Barron’s AP US History Flashcards

Christopher Columbus

1451-1506 *Italian-born navigator who found fame when he landed in the Americas(Oct. 12, 1492) *Set sail on behalf of Spain with three ships: the Nina, the Pinta, and his flagship, the Santa Maria *Originally, he sailed west across the Atlantic Ocean to find a water route to Asia *Columbus was convinced that he had found the waterway that he sought and that the Americas were actually an extension of China *Returned from his expedition with gold, encouraging further exploration

Amerigo Vespucci

1454-1512 *Italian member of a Portuguese expedition *Explored South America *Discovery suggested that the expedition had found a "New World" *After an account of Vespucci’s 1497 expedition was published, a cartographer mistakenly thought that Vespucci had led the expedition and had landed in the New World before Christopher Columbus; the cartographer named the continent America

Treaty of Tordesillas

1493 *Commitment between Spain and Portugal *Created a Papal Line of Demarcation, which divided the New World: east of the line for Portugal and west of it for Spain *Portugal also received the easternmost part of what is currently Brazil, when it "discovered" the land in 1500 *Later, the Papal Line affected colonization in Africa and Asia

New Spain

1400s and 1500s *Spain tightly controlled empire in the New World *Mainly located in North and Central America, including the Caribbean and Spanish East Indies *To deal with labor shortages, the Spaniards developed a system of large manors (ecomiendas) using Native American slaves under conquistadors *With the death of Native American slaves, Spaniards began importing African slaves to supply their labor needs

Mercantilism

1500s-1700s *Prevailing economic philosophy of the 1600s that held colonies existed to serve the mother country *Founded on the belief that the world’s wealth was sharply limited and, therefore, one nation’s gain was another nation’s loss *Each nation’s goal was to export more than it imported in a favorable balance of trade; the difference would be made up in their possession of gold and silver, which would make the nation strong both economically and militarily *Mercantilists believed economic activity should be regulated by the government

Queen Elizabeth I

1533-1603 (ruled 1558-death) *Protestant successor to Queen Mary (England) *Popular leader and the first woman to successfully hold the throne *Invested in English raids on the Spanish New World; Spain responded with the Spanish Armada *Established Protestantism in England and encouraged English business

The Spanish Armada

1588 *Fleet assembled by King Phillip II of Spain to invade England *The Armada was defeated by the skill of British military leaders and by rough seas during the assault *England’s victory over Spanish forces was one of the great achievements of Queen Elizabeth I, as it established England as an emerging sea power *Its defeat helped bring about the decline of the Spanish empire

Types of Colonies in the New World

1600s *In a charter colony, colonists were essentially members of a corporation, and electors among the colonists controlled the government based on an agreed-upon charter *A royal colony had a governor selected by England’s king; the governor served in the leadership role and chose additional, lower-ranking officers *Proprietary colonies were owned by individuals with direct responsibility to the king; each proprietor selected a governor, who served as the authority figure for the colony

English Puritanism

1500s and 1600s *Movement by those who wished to reform the Church of England to be more in line with their ideology *Though King Henry VIII had set out to separate his own Church of England from papal authority, many Roman Catholic traditions and practices remained *Puritans rejected these roman Catholic holdovers and sought to make the English Church "pure" *Puritans held Calvinist beliefs, such as predestination and the authority of Scripture over papal authority *Puritanism echoes throughout American culture in the ideas of self-reliance, moral fortitude, and an emphasis on intellectualism

Joint-Stock Company

Popularized in 1600s *A type of business structure used by some colonial explorers to raise money for their expeditions *These private trading companies sold shares to investors who provided start-up funding *In return for taking on the risk of the investment, investors were paid based on the profits of the expedition *Many modern business structures, such as the American corporation, are founded on principles of the joint-stock company

Dutch West India Company

1500s and 1600s *The joint-stock company that ran the colonies in Fort Orange and in New Amsterdam, which later became New York *Carried on a profitable fur trade with the Native American Iroquois *Instituted the patroon system, in which large estates were given to wealthy men who transported at least fifty families to New Netherland to tend the land (few seized the opportunity)

Sir Walter Raleigh

1587 *Selected Roanoke Island as a site for the first English settlement *Returned to England to secure additional supplies, but he found the colony deserted upon his return; it is not known what became of the Roanoke settlers *Raleigh abandoned his attempts to colonize Virginia after the failure at Roanoke *Held back by a lack of financial resources and the war with Spain, English colonization in America was impeded for fifteen years

St. Augustine, Florida

1598 *French Protestants (Huguenots) went to the New World to freely practice their religion, and they formed a colony near modern-day St. Augustine, Florida *Spain, which oversaw Florida reacted violently to the Huguenots because they were trespassers and because they were viewed as heretics by the Catholic Church *Spain sent a force to the settlement and massacred the fort’s inhabitants *The settlement at St. Augustine, Florida, is considered to be the first permanent European settlement in what would become the United States

Jamestown

Established 1607 *Named for James I (1566-1625), Queen Elizabeth’s successor in England *James I granted charters for charter colonies in the New World *In 1607, the Virginia Company of London settled Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement *Swampy location led to disease and contaminated water sources *Despite its location and hostile relations with Native Americans, John Smith’s harsh, charismatic leadership of the colony helped keep it from collapsing *In 1619, African slaves arrived at Jamestown, becoming the first group of slaves to reach a British settlement

"Starving Time"

1609-1610 *A period of starvation endured by the Jamestown colonists *The colonists depended upon trade with the local Native Americans for their food supplies *A series of conflicts between the colonists and the Native Americans limited the colonists’ ability to trade for supplies and to farm their own food *A large number of colonists died and others tried to flee to England; however, boats arrived with supplies from England intercepted the colonists and forced them to return to Jamestown *Additional support from England, the development of new industries, and the creation of new trade partnerships helped ensure the settlement’s long-term survival

Indentured Servitude

1600s *Poor workers, convicted criminals, and debtors received immigration passage and fees in return for a number of years at labor on behalf of a planter or company *Servants entered into their contracts voluntarily and kept some legal rights *However, servants had little control over the conditions of their work and living arrangements, and the system led to harsh and brutal treatment *It remained the predominant system of labor until the 1670s; Bacon’s Rebellion made the practice seem more risky to planters and owners, and improving economic conditions in England decreased the supply of servants *Many owners relied on slave labor instead

John Rolfe

1585-1622 *English colonist in Jamestown, Virginia *Married Pocahontas *Created process for curing tobacco, ensuring economic success for Jamestown

House of Burgesses

1619 *Representative assembly in Virginia *Election to a seat was limited to voting members of the charter colony, which at first was all free men; later rules required that a man own at least fifty acres of land to vote *First representative house in America Instituted the private ownership of land but maintained the rights of colonists

Headright Sysyem

Introduced in 1618 *System used by the Virginia Company to attract colonists It promised them parcels of land(roughly fifty acres) to immigrate to America *Also gave nearly fifty acres for each servant that a colonist brought, allowing the wealthy to obtain large tracts of land *The system solidified the use of indentured servitude for the time being

The Separatists and Plymouth

1620 *Separatists were Puritans who believed the Church of England was beyond saving and felt that they must break away from it *One group of Separatists that suffered harassment from the government fled to Holland and then to America *Members of this group traveled on the Mayflower and became known as the Pilgrims, a term used for voyagers seeking to fulfill a religious mission *The Mayflower set sail from Plymouth, England, in September 1620 and landed in Provincetown Harbor, settling in what became Plymouth, Massachusetts *Before landing in the New World, the Pilgrims formed the Mayflower Compact, which provided for a government guided by the majority William Bradford (1590-1657) served as the Plymouth Colony’s first governor

Massachusetts Bay Colony

1629 *Joint-stock company charted by a group of Puritans escaping King James I *Led by John Winthrop, who taught that the new colony should be a model of Christian society *These Puritans carefully organized their venture and upon arriving in Massachusetts, did not undergo the "starving time" that had often plagued other first-year colonies *The government of Massachusetts developed to include a governor and a representative assembly

Delaware

1631 *Dutch patroons established the first settlement in Delaware *That settlement was destroyed by Native American attacks *The Dutch West India Company and Dutchmen, including Peter Minuit, began to trade and settle in Delaware during the mid-to-late 1630s *Between 1664 and 1674, Delaware switched between Dutch and English ownership, ending with English ownership in 1674

Maryland

1632 *Maryland became the first proprietary colony to serve as a refuge for English Catholics *George Calvert (Lord Baltimore) applied for the charter to create the Province of Maryland *Calvert’s son, Caecilius, helped establish a representative assembly *Maryland passed its Act of Toleration in 1649, guaranteeing religious freedom to all Christians in the colony; this set an important precedent for later characterization of the United States and its Constitution

Anne Hutchinson

1638 *Claimed to have had special revelations from God that superseded the Bible, contrary to Puritan doctrine *The leadership of New England accused her of antinomian teachings (antinomianism is the belief that salvation is attained through faith and divine grace and not through strict adherence to rules or moral laws) *Hutchinson was tried and banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony *With her followers, she founded Portsmouth in the Aquidneck region (1638) in what is now known as Rhode Island

Roger Williams and Rhode Island

Williams (1603-1683), Rhode Island established in 1644 *Williams was a Puritan preacher who fled Massachusetts after his views on religious observance became too extreme for the colonists *Williams bought land from the Native Americans and founded Providence in 1636, and it was soon populated by his many followers *Rhode Island formed as a combination of Providence, Portsmouth, and other settlements that had sprung up in the area *Through Roger Williams, the colony granted complete religious toleration *It tended to be populated by exiles and troublemakers and was sometimes called "Rogue’s Island" *The colony suffered constant political turmoil

English Civil War

1641-1651 *Conflict was based in the struggle between King Charles I (son of King James I) and the English Parliament *Charles claimed to rule by divine right; Parliament argues that its membership had rights that were separate from those granted to the king *Parliament’s members were mostly Puritan and had the backing of the merchant class and lesser land owners *Wealthy nobles tended to support Charles I, who opposed Puritans on questions of religion *Led to outright conflict between Royalist military forces and forces opposing Charles I *Parliament’s victory in 1651 resulted in the trial and execution of Charles I and the exile of his son Charles II *The English monarchy was replaced with the Commonwealth of England (1649-1653) and then with a Protectorate under Oliver Cromwell’s rule (1653-1659)

Connecticut

Corporate colony established in 1662 *Thomas Hooker led a large group of Puritans to settle in the Connecticut River Valley after they had slight religious disagreements with the leadership of Massachusetts *The major colonies in the Connecticut River Valley agreed to unite as the Connecticut Colony *In 1639, the colony formed a set of laws known as the Fundamental Orders; these laws provided for representative government by those who were permitted to vote *When the corporate colony was established and recognized by England, its charter was founded on the Fundamental Orders The Fundamental Orders are an important example of the growth of political democracy

The Carolinas

Granted in 1663 *King Charles II rewarded loyal noblemen with these lands after the twenty-year Puritan revolution in England *In hopes of attracting settlers, the proprietors planned for a hierarchical society *They experimented with silk manufacturing and with crops such as rice and indigo, but this provided unworkable and the Carolinas grew slowly as a result *Large groups of colonists in the Carolinas came from Barbados; form of slavery that this group employed proved to be very harsh While North Carolina became a separate colony in 1712, the same proprietors retained ownership *Rebellion against the proprietors in 1719 led to royal intervention, and both North and South Carolina became royal colonies in 1729

New York and New Jersey

Established 1664 *Last Dutch governor of New York was Peter Stuyvesant *After the British conquered the Dutch lands in America, English King Charles II gave the title to the lands between New England and Maryland to his brother, James, Duke of York *James was adamantly opposed to representative assemblies Residents continued to call for self-government until James relented, only to break this promise when he became James II, King of England *The region that would become New Jersey was ruled as a separate proprietary colony; it eventually became a royal colony

Quakers

Around 1680 *Quakers believed human religious institutions were largely unnecessary *They thought they could receive revelation directly from God and placed little importance on the Bible *They were pacifists and declined to show customary deference to their alleged social superiors *Quakers’ aggressiveness in denouncing established institutions brought them trouble in both Britain and America *They opposed slavery and favored decent treatment of Native Americans *Elements of this culture would play a role in shaping the characterization of a United States that values independence and social equality

William Penn

1644-1718 *Founded Pennsylvania as a refuge for his fellow Quakers *Penn advertised his colony widely in Europe and offered generous terms on land *Guaranteed a representative assembly and full religious freedom Settlers flocked to Pennsylvania from all over Europe

Black Slaves in the 1600s

1600s *Because black slaves were only a small percentage of the population, they began at almost the same level as indentured servants *Later in the century, increased importation and population of blacks in the southern colonies began *Slaves, called "chattel," came to be seen as lifelong property whose status would be inherited by their children

John Locke and Natural Law

1632-1704 *Locke was a major English political philosopher of the Enlightenment *Isaac Newton theorized Natural Law in the realm of science, and Locke followed him, trying to identify Natural Law in the human realm *Prior to Locke, there existed a theory of social contract in which people would accept certain restrictions on themselves for the benefit of their society, and these restrictions would be upheld by a sovereign power *Locke’s assertion of Natural Law changed the perspective of the social contract theory; he believed that if life, liberty, and property were not protected, governments could be overthrown justly *Locke’s ideas became the indirect theory of American political activity for leaders such as Benjamin Franklin, and they influenced Thomas Jefferson in writing Declaration of Independence

Triangular Trade (Atlantic Trade)

1600s *Created as a result of mercantilism *European merchants purchased African slaves with goods manufactured in Europe or imported from Asian colonies *These merchants sold slaves in the Caribbean for commodities (sugar, cotton, tobacco) *Caribbean commodities were later sold in Europe and North America *Trade thrived because each partner could get the resources it wanted by exchanging resources that it had available

Navigation Acts

1650-1673 *Dictated ther certain goods shipped from a New World from a New World port were to go only to Britain or to another New World port *Served as the foundation of England’s worldwide commercial system; came out of the economic philosophy of mercantilism *Though it was meant to benefit the whole British Empire, its provisions helped some New World colonies at the expense of others *Intended as a weapon in England’s ongoing struggle against its rival, Holland *Led to increased tension between Britain and the colonies

Effects of the Navigation Acts

1650-1673 *Boosted the prosperity of New Englanders, who engaged in large-scale shipbuilding *Hurt the residents of the Chesapeake by driving down the price of tobacco *Transferred wealth from America to Britain by increasing the prices Americans had to pay for British goods and lowering the prices Americans received for the goods they produced *Mercantilism also helped bring on a series of wars between England and Holland in the late 1600s

Bacon’s Rebellion

1676 *Virginia’s Royal governor, William Berkeley, received strict instructions to run the colony for the benefit of Britain *Nathaniel Bacon was a leader of colonial frontiersmen in Virginia *Bacon objected to the rights granted to Virginia’s wealthy inner circle and was angered by Governor Berkeley’s inability to protect Virginia from attacks by the Native Americans *Bacon commanded two unauthorized raids on Native American tribes, increasing his popularity; Berkeley had him arrested *Soon after, Bacon gathered his forces, opposed the Royal governor, and set fire to Jamestown to defend his forces’ position *Berkeley ended the rebellion with the aid of British military forces *After Bacon’s rebellion, American colonies turned increasingly away from indentured servants and toward slave labor

New Hampshire

Corporate colony established 1677 *King Charles II established it as a Royal colony *The colony remained economically dependent on Massachusetts, and Britain continued to appoint a single person to rule both colonies until 1741 *Weeks before the signing of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress, New Hampshire established a temporary constitution for itself that proclaimed its independence from Britain

Dominion of New England

1686-1689 *An administrative body created by King James II that oversaw British colonies in the New England region *Put in place to implement the Navigation Acts and to assist the colonies in defending themselves against hostile French and Native American forces *The Dominion Governor-in-Chief, Edmund Andros, outlawed town meetings, disputed titles to certain colonial lands, and proselytized on behalf of the Church of England *New England colonists had originally been in favor of some sort of voluntary association, but the Dominion was very unpopular because of these types of impositions

Half-Way Covenant

1690s *Decision by Puritan colony churches to allow the grandchildren of those who did not have the personal experience of conversion to participate in select church affairs *Previously, only the children of those who had experienced conversion could participate *Reflected the decline of zealous piety among New Englanders

Salem Witch Trials

1692 *Several young girls in Salem Village claimed to be tormented by the occult activities of certain neighbors *Some twenty persons were executed *Puritan ministers finally intervened to stop the executions *Different theories about the reasons that the trials occurred: political and class divisions in Salem; economic stresses from providing for growing families; the gender-biased view that women were more likely to follow evil *Writer Arthur Miller produced The Crucible (1953), a retelling of Salem Witch Trials and a reflective commentary on the witch-hunts of Joseph McCarthy

The Enlightenment

1700s *Connects to the idea of Deism, in which the universe was created by God and then abandoned; no supernatural controls would be exerted and all things were explainable by reason *Enlightenment philosophy dictated that human reason was adequate to solve mankind’s problems and, correspondingly, much less faith was needed in the central role of God as an active force in the universe *Idea moved from Europe to become the New World’s seed of cultures intellectualism, and society *Some important Enlightenment writers include Isaac Newton (Principia Mathematica, 1687), John Locke (Essay Concerning Human Understanding, 1689), and Rene Descartes, whose basic tenet of philosophical theory existed in the phrase "I think, therefore, I am."

