American Civil War

Question 1

How often did the US population double in the 1800s?

Answer 1

every 25 years

Question 2

Why did food production increase 4-fold (which increased the population) during the 1840s to 1860?

Answer 2

There was new farmable land in the West and new scientific techniques (fertilization, crop rotation, and new machinery)

Question 3

How did urbanization grow during the 1800s?

Answer 3

In 1820, fewer than 1/10 lived in towns. By 1860, 1/5 lived in towns.

Question 4

In the 1830s, Alexis de Tocqueville (a Frenchman) said that the US was more equal than countries in Europe because there was no feudal hierarchy and more opportunities for men to rise in social status. Was the US more equal than countries in Europe?

Answer 4

To an extent. There was no feudal hierarchy in the US, which meant that there was no established aristocracy, no church leaders, and no sovereign. However, Blacks, Native Americans, and women were not equal to society.

Question 5

Why was slavery so important in the South?

Answer 5

The northern climate was not good for plantation agriculture. Furthermore, it was closer to Canada, so slaves could escape easier. Finally, the North was more industrial and urbanized. Slaves worked in factories, but using slaves in factories and caring for them in urban areas was more difficult than in agriculture.

Question 6

When did the North begin to ban slavery?

Answer 6

Northern states began to banish slavery in 1776. Some southern states attempted to ban it as well, but it never kept.

Question 7

Why did slavery endure?

Answer 7

cotton grew well in southern states. So well, that in 1790, 9,000 bales of cotton were produced in the US. By 1830s, the South produced 2 million cottons bales per year. From 1815-1860, cotton represented more than 50% of all US exports

Question 8

What was the cotton gin?

Answer 8

Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin in 1793. This enabled short-fiber cotton to be separated from seeds. This invention is why growing cotton was highly profitable and continued for years

Question 9

what were slaves considered?

Answer 9

Slaves were considered to be 3/5 of a person for representation and taxation purposes

Question 10

What was the Haitian Revolution?

Answer 10

Took place during the 1790s and early 1800s. Slaves won their freedom in a revolt and killed much of the white population in the process. This convinced Southerners that slavery must be maintained for social control.

Question 11

What were the basic codes of slave states?

Answer 11

Slaves cannot leave plantation without authorization; Slaves cannot carry weapons; Slaves can not strike a white person

Question 12

Was slavery less severe in Latin America?

Answer 12

Slaves had more legal protection; governments recognized that slaves were humans too; Roman Catholic Church offered more protection to Slaves than the Protestant church in the US; Slaves could legally marry in Latin America; there was less race consciousness in Latin America (led to more integration between races)

Question 13

How was slavery in Brazil and Cuba?

Answer 13

Amercian slaves had better living conditions; American slaves lived longer and had natural increase (slaves in other countries only grew because of slave importation); slaves were used to the point of exhaustion, sickness, and death in latin American countries; the Catholic church did little to help them; Racism was prominent in Brazil and Cuba

Question 14

What was slave culture like?

Answer 14

Music and dance were used as means of expression, communication, and protest; folktales taught survival skills (wits better than strength); religion was important and thought to have been a mixture of African traditions and Christianity

Question 15

What was slave culture like?

Answer 15

Music and dance were used as means of expression, communication, and protest; folktales taught survival skills (wits better than strength); religion was important and thought to have been a mixture of African traditions and Christianity

Question 16

Why were slave revolts infrequent?

Answer 16

Whites had too much power; slaves were the minority and scattered; slaves were not allowed to own firearms nor congregate in large groups; there was a curfew system and white patrols

Question 17

What did the Democrats believe in the 1800s?

Answer 17

Issues should be decided at state level; they opposed government intervention in $ matters; they thought the US would prosper if their were lower tariffs and expansion West; they were strongest in the South and West; followed President Jackson, who was a supporter of slavery

Question 18

Who were the Whigs?

Answer 18

a political group; they were more likely to favor government intervention in $ and social matters; they advocated for higher tariffs, government-sponsored improvements (railway building), and the abolition of slavery; made up of Northerners

Question 19

What was the Northern Stance on tariffs?

Answer 19

Northerners wanted high tariffs to keep out European manufactured goods; Northern states were becoming more industrialized and wanted to keep business in the country

Question 20

What was the Southern Stance on tariffs?

Answer 20

Southerners did not want high tariffs; they made their money by selling cash crops (cotton, sugar cane, rice, tobacco) to foreign countries; with high tariffs, southerners would lose money

Question 21

What was the Tariff of Abominations?

Answer 21

it was passed in 1828; it greatly increased tariffs; Southerns did not like this law

Question 22

Who was John C. Calhoun?

Answer 22

Calhoun was a powerful politician from SC. He was Vice President for Jackson from 1825-1832; He believed the Tariff of Abominations was unconstitutional and proposed the doctrine of nullification; would resign in 1832 so he could fight for Southern rights in the Senate

Question 23

What was the Doctrine of Nullification?

Answer 23

This allowed any state to nullify any act of the federal government that they deemed unconstitutional; Jackson did not like Calhoun’s doctrine as he believed it to be unconstitutional and could lead to civil war

Question 24

What was nullification to South Carolina?

Answer 24

nullification was a means of limiting the federal government’s potential power over slavery and preventing the North’s economic exploitation