Union Expanded and Challenged (1835-1860) Flashcards
Manifest Destiny
concept that became popularized in the 1840s stating that it was the God-given mission of the U.S. to expand westward
Mexican-American War
war over the possession of Texas which was claimed by both Mexico and the U.S. the settlement of the war ended with U.S. claiming northern Texas, New Mexico, and California.
Compromise of 1850
temporarily ending tensions between North and South, allowing California to be a free state but strengthening the Fugitive Slave Act
Fugitive Slave Act
part of the Compromise of 1850: set up to give special commissions to northern states if runaway slaves were caught. People were given more money if they found a runway than if they didn’t- so many AAs were sold back into slavery
Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)
compromise allowing settlers in Kansas and Nebraska to decide if they would enter the union as free states or slave states
Dred-Scott case
Supreme Court ruling that slaves were property and not people and therefore they couldn’t seek a ruling from the court and that Congress couldn’t ban slavery in any territory
Oregon Trail
trail that took settlers from the Ohio River Valley across the country to Oregon. Over 325,000 settlers moved west on this trail from 1842-1860.
Oregon Treaty
The U.S. and Britain claimed this territory but in 1815 they agreed to jointly control it. In 1843 settlers of Oregon declared that they would become an independent republic.
dark horse candidate
a candidate with little support before the beginning of the nomination process. James Polk was the first of these for president in 1844.
Bear Flag Republic
This republic declared freedom from Mexico in 1846 and was a part of a larger American political and military strategy to take Texas and California from Mexico.
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
treaty ending the war with Mexico was ratified in the senate in 1848. For $15 million, the U.S. received Texas territory, New Mexico, and California.
Wilmot Proviso
In the aftermath of the Mexico war, Wilmot proposed an amendment in 1846 that slavery should be prohibited in all newly gained territories. This never went into law, however, John C. Calhoun spoke out aggressively against it proposing that the federal government had no right to control slavery in the states.
Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852)
1852 novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe that depicted the horrors of Southern slavery. The book helped to fuel Abolitionist sentiments during the 1850s and 60s in the North
Gadsden Purchase
strip of territory through Arizona and New Mexico that the U.S. purchased from Mexico in 1853. Pierce authorized this to secure a southern route of the transcontinental railroad.
Know-Nothing Party
political party developed in the 1850s claiming that the other parties were corrupt and that immigrants were destroying the American economy via low wages and Catholic practices.
nativist
they stated that immigration should be limited or banned since immigrants hurt the U.S. economically or democratically. These groups continued to form throughout U.S. history in response to immigration waves.
Republican Party
formed in 1854 out of the death of the Whig party. They attracted members of the Free-Soil movement and those who disagreed with slavery. Lincoln was the first president of this party which later became the party of “big business” after the Gilded Age.
Bleeding Kansas
the result of the Kansas-Nebraska Act where abolitionists and pro-slavery advocates moved to Kansas to control the vote. This encouraged violence within Kansas to kick the other group out.
Freeport Doctrine
introduced by Stephen Douglas with the idea that a territory could still prevent slavery by electing officials who were opposed to it and by creating laws and regulations to essentially make slavery illegal.
Confederate States of America
11 former states seceded from the Union after the election of 1865. Their one and only president, Jefferson Davis was unable to defeat the North due to the lack of industrialization and railroad access.