Georgia

Chartered in 1732 *James Oglethorpe, an English philanthropist and soldier, charted the colony *Settlers included those who paid their own way to receive the best land grants *Some settlers were financed by the colony’s board of trustees, including bands of prisoners from British jails *After wars between the European empires began, the colony served as a buffer between South Carolina and Spanish-held Florida *Elaborate and detailed regulations resulted in relatively little settlement

John Peter Zenger

1697-1746 *German American newspaper publisher and printer *His acquittal of libel charges in New York City(1735) established a legal precedent for freedom of the press *The Supreme Court under Chief Justice Warren (1953-1969) would later reinvigorate free press rights *The case of New York Times v. Sullivan (1964) strengthened the protection of the press against libel cases brought by public figures

The First Great Awakening

1720s-1740s *A series of emotional religious revivals that occurred throughout the colonies (prevalent in New England) *Preachers spread a message of personal repentance and emphasized faith as a way to avoid hell *Suggested an equality between God and the Bible *George Whitefield and Jonathon Edwards became its most dynamic preachers *While the Awakening created conflict among those who argued about religion, its ideas helped build connections between the colonies *More denominations of Christianity were formed *A number of colleges were founded by those who accepted the Great Awakening, including Princeton, Brown, and Rutgers

Jonathon Edwards

1703-1758 *Preacher of the Great Awakening who emphasized personal religious experience, predestination, and dependence of man upon God and divine grace *One of his widely read sermons was "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" *While Edwards is known for being one of the most prominent Calvinists, the Great Awakening was partially responsible for refuting the idea that salvation was only possible with predestined election, an important Calvinist belief

French and Indian War

1748-1763 *Rivalry between France, Britain, and various Native American tribes over land in the Ohio region *It was one of a series of wars fought between France and England throughout the world at the time *Battles continued on European and American fronts until Britain gained control of Canada *It was in these conflicts that George Washington first appeared as an able military leader

Albany Plan

1754 *Delegates of seven colonies met in New York to discuss plans for collective defense *The Pennsylvanian delegate, Benjamin Franklin, proposed a plan for an intercolonial government, but the plan was rejected by the colonial legislatures as demanding too great a surrender of power *While the other colonies showed to support for Franklin’s plan, it was an important precedent for the concept of uniting in the face of a common enemy

William Pitt

1708-1778 *Britain’s capable and energetic prime minister *After several humiliating defeats, he led Britain to virtually destroy the French empire in North America by focusing on the French headquarters in Canada *The Treaty of Paris of 1763 ended hostilities

Treaty of Paris 1763

1763 *Ended Seven Years War *From France, Britain took Canada and some of what would become the United States east of the Mississippi River *France lost all of its North American holdings *Spain took the Louisiana Territory *Treaty marked the end of salutary neglect, a relationship in which the British Parliament had somewhat ignored the colonies, allowing them to develop their character without interference

Impact of the French and Indian War on British Colonial Policy

1712-1770 *Britain set out to solve the large national debt incurred in recent conflicts *It created a series of acts that raised taxes on American goods, leading to rebellious activities in the colonies *Acts included the Proclamation of 1763, Sugar Act (1763), Stamp Act (1765), and Quartering Act (1765)

Benjamin Franklin

1706-1790 *Was a colonial writer, scientist, diplomat, printer, and philosopher Published the Pennsylvania Gazette and wrote Poor Richard’s Almanac *Served in the Second Continental Congress and was a drafter and signer of the Declaration of Independence

Writs of Assistance

1750s-1770s *Court orders that authorized customs officials to conduct non-specific searches to stop colonial smuggling *Allowed for the searching of homes, warehouses, and shops *James Otis served as a prosecutor in a failed Massachusetts legal case; he argued that these searched were contrary to natural law *Later, the Fourth Amendment would protect citizens against "unreasonable searched and seizures"

Proclamation of 1763

1763 *Was a result of pontiac’s Rebellion, a Native American uprising against the British for their mistreatment *Forbade white settlement west of the Appalachians to reduce friction between Native Americans and the settlers *Stated that Native Americans owned the land on which they were residing *Outraged colonists believed that the successful outcome of the French and Indian War should have allowed settlement in the Ohio Valley

Sugar Act

1764 *It taxed goods imported to America to raise revenue for England Meant to assist England in recouping the debt it had taken on during the French and Indian War *Strictly enforced, unlike the Molasses Act of 1733 *Taxed goods included imports such as wine, cloth, coffee, and silk

Quartering Act

1765 *Act that required the colonies in which British troops were stationed provide soldiers with bedding and other basic needs *Colonists reacted negatively because they feared having a standing army in their towns, and they disliked the additional expenses it caused *After the emergence of the United States Constitution, the Third Amendment protected citizens against the stationing of troops in their homes

Stamp Act

1765 *An internal tax, the sole purpose of which was to raise revenue *Required Americans to use "stamped" paper for legal documents, newspapers, and playing cards, among other goods *Revenue from this tax was to be used solely for the support of the British soldiers protecting the colonies

Declaratory Act

1766 *Act giving Britain the power to tax and make laws for Americans in all cases *Followed the repeal of the Stamp Act, which colonists had seen as a victory *The Declaratory Act suggested that Britain might pass more restrictive acts in the near future

Samuel Adams

1722-1803 *Revolutionary resistance leader in Massachusetts *Along with Paul Revere, he headed the Sons of Liberty in Massachusetts *Worked with the committees of correspondence, which provided communication about resistance among colonies *Attended both the First and Second Continental Congress and signed the Declaration of Independence

Stamp Act Congress

October 1765 *Delegates of seven colonies met in New York to discuss plans for defense *Adopted the Declaration of Rights and Grievances, which stated that freeborn Englishmen could not be taxed without their consent

Townshend Acts

1767 *Created by British Prime Minister Charles Townshend (Grenville’s replacement) *Formed a program of taxing items imported into the colonies, such as paper, lead, glass, and tea *Replaced the direct taxes of Stamp Act *Led to boycotts by Boston merchants and served as a key contributor to the Boston Massacre

Virtual Representation

1770s *English principle stating that the members of members of parliament represented all of Britain and the British Empire, even though members were only elected by a small number of constituents *This idea was meant to be a response to the colonial claim of "no taxation without representation," meaning that parliament was itself representation of those being taxed

Boston Massacre

March 5, 1770 *Occurred when the British attempted to enforce the Townshend Acts *British soldiers killed five Bostonians, including Crispus Attucks, an American patriot and former slave *John Adams provided the legal defense for the soldiers *Though the British soldiers acted more or less in self-defense, anti-Royal leaders used the massacre to spur action in the colonies

Tea Act and Boston Tea Party

1773 *The Tea Act was a concession that allowed the British East India Company to ship tea directly to America and sell it at a bargain *Because the cheap tea undercut the costs of local merchants, colonists opposed these shipments; they turned back ships, left shipments to rot, and held ships in port *Led to the Boston Tea Party in December of 1773, where citizens, dressed as Native Americans, destroyed tea on the British ships

The Intolerable Acts (The Coercive Acts)

1774 *Names given by colonists to the Quebec Act (1774) and to a series of acts by the British in response to the Boston Tea Party *Closed the Port of Boston to all trade until citizens paid for the lost tea *Increased the power of Massachusetts’ Royal governor at the expense of the legislature *Allowed Royal officials accused of crimes in Massachusetts to be tried elsewhere

Methods of Colonial Resistance

1770s *Colonists reacted first with restrained and respectful petitions against the British, suggesting "taxation without representation is tyranny" *Colonial governments organized "committees of correspondence" to share their view of British actions with neighboring colonies and with foreign governments; this was the start of political organization among the colonies *Colonial merchants then boycotted British goods (non-importation) *Colonists finally turned to violence; crowds took action against customs officials and against merchants who violated boycotts *Some colonists continued to follow British command and became English "Loyalists"

First Continental Congress

September-October 1774 *Meeting in Philadelphia of colonial representatives to denounce the Intolerable Acts and to petition the British Parliament *A few radical members discussed breaking from England *Created Continental Association and forbade the importation and use of British goods *Agreed to convene a Second Continental Congress in May 1775

Battles of Concord and Lexington

April 1775 *Concord: Site suspected by British General Gage of housing a stockpile of colonial weaponry *Paul Revere, William Dawes, and others detected movement of British troops toward Concord and warned militia and gathered Minutemen at Lexington Lexington: Militia and Royal infantry fought, and the colonial troops withdrew

The Second Continental Congress

May 1775 *Colonial representative meeting in Philadelphia, over which John Hancock presided *The group was torn between declaring independence and remaining under British power *Moderates forced the adoption of the Olive Branch Petition, a letter to King George III appealing one final time for a resolution to all disputes; the king refused to receive it *The Congress sent George Washington to command the army around Boston *American ports were opened in defiance of the Navigation Acts *The Congress wrote the Declaration of Independence

Battle of Bunker Hill

June 17, 1775 *Bunker Hill was an American post overlooking Boston *The stronghold allowed Americans to contain General Gage and his troops *The colonists twice turned back a British frontal assault, and they held off the British until the Bunker Hill force ran out of ammunition and was overrun *American strong defense led to strengthened morale

Common Sense

January 1776 *Pamphlet published by Thomas Paine that called for immediate independence from Britain *It was sold throughout the colonies, where it gained popularity *Helped weaken resistance in the Continental Congress toward independence

Lee’s Resolutions

1776 *Presented to Second Continental Congress by Richard Henry Lee of Virginia *Urged Congress to declare independence and were accepted July 2, 1776 *Said, "That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States"

Declaration of Independence

Adopted July 4, 1776 *Document restating political ideas justifying the separation from Britain *Thomas Jefferson and his committee had the duty of drafting for the Continental Congress *John Locke’s influences served as a foundation for this document *The final product lacked provisions condemning the British slave trade and a denunciation of the British people that earlier drafts had contained

Articles of Confederation

Submitted July 1776; ratified 1781 *Framework for an American national government in which states were given the most power *Permitted the federal government to make war, offer treaties, and create new states *There was no federal power to levy taxes, raise troops, or regulate commerce *Congressional revision of the articles created a weak national government

George Washington’s Leadership in the American Revolution

1775-1781 *Named Commander-in-Chief of Continental Forces in June 1775 by the Second Continental Congress *Forced British to evacuate Boston in March 1776 *Defeated British at Trenton, New Jersey, after crossing the Delaware on December 25, 1776 *Survived tough winter at Valley Forge(1777-1778); Washington strengthened his troops during the winter and gained tremendous respect among the men *General Cornwallis surrendered to Washington on October 19, 1781

Battle of Saratoga

1777 *American REvolution battle fought in northern New York *The British planned to end the American Revolution by splitting the colonies along the Hudson River, but they failed to mobilize properly *The British ended up surrendering, allowing for the first great American victory *Demonstrated that the British could more easily hold the cities, but that they would have trouble subduing the countrysides *Considered a turning point, as French aid began after this battle

Charles Cornwallis

1738-1805 *British military and political leader *Was a member of Parliament *Opposed the tax measures that ed to the American Revolution *Led British forces during the American Revolution *The British defeat culminated with Cornwallis’s surrender at Yorktown in 1781

Western Land Cessions

1781-1787; Georgia in 1802 *The original thirteen states ceded their western land claims to the new federal government *The states that lacked western land claims feared that states with claims could grow in size, skewing representation in the federal government *Before signing the United States Constitution, these states demanded that those with claims cede the land *Ordinances in 1784 and 1785 and the Northwest Ordinance (1787) organized the ceded areas in preparation for statehood *New states were organized and admitted to the Union *This policy strengthened the ties of the western farmers to the central government

Treaty of Paris, 1783

1783 *Peace settlement that ended the Revolutionary War *The United States was represented by Ben Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay *Britain recognized the United States’ independence and outlined its borders *The United States received all lands east of the Mississippi River, north of Florida, and south of the Great Lakes *The United States agreed that Loyalists were not to be persecuted

Land Ordinance of 1785; Northwest Ordinance of 1787

1785;1787 *The Land Ordinance was an act of Congress that sold western lands in order to settle that territory and to earn revenue for the federal government *The Land Ordinance organized the distribution of land into townships and set aside a section of each township to be used for public education *The Northwest Ordinance described how the land north of the Ohio River should be divided and helped to create five new states *The Northwest Ordinance held that states would be admitted to the Union when the number of free inhabitants reached 60,000; slavery and involuntary servitude were not allowed in these states *The Northwest Ordinance set a precedent of how states could join the Union and stood as a successful accomplishment by a federal government that had been seen before as ineffective

John Jay

1745-1829 *Member of First and Second Continental Congress *Negotiated Treaty of Paris and Jay’s Treaty *First Chief Justice of Supreme Court *Wrote portions of The Federalist Papers

Shay’s Rebellion

1786-1787 *During a period of economic depression, Daniel Shays led a group of farmers to stop the courts from seizing a farmer’s land and enacting debt collection *Citizens of Boston raised an army and suppressed the rebels *Americans felt pressure to strengthen the government and avoid future violence *The rebellion served as a catalyst for writing the Constitution

The Constitution of the United States

Signed September 17, 1787; ratified by the required nine states June 21, 1788 *Drafted at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787 *Included a preamble and seven articles *Created a stronger federal government *The Bill of Rights constitutes the first ten amendments, and it protects individual rights and freedoms

Elastic Clause and the Tenth Amendment

Ratified 1791 *The Tenth Amendment restricts the federal government to those powers delegated to it by the Constitution and gives all other powers to the states, or the people *Article I, Section 8 grants the federal government the power to make all laws "which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers" *The conflict between these two ideas is the determination of which group, the federal government or the states and their people, has the right to exercise powers that have not been expressly delegated to the central government

