Period 4

Question 1

Embargo Act

Answer 1

Act put into law by Thomas Jefferson in 1807 that was the lowpoint of his presidency. Outlawed the sailing of American ships to foreign ports. This law was intended to protect American ships from the impressment of foreign forces, but ended up simply decimating the economies of port cities and reminded many Americans of the British Navigation Acts.

Question 2

War of 1812

Answer 2

A war between the U.S. 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. Enhanced nationalism of Americans.

Question 3

Hartford Convention

Answer 3

Meeting of Federalists near the end of the War of 1812 in which the party listed it’s complaints against the ruling Republican Party. These actions were largely viewed as traitorous to the country and lost the Federalist much influence

Question 4

Market Revolution

Answer 4

Connected small farmers and traders to larger markets through the use of newly developed infrastructure. For example, the development of the Illinois Central Railroad shaped Chicago as a train-city and helped open areas of Illinois to commercial farming. Also shaped the way we work and labor today; affecting how we work for a wage and “around a clock”

Question 5

Steamboats

Answer 5

Boats that could easily paddle upstream, became vital part of America’s transportation system. Robert Fulton sailed his steamboat, the Clermont, up the Hudson River.

Question 6

Toll roads

Answer 6

created on highways built by private companies to generate profit but were heavily avoided by Americans. Before 1830 they were owned by corporations chartered by state governments. Enforced state power.

Question 7

Erie Canal

Answer 7

A 363 mile canal that connected the Great Lakes region to New York City; creating a dominant port of the city. Brought about the creation of new towns along the waterway (Buffalo, Rochester) Inspired the building of many other canals across the US and sparked an interest in major waterway transportation.

Question 8

Telegraph

Answer 8

An apparatus that used electric signals to transmit a message via a wire; use of Morse Code (a series of dots and dashes representing letters of the alphabet). Allowed people to communicate ideas and the price of goods across the country.

Question 9

Railroads

Answer 9

Connected the Western frontier to the other cities in the US; influenced trade, and stimulated the mining of coal for fuel and manufacturing of iron for materials to build trains.

Question 10

Adams-Onis Treaty

Answer 10

remainder of Florida sold by Spain to US, boundary of Mexico defined

Question 11

Southern Cities

Answer 11

developed as plantation-style layouts that are spread out instead of crunched together due to late colonization once transportation was made easier.

Question 12

Northern Cities

Answer 12

Created in resemblance to European cities; small, crowded streets with apartment buildings and narrow walkways.

Question 13

Cotton Kingdom

Answer 13

Nickname given to the American South after Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin allowed it to produce massive amounts of cotton (and become wholly reliant on slave labor)

Question 14

Factory System

Answer 14

Intensification of all of the processes of production at a single site during the Industrial Revolution; involved greater organization of labor and increased discipline. Introduced the idea of “wages” and “working around the clock”

Question 15

Samuel Slater

Answer 15

Immigrant who brought knowledge from Britain’s textile industry to the US
Opens first American factory in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.

Question 16

Steel Plow

Answer 16

invented by John Deere during the Industrial Revolution making it easier for farmers to till the land

Question 17

Mill Girls

Answer 17

Unmarried women from New England cities who went to work in mills where they lived in boarding houses and were supervised very closely. Families were reluctant to allow their girls to leave for the first time into stranger’s supervision, so much leisure time spent at these houses was centered around faith and God, and there were strict behavioral rules. Many of them left to get married and were soon widely replaced by immigrants (mostly Irish). Still, leaving to work in the mill gave women a sense of independence and allowed them to notice their responsibilities outside the home.

Question 18

Irish Immigration

Answer 18

Caused largely by the potato famine in Ireland. Irish immigrants came and received much discrimination due to their Catholic faith as well as exploitation in factories due to their limited skills. Archbishop John Hughes urges them to maintain their identity, which leads to the development of Catholic schools.

Question 19

German Immigration

Answer 19

Germans came America and were seen as mostly skilled craftsmen and settled in tightly knit communities (German triangle of St. Louis, Milwaukee, and Cincinnati) Vibrant German culture emerges in America (Kleindeutschland in NYC)

Question 20

Nativism

Answer 20

Inspired in part by the rapid influx of immigrants, Americans began to feel close ties to their country, therefore displaying xenophobic traits towards foreigners who entered.

