Period 5: 1844 - 1877 Flashcards
Manifest Destiny
the notion that Americans have the God-given right to have a nation that extends from the Atlantic to Pacific
what were the practical reasons for westward expansion
- access to mineral and natural resources (gold in cali)
- new economic and homesteading opportunities
- religious refuge (mormons)
California Gold Rush
ppl rushed to Cali to stake their claim and get rich
led more ppl to expand west
Preemption Acts
acts passed by Congress during the 1830 and 1840s that made vast tracts of land available for cheap to anyone who wanted to buy it
what was James K. Polk’s view on Manifest Destiny
loved it and wanted to add Texas and Oregon to the Union
Battle of San Jacinto
1836 retaliation of Texans who lost at the Alamo, led by Sam Houston who declared Texas to be an independent republic
forced Mexican general to sign treaty granting Texas independence which Mexican govt didn’t recognize, caused later problems when Texas applied for statehood
Oregon Territory
competing British and US claims
land granted to US after treaty w/ British
definition of annexation
possession taken of a piece of land or a country, usually by force or without permission
explain the significance of the Free Soil Party in the Election of 1848
- Free Soil Party = anti-slavery party
- want no slavery everywhere but settle for no slavery expansion
identify the major issues President Zachary Taylor faced in his short tenure as president
- California’s admission as a free state
- South threatened cession if California’s admitted as a free state
describe the major issues in 1850 that led to the Compromise of 1850
- unequal balance between free and slave states
- land dispute: Texas claimed its territory went all the way to Santa Fe
- DC was home to the largest slave market and many wanted it stopped
- slavery in new territories from Mexico? yes or no?
explain the Compromise of 1850
- New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona, and Utah are organized w/o mention of slavery (decide through popular sovereignty)
- California admitted as a free state
- Texas relinquished land in dispute
- slave trade abolished in DC
- Fugitive Slave Law
analyze the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850
- forced citizens to catch runaway slaves and turn them in
- harms free blacks b/c white ppl can claim they were a slave and force them into slavery
explain the significance of Uncle Tom’s Cabin on American society
revealed the evils of slavery to sway public opinion in the North towards abolition
Mexican American War (1846-1848) causes
- Texas annexation
- Stationing of US troops at border
- US wanting to expand into Mexico-owned territories (Cali)
John Slidell
diplomat sent by Polk to Mexico City to convince Mexico to sell more land to US, settle/argue the location of the southern border of Mexico
Zachary Taylor
US general who stationed troops at the Rio Grande where conflict erupted resulting in the Mexican-American War
Winfield Scott
US general who led American troops in conquering and occupying Mexico City
Mexican-American War (1846-1848) effects
- US gained lots of land
- voter discrimination and educational segregation placed upon ppl who still resided in the territories once owned by Mexico
Treaty of Guadalupehidalgo
1848 treaty that ended the Mexican-American War
- established the Rio Grande as the southern border for Texas
- Mexican Cession
- all Mexicans living in now US territory would be granted citizenship (except natives)
Mexican Cession
result of Mexican-American War and Treaty of Guadalupehidalgo in which Mexico ceded California and New Mexico the the United States for $15M
Gadsden Purchase
1853 purchase of Mexican land that provided the land necessary for a southern transcontinental railroad and attempted to resolve conflicts that lingered after the Mexican-American War.
Wilmot Proviso & its significance
amendment that proposed that any lands gained from victory int he Mexican-American war be off limits to the expansion of slavery
was voted down but highlights growing tensions over slavery
free soil
acquiring additional land for homesteaders to settle on without competition from the system of slavery
economic rather than moral
Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854
senator Stephen Douglass propsed that the territory north of the 36-30 line be divided in 2: Kansas Territory and Nebraska Territory
- each territory decide by popular sovereignty to allow slavery or not
- led to Bleeding Kansas