The Virginia Plan & The New Jersey Plan

July 1787 *Virginia plan: Presented by Edmund Randolph and written by James Madison, it called for a bicameral legislature based on a state’s population, and it suggested that both the chief executive and judiciary should be chosen by legislature *New Jersey Plan: Presented by William Patterson, it called for a unicameral legislature with equal representation for each state *The plans were united in the Great Compromise *They formed the basis of the modern American legislative structure

Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise)

1787 *Called for a bicameral legislative system in which the House of Representatives would be based on population and the Senate would have equal representation in Congress *Combined pieces of the New Jersey Plan, the Virginia Plan, and other proposals *Included the Three-Fifths Compromise, which counted slaves as three-fifths of a person for the purposes of apportioning representation and called for direct taxation on the states

Federalists

1788 *Americans who advocated centralized power and constitutional ratification *Used The Federalist Papers to demonstrate how the Constitution was designed to prevent the abuse of power *Supporters of Federalist platforms included Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay, and northeastern business groups *Federalists believed that the government was given all powers that were not expressly denied to it by the Constitution (they had a "loose interpretation" of the Constitution)

Anti-Federalists

1780s-1790s *Those against the adoption of the Constitution; they were suspicious of political actions that would limit freedom and of a centralized government that would rule at a distance *George Mason, Patrick Henry, and George Clinton were Anti-Federalists *Many of the Anti-Federalists would come to oppose the policies of Alexander Hamilton and the Federalists *The Jeffersonian Republican Party absorbed many of the Anti-Federalists after the Constitution was adopted

George Washington

1789-1797 *First President *Was unanimously elected *Served two terms *His leadership led to a standard of a strong presidency with control of foreign policy and the power to veto Congress’s legislation *Declared the Proclamation of Neutrality in April 1793, keeping the United States neutral in the European wars *His Farewell Address in 1796 warned against entangling alliances, recommended isolationism, and warned of political party factions

Judiciary Act of 1789

1789 *Provided for a Supreme Court with a Chief Justice and five associates *Established the office of the Attorney General *Created federal district courts and circuits courts

Alexander Hamilton

1757-1804 *First Secretary of Treasury *Proposed the federal assumption of state debts, the establishment of a national bank, and the federal simulation of industry through excise tax and tariffs *Opponents, including Jefferson, saw his programs as aiding a small, elite group at the expense of the average citizen *Hamilton died from wounds sustained in a pistol duel with Aaron Burr, Jefferson’s vice president

Jeffersonian Republicans (Democratic Republicans)

1792-1860 *Political party that absorbed the Anti-Federalists *Proponents included Thomas Jefferson and James Madison *Favored states’ rights and power in the hands of commoners; supported by Southern agriculture and frontiersmen *Believed that the federal government was denied all powers that were not expressly given to it by the Constitution (a "strict interpretation" of the document) *Supported the French Revolution’s ideals, but they were against the Revolution’s bloody radicalism

Eli Whitney

1765-1825 *Inventor and manufacturer *Invented the cotton gin in 1793, revolutionizing the cotton industry and increasing the need for slaves *Established the first factory to assemble muskets with interchangeable, standardized parts *His innovations led to an "American system" of manufacture, where those laborers with less skill could use tools and templates to make identical parts; also, the manufacture and assembly of parts could be done separately

Jay’s Treaty

1794 *An attempt to settle the conflict between the United States and England over commerce, navigation, and violations of the Treaty of Paris of 1783 *Provided for eventual evacuation by the British of their posts in the Northwest, but it allowed them to continue their fur trade *Allowed for the establishment of commissions to settle United States-Canadian border disputes and United States- Britain losses during the Revolutionary War *The generous terms to Britain upset Americans because these were promises that had been made and not fulfilled in the Treaty of Paris of 1783

Whiskey Rebellion

1794 *Western whiskey farmers refused to pay taxes on which Hamilton’s revenue program was based *A group of farmers terrorized the tax collectors, and Washington responded with a federalized militia *George Washington and Alexander Hamilton rode out to Pennsylvania themselves to emphasize their commitment *First test of federal authority *Established federal government’s right to enforce laws

Pickney Treaty

1795 *Signed by the United States and Spain *Free navigation of the Mississippi River was given to the United States *United States gained area north of Florida that had been in dispute (present-day Mississippi and Alabama) *Gave western farmers the "right of deposit" in the New Orleans, enabling them to use the port for their goods and making it easier for them to get their goods to the east *The United States would later make the Louisiana Purchase, which would cement this right of deposit

Early American Literature and Art

1600s-1700s *Early writings promoted the benefits of colonization to both Europeans and to the colonies themselves; authors included John Smith and William Penn *Religious issues and the Great Awakening provided material for written works by John Winthrop, Edward Winslow, Roger williams, Jonathon Edwards, and George Whitefield *The political issues of revolution influenced writing in the mid-1700s, including works by Samuel Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Paine *Post-war writings such as The Federalist Papers explored the system of American values and governmental structure *The first American novel, published in 1789, was William Hill Brown’s The Power of Sympathy *Art copied European styles but featured portraits of important Americans; famous artists included John Trumbull, Charles Peale, Benjamin West, and John Copley *Gilbert Stuart painted the portrait of George Washington that is now on the one-dollar bill

John Adams

1797-1800 *Second President *First Vice President *Diplomat and signer of the Declaration of Independence *Led the country through the XYZ affair, the Alien and Sedition Acts, and the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions *Kept the nation from war during his tenure as president

XYZ Affair

1798 *The United States wanted an end to French harassment of American shipping *To settle the issue, French representatives demanded a bribe from the United States just to open negotiations with French Minister Talleyrand *The United States refused the bribe and suspended trade with the French *Led to the creation of the American Navy

Alien and Sedition Acts

1798-1799 *Legislation enacted by the Federalists to reduce foreign influenced and increase their power *New hurdles to citizenship were established *Broadened power to quiet print media critics *The legislation was used to silence Jeffersonian Republican critics of the Federalists and was indicative of the poisoned relations between the two groups *These acts tested the strength of the First Amendment and limited the freedom of the press *The Federalists gained a reputation as being a less democratic group, quickening their demise as a political organization

Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions

1798-1799 *Response by Jeffersonian Republicans to the Alien and Sedition Acts *Included text written by Jefferson and by Madison *Suggested that states should have the power within their territory to nullify federal law *Stated that federal government had no right to exercise powers not specifically delegated to it *The resolutions represented a future argument that would be used when secession and Civil War threatened the country *Called into question the paradox of the Elastic Clause and the Tenth Amendment

The Napoleonic Wars

1799-1815 *War between Napoleon’s France and the other European powers, led by Britain *Both sides tried to prevent neutral powers, especially the United States, from trading with their enemy *American ships were seized by both sides and American sailors were "impressed," or forced into the British navy *The United States was angered by this violation of the "freedom of the seas" principle, which holds that outside its territorial waters, a state may not claim sovereignty over the sea *These violations would escalate and lead to the War of1812

Judiciary Act of 1801

1801 *Created new judgeships to be filled by the president *John Adams filled the vacancies with party supporters ("Midnight Judges") *Led to bitter resentment by the incoming Jeffersonian Republican Party *Act would play a role in the case of Marbury v. Madison

Thomas Jefferson

1801-1809 *Third President *Author of the Declaration of Independence Before becoming president, he served as the first Secretary of State *First president to reside in Washington, D.C. *Jefferson’s taking of office was called the "Revolution of 1800" as it was the first time America had changed presidential political leadership (Federalist to Jeffersonian Republican) *His embodiment of the Jeffersonian Republican Party helped increase its strength, while weak leadership in the federalist Part was a reason for its demise *His administration was responsible for the Embargo of 1807 *He presided over the Louisiana Purchase *His politics were characterized by support of state’s rights

John Marshall

1755-1835 *Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court (1801-1835) *He was a Federalist installed by Adams *His decisions defined and strengthened the powers of the judicial branch and asserted the power of judicial review over federal legislation *His court made determinations that cemented a static view of contracts *His court’s decisions advanced capitalism *Significant cases included: Marbury v. Madison, Fletcher v. Peck, Dartmouth College v. Woodward, McCulloch v. Maryland, and Gibbons v. Ogden

Marbury v. Madison

1803 *William Marbury had been commissioned justice of the peace in D.C. by President John Adams *His commission was part of Adams’ "midnight appointments" during his last days in office *Marbury’s commission was not delivered, so he sued President Jefferson’s Secretary of State, James Madison *Chief Justice John Marshall held that while Marbury was entitled to the commission, the statute that allowed Marbury’s remedy was unconstitutional, as it granted the Supreme Court powers beyond what the constitution permitted *This decision paved the way for judicial review, which gave courts the power to declare statutes unconstitutional

Louisiana Purchase

April 30, 1803 *Purchased for $15 million from France *Jefferson was concerned about the constitutionality of purchasing land without having this authority granted by the Constitution, so he employed the presidential power of treaty-making to make the purchase *United States’ territory was doubled *The purchase helped remove France from the western borders of the United States *Farmers could now send their goods (furs, grains, tobacco) down the Mississippi River and through New Orleans, facilitating transportation to Europe *The expansion westward created more states with Jeffersonian Republican representation to the point that the Federalists became a marginalized party *Opened land to agrarian expansion, helping fulfill one of the tenets of Jefferson’s social ideology

Lewis and Clark Expedition

1803-1806 *Expedition through the Louisiana Purchase and the West *Departed from St. Louis and explored areas including the Missouri River, the Yellowstone River, and the Rockies *Sacajawea, a Shoshone guide, helped them in their journey *Opened up new territories to American expansion

Embargo of 1807

1807-1809 *American declaration to keep its own ships from leaving port for any foreign destination *Jefferson hoped to avoid contact with vessels of either of the warring sides of the Napoleonic Wars *The result was economic depression in the United States, which angered the Federalists, who were well-represented in Northeast commerce and were hit hard by the financial downturn

James Madison

1809-1817 *Fourth President *His work before becoming president led him to be considered the "Father of the Constitution" *Participated in the writing of The Federalist Papers *In Congress, he wrote the Virginia Plan *Was a Republican president in a Federalist-controlled Congress *Faced pressure from "War Hawks" like Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun to get involved in the Napoleonic Wars and end the damaging embargo *Led the United States into the War of 1812 and concluded the war in 1814

Non-Intercourse Act

1809 *Congress opened trade to all nations except France and Britain *Trade boycott appeared to have little effect on curbing French and British aggression stemming from the Napoleonic Wars *Though the Embargo Act was a protective measure, the Non-Intercourse Act re-engaged the United States in trade while continuing its stance against alliances with either France or Britain *The Non-Intercourse Act was repealed in 1810

Fletcher v. Peck

1810 *Marshall Court decision *The first time state law was voided on the grounds that it violated a principle of the United States Constitution *The Georgia legislature had issued extensive land grants in a corrupt deal *A legislative session repealed that action because of the corruption *The Supreme Court decided that the original contract was valid, regardless of the corruption *Reaffirmed the sanctity of contracts

Expansion of Electorate, 1810-1828

1810-1828 *Most states eliminated the property qualification for voting during this period *African Americans were still excluded from polls across the South and most of the North *The political parties established national nomination conventions

Tecumseh

1811 *Native American chief who was encouraged by British forced to fight against the pressured removal of Native Americans from Western territories *William Henry Harrison destroyed the united NAtive American confederacy at Tippecanoe

Causes of the War of 1812

1812-1815 *British impressment of AMerican sailors *The United States suspected the British of encouraging Native American rebellion "War Hawk" Congressional leaders, such as Henry Clay and John Calhoun, pressed for intervention *American frontiersmen wanted more free land, as the West was held by Native Americans and the British *War Hawks also wanted to annex Canada and Florida *Despite the Embargo Act and Non-Intercourse Act, hostilities could not be cooled *Eventually, the United States sided with France against Britain

War of 1812 Events

1812 *Early victories at sea by the United States before it was overpowered by the British *The United States’ Admiral Perry took Lake Erie with the navy *Opened the way for William Henry Harrison to invade Canada and defeat the British and Native American forces *Andrew Jackson led the American charge through the Southwest *The Battle of New Orleans was a decisive conflict in which Jackson defeated the British; the battle was fought after the signing of the Treaty of Ghent

Washington Burned

1814 *During the War of 1812, a British armada sailed up the Chesapeake Bay and burned the White House *Attack came in response to the American burning of Toronto *The armada proceeded toward Baltimore; America’s Fort McHenry held firm through bombardment, which inspired Francis Scott Key’s "Defence of Fort McHenry" (later renamed "The Star-Spangled Banner")

After the War of 1812

Post-1814 *Increased American nationalism *Created high foreign demand for cotton, grain, and tobacco *The country turned from its agrarian origins toward industrialization *Led to depression in 1819 due to influx of British goods; Bank of the United States responded by tightening credit to slow inflation

Rush-Bagot Agreement

1817 *The Treaty of Ghent, which ended hostilities after the War of 1812, set the groundwork for this agreement by encouraging both sides to continue to study boundary issues between the United States and Canada *Rush-Bagot was an agreement between Britain and the United States to stop maintaining armed fleets on the Great Lakes *Served as the first "disarmament" agreement and laid the foundation for future positive relations between Canada and the United States

James Monroe

1817-1825 *Fifth President *Led during the "Era of Good Feelings," which was marked by the domination of his political party, the Democratic-Republicans, and the decline of the Federalist Party *Established the Monroe Doctrine as a wide-ranging policy for foreign affairs *National identity grew, most notably through the westward movement of the country and various public works projects *The "Era" saw the beginnings of North-South tensions over slavery

Monroe Doctrine

Introduced in 1823 *Developed by President James Monroe *Held that the United States would not allow foreign powers to establish new colonies in the western hemisphere or allow colonies to be influenced by outside powers *America feared international influence because of a period of worldwide revolutionary fervor after Napoleon’s fall *Another cause: Many Latin American countries were gaining independence from Spain, and the United States thought that these colonies might be taken over by other European powers, threatening American security *The doctrine had a lasting impact beyond Monroe’s time in office; other presidents, from Coolidge to Kennedy, have invoked it to deal with their own foreign affairs issues

Convention of 1818

1818 *Provided for boundary between the United States and Canada at the forty-ninth parallel *Allowed joint occupancy of Oregon Territory by Americans and Canadians *Permitted American fisherman to fish in the waters of Newfoundland and Labrador

McCulloch v. Maryland

1819 *Marshall Court decision *Determined that no state could control an agency of the federal government *Maryland tried to levy a tax on a local branch of the United States Bank to protect its own state banks *Supreme Court determined such state action violated Congress’s "implied powers" to operate a national bank *Use of judicial review over state law made this a division of powers case

Dartmouth College v. Woodward

1819 *Marshall Court decision *Severely limited the power of state governments to control corporations, which were the emerging form of business *New Hampshire legislature tried to change Dartmouth from a private to a public institution by having its charter revoked *The Court ruled that the charter issued during colonial days still constituted a contract and could not be arbitrarily changed without the consent of both parties *Reaffirmed the sanctity of contracts

Adams-Onis Treaty

1819 *Helped define he United States-Mexico border *The border that was under Spanish control had created conflict between the two countries *Spain sold its remaining Florida territory to the United States and drew the boundary of Mexico to the Pacific *United States ceded its claims to Texas, and Spain kept California and the New Mexican region *United States assumed $5 million in debts owed by Spain to American merchants *Later, lands kept by Spain would become battlegrounds for American expansion

King Cotton in the Early 1800s

Early 1800s *The new invention of the cotton gin separated the seeds from the fibers *New states (such as Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas) began producing cotton *Led to a boom in the cotton market, and its global effects crowned the staple as "King Cotton" *The need for cotton encouraged westward expansion