Question 21

Dartmouth College v. Woodward

Answer 21

1819 New Hampshire had attempted to take over Dartmouth College by revising its colonial charter. The Court ruled that the charter was protected under the contract clause of the U. S. Constitution; upholds the sanctity of contracts.

Question 22

Gibbons v. Ogden

Answer 22

Supreme Court case that stated how regulating interstate commerce is a power reserved to the federal government

Question 23

Commonwealth v. Hunt

Answer 23

1842 Landmark ruling of the Massachusetts supreme court establishing the legality of labor unions.

Question 24

Transcendentalism

Answer 24

A philosophical and literary movement of the 1800s which emphasized living a simple life while celebrating the truth in nature, emotion, and imagination. (Think Thoreau and Emerson). Believed freedom was not a set of defined rights or privileges, but rather an open-ended process of self realization

Question 25

Henry Thoreau

Answer 25

Heavily influential transcendentalist who critiques American market society in his novel Walden, where he declares that the economic drive of America leads to moral tyranny and inability to appreciate the true beauty of nature.

Question 26

Second Great Awakening

Answer 26

A series of religious revivals starting in 1801, based on Methodism and Baptism. Stressed a religious philosophy of salvation through good deeds and tolerance for all Protestant sects. The revivals attracted women, Blacks, and Native Americans.
The movement was started to counter Enlightenment rationalism and the separation of church and state

Question 27

Alexis de Tocqueville

Answer 27

French liberal politician who observed the evolution of American political thought, customs and social interaction in the 1830’s. His book Democracy in America is still considered one the most accurate primary sources on American culture.

Question 28

Cult of Domesticity

Answer 28

the ideal woman was seen as a tender, self-sacrificing caregiver who provided a nest for her children and a peaceful refuge for her husband, social customs that restricted women to caring for the house. Creates field for domestic servants as middle class women have more leisure time due to creation of time-saving technologies that lessened their workloads.
The movement was started to counter women working in factories and outside of the home

Question 29

Mechanical reaper

Answer 29

Invented by Cyrus McCormick
A horse-drawn machine that greatly increased the amount of wheat a farmer could harvest. It led to more large-scale farming, mostly in the West/ Old Northwest

Question 30

Camp Meetings

Answer 30

a tool of the Second Great Awakening where people would gather to hear hellfire speeches

Question 31

Manufacturing

Answer 31

-Large scale manufacture of standardized products with interchangeable parts in order to reduce manufacturing cost

Question 32

American Dictionary

Answer 32

Written by Noah Webster, included “American” spellings and even new words, meant to separate America from England more

Question 33

American System

Answer 33

Economic program advanced by Henry Clay that included support for a national bank, high tariffs, and internal improvements; emphasized strong role for federal government in the economy.

Question 34

McCulloch v. Maryland

Answer 34

Maryland was trying to tax the national bank and Supreme Court ruled that federal law was stronger than the state law

Question 35

Marbury v. Madison

Answer 35

establishes the right to Judicial Review by the Supreme Court; right to declare laws unconstitutional.

Question 36

Monroe Doctrine

Answer 36

A declaration by the President in 1823 that warned European powers to keep out of the Western Hemisphere and pledged that the United States would not intervene in the internal affairs of Europe.

Question 37

John Quincy Adams

Answer 37

Son of John Adams. Expansionist who authored the Monroe Doctrine on the grounds that the entire North America should be the US’s to claim (manifest destiny). Electoral opponent of Jackson that was made fun of for his intellectual ability compared to Jackson’s “rough and tough” posterior. He worked very hard on internal improvements, such as a naval academy and astronomical observatory through funds gained by steep tariffs.

Question 38

Election of 1828

Answer 38

The Election year that began the “Age of Jackson” where it was encouraged for men of all standings to participate in political affairs. Jackson ran his campaign around the idea of a “common man” party.
The election also included many personal attacks on both sides, such as Adam’s supporters saying Jackson’s wife was an adulterer

Question 39

Age of Jackson

Answer 39

period marked by the belief that ordinary people should vote in elections, hold office, and do anything they had the ability to do

Question 40

Whigs

Answer 40

A party that emerged that largely represented many of the interests of the old Federalist party. Andrew Jackson initiated its creation.

