North during the Civil War. In 2016, the U.S. treasury department announced she would replace Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill.
United States presidential election, 1852
Democrat Franklin Pierce defeated Whig Winfield Scott in an electoral landslide. Chief issue was the Compromise of 1850, both candidates swore to adhere to it, though the Democrats were more united, in their support. Both candidates were accused of being abolitionist. Voter turnout was markedly low this election, showing how divided the North and South had become.
Bridge Gulch Massacre
1852- More than 150 Wintu people were killed by a Californian local militia force. Genocidal acts were common during this time, state law prevented non-whites from testifying against whites.
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
An 1852 anti-slavery novel by Harriet Beatrice Stowe which stoked abolitionist flames. Uncle Tom is a long-suffering black slave. The sentimental novel depicts the reality of slavery while also asserting that Christian love can overcome something as destructive as enslavement of fellow human beings. Uncle Tom’s Cabin was the best-selling novel of the 19th century. The book and the plays it inspired helped popularize a number of stereotypes about black people. These include the affectionate, dark-skinned “mammy”; the “pickaninny” stereotype of black children; and the “Uncle Tom.”
Norwalk rail accident
(1853) First major U.S. railroad bridge disaster.
Koszta Affair
(1853) A diplomatic episode between the U.S. and the Austrian empire, involving the rights of naturalized citizens abroad.
Joaquin Murrieta
An infamous Mexican bandit who robbed from American settlers during the California Gold Rush.
William Walker
An American adventurist who lead several expeditions into Latin America and seized control of Nicaragua for a year (1856-57).
Massachusetts Constitutional Convention of 1853
A meeting assembled in order to discuss inequalities in the representation system. All their daring changes were defeated in narrow votes, due to the supposed radicalism of appointing judges to serve for 10 years instead of for life.
Erie Gauge War
A 1853 conflict between the citizens of Erie, Pennsylvania and two railroad companies.
Cincinnati riot of 1853
An anti-Catholic riot triggered by the arrival of Cardinal Gaetano Bedini.
Gadsden Purchase
Land purchased under President Pierce from Mexico in 1853, mostly for the purpose of railroad expansion.
Yontoket Massacre
1853 California. Another example of anti-Native violence, 450 Tolowa indians were killed while praying.
Kansas-Nebraska Act
(1854) Created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska and gave popular sovereignty to those states to decide if they would be free or slave, nullifying the Missouri Compromise, sparking Bleeding Kansas. The initial purpose of the Kansas–Nebraska Act was to open up many thousands of new farms and make feasible a Midwestern Transcontinental Railroad.
Jicarilla War
A war fought between Apaches and the U.S. military in New Mexico, from 1849-1855, began with a widely publicized murder of a wagon of settlers referred to as the White Massacre. The Americans were more prejudiced and aggressive to the Natives than the Spanish were, spurring the war. The Utes fought with the Apaches, spending much time evading the military rather than battling.
Convention of Kanagawa
Signed by Matthew C. Perry and the Tokugawa Shogunate under threat of force in 1854, it effectively meant the end of Japan’s 220-year-old policy of national seclusion (sakoku), by opening the ports of Shimoda and Hakodate to American vessels.