Transportation Revolution

First half of the 1800s *Innovations included new construction of roads, additions of canals, and the expansion of the railroads *Robert Fulton built the modern-day steamboat, transforming river transportation *Henry Clay promoted internal improvements to help develop transportation *The transportation revolution cheapened the market for trade and encouraged population movement west of the Appalachian Mountains

The Second Great Awakening and Protestant Revivalism

1790s-1840s *A wave of religious fervor spread through a series of camp meeting revivals *The "Burnt Over District," an area in upstate New York, was the center of the movement *Protestant revivalism rejected the CAlvinist doctrine of predestination and held instead that salvation was in the individual’s hands *Revivalism was a reaction to rationalism, emphasizing strong nationalism and the improvement of society through social reform *Revivalism included participation by women and African Americans, demonstrating the influence and growth of democracy *Created diversity in American religious sects and some anti-Catholic sentiment

Antebellum Reform

1820-1860 *Explosion in the number of colleges (Oberlin college in Ohio became the first do-ed college) *Expansion of state-supported elementary schools and other public schooling, in part due to the leadership of Horace Mann *Dorothea Dix led in the establishment of asylums of humane treatment of the insane *Prisons were also reformed

Dorothea Dix

1802-1887 *Social reformer who worker to help mentally ill *Northeastern jails housed both criminals and the mentally ill in the same facilities *Dix became determined to change this *Her memorandum to the Massachusetts state legislature in 1842 led to the establishment of state hospitals for the insane

The Lowell System

1820s *A popular way of staffing New England *Young women were hired from the surrounding countryside, brought to town, and housed in dorms in mill towns for a short period *The owners called these "factories in the gardens" to spread the idea that these facilities would not replicate the dirty, corrupt mills in English towns *The rotating labor supply benefited owners, as no unions could be formed against them *The system depended on technology to increase production

Slave Codes

1650s-1860s *A series of laws that limited slave rights *Slave owners were given authority to impose harsh physical punishment ans to control their slaves in any fashion they sought, without court intervention *Prohibited slaves from owning weapons, becoming educated, meeting with other African Americans without permission, and testifying against whites in court *Severely limited the rights of slaves

Washington Irving

1783-1859 *In his time, he was the best-known native writer in the United States and one of the first American writers to gain fame throughout Europe *His satire is considered some of the first great comic literature written by an American *Stories included Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1820) *His writings reflected an increasing nationalism, as the stories were based in American settings

Transcendentalism

1820-1850 *Movement to transcend the bounds of the intellect and to strive for emotional unity with God *Believed that people were capable of unity with God without the help of the institutional church *Saw church as reactionary and sitting to self-expression *Included writers such as Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson

Utopian Communities

1820-1850 *Movement that copied early European efforts at utopianism *Attempt by cooperative communities to improve life in the face of increasing industrialism *Groups practiced social experiments that generally saw little success due to their radicalism *Included attempts at sexual equality, racial equality, and socialism *Two of these communities were Brook Farm and Oneida

Romanticism

1800s *A belief in the innate goodness of man, nature, and traditional values, rooted in turn-of-the-century Europe *Emphasized emotions and feelings over rationality *Reaction against the excesses of the Enlightenment led to a growing push for social reform

Missouri Compromise

1820 *Henry Clay’s solution to deadlock over the issue of accepting proposed new state, Missouri *At the time, the Senate was evenly divided between slave and free states *A slave state of Missouri would tip the balance of power *John Tallmadge added an antislavery amendment meant to prohibit the growth of slavery into Missouri and to free slaves already in Missouri when they had reached a certain age. *The TAllmadge Amendment caused the Senate to clock the Missouri Compromise and sparked heated debate about the future of slavery *To settle the dispute, northern Massachusetts became a new free state (Maine) *The legislative section prohibiting slavery in Missouri was replaced by a clause stating that all land of the Louisiana Purchase north of thirty-six-thirty north latitude would prohibit slavery

Denmark Vesey

1767(?)-1822 *A slave who won enough money in a lottery to buy his own freedom *Gained wealth and influence in South Carolina *Accused of using church get-togethers to plan a violent slave revolt *Vesey and thirty-four other slaves were hanged *Some historians doubt the conspiracy was real

Gibbons v. Ogden

1824 *Marshall Court decision *Determined that only Congress may regulate interstate commerce, including navigation *Ogden received a monopoly to operate a steamboat between New York and New Jersey; New York granted him the monopoly through Robert Fulton and Robert Livingston *Gibbons received the same rights through Congress *Supreme Court decided that the state monopoly was void *Use of judicial review over state law made this a division of powers case

Hudson River School

1825-1875 *Group of American landscape painters *Parts of increasing American nationalism following the War of 1812 *The influence of the European Romantic movement led many American artists to paint their homeland *Depicted important landscapes such as Niagara Falls, the Catskills, the Rocky Mountains, and the Hudson River Valley *Artists included Thomas Doughty, THomas Cole, George Inness, and S.F.B. Morse

James Fenimore Cooper

1789-1851 *American novelist born in Burlington, New Jersey *His writing was influences by the American frontier and America’s landscapes *His works include The Last of the Mohicans (1826), The Water-Witch (1830), and The American Democrat (1838) *His work, along with that of writers like Washington Irving, helped form the foundation for distinctive American literature

John James Audubon

1785-1851 *Romantic-era artist *Member of the Hudson River School, a group of landscape painters *Demonstrated the emotion of nature, especially birds and animals *In 1886, a nature organization took his name

"Corrupt Bargain" of 1824

1824 *Four presidential candidates: Henry Clay (Speaker of the House), John Quincy Adams (Secretary of the State), Andrew Jackson (1812 war hero), and William Crawford (Secretary of the Treasury) *Jackson won the popular vote but did not win the majority of the electoral vote, and as a result, the election went to the House of Representatives *In the House of Reps. vote, Henry Clay threw his support to Adams, who would go on to win the presidency *Adams gave Clay the post of Secretary of State *Accusations of a "corrupt bargain" were made by Jackson, but they are considered to be largely untrue

John Quincy Adams

1825-1829 *Sixth President *His supporters called themselves National Republicans (Jackson supporters labeled themselves Democratic Republicans) *Led an active federal government in areas like internal improvements and Native American affairs *His policies proved unpopular amidst increasing sectional interest and conflicts over states’ rights *After his presidency, he served in the House of Representatives, where he forced debates against slavery and against the Jacksonian policy of removing certain Native American tribes

"Tariff of Abominations"

1828 *Tariff bill with higher import duties for many goods bought by southern planters *John C. Calhoun, John Q. Adams’s Vice President , anonymously protests his own leadership’s bill, suggesting that a federal law harmful to an individual state could be declared void within that state *This suggestion of nullification would be utilized by other states and would escalate hostilities, leading to Civil War

John Calhoun

1782-1850 *Vice President to both John Q. Adams and to Adams’s political rival, Andrew Jackson, who defeated Adams in 1828 *Champion of states’ rights *Author of an essay, "The South Carolina Exposition and Protest," advocating nullification of Tariff of 1828 and asserting the right of the states to nullify federal laws *Later, as a senator, he engaged Senator Daniel Webster in a debate over slavery and states’ rights, demonstrating the ideas that would drive the country to the Civil War

Andrew Jackson

1829-1837 *Seventh President *Following the War of 1812, he invaded Spanish Florida to quell Native American rebellions *After the treaty for the War of 1812 had already been signed, he defeated a British force that had invaded New Orleans, safeguarding the Mississippi Rive *Popular president due to his image as the self-made westerner *His form of leadership, known as Jacksonian Politics, called for a strong executive, relied on the party system, and emphasized states’ rights *Implemented the Spoils System approach to civil service *Signed the Indian Removal Act, which provided for federal enforcement to remove Native American tribes west of the Mississippi

Spoils System

1828 *Andrew Jackson s method of turning over the civil servant jobs to new government officials *"Rotation in office" was supposed to democratize government and lead to reform by allowing the common people to run the government *This system had been in place long before Jackson, but his name is tied to it because he endorsed its usage *In general, officials were not replaced by those loyal to the new administration, and they were not always the most qualified for the positions *Over the span of several presidential terms, the system led to corruption and inefficiency *It was ended with the passage of the Pendleton Act

Alexis de Tocqueville

Early 1830s *French civil servant who traveled to and wrote about the United States *Wrote Democracy in America, reflecting his interest in the American democratic process and appreciation of American civil society *Assessed the American attempt to have both liberty and equality *Provided an outsider’s objective view of the Age of Jackson

Mormonism

1830 *Religion founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. *Smith claimed to have received sacred writings; he organized the Church of Jesus of Latter Day Saints *Smith described a vision from God in which God declared specific tenets of Christianity to be abominations *Because of these claims and unusual practices such as polygamy, Mormons were shunned *Eventually, Mormons formed community near Great Salt Lake under Brigham Young’s leadership *Settlement became the state of Utah

Webster-Hayne Debate

1830 *Debate in the Senate between Daniel Webster (MA) and Robert Hayne (SC) that focused on sectionalism and nullification *Came after the "Tariff of Abominations" incident *At issue was the source of constitutional authority: Was the Union derived from an agreement between states or from the people who had sought a guarantee of freedom? *Webster stated, "Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable"

Nat Turner

1800-1831 *Slave who led an insurrection in Southampton, Virginia, in 1831 *Influential among local slaves as a preacher *Believe it was his destiny to lead slaves to freedom *Led approximately sixty in revolt, first killing the family of his owner and then killing fifty-five whites in the surrounding neighborhood *The revolt was put down and Turner, some of his conspirators, and several free African Americans were executed *Led to stricter slave laws in the South and an end to the Southern organizations advocating abolition

Tariff of 1832 and the Order of Nullification

1832 *The tariff favored Northern interests at the expense of Southern ones *Calhoun led a state convention calling for the Order of Nullification, which declared that the tariff laws were void and that South Carolina would resist by force any attempt to collect the tariffs *Jackson, though a supporter of states’ rights, defended the Union above all, and asked Congress to issue a new bill to give him authority to collect tariffs by force *Jackson encouraged his allies to prepare a compromise bill so that the federal government would not lose its image of control and so that South Carolina could come back down from nullification *Henry Clay presented his Compromise Tariff of 1833 and South Carolina withdrew the Order, but tensions between the federal government and state governments grew

Biddle’s Banks

1832 *Andrew Jackson objected to the Bank of the United States created by Alexander Hamilton *Jackson felt that the Bank had great influence in national affairs but did not respond to the will of working and rural class people *Henry Clay wanted the Bank to be a political issue for the upcoming presidential election in 1832 against Andrew Jackson Nicholas Biddle, chairman of the Bank, worked with Clay to re-charter the Bank four years earlier than it was due *Jackson vetoed the measure, increasing his popularity

Texas, Leading to the Battle of the Alamo

1800s *Mexico refused to sell Texas to the United States, which had given up its claims to Texas in the Adams-Onis treaty *Texas had been a state in the Republic of Mexico since 1822, following a revolution against Spain *Mexico offered land grants for immigration to the area, and many Americans responded and came to Texas, increasing population and revenue in Texas *Southerners moved to Mexico with interest in becoming slave masters, but the presence of slavery angered the Mexican government *When the population changed, Mexico’s power began to erode *Stephen Austin worked to first make Texas a Mexican state and later independent of Mexico

Battle of the Alamo

February 24- March 6, 1836 *During Texas’s revolution against Mexico, Fort Alamo was attacked by the Mexican Army and 187 members of the Texas garrison were killed *Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, a Mexican military and political leader, was victorious *"Remember the Alamo" was the garrison’s battle cry in its fight for independence

Sam Houston

1793-1863 *Leader of Texas independence *Defeated Santa Anna at the Battle of San Jacinto and claimed independence *Houston asked both President Jackson and President Van Buren to recognize Texas as a state, which they denied out of fear that a new slave state would be formed

Gag Rule

1836-1844 *Forbade discussion of the slavery question in the House of REpresentatives *Stemmed from Southern members’ fear of slave emancipation *Led to increased discussion by Southern conventions of ways to escape Northern economic and political hegemony

The Panic of 1837 and Specie Circular

1837 *Recession caused by President Jackson’s drastic movement of federal bank deposits to state and local banks *Led to relaxed credit policies and inflation *Jackson demanded a Specie Circular, which required that land be paid for in hard money and not paper or credit *Recession lasted into the 1840s

The Charles River Bridge Case

1837 *Demonstrated that a contract could be broken to benefit the general welfare *Jackson’s chief justice, Roger Taney, held that a state could cancel grant money if the grant ceases to be in the interests of the community *Served as a reversal of Dartmouth College v. Woodward

Trail of Tears

1838-1839 *Worcester v. Georgia was a response to Jackson’s Indian REmoval Act *Cherokees in Georgia claimed to be a sovereign political entity *Native Americans were supported by the Supreme Court, but Jackson refused to enforce the court’s decision *By this point, Cherokees had largely met the government’s demands to assimilate into Western-style democratic institutions *Still, Cherokees were forced to give up lands to the east of the Mississippi and travel to an area in present-day Oklahoma *The migration’s effects were devastating as hunger, disease, and exhaustion killed about 4,000 Cherokee

Horace Mann

1796-1859 *American educator who was the first secretary of the Massachusetts Board of Education *Suggested reforms in education *Made available hight-quality, no-cost, nondenominational public schooling *The system has lasted to present day, and as a result, Mann has been called father of the American public school

Whig Party

1840s *Group stemmed from the old Federalist Party, the old National Republican Party, and others who opposed Jackson’s policies *Cultivated commercial and industrial development *Encouraged banks and corporations *Had a cautious approach to westward expansion *Received support largely from Northern business and manufacturing interests and from large Southern planters *Included Calhoun, Clay, and Webster

Ralph Waldo Emerson

1803-1882 *Transcendentalist essayist and lecturer *Self-Reliance (1841), one of his essays, promoted the virtue of independence *Through the themes in his writing and through the independent lifestyle he lived, Emerson strongly influenced American thought and culture

Abolitionism

1830s through Civil War *Began with the idea of purchasing and transporting slaves to free African states, which had little success *Anti-slavery societies founded it, and some faced violent opposition *The movement split into two: 1) radical followers and 2) those who petitioned Congress *Entered politics through the Liberty Party, calling for non-expansion of slavery into new western territories *The Liberty Party would eventually combine with the larger Free Soil Party

William Lloyd Garrison

1805-1879 *His newspaper, The Liberator, espoused his views that slaves should be immediately emancipated *Many other anti-slavery advocates of the 1830s and 1840s recommended a gradualist approach *Because of his inflexible position and the fiery language he used in his paper, opposition to his policy developed within abolitionist groups *Garrison also advocated an unpopular position in favor of equal rights for women *After the Civil War, he promoted free trade, suffrage for women, and fair treatment for Native Americans

Frederick Douglass

1817-1895 *An escaped slave and outspoken abolitionist *Escaped from his Maryland owner and published his own newspaper, the North Star *Favored the use of political methods of reform *In the Civil War, he helped put together regiments of African Americans from Massachusetts and urged others to join the Union army *Known as the father of the American civil rights movement

Population Growth and Change, Early 1800s

1800s *Labor shortage meant more opportunity for work *Influx of immigration included German skilled labor and Irish Catholics, who faced discrimination *Growing population in the West and in rural areas *Urbanization outgrew public services, leading to inadequate security and clean water for city dwellers *Race riots, religious riots, and street crime became part of city life