Question 41

Missouri Compromise

Answer 41

“Compromise of 1820” over the issue of slavery in Missouri. It was decided Missouri entered as a slave state and Maine entered as a free state and all states North of the 36th parallel were free states and all South were slave states.

Question 42

Tariff of Abominations

Answer 42

1828 - Also called Tariff of 1828, it raised the tariff on imported manufactured goods. The tariff protected the North but harmed the South; South said that the tariff was economically discriminatory and unconstitutional because it violated state’s rights.

Question 43

John Calhoun

Answer 43

South Carolina Senator/ VP to Jackson - advocate for state’s rights, limited government, and nullification

Question 44

Force Bill

Answer 44

1833 - The Force Bill authorized President Jackson to use the army and navy to collect duties on the Tariffs of 1828 and 1832. South Carolina’s ordinance of nullification had declared these tariffs null and void, and South Carolina would not collect duties on them. The Force Act was never invoked because it was passed by Congress the same day as the Compromise Tariff of 1833, so it became unnecessary. South Carolina also nullified the Force Act.

Question 45

Martin van Buren

Answer 45

“founder of the Democratic Party”. Friend of Andrew Jackson.
Became vice president after remaining loyal to Jackson during the Peggy Eaton affair and Nullification Crisis
Became president in 1836. In the Panic of 1837, he put $37 million to the states but it didn’t help. He spent his 4 years with bank failures, bankruptcies and massive unemployment. (“Little Magician”)

Question 46

Indian Removal Act

Answer 46

Passed by Congress under the Jackson administration, this act removed all Indians east of the Mississippi to an “Indian Territory” where they would be “permanently” housed.

Question 47

Trail of Tears

Answer 47

(1838-39) an 800-mile forced march made by the Cherokee from their homeland in Georgia to Indian Territory; resulted in the deaths of almost one-fourth of the Cherokee people

Question 48

Cherokee Nation v. Georgia

Answer 48

1831 - Supreme Court refused to hear a suit filed by the Cherokee Nation against a Georgia law abolishing tribal legislature. Court said Indians were not foreign nations, and U.S. had broad powers over tribes but a responsibility for their welfare.

Question 49

Worcester v. Georgia

Answer 49

Supreme Court Decision - Cherokee Indians were entitled to federal protection from the actions of state governments which would infringe on the tribe’s sovereignty - Jackson ignored it

Question 50

Second Seminole war

Answer 50

Seminoles in Florida resisted the pressures to relocate. Cheif Osceola staged an uprising in 1835 to defend their land. Jackson kept sending troops into Florida but the indians were masters of guerrilla warfare. .Osceola was captured by white troops. The government gave up on the war by 1842. By then the Seminoles had either been killed or forced westward

Question 51

Bank war & Bank veto

Answer 51

Political battle between Jackson, Clay and Nicolas Biddle over the renewal of the U.S. Bank; Jackson vetoed the recharter, put funds in pet banks.

Question 52

Pet Banks

Answer 52

A term used by Jackson’s opponents to describe the state banks that the federal government used for new revenue deposits in an attempt to destroy the Second Bank of the United States; the practice continued after the charter for the Second Bank expired in 1836.

Question 53

Panic of 1837

Answer 53

An economic uproar when Jackson was president. Many state banks received government money that had been withdrawn from the Bank of the U.S. These banks issued paper money and financed wild speculation, especially in federal lands. Jackson issued the Specie Circular to force the payment for federal lands with gold or silver. Many state banks collapsed as a result. Bank of the U.S. failed, cotton prices fell, businesses went bankrupt, and there was widespread unemployment and distress.

Question 54

Election of 1840

Answer 54

Displayed two major shifts in American politics: triumph of populist democratic style and the formation of the two-party system. Race between Martin Van Buren, second term, and William Henry Harrison. Harrison won due to how Van Buren handled the Panic of 1837.

Question 55

Panic of 1819

Answer 55

Economic panic caused by extensive speculation and a decline of European demand for American goods along with mismanagement within the Second Bank of the United States. Often cited as the end of the Era of Good Feelings.

Question 56

Spoils system

Answer 56

A system of public employment based on rewarding party loyalists and friends.
Andrew Jackson used this idea to make appointments
Also rotated appointments yearly

Question 57

Utopian Communities

Answer 57

Idealistic and impractical communities. Who, Rather than seeking to create an ideal government or reform the world, withdrew from the sinful, corrupt world.