Women in the Early 1800s

1800s *Women participated in limited political activity that was mostly religious and reform in nature, such as abolition *Employment was limited mostly to schoolteaching *They still lived in a "cult of domesticity," in which a woman’s role in marriage was to maintain the home for her husband and to raise the children *A woman’s property became part of her husband’s *In future years, the women’s rights movement would rise to confront this "cult of domesticity"

Martin Van Buren

1837-1841 *Eight President *Democrat from New York who had served as Jackson’s vice president after Calhoun left the position *Established the independent treasury, a system maintaining government funds independently of the national banking systems; it existed in one form or another until 1921 *Panic of 1837 hampered attempts to follow Jackson’s policies, and he was unsuccessful in re-election

William Henry Harrison

1841 *Ninth President *A westerner who fought against Native Americans *Nicknamed "Old Tippecanoe" *Vice President was John Tyler *Harrison died of pneumonia a month after inauguration

John Tyler

1851-1845 *Tenth President *Took office following the death of William Henry Harrison *States’ righter, Southerner, and strict constitutionalist *Rejected the programs of the Whigs who had elected Harrison, which led them to turn against him *Settled Webster-Ashburton Treaty between the United States and Britain *Helped Texas achieve statehood in 1845

U.S.-British Tension and Webster-Ashburton Treaty

Treaty signed in 1842 *American ship was burned by Canadian loyalists *Canada and the US disputed the boundary of Maine *British ships sometime stopped American ships to suppress American slave smuggling *The treaty settled the boundary of Maine and border disputes in the Great Lakes *Created more cooperation between the United States and Britain in curbing the slave trade

Irish and German Immigration

1800s *The 1840s saw a dramatic increase in immigration due to the potato famine in Ireland *The poverty of the Irish immigrants led to settlement in eastern cities and competition for jobs *The 1850s had increases in German immigration because of the failed revolution in 1848 *Many Germans settled in Wisconsin because they had money and other resources, which helped to cultivate the upper-midwest portion of the United States *The Five Points neighborhood of New York City included Irish immigrants, African Americans, and Anglo, Italian, and Jewish cultures; it encapsulated the melting-pot phenomenon in the United States

Manifest Destiny

Phrase coined in 1844 *Belief that America was destined to expand to the Pacific, and possibly into Canada and Mexico *John O’Sullivan, an American journalist, wrote an article pushing for the annexation of Texas and coined the phrase "Manifest Destiny" *Came out of post-1812 War nationalism, the reform impulse of the 1830s, and the need for new resources *Those Whigs who supported Manifest Destiny favored more peaceful means, while other Whigs feared American expansion because it might raise the slavery issue in new territories *Manifest Destiny was an engine of both discovery and destruction; while it helped America push westward, the ideas behind Manifest Destiny fueled the Mexican War and the displacement of Native Americans

Transportation in the 1840s and 1850s

1840s and 1850s *Tremendous expansion of railroad lines created a national market for goods *Railroads, such as the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, were developed to help link the Midwest to the East Coast *Steamboats and clipper ships became more popular for travel

Four Economic Classes in the South

1800s *Planters: Owned large farms and groups of slaves, and exercised political and economic control with cotton exports *Yeomen: The largest group, yeomen worked land independently, sometimes along with slaves, to produce their own foods, like corn *Poor Whites: Lived in squalor that was often as bad as that of the slaves *Slaves: Worked the land; it is noteworthy that three-fourths of whites in the South did not own slaves

Slave Labor Roles

1800s *On large farms, white overseers directed African American drivers who supervised groups in the fields as they performed gang labor *On smaller farms, a slave was assigned specific tasks and then given the remainder of the day to himself *House servants were spared physical labor, but they enjoyed less privacy and had direct responsibility to the master

Slaves in Southern Urban Areas

1800s *Slaves served as factory workers or as construction laborers *Some purchased their freedom with their savings or disappeared into society *As sectional troubles rose, fewer slaves were able to buy freedom or work in urban areas

Elements of Slavery

1700s-1800s *Slaves suffered varying degrees or repression, although most received adequate housing and diet *Slaves did commit some violent uprisings *Many slaves tried to run away into bordering free states *Injustice created quiet revolt as slaves sabotaged their facilities, found ways to become unproductive for their masters, and ridiculed their owners *Despite their repression, slaves created their own common culture

Southern Response to Slavery

1790s-1860s *Defense of slavery shifted from an early view of slavery as a "necessary evil" (1790) to a "positive good" (after 1840) *Used scientific arguments, biblical texts, and historical examples to justify slavery *As time passed, this defensive position and abolitionist sentiment increased in fervor *Some Southerners, like George Fitzhugh, a Virginia lawyer, defended slavery by condemning Northern "wage slavery"; he used the idea of African American inferiority to suggest that whites were protecting slaves from a world of fierce competition in which, on their own, they would not survive

The Underground Railroad and Harriet Tubman

1840s-1860s (Railroad); 1820-1913 (Harriet Tubman) *Method used to move slaves to free territory in the United States and Canada *Harriet Tubman was a slave smuggler and "conductor" of the Underground Railroad *A freed slave herself, Tubman led over 300 to freedom *The Underground Railroad led to tension between states

James K. Polk

1845-1849 *Eleventh President *"Dark Horse" Democratic candidate who became president *Big believer in Manifest Destiny and expansionism *Nicknamed "Polk the Purposeful" for his focus on a set of specific goals during his presidency *Introduced a new independent treasury system *Lowered the high rates of tariffs with the Walker Tariff *Settled Oregon boundary dispute with the Oregon Treaty (Treaty of Washington-1846) at forty-ninth parallel rather than fifty-four forty *Acquired California *He led the US into the Mexican War

Causes of Mexican War

1844-1846 *The new Mexican republic would not address grievances of United States citizens, who claimed property losses and personal injuries resulting from conflicts during the Mexican revolution *Mexico and the United States were in a dispute over their border, with the United States saying it was the Rio Grande and Mexico insisting it was the Nueces River *Due to sentiment arising from the idea of Manifest Destiny, there was an increased American interest in Mexican-held Western territory *The United States had aided Texas in its revolt against the Mexican government and there was growing momentum toward a United States annexation of Texas *When the United States Congress annexed Texas, Polk sent John Slidell to negotiate a settlement for that land, for California, and for western Mexico territory; the Mexican government rejected Slidell

Mexican War

1846-1848 *John C. Fremont (United States) won attacks on land and at sea in and near California *Zachary Taylor defeated large forced in Mexico *Mexico refused to negotiate, so President Pol ordered forces led by Winfield Scott into Mexico City *Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848 ended the war, giving the United States land originally sought by Slidell (Mew Mexico, Arizona, California, Texas, and parts of Colorado, Utah, and Nevada) *Border was set at Rio Grande River *Raised questions of slavery in the new territory *Henry David Thoreau and a young Whig, Abraham Lincoln, opposed the war

Wilmot Proviso

1846 *Amendment to a Mexican War appropriations bill *Proposed that slavery could not exist in any territory that might be acquired from Mexico *The amendment was passed in the US House of Representatives several times, but it was ultimately defeated on each occasion because the South had greater power in the Senate *Represented the looming question of slavery’s future, which would be decided in the Civil War

Popular Sovereignty

1840s *Doctrine under which the status of slavery in the territories was to be determined by the settlers themselves *Doctrine was first put forward by General Lewis Cass *Promoted by Stephen A. Douglas *Meant as a resolution to the looming crisis of the slavery question

Free Soil/ Free Labor

1848-1854 *An anti-slavery idea that was less opposed to the institution of slavery than it was to the extension of slavery into the United States’ Western territories *Supporters wanted land to be available for white people to settle and to become financially independent without completion from slavery *Free Soil Party created in 1848, drawing from anti-slavery Whigs and former Liberty Party members *Opposed extension of slavery into new territories, supported national improvement programs, and promoted small tariff to help raise revenue *Zachary Taylor defeated Free Soil candidate Martin Van Buren for president in 1848 *Free Soil was mostly taken over by the Republicans in 1854

Mexican Cession and Slavery

1848 *Argument existed about slavery in the newly acquired Mexican Cession *States-righters believed that the territory was the property of all states and that the federal government had no right to prohibit property ownership in territories *Many anti-slavery and federal government supporters contended that Congress had the power to make laws for the territories *Argument in favor of federal power was based on the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 and the Missouri Compromise of 1820

Gold Rush

1848-1850s *Miners who rushed to California after the discovery of gold were called "Forty Niner" *Over 80,000 prospectors "rushed" to San Francisco *The increased population led to California joining the Union as a free state *Connected to the idea of Manifest Destiny

Zachary Taylor

1849-1850 *Twelfth president *Famous general in the Mexican War Whig President *Opposed the spread of slavery *Encouraged territories to organize and seek admission directly as states to avoid the issue of slavery *Died suddenly in 1850 and was replaced by Millard Fillmore

Industry by 1850

Pre-1850 *Mostly located in the North *Industry’s value surpassed agriculture *United States technology exceeded Europe in such areas as rubber, coal power, mass production, and the telegraph *Cheap immigrant labor threatened the established workers’ jobs

Agriculture by 1850

Pre-1850 *Agricultural technology increased harvest sizes, saved on labor, and made selling farm goods to international markets possible *Demand for agricultural land grew *Railroad was used to help transport goods *John Deere, an American manufacturer, pioneered the steel-plow industry *Cyrus McCormack invented the mechanical reaper

African Americans in the North, 1850

1850 *Organized churches and groups *200,000 free African Americans lived in the North and West, although their lives were restricted by prejudicial laws *Immigration and new sources of labor for employers threatened the economic security of northern African Americans

The North, 1850

1850 *Wages were increasing and the economy was growing *Railroad competition began to harm the canal business *Large numbers of Irish and Germans immigrated to the United States *Urbanization increased as the population grew, bringing problems such as slums, impure water, rats, and foul sewage

The South, 1850

1850 *Plantation system: Cash crops grown by slave labot *Agrarian slave labor was more profitable than using slaves in factories *Capital funds were tied up in land and slaves, so little was left for investing in new growth or industry *Value system put emphasis on leisure and elegance *Unlike the North, the South remained agrarian and its population was less dense *Due to the rise of cotton, the influence of the Gulf States in the South grew *Cotton became the largest export of the United States *Slave importation continued through the 1850s into southwestern states, despite the federal outlaw *Few immigrants went to the South

Stephen Douglas

1813-1861 *Senator from Illinois dubbed the "Little Giant" *Was an expansionist and a supporter of the Mexican War *Broke the Compromise of 1850 into smaller, more acceptable pieces of legislation and pushed it through using various allies in Congress *Introduced the Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854 *During a Senate campaign in 1858, participated in debates against Abraham Lincoln (dubbed the Lincoln Douglas debates) *He believed popular sovereignty was the appropriate way to handle the slavery question

Compromise of 1850 (Omnibus Bill)

1850 *Proposed by Henry Clay and handled by Stephen Douglas *Douglas broke the legislation into various pieces, which helped assure its passage; this allowed northern and southern legislators to vote against just the parts they didn’t like *The Compromise le to sectional harmony for several years *California admitted as a free state *New Mexico and Utah territories would be decided by popular sovereignty *Slave trade was abolished in the District of Columbia *Tough Fugitive Slave Act passed *Federal payment to Texas ($10 million) for lost New Mexico territory

Fugitive Slave Act

1850 *Part of the Compromise of 1850 *This new Act reinvigorated enforcement of some guidelines that had already been established in the Fugitive Slave Act of 1793, which had been mostly ignored by Northern states *Created federal commissioners who could pursue fugitive slave in any state and paid $10 per returned slave *African Americans living in the North and claimed by slave catchers were denied portion of legal due process *Some Northern states passed personal-liberty laws that contradicted the Act *Led to small riots in the North and increased the rift between the North and South

Millard Filmore

1850-1853 *Thirteenth President *Became president after Zachary Taylor died *As a congressman, he revealed his opposition to both the expansion of slavery and various abolitionist activities, driving away supporters *Supported the Compromise of 1850 *Failed to obtain a nomination in 1852, but was nominated by both the Whigs and the Know-Nothing movement in 1856

Know-Nothings

1840s-1850s *A political movement that supported Americans and American ideals over what it was as the influence of immigrants *Also grew power from those dissatisfied with the perceived unresponsiveness of local leadership *Influenced by German and Irish Catholic immigration during the period; Know-Nothings suspected the immigrants of anti-Americanism and feared the influence of the Pope in Rome *The name of the movement came from its roots in secrecy’ in its early days, member were supposed to answer that they did not know about the organization if asked by outsiders *The movement grew in size and political representation in 1854 and 1855, but it was split by the slavery issue, and most members joined joined the Republican Party by the 1860 presidential election

Harriet Beecher Stowe

1811-1896 *Worked with the Grimke sisters, Elizabeth Stanton, and other leaders to pursue activist goals *Early activist in the feminist movement and author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1851), a novel critical of slavery *Uncle Tom’s Cabin was denounced in the South and praised in the North; it turned many toward active opposition to slavery and helped bolster sympathy for abolition by Europeans who had read it

Franklin Pierce

1852-1856 *Fourteenth President *Democratic president from New Hampshire *Supported Manifest Destiny despite Northern concerns that it would leas to the spread of slavery *Signed the Kansas-Nebraska Act *Sent Commodore Matthew Perry into Japan to open the country to diplomacy and commerce (Treaty of Kanagawa) *Opened Canada to greater trade *Pierce’s diplomats failed in their attempts to purchase Cuba from Spain, leading to the drafting of the Ostend Manifesto

Henry David Thoreau

1817-1862 *Transcendental writer *His Walden (1854) repudiated the repression of society and preached non-violent civil disobedience *He protested unjust laws, slavery, and the Mexican War *To demonstrate against these issues, Thoreau refused to pay his poll tax and was forced to spend one night in jail *Thoreau’s ideology was reflected in future advocates like Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Ostend Manifesto

1854 *Drafted by James Buchanan, John Mason, Pierre Soule after Soule failed to purchase Cuba from Spain *Suggested that the United States should take Cuba from Spain by force is Spain refused to sell it *Abolitionists saw Ostend as a plot to extend slavery *Southerners supported the manifesto, as they had feared Cuba would be a free "black republic"

Evolution of the Major Political Parties to pre-civil War

1787-1854 *Key Moment: Debate over the adoption of a federal constitution *Parties: Federalists and Anti Federalists, who disagreed about the power and influence of the central government *Evolutionary Point: After the Constitution was adopted, the Jeffersonian Republicans absorbed he Anti-Federalists and by 180 the Federalists had declined *Key Moment: Disagreement over John Q. Adams’s death of Andrew Jackson *Parties: Democratic Republicans and the Whig Party, which was a combination of those who opposed President Jackson’s policies and those who had supported John Q. Adams *Evolutionary Point: After the death of Whig President William Henry Harrison, parties focused more on issues of sectional unrest

Kansas-Nebraska Act

1854 *Legislation introduced by Stephen Douglas to organize the area west of Missouri and Iowa *One goal was to facilitate the building of a transcontinental railroad that ran west from Chicago *Called for two territories to be created (Kansas and Nebraska) and he issue of slavery was to be decided by popular sovereignty *The act revoked a provision of the Missouri Compromise, allowing everything above 36 degrees 30′ to be free *Kansas’ status was impacted by fighting between pro and anti slavery groups who moved to the area *The conflict was termed "Bleeding Kansas"

Creation of Lincoln’s Republican Party

1854 *The Democratic Party divided along North-South lines *The Whig Party disintegrated, with its members either joining the Know-Nothings or the newly created Republican Party *The Republican Party’s unifying principle was that slavery should be banned from all the nation’s territories and not permitted to spread any further to established states