Question 58

Owenites

Answer 58

Robert Owen, who was a British Factory owner In 1824, purchased and created New Harmony in Indiana, which was to be a new moral world. Members of the community followed the same laws and acted under the same social standards as other Utopian communities, however, they were able to purchase land; an idea refuted by communities like them. Owen’s community didn’t work because of disputes over the community’s constitution and the distribution of property. But he had a profound impact on labor movements, education reformers, and women’s rights. Owen’s vision resonated with the widely held American belief that a community of equals could be created in the New World.

Question 59

Perfectionism

Answer 59

social reform movement influenced by the idea that Americans must “perfect” society and cure us all of our social ills. Inspired the building of orphanages, poor houses, jails, and asylums.

Question 60

Temperance movement

Answer 60

A social reform effort begun in the mid-1800s to encourage people to drink less alcohol. Mostly advocated for by women. Angered many Catholics and working men who enjoyed drinking after a hard day of work.

Question 61

Education reform

Answer 61

a social reform effort, started by Horace Mann in the mid-1800s, that promoted the idea of having all children educated in a common place regardless of social class or background

Mann believed that the only way to protect democracy was to have an educated electorate. Other reformers believed that education was necessary for complete self realization.

Other states soon followed and began to offer education to more children, pay teachers more, and organized curriculums.
Mann successfully reorganized MA’s school system.
By the 1850s all states accepted the principle of tax supported elementary schools. However, the quality of education varied state to state; some areas had less access to education, less trained teachers, and in the south the black population was barred from education.
Despite this, the US had the highest literacy rate

Question 62

Oneida

Answer 62

Another community like New Harmony and Brook Farm, called themselves “Perfectionists.” They rejected traditional family values. All residents were “married,” but sexual behavior was monitored to protect women and all children were raised communally.

This was meant to liberate women from the demands of men and traditional families. The community was one of the longest lasting.

Question 63

Shakers

Answer 63

The name comes from a dance performed by the Shakers where they would “shake” off sins. Shakers all committed to complete celibacy, so all members had to choose to be part of the faith, no one was born into it.
In the community, men and women lived with little contact, and Shakers emphasized sexual equality and the fact that God is not clearly a man or a woman. Women had the most power in the community.
Shakers sought to create a society separate from the chaos and disorder of American life.
The longest surviving community. The Shakers attracted a large following in the 19th and 20th centuries, and established more than 20 communities.

Question 64

Brook Farm

Answer 64

Inspired by transcendentalist philosophy. Brook Farm was an experimental community where individuals would create a new form of social organization.
All residents were to share labor equally so that all could share leisure time (which Ripley believed to be the first necessity to cultivate one’s self). Manual labor was supposed to bridge the gap between intellect and nature.

The tension between individual freedom and communal living took a toll and many left the community. Then in 1847 a fire burned down the farm, ending the experiment.

Question 65

Mormons

Answer 65

Based on the idea that an ancient and virtuous society had once lived in the US, but they had vanished. Smith used this as a model for a new holy community. He claimed an angel had shown him golden tablets in NY that told this history. Mormons believed in human perfectibility and taught that anyone could become a saint. However they created a centralized, highly organized, almost militarized social structure. They also have an intense interest in genealogy, hoping that they will be reunited with ancestors in heaven.

The group was persecuted because of their rigid social organization, polygamy, and intense secrecy. Then in Nauvoo, Illinois, Smith was arrested and then killed. The group fled (the largest group migration in American history) and founded Salt Lake City.

Question 66

Phrenology

Answer 66

Argued that the shape of a person’s skull is an indication of character and intelligence. They argued that different parts of the brain controlled different kinds of intelligence.

For a time many Americans believed that phrenology was important to reforming society and finding one’s place in society. Now it is known to have no scientific value.

Question 67

Graham Crackers

Answer 67

A health fad created by Sylvester Graham in order to combat diseases such as cholera in the 1800s. His prescription was to eat only fruits, vegetables, and bread made of coarsely ground flour, as well as moral warnings about the evils of excess and luxury.

The health fad was not insanely popular and it also did not prevent cholera, but it is similar to vegetarian diets today.