Walt Whitman

1819-1892 *Northern Romantic era poet *Wrote a volume of poems, Leaves of Grass (1855) *Celebrated the importance of individualism and is considered the poet of American democracy

James Buchanan

1857-1861 *Fifteenth President *Presided over the country when the Dred Scott decision was announced *Blackened the Lecompton Constitution to appease the South *Buchanan, still acting as president after Lincoln’s election, denied the legal right of states to secede but believed that the federal government could not legally prevent them *Before leaving office, Buchanan appointed Northerners to federal posts and helped to prepare Fort Sumter with reinforcements

Causes and Impact of the Panic of 1857

1857 *Failure of the Ohio Life Insurance and Trust Co. in New York *Over-speculation in railroads and lands *Decrease in flow of European capital for the United States investments because of Europe’s own wars *Surplus of wheat hurt Northern farmers *Panic spread to Europe, South America, and the Far East *Panic fueled sectional tensions as Northerners blamed it on the low tariff policies of the Southern-dominated Congress

Dred Scott v. Sandford

1857 *Supreme Court case involving a slave, Scott, who was taken by his master from Missouri, a slave state, to Illinois, a free state *After Scott had been returned to Missouri, he sued for freedom for himself and his family, stating that by residing in a free state he had ended his slavery *President Buchanan meant for the case’s decision to serve as the basis for the slavery issue *Pro-South Judge Taney ruled that Scott did not have the right of citizenship, which he would need to be able to bring forth a suit *Ruled further that the Missouri Compromise itself was unconstitutional because Congress had no power to prohibit slavery in the territories, as slaves were property *The Scott decision would apply to all African Americans, who were regarded as inferior and, therefore, without rights

Lecompton Constitution

1857 *Document submitted by pro-slavery leaders in territorial Kansas that put no restriction on slavery *Free-soilers boycotted the constitutional convention in Lecompton because the document would not leave Kansas a free territory *Though President Buchanan supported the constitution as the basis for Kansas’ statehood, Congress voted against it *The constitution was turned down and Kansas remained a territory

Lincoln-Douglas Debates

1858 *Part of the Illinois senatorial campaign between Stephen Douglas and Abraham Lincoln, these debates centered on the issue of slavery *Douglas maintained that popular sovereignty was supported by the basic elements of democracy *Douglas offered the "Freeport Doctrine"; despite the Dred Scott case, slavery could be prevented if people living ina territory refused to pass laws favorable to slavery *Lincoln had a moral opposition to slavery’s spread and demanded constitutional protection where it existed *Lincoln lost the Senate election to Douglas, but he stepped into the national limelight

John Brown

1809-1859 *Brown and his sons killed five pro-slavery settlers in Kansas in an incident known as the "Pottawatamie Creek Massacre" (1856) *He was supported by some Northern abolitionists in order to start a countrywide revolution *He led followers to seize a federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia, hoping to start the rebellion (1859) *Brown was arrested and hanged *Brown was often referred to as "God’s Angry Man"

Transportation from 1860-1900

1860-1900 *Railroads were given land grants by the government *Railroad transportation provided opportunities for movement of goods and people to the West and raw materials to the East *Affected population movements *Made Chicago one of the most populous cities in the nation by 1900

Election of 1860

1860 *Republicans nominated Abraham Lincoln *Major planks of his campaign: containment of slavery and encouragement of transcontinental rail *The Democratic vote was split between Douglas and several other strong candidates *Lincoln won the election and the South began to secede thereafter

Abrahan Lincoln

1861-1865 *Sixteenth President *The Lincoln-Douglas Debates won him high national regard and, eventually, the Republican nomination for President *Produced and led a Northern armu to defend the Union against secessionists *Suspended habeas corpus during the Civil War, which was upheld by Congress *Issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed slaved within the Confederacy *Developed the "10% Plan" for Reconstruction *Gave the Gettysburg Address on November 19, 1863, which began "Four score and seven years ago…" *He was assassinated while attending a play at Ford’s Theatre in Washington; the assassin, John Wilkes Booth, believed he was assisting the Southern cause

Secession

Began in December of 1860 *Response to the election of Abraham Lincoln, wh sought tocontain slavery *South Carolina voted to secede on December 10, 1860 *Over the following two months, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas seceded *The remaining states- Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina- seceded after the fall of Fort Sumter *These states declared themselves the Confederate States of America and elected Jefferson Davis as president, adopting a constitution that permitted slavery rights and sovereignty of states

Civil War Conscription

1860s *Congress passed a federal conscription law in 1863 *Rioting in the North took place, notably in New York City, when drafted individuals were permitted to avoid service by hiring a substitute or paying $300 *the Confederacy’s short supply of manpower ment an earlier draft, beginning in 1862 *Southerners could also hire substitutes or purchase an exemption

Civil War Advantages for the South

1860s *Only needed to resist being conquered *Vast in land size *Troops would fight in their familiar home territory *Highly qualified senior officers including Robert E. Lee, Joseph Johnston, Albert Sidney Johnston, and Stonewall Jackson *Inspired to protect their familiar institutions and culture

Civil War Advantages for the North

1860s *Greater population *Better railroad lines and more established trade routes than the South *More wealth *Were able to use the moral issue of fighting slavery as motivation

Anaconda Plan

1861 *Civil War strategy planned by Northern General Winfield Scott to crush the Southern rebellion *Called for a naval blockade to shut out European supplies and exports, a campaign to take the Mississippi River and, thereby, split the South, and a targeting of Southern cities in hopes that pro-Unionists would rise up in the South and overthrow the secession *Both the blockade and the taking of the Mississippi were successful

The Homestead Act

1862 *Granted 160 acres of government land to any person who would farm it for at least five years *The government helped to settle the West with this provision *This "free soil" proposal became law when the Southern Democrats were not part of Congress

Battle of Antietam

September 17, 1862 *A Civil War battle that offered the North an opportunity to defeat General Lee and shorten the war *Northern General George McClellan had discovered detailed plans for Lee’s entire operation but ignored the opportunity because of over-cautiousness *Lee’s army was forced to retreat to Virginia after a bloody battle at Antietam *McClellan’s failure to pursue Lee led Lincoln to remove him from command

Emancipation Proclamation

Effective January 1, 1963 *Declared all slaves to be free in areas under rebel control, thus exempting conquered areas of the South *Lincoln was criticized for not abolishing slavery everywhere *Led to slaves in the South leaving their plantations *Increased morale in the North *Partly designed to keep England from joining the war on the side of the South *Changed perception of the war from a conflict to preserve the Union to a war to end slavery

Battle of Gettysburg

July 1-3, 1863 *Lee invaded Pennsylvania from Virginia, pursued by Northern General Meade *Lee was defeated and retreated to Virginia *The bloodiest, most decisive battle of the Civil War *Farthest northern advance of the Confederacy

Civil War Ships

1860s *Ironclads were Civil War ships protected from cannon fire by iron plates bolted over the sloping wooden sides *Confederates outfitted an old wooden warship, the Merrimack, with iron railroad rails and renamed it the Virginia; it achieved devasting results *The Union’s Monitor fought the Merrimack to a standstill

Lincoln’s "10% Plan"

1863 *Lincoln believed that seceded states should be restored to that Union quickly and easily, with "malice toward none, with charity for all." *Lincoln’s "10% Plan" allowed Southerners, excluding high-ranking confederate officers and military leaders, to take an oath promising future loyalty to the Union and an end to slavery *When 10 percent of those registered to vote in 1860 took the oath, a loyal state government could be formed *This plan was not accepted by Congress

Sherman’s March to the Sea

1864 *General William Tecumseh Sherman led Union troops through Georgia *Sherman and Union Commander, Ulysses S. Grant, believed in a "total war" that would break the South’s psychological capacity to fight; Sherman’s army sought to eliminate civilian support of Southern troops *Sherman captured and burned Atlanta in September of 1864 *The purpose of destroying Atlanta was to lower Southern morale and diminish supplies *Sherman led troops to Savannah, then on to South and North Carolina

Northern Election of 1864

1864 *Lincoln ran against General McClellan, who claimed that the war was a failure and called for a peace settlement *Lincoln ran on the ticket of national unity with Andrew Johnson, a loyalist from Tennessee *Sherman’s taking of Atlanta helped Lincoln win the election *Those sympathetic to the Southern cause were labeled"Copperheads"

Wade-Davis Bill

1864 *A proposal to reunite the country by Senators Wade and Davis *Required that 50 percent of a state’s white male voters take a loyalty oath to be readmitted to the Union *Demanded stronger efforts on behalf of states to emancipate slaves *Lincoln "pocket-vetoed" the bill in favor of his "10% Plan"

Conclusion of the Civil War

April 9, 1865 *With his forced surrounded, General Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House in Virginia *Lee’s surrender caused the remaining Confederate soldiers to lay down their arms *By the end of the conflict, the country had sustained over 600,000 casualties

Reconstruction

1865-1877 *Period following the Civil WAr in which the United States tried to transform the organization and society of former Confederate states *Determined how the South would take over its oen governance *In 1867, Congress put the South under the army’s control to oversee elections, ensure the rights of freed slaves, and restrict Confederate leaders from gaining power *New Republican state governments offered a variety of reconstruction programs, but former Confederates suspicious of these efforts claimed corruption within state leadership; some turned to violent opposition

Freedman’s Bureau

1865 *Congressional support agency providing food, clothing, and education for freed slaves *Ex-slave states were divided into districts that were managed by assistant commissioners *Despites it benefits, the Bureau failed to establish the freed slaves as landowners *It organized the African American vote for the Republican Party, creating great animosity toward the bureau in the South

Radical Republicans

1860s *Faction of the Republican Party that believed the Civil War was meant to stop slavery and emancipate all slaves *Believed Congress should control Reconstruction and not the President *Rejected the reentry of Tennessee, Arkansas, and Louisiana into the Union, despite their qualification under the "10% Plan" *They wanted the rebellious South to be dealt with in a harsher manner *Ben Wade and Thad Stevens were among their members

Civil War Amendments

1865-1870 *13th Amendment (1865): Abolished slavery in the United States *14th Amendment (1868): African Americans became citizens and no state could deny life, liberty, or property without due process of the law *15th Amendment (1870): No state could deny the right to vote on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude

Black Codes

Began 1865 *Restrictions by Southern states on former slaves *Designed to replicate the conditions of slavery in post-Civil War South *Various codes prohibited meetings without a white present, while others established segregated public facilities *Led to Radical Republican opposition and exclusion of Southern representation in Congress

Jim Crow Laws

1880-1900s *Laws separating whites and African Americans in public facilities and restricting their legal guarantees, such as the right to vote *Often part of state statuses *Support of these laws was provided in the Plessy v. Ferguson case, demonstrating the limits of the 14th Amendment *Name of the laws are said to be derived from a character in a minstrel song

Booker T. Washington

1856-1915 *The son of a slave and a white man *Taught at Hampton Institute and, in 1881, helped organize a school for African Americans in Tuskegee, Alabama *The Tuskegee Institute emphasized industrial training to help African Americans gather wealth and become influential in society *Claimed that it was a mistake for African Americans to push for social equality before they had become economically equal *His ideas were denounced by some leaders in the African American community *Lectured throughout the United States and Europe and wrote various works, including his autobiography, Up From Slavery

Andrew Johnson

1865-1869 *Seventeenth President *Vice President who took over presidency after Lincoln’s assassination *He initially followed Lincoln’s policies but gradually became more conservative, giving amnesty to former Confederate officials and opposing legislation that dealt with former slaves *His veto of the Civil Rights Act was overridden by Congress, which decreased his political power *Johnson’s opposition to the Radical Republicans and his violation of the Tenure of Office Act led to his impeachment by the House *The Senate was organized as a court to hear the impeachment charges, but it came one vote short of the constitutional two-thirds required for removal

"Seward’s Folly"

1867 *Derisive title of Secretary of State William Seward’s decision to purchase Alaska for $7.2 million from Russia *Congress agreed to the purchase, as Russia had been pro-North during the Civil War *Most members thought the purchase to be foolhardy since the land was in such a remote location *Russia was willing to sell Alaska because Russia was overextended abroad and feared the loss of Alaska in a future war

Carpetbaggers and Scalawags

Post Civil War- Reconstruction *Carpetbaggers: Derogatory Southern name for Northerners who came to the South to participate in Reconstruction governments *Names came from the cloth bags of possessions many of them used to travel South *Scalawags: Derogatory name for Southerners working for or supporting the federal government during Reconstruction *Some of these Southerners had opposed the war from the beginning, while others helped Reconstruction for financial gain *Partially in response to Reconstruction, a group of Southern whites formed the Klu Klux Klan, which targeted carpetbaggers, scalawags, African Americans, and others with aggressive and sometime violent acts

Ulysses S. Grant

1869-1877 *Eighteenth President *Fought in the Mexican War, captured Vicksburg as a Union general, and accepted General Lee’s surrender *Appointed Secretary of War by Andrew Johnson in 1867; disagreed with Johnson’s policies and won election through support of Radical Republicans *Despite his personal honesty and honor, his administration was marred by such scandals as Credit Mobilier and the Whiskey Ring

Credit Mobilier

1867-1872 *Stockholders of the Union Pacific Railroad created a dummy company, Credit Mobilier *The company was supposed to complete the transcontinental railroad, but instead it stole millions of dollars from the government *Blame for the scandal fell on Grant and his cabinet

First Transcontinental Railroad

1869 *Completed with Golden Spike at Promontory Point, Utah *Marked the meeting of the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific railroads *During construction, the Union Pacific used Irish labor, while the Central Pacific used Chinese labor *The connection of the railroads opened national markets and met growing economic needs

Knights of Labor

Established in 1869 *Militant organization seeking solutions to labor problems *Allowed skilled and unskilled workers (along with women and African Americans) to join *Wanted an eight-hour work day, termination of child labor, equal pay for equal work, and the elimination of private banks *Under Terrence Powderly’s leadership, the Knights reached membership of over 700,000 *Downfall caused by emergence of the AFL, mismanagement, and financial losses from unsuccessful strikes

Panic of 1873

1873 *Economic depression during Grant’s second term *Over-expansive, unregulated business during the post-Civil War years, the failure of American investment banking firms, and economic downturns in Europe all contributed to the panic *Led to the retirement of greenbacks and a return to the gold standard

Whiskey Ring Fraud

1870s *One of the scandals of Grant’s administration *Liquor taxes were increased to aid in paying off the cost of the Civil War *Distillers and treasury officials conspired to defraud the government by giving out cheap tax stamps, robbing the government of millions in excise tax

Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens)

1835-1910 *American novelist who grew up in Hannibal, Missouri *Early jobs as both a printer’s apprentice and a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi River *His novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876), Huckleberry Finn (1885), and A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court (1889) *Twain’s writings portray the essence of life and speech during the era; his use of a distinctly American vernacular influenced future fiction writers

Rutherford B. Hayes

1877-1881 *Nineteenth President *Former Ohio governor who was the Republican presidential nominee in 1876 *Won election through the Compromise of 1877 *During his term, he removed federal troops from the South *Dealt with railroad strike in 1877

Compromise of 1877

1877 *Compromise came after the disputed presidential election of 1876 between Hayes and Tilden *Tilden won the popular vote but neither candidate won the electoral vote, because the electoral votes in three states were in dispute *The Democrats agreed to give Hayes the presidency *Hayes promised to show consideration for Southern interests, end Reconstruction, aid Southern industrialization, and withdraw remaining forced from the South *This settlement left the freed African Americans in the South without support from the Republican Party

The Great Railroad Strike of 1877

1877 *Pay cuts caused labor strikes to spread through the country *Workers of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad went on strike over a second pay cut *President Hayes used federal troops to restore order after workers were killed