Question 68

Asylums and Prisons

Answer 68

Before reform prisons weren’t well regulated; all criminals were put together, one prison in CT was even in a mine shaft.
Reformers focused on better treatment of prisoners and the mentally ill.
Asylums were meant to reform and rehabilitate prisoners.

Asylums and prisons fell victim to overcrowding, and prisons eventually turned into warehouses for criminals.

Question 69

Blind & Deaf

Answer 69

Institutions that were developed to help the handicapped were inspired by the potential of the individual.

Schools for handicapped individuals were created to help them find inner strength and wisdom. The Perkins School for the Blind in Boston was the first school

Question 70

Abolition

Answer 70

Abolitionists fought for an end to enslavement in all of the US. Many also fought to extend all rights of American citizenship to African Americans. During this period the movement became stronger and more assertive.

Opposition to slavery created conflict with the South, leading, in part, to the Civil War. Many abolitionists also faced violent opposition against them. Eventually some abolitionists became more moderate when calls for immediate emancipation didn’t work. They worked with the underground railroad and turned to political action.

Question 71

Women’s rights

Answer 71

The main goal of the movement was to push back against restrictions placed on women in societal practices of “separate spheres” and traditional families. Many women were part of other reform movements, but were turned away because they were women. Therefore their first duty of social reform would have to be to elevate the status of women.

Created the first major American feminist movement, which laid the groundwork for later centuries.
At the Seneca Falls convention, a Declaration of Sentiments was published, stating all men and women are equal and men and women should not be assigned separate “spheres”.
Progress in the era, however, was limited

Question 72

Romantic literature

Answer 72

While romanticism developed in Europe, it spread to America and revitalized American literature. Emphasized the releasing of human emotion. This was sometimes positive (Walt Whitman) or bleak (Poe, Melville)
Many writers tried to find the essence of the human spirit.
In the south many authors wrote romantic histories of the southern plantation system.
Romantic literature created a revival of American literature that Washington Irving had started.
In the south the literary capital moved to Charleston.

Question 73

General Jackson

Answer 73

Andrew Jackson was an army general during the War of 1812. He had many major victories for the war, including seizing Pensacola and the Battle of New Orleans.

Jackson was seen more favorably as a war hero, who fought Native Americans and the British, and gained more territory for the US after his victories.

Question 74

Universal Male Suffrage

Answer 74

Starting in Western states, property and religious qualifications were omitted from requirements to vote and hold office, allowing all white men to vote. This raised the number of voting citizens from 350,000 to 2.4 million.

Question 75

King Caucus

Answer 75

Candidates were often nominated in closed meetings of party leaders. However, under Jackson in the 1830s, candidates began to be nominated by nominating conventions, where all party politicians gathered to nominate a candidate.

As part of the “age of the common man” now more people were able to not only vote, but to take part in nominating a candidate

Question 76

Corrupt bargain

Answer 76

Henry Clay used his influence in the House to help John Q. Adams win the election of 1824. Adams then appointed Clay Secretary of State, causing many of Jackson’s supporters to argue that a “corrupt bargain” had been made to make Adams president.

Question 77

Maysville road veto

Answer 77

Jackson was opposed to increasing federal power and the increase in federal spending. The Maysville Road would have used federal funding to build a road in just one state, so it was vetoed by President Jackson.

Question 78

Nullification Crisis

Answer 78

South Carolina nullified the Tariff of Abominations, affirming Vice President John C. Calhoun’s nullification theory, which stated that each state could choose whether or not to follow a federal law.
The crisis was between South Carolina and the rest of the union, starting with the dramatic debates between Daniel Webster and Robert Hayne, and turned into Jackson preparing troops and declaring nullification treason with the Proclamation to the People of South Carolina. The crisis ended peacefully with a compromise between Congress and South Carolina.

Question 79

Peggy Eaton affair

Answer 79

During Jackon’s campaign his wife had been the subject of malicious gossip. The wife of the secretary of war, Peggy Eaton, was also subject to gossip. Andrew Jackson defended her and tried to force the rest of the cabinet wives to accept her.

Question 80

Specie Circular

Answer 80

Jackson’s financial policies (and the demand for land/selling of land in the west) made the prices of land and various goods inflated. To try and prevent a financial crisis, Jackson ordered that land be purchased with specie (gold and silver). However this made banknotes lose their value and land sales fell.