Half-Breeds, Stalwarts, and Mugwumps

1880s *Factions of the Republican Party in the 1880s *Half-Breeds: supported civil service reform and merit appointments to government *Stalwarts: Opposed civil service reform and supported the protective tariff *Mugwumps: Group that left Republican Party to become Democrats; this group heavily favored civil service reform and mistrusted James Blaine as the presidential nominee because it suspected his involvement in past corruption *The election of 1880 united Garfield, a Half-Breed, and Vice President Chester Arthur, a Stalwart

Gilded Age

1870s-1890s *Phase coined by Mark Twain to describe the new industrial era *America emerged as the world’s leading industrial and agricultural producer *Profits became increasingly centralized in the hands of fewer people

Social Darwinism

1880s *Theory that wealth was based on the survival of the fittest; associated with Charles Darwin’s work *Wealthy industrial leaders used the doctrines to justify vast differences in classes *Supporters included Herbert Spencer and William Graham Sumner

Captains of Industry or Robber Barons

1880s *Leaders of large, efficient corporations *Often gained wealth through questionable business practices *Monopolies by these large companies led to demands by small businessmen and laborers for government regulation *John D. Rockefeller’s tactics were exposed in Ida Tarbell’s History of the Standard Oil Company, published in 1904

John D. Rockefeller

1839-1937 *Founder of Standard Oil Company *Used such business practices as horizontal integration(dominating a particular phase of the production process in order to monopolize a market), trusts, and rebates to grow Standard Oil *Also invested in banks, railroads, and timber *Focused on philanthropy toward the end of his life, including the Rockefeller Foundation and the University of Chicago

Andrew Carnegie

1835-1919 *After making money through investments in a sleeping car company and oil, Carnegie moved on to a position in the War Department *Later, he worked in the iron business and then moved into steel after learning the Bessemer Process, which formed steel from pig iron *Grew Carnegie Steel Company through acquisitions (vertical integration- controlling all phases of production to increase efficiency and limit competition) *Carnegie Steel Company was involved in the Homestead Strike with the Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers *Wrote the article "Gospel of WEalth" for the North American Review, which promoted the belief that the wealthy were just trustees of their money and that they must use their efforts to benefit society *His philanthropic ventures included Carnegie Hall and public libraries

J.P. Morgan

1837-1913 *Wall Street banker whose company financed railroads, banks, and insurance companies *Bought Carnegie for $400 million *Pledged money to help shore up the US banking system after the Panic of 1907 *Philanthropist

William Randolph Hearst

1863-1951 *Inherited the San Francisco Chronicle *Built a media empire, including newspapers, magazines, radio stations, and movie studios *His "yellow journalism" or writing that dealt with sensational news, helped lead the US into the Spanish-American War

James Garfield

1881 *Twentieth President *Former Ohio Congressman and Union General *Charles Guiteau, a disappointed office seeker, shot and killed Garfield *His assassination spurred the passage of the Pendleton Act

Chester Arthur

1881-1885 *Twenty-first President *Assumed the office when President Garfield was assassinated by Charles Guiteau *Worked to outlaw polygamy in Utah and to strengthen the Navy *Supported the Pendleton Act, which established open competitive exams for civil service jobs and officially ended the Spoils System that had been popular under Andrew Jackson

Chinese Exclusion Act

1882 *Only legislation passed to limit immigration of any one group of people *Passed in response to the Chinese who settled in California after building the railroads

Modern Navy

1880s *Construction of new steel ships led the United States to take the lead in the world naval rankings *United States Naval War College was established on Oct. 6, 1884 *Alfred Thayer Mahan (1840-1914) was a US naval officer, President of Newport War College, and author who pushed for imperialism and growth of the US Navy *Repair and coaling stations helped expand the Navy’s effectiveness

Grover Cleveland

1885-1889 and 1893-1897 *Twenty-second and twenty-fourth President *The first Democrat elected after the Civil War *He was the only president to two non-consecutive terms *He vetoed many private pension bills to Civil War veterans who submitted fraudulent claims *Signed the Interstate Commerce Act *Sent in federal troops to enforce an injunction against striking railroad workers in Chicago

Wabash Case

1886 *Case challenging legislation enacted by the State of Illinois against railroads *The state was trying to appease the demands of farmers for lower railroad rates *The Supreme Court determined that states had no power to regulate interstate commerce *The case undid an earlier victory for states established in the Munn v. Illinois case (1877), which had allowed for regulation

American Federation of Labor (AFL)

1886 *Combination of national craft unions representing labor interests in wages, hours, and safety *Individuals were members of their local unions, which in turn, were members of the AFL *Rather than revolutionary changes, they sought a better working life; their philosophy was "pure and simple unionism" *First president was Samuel Gompers

Haymarket Square Riot

May 4, 1886 *Large rally in Haymarket Square in Chicago shortly after striking began at McCormick Harvesting Machine Co. *Police were attempting to disperse the crowd then a bomb exploded *Eleven were killed and over 100 were injured *Eight anarchists were put on trial and four were executed *Incident was used to discredit the Knights of Labor

Interstate Commerce Act

1887 *Established the Interstate Commerce Commission in part to monitor discrimination within railroad industry *Prohibited rebates and pools and required railroads to publish their rates *Also prohibited unfair discrimination against shippers and outlawed the practice of charging more for short hauls than long hauls *In general, the Act opened competition, the goal of which was to preserve equality and spur innovation

Dawes Severalty Act

1887 *Legislation encouraging the breakup of Native American tribes in hopes of assimilating them into American society *Helen Hunt Jackson’s A Century of Dishonor was a catalyst, as it depicted injustices to Native Americans *Distributed Native American reservation lands among individual members of the tribe to form a system of agriculture more similar to the white man’s *Gave each head of a Native American family 160 acres of farmland or 320 acres of grazing land *Effect was to nearly destroy the reservation system, as the remaining tribal lands were opened up for whites

Jae Addams

1860-1935 *American social reformer *Provided the services of the Hull House in Chicago (1889) to help poor immigrants settle *Member of the "Social Gospel" movement, which applied lessons from the Bible to help solve problems of immigration and urbanization *Won 1931 Nobel Peace Prize

Benjamin Harrison

1889-1893 *Twenty-third President *Former senator and lawyer *He was nominated for the presidency on the eighth ballot at the 1888 Republican Convention *Defeated Grover Cleveland, despite receiving fewer popular votes *Submitted to the Senate a treaty to annex Hawaii, although President Cleveland later withdrew it *Signed many appropriations bills for naval improvement and internal improvements

Battle of Wounded Knee

1890 *Sioux natives wished to practice a dance that they believed would free their lands, rid them of whites, and lead to prosperity, but this plan frightened white settlers *The federal army believed Chief Sitting Bull was organizing a rebellion, and acting on the settlers’ fear and their suspicions, the army captured the chief *In a sudden exchange of gunfire between the tribe and the army, Chief Sitting Bull and the others were killed *The remainder of the tribe fled to a camp near Wounded Knee Creek *When the army reached this camp, a shot was fired, and in reaction, the army killed two hundred men, women, and children in what is considered the last battle of the Indian Wars

Progressivism

1890s-1914 *Social, political, and economic reform that came as an American response to problem caused by industrialization, urbanization, and immigration *Democratic reforms were made throughout states and the national government *Reforms led to the 16th, 17th, and 19th Amendments

Sherman Antitrust Act

1890 *Based on Congress’s power to regulate interstate commerce *Declared every contract, combination, or conspiracy in restraint of interstate trade to be illegal *Corporate monopolies were exposed to federal prosecution if they were found to conspire in restraining trade *The Supreme Court applied the act to both labor unions and corporations

Populist Party

1890 *Consisted mostly of farmers *Members who met in Nebraska wrote their "Omaha Platform" *The demands of the platform included free and unlimited coinage of silver, a graduated income tax, and government ownership of the telephone, telegraph, and railroad industries *Many of these ideas were later adopted by the Progressive Party

Homestead Strike

1892 *Iron and steel workers’ strike against Carnegie Steel Company in Pittsburgh to protest salary reductions *Henry Clay Frick hired Pinkerton security guards to protect Carnegie’s plant, but fighting resulted in deaths among both the protestors and the guards *The Pennsylvania State Militia was brought in to take control

Eugene V. Debs

1855-1926 *Became president of American Railway Union in 1893 *Led successful strikes against the Great Northern Railway and against the Pullman Palace Car Company *Was a founder of the Social Democratic Party *Ran for president as a Socialist candidate five times between 1900 and 1920

Hawaii

Republic founded in 1894 *American sugar planters worked in Hawaii and expanded American-Hawaiian sugar trade *Queen Liliuokalani opposed foreigners, which alienated Americans *Revolution against the queen occurred in 1893 with the encouragement of American leaders *Feeling that most islanders did not support the revolution, Grover Cleveland unsuccessfully attempted to restore Queen Liliuokalani *Stanford Dole, son of American missionaries in Hawaii, shepherded the process of annexing Hawaii *Dole became Hawaii’s first governor when the United Stated annexed it on July 7, 1898

Frederick Winslow Taylor

1856-1915 *Created the basis for the scientific management of business in his quest for efficiency *Used shops and large plants as models and succeeded in spreading his ideas on efficiency to several industries *Wrote books on the subject of scientific management

The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660-1783

Published 1890 *Written by Alfred Thayer Mahan (1840-1914), a naval officer and historian *Further encouraged those in favor of American imperialism and seaward expansion *Themes in the book were used as partial justification for the United States’ taking of the Philippines

Plessy v. Ferguson

1896 *Homer Plessy refused to leave a railroad car restricted only to whites *The Supreme Court upheld the Louisiana state law that required "separate but equal" facilities *The majority stated that the 14th Amendment protected only political equality and not social equality *Justice Harlan’s dissent argued that "…all citizens are equal before the law," laying the foundation for Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, which would overturn "separate but equal"

W.E.B. DuBois

1868-1963 *Civil rights leader and author *Called for full equality of African Americans, which included social, civil, political, and economic equality *Opposed Booker T. Washington’s "gradual approach" to equaltiy *Through higher education, DuBois wanted to develop leaders from the most able 10 percent of African Americans ("The Talented Tenth") *Co-founded the Niagara Movement, which became the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)

Cross of Gold Speech

1896 *Address given by William Jennings Bryan, the Democratic presidential nominee, during the national convention of the Democratic Party *The speech criticized the gold standard and supported the coinage of silver *Bryan’s beliefs were popular with debt-ridden farmers *The last words of his speech, and the most famous, were "You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns, you shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold"

William McKinley

1897-1901 *Twenty-fifth President *Former Republican congressman from Ohio *Business rallied to support him against his opponent, William Jennings Bryan *While Bryan toured the country, McKinley stayed at home and hosted important visitors, building an honest, "presidential" image *Defeated William Jennings Bryan for office in 1896 *McKinley’s election over Bryan influenced future political races by setting up interest groups and alliances that lasted for over a decade *McKinley was re-elected in 1900, but Leon Czolgosz, an anarchist, assassinated him one year into his second term

Marcus Alonzo Hanna

1837-1904 *American capitalist dealing in coal, shipping, shipbuilding, banking, and newspapers *He was in the Ohio Republican Party and helped elect William McKinley as governor in 1891 and 1893 *As Chairman of the Republican National Committee, he assisted McKinley in winning the presidential election of 1896

Open Door Policy

1898 *The United States’ foreign policy for its dealings with China *The United States had become a major commercial power in Asia after acquiring the Philippine Islands *Europe and Japan made moved to take over portions of China, threatening US interests there *Under President McKinley’s direction, Sec. of State John Hay sent messages to major powers in Europe and Japan, asking them to state publicly that they would not interfere with open trade in China *Hay announced agreement by all partied in July 1900 *The policy served as a guiding principle for US foreign affairs in China through the early 1900s

Teller Amendment

1898 *The Teller Amendment promised that when the US overthrew Spanish rule in Cuba, the US would give Cubans their independence *After the Spanish American War, the Platt Amendment overrode the Teller Amendment, and Cuba came under control of the US

Spanish-American War

1898 *Cuba resented Spain’s control, which led to rebellion *Spain responded with the dispatch of General Valeriano Weyler, who confined civilians to brutal camps *"Yellow press" in the US labeled him "Butcher Weyler," increasing American support against Spain *The US sent the battleship Maine to Havana to protect American interests, which included sugar; the Maine was blown up *America fought Spain in the Philippines and in Cuba *The Treaty of Paris gave Cuba its independence; US gained Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines while Spain received $20 million from the US for the Philippines

Puerto Rico and the United States

1900(Foraker) and 1917 (citizenship) *In 1900, Congress passed the Foraker Act, which gave Puerto Rico limited popular government *In 1917, American citizenship was granted to Puerto Ricans

Platt Amendment

1901 *Rider attached to Army appropriations bill *It was written into the constitution of Cuba by the United States and, in effect, it made Cuba a US protectorate *It permitted the US to intervene to preserve Cuba’s "independence" but in reality, it allowed the US to protect its own interests in CUba *The United States kept land for naval bases on Cuba; Guantanamo Bay would play a part in later Cuba-US conflicts

Theodore Roosevelt

1901-1909 *Twenty-sixth President *Roosevelt had to deal with ill health and became an advocate for similarly disadvantaged people *Roosevelt was part of the RoughRider Regiment during the Spanish American conflict, where he became a war hero *As President, he became a "trust buster"; he used the Sherman Antitrust Act to dissolve trusts that restrained interstate and foreign trade *He won the antitrust case against the Northern Securities Company *His style of diplomacy was to "speak softly and carry a big stick"; he protected US interests by ensuring the construction of the Panama Canal and the United States’ authority in Latin America *Roosevelt served as a middleman in conflicts between Russia and Japan; he forged the Gentlemen’s Agreement of 1907 *He supported conservation (not preservation) of national resources

Muckrakers

1900-1912 *American journalists, novelists, and critics who exposed corruption, especially in business and politics *President Roosevelt it said to have given the muckrakers their name *Famous muckrakers include Upton Sinclair, Ida Tarbell, Lincoln Steffens, Frank Norris, and Samuel Hopkins Adams *Led to increased support for the progressive movement

Insular Cases

Most cases occurred 1901-1904 *A series of court cases held to determine if the "Constitution followed the flag" *At stake was whether people in areas controlled by the US were given rights as citizens *The court determined that those living in new territories were not automatically granted the rights of United States citizens

Upton Sinclair

1878-1968 *Novelist and socialist *Used his writings to expose issues in the US society, such as the need for food inspection laws, and the oppressive effect of capitalism on education and culture *His book The Jungle (1906), a graphic novel about the Chicago stockyard, led to food inspection reforms and the Meat Inspection Act of 1906 *Lost bid to become governor of California in 1934 *Won Pulitzer Prize in 1942

Muller v. Oregon

1908 *Oregon established a law that limited women to ten hours of work in factories and laundries *Muller, a laundry owner, challenged the legality of the law, arguing that t violated the "liberty to contract" *Louis Brandeis, one of the attorneys arguing the case used extensive sociological evidence in his brief (the Brandeis Brief), which served as a model for later social reformers *The Supreme Court held that the law was unconstitutional

Henry Ford

1863-1947 *His Model-T, introduced in 1908, was the first inexpensive, mass-produced automobile *Use of the moving assembly line heavily influenced American manufacturing *He paid workers $5 per day, more than doubling the average autoworker’s wage *He was strongly anti-union

William Howard Taft

1909-1913 *Twenty seventh President *After serving as Secretary of War under Teddy Roosevelt, he was elected over William Jennings Bryan *He prosecuted trusts under the Sherman Antitrust Act *His policy of "Dollar Diplomacy" called for acting in foreign affairs to achieve a financial result on behalf of one’s country *His administration created the Department of Labor and established the parcel-post system *President Theodore Roosevelt’s relationship with Taft deteriorated, leading to Roosevelt’s opposition of Taft’s re-election *He became Chief Justice of the SUpreme Court after serving as president

Ashcan School (New York Realists)

Early 1900s *Group of artists who painted realistic scenes *Focused on subjects of everyday life; titles such as The Wrestlers and Sixth Avenue *Members included George Luks, George Bellows, John Sloan, Robert Henri, Everett Shinn, and Arthur B. Davies

Radio

Early 1900s *The first human voice was broadcast and first musical broadcast was in 1910 *Woodrow Wilson was the first President to broadcast *KDKA was the first radio station in the United States (Pittsburgh), commencing broadcast in 1920 *It helped break down regionalism and provided news and entertainment

The Great Migration

1910s-1940s *The movement of African AMericans from the South to the industrial centers of the Northeast and the Midwest *Causes for the migration included decreased cotton priced, the lack of immigrant workers in the North, increased manufacturing as a result of the war, and the strengthening of the Ku Klux Klan *The African American population in such cities as Detroit, Chicago, and New York grew during this period *The migration led to higher wages, more educational opportunities, and better standards of life for many African Americans

Seventeenth Amendment

Ratified 1913 *A progressive initiative that allowed for each state to elect two senators for six year terms by popular vote *Restated the first paragraph of Article 1, Section 3 of the Constitution by replacing "chosen by Legislature thereof" with "elected by the people thereof" *Allowed citizens to have a more active participation in government

Woodrow Wilson

1913-1921 *Twenty-eighth President *Before his presidency and political work, he served as an academic and President of Princeton University *His legislation lowered tariffs, created a graduated federal income tax, and established the Federal Trade Commission to control unfair business practices *He initiated progressive reform that prohibited child labor and limited railroad workers to an eight-hour day *He led the US into WWI *His "14 Points" outlined the settlement of WWI *He was a noted racist who segregated the federal government and who praised Birth of a Nation, a controversial movie negatively depicting African Americans

Federal Reserve Act of 1913

1913 *Created the Federal Reserve Bank *Response to the Panic of 1907 and to the concerns of business *There was a need for a stable currency supply that could grow and shrink with business demands *Several measures competed for designing this central reserve, each offering control to a different group *President Wilson worked diligently to create and secure passage of the Act *It divided the nation into separate regions with federal reserve banks in each that would serve as "banker’s banks" *The Federal Reserve Board oversaw the system and regulated it by raising or lowering the interest rates that each federal reserve reserve banks would charge

Watchful Waiting

1913-1914 *Policy by Woodrow Wilson of rejecting alliances with leaders who took control through force until a determination of their interests could be made *Wilson implemented this policy by refusing to accept the leadership of Victoriano Huerta when he took control of Mexico through violent revolution *Policy ended when the US sent forced to retaliate against Mexico, which had arrested American sailors in its borders

Clayton Antitrust Act

1914 *Further outlined regulations against monopolies and other unfair business practices *Meant as an update to the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 *Price discrimination that was destructive to competition was declared illegal *Declared interlocking board of directors of direct competitors illegal *Established Federal Trade Commission to investigate and prosecute instances of unfair competition *Served as the grounds for many suits against big corporations *Exempted labor unions engaged in legal activities

World War I Causes and Major Players

1914 *Cause: The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria Hungary by a Serbian nationalist *Cause: Growing nationalism in Austria-Hungary and France *Cause: Colonial expansion in Africa and China *Cause: Military buildup *Major Player for the Allies(Triple Entente): Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Belgium, Japan, and the US :Major Players for the Central Powers (Triple Alliance): Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey, and Bulgaria

Lusitania and Neutrality

1915 *At the outset of World War I, Germany began the use of submarines and announced a blockade of the Allied forces *The Lusitania was a British passenger liner attacked by German submarines *While unarmed, the Lusitania did carry munitions for the Allies *US citizens traveling aboard the Lusitania were killed *Wilson protested but remained neutral, in line with the 1914 Proclamation of Neutrality *One other line with Americans, the Sussex, was sunk, and then Germans gave a pledge to stop attacks on unarmed vessels

Labor Acts, 1915-1916

1915-1916 *La Follette Seaman’s Act(1915): Required safety and sanitation measures for commercial ships and regulated wages, food, and hours of sailors *Adamson Act (1916): Employees of railroads who were engaged in interstate commerce were given an eight-hour work day and overtime pay or time-and-a-half *Keating-Owen Child Labor Act (1916): Forbade shipment of products that had involved child labor in their manufacture, in Hammer v. Dagenhart (1918), the Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional because Congress had interfered with the power of states

Louis Brandeis

1916 Nomination *Nominated by Wilson to the Supreme Court *Considered an advocate of social justice *First Jewish justice *Prior to his place on the Supreme Court, he was known for his "Brandeis Brief" in the Muller v. Oregon

Zimmerman Telegram

1917 *Telegram from German Foreign Secretary Zimmerman to German minister in Mexico that was intercepted by the British *Proposed that Mexico attack the US in the even that America entered WWI *Germany would return lost territories of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona to Mexico in victory *Telegram was released publicly and ensured American support for war against Germany

Unlimited Submarine Warfare

1917 *Proclamation by Germany that it would sink all ships, without warning, that entered a large war zone off the coasts of Allied Nations *Germany realized that it might draw the United States into World War I *Germany believed that cutting Allied supplies would allow Germany to win the war before a sizeable response by America *America broke diplomatic relations with Germany

Reasons for the United States Entry into WWI

1917 *Zimmerman telegram showed that Germany was untrustworthy and would come after the United States *Armed neutrality could not protect shipping *Germany had broken the Sussex Pledge, which protected certain ships from German warfare *After Russia’s revolution, the democratic Russian government made it an acceptable ally to the United States *America could hasten end of war and ensure a role in designing peace *Sinking the Lusitania and other ships by German submarines angered the US *The US was already backing the Allies with supplies *In his war message, Wilson said that, "the world must be made safe for democracy"

Committee on Public Information

1917 *Formed by President Wilson *Established voluntary censorship of the press and created a propaganda campaign for the country’s support of WWI *Portrayed Germans as barbaric and urged all citizens to spy on neighbors with foreign names *Encouraged reporting of suspicious activities to the Justice Department *Provided speeches to volunteers, the Four Minute Men, who gave talks on the American war effort during the changing of reels in movie theaters across the US *Headed by George Creel *Fostered "100% American" jingoism

American Protective League

1917 *Volunteer organization that claimed approval of the Justice Department for pressuring support of war *Humiliated those accused of not buying war bonds *Persecuted those of German descent *Encouraged the banning of German culture in everything from product names to consumption, including "pretzels" and "German Measles"

Espionage and Sedition Acts

1917 and 1918 *Fines and imprisonment for persons who made false statements that aided the enemy, hindered the draft, or incited military rebellion *Forbade criticism of the government, flag, or uniform *Led to imprisonment of major figures *The Supreme Court upheld the acts, allowing the government to limit free speech when words represented clear and present danger, especially during times of war

Women and Minorities in WWI

1917-1919 *Women served as clerks or in medical units *400,000 African American men were drafted or enlisted *African Americans were kept in segregated units and generally used in labor battalions or in support activities, though some units saw combat

United States Home Front During WWI

1918 *Wilson controlled raw materials, production, prices, and labor relations to ensure supplies for war *He appointed Herbert Hoover as head of food administration *Wilson oversaw the use of fuel, railroads, and maritime shipping *He resolved labor disputes through offers of employee benefits

Fourteen Points

1918 *Specific peace plan presented by Wilson in an address to Congress *Called for open (rather than secret) peace treaties *Promoted free trade, transportation along the seas, and arms reduction *Recommended a general association of nation to preserve the peace *Reactions in Europe were mixed as some countries wanted to punish Germany, and they found the terms in the 14 Points too accommodating *American citizens were also mixed in their support because they feared future international entanglement *In the end, the Treaty of Versailles went against many of the 14 Points *Growing isolationist sentiment, which was reflected in America’s reaction to the 14 Points, would later slow the US’s decision to enter WWII

The Treaty of Versailles

January 1919 *A result of the Paris Peace Conference *It formed the League of Nations to protect territorial integrity and political independence of all members *Germany was held responsible for war (war guilt clause), required to pay heavily for damages (reparations), and limited to a small defensive force *New nations’ boundaries were drawn, including Yugoslavia, Austria, Hungary, and Poland *German colonies were made mandates of the League and under trusteeship of the Allies

Wilson’s Treaty and Henry Cabot Lodge

1919 *Republican Senator Lodge led opposition against Paris Peace Treaty because of war entanglement with other members (Article X) *On a national speaking tour to push for League of Nations, Wilson collapsed after a speech *Wilson returned to D.C. and suffered a severe stroke *The President never fully recovered, but he wrote to Democrats to oppose treaty changes by Lodge *By not compromising, the treaty was defeated and the US did not join the League; a joint resolution enacted peace instead

Results of WWI

1919-1920s *America emerged as the political and economic leader of the world *In the US, European demand for its goods led to inflation; this strengthened the American economy but increased prices *Workers in America led several major strike because of these increased prices *European states went into decline following WWI *Germany was devastated by the conflict

Major Strikes After WWI

1919-1920s *A Boston police force attempted to unionize, and Governor CAlvin Coolidge fired them to recruit a new force *Seattle had a general strike in 1919 *The AFL attempted to organize steel industry, but the strike was broken after violence and the use of federal troops *United Mine Workers struck and gained minor wage increases

U.S. v. Schenck

1919 *During World War I, Charles Schenck created a pamphlet opposing the military draft; he was convicted of attempting to obstruct the military under the Espionage Act *The Supreme Court determined that speech may be suppressed if it creates a clear and present danger (one cannot yell "fire" in a crowded theater) *In following years, the "clear and present danger" test was limited to violent actions rather than the support of these ideas

Prohibition

1919 *Temperance movements began to grow in the early 1800s *Carry Nation, a member of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, used rocks, hammers, and hatchets to destroy liquor stores and saloons *Eighteenth Amendment to Constitution prohibited manufacture, sale, transport, or import of liquor *Volstead Act defined alcoholic beverages and imposed criminal penalties for violations of the 18th Amendment *Prohibition led to bootlegging (illegal production or distribution of intoxicating beverages), corruption of government officials, and speakeasies (secret bars operated by bootleggers) *Al Capone was one of the most famous bootlegging gangsters *In 1933, the Twenty-first Amendment, which repealed Prohibition, was ratified

Red Scare and the Palmer Raids

1919 *United States worker strikes seemed to be harbingers of revolution to many in the country *Fear of revolution was fed by anti-German hysteria and the success of the Bolshevik Revolution *Bombs sent anonymously through the mail to prominent American leaders encouraged fear *Attorney General Palmer was a target of a failed mail bomb *Four thousand were arrested as "Communists" and illegal aliens, but only 556 actually were *Palmer announced threat of large Communist riots on May Day of 1920, but none materialized *Palmer was discredited and the Red Scare passed

Women’s Suffrage

1920 *The Nineteenth Amendment provided for women’s suffrage, which had been defeated earlier by the Senate *It was ratified by the states in 1920 *Feminists who supported suffrage beginning in the 1860s included Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Carrie Chapman Catt

Sacco and Vanzetti

1920 *Two gunmen robbed a factory and killed two men in MA *Sacco and Vanzetti, Italian immigrants and anarchists, were tried for the murders *Judge Thayer favored prosecution and pushed for execution *Despite years of protesting that they had not received a fair trial, the men were executed in 1927, reflecting the anti-immigrant sentiments in the US

Industrial Changes in 1920s and Effects

1920s *Change from steam to electric power allowed more intricate designs, replacing human laborers *Scientific management strategies were employed, leading to the more efficient use of workers *Major research and development projects reduced production costs and products *Expanding industries included automobile, electricity, chemicals, film, radio, commercial aviation, and printing *This led overproduction by the late 1920s

Harlem Renaissance

1920s *Term used to describe the growth of African American literature and arts *The center of this movement was Harlem, NY, where many African Americans moved during the early 1900s *South African Americans brought jazz to Harlem and influenced the music scene while, at the same time, writing, sculpting, and photography grew as art forms *Writers from the period included Langston Hughes, Zora Neale hurston, and Clause McKay *Musicians from this time included Duke Ellington, Bessie Smith, and Louis Armstrong *The Great Depression led to its decline

Automobile: Economic and Social Effects

1920s *Stimulated steel, rubber, glass, gasoline, and highway construction industries *Created a nation of paved roads *The new need for paved roads led to employment for many *Helped increase freedom for young people while lessening parental control *Tourism grew and rural areas became less isolated

Rise in the Standard of Living During the 1920s

1920s *Advances like indoor plumbing, hot water, central heating, home appliances, and fresher foods emerged *Many did not have the money to benefit from these advances *Credit became available to allow payment in installments *Sales grew out of advertising through new media, such as radio

Marcus Garvey

1920s *Native of Jamaica *Advocated African American racial ride and separatism rather than integration *Pushed for a return to Africa *Developed a following and sold stock in a steamship line to take migrants to Africa *Convicted of fraud after the line went bankrupt

Shift in Popular Culture, 1920s

1920s *Change from entertainment through home and small social groups to commercial, profit-making activities *Movies attracted audiences, and Hollywood became the movie center of America *Professional athletics grew in participation and popularity, especially baseball, boxing, and football *Tabloids and magazines increased in popularity, including the New York Daily News and Reader’s Digest

Ku Klux Klan in the Early 1900s

Early 1900s *Main purpose was to intimidate African Americans, who experienced an apparent rise to status due to WWI *Also opposed Catholics, Jews, and immigrants *Klan hired advertising experts to expand the organization *Charged initiation fees and sold memorabilia *The Ku Klux Klan had membership of 5 million before its decline after 1925

Emergency Quota Act

1921 *one of a series of acts by Congress that limited immigration *Immigration was limited by nationality to 3% of the number of foreign born persons from that nation living in the US in 1910 *Designation restricted only certain nationalities and religious groups *In effect, targeted Italians, Greeks, Poles, and Eastern European Jews

Warren G. Harding

1921-1923 *Twenty-ninth President *Nominated by the Republican Party as a dark horse candidate *Represented opposition to the League of Nations, low taxes, high tariffs, immigration restriction, and aid to farmers *Was pro civil rights for all Americans *Promised return to normalcy *Pardoned Eugene V. Debs *Gave United States steel workers the eight-hour day *Died suddenly during cross-country tour and was succeeded by Calvin Coolidge

Teapot Dome Scandal

1921 *Bribery scandal involving Harding’s Secretary of the Interior, Albert Fall *Fall secured naval oil reserves in his jurisdiction *He leased reserves at Teapot Dome, WY, to two major business owners in exchange for cash payouts *The businessmen were acquitted, but Fall was imprisoned for bribery, making him the first cabinet member to go to jail

Fordney-McCumber Tariff

1922 *Increased tariff schedules *Tariffs were raised on farm produce to equalize American and foreign production *Gave the president the power to reduce or increase tariffs by 50% based on advice from the Tariff Commission *Connected to American feelings toward isolationism

Five Power Treaty

1922 *Committed the US, Britain, Japan, France, and Italy to restricting construction of new battleship class ships *Pact gave Japan naval supremacy in the Pacific

Dawes Plan

1924 *Debt restructuring plan for Germany after WWI *American banks made loans to Germany, Germany paid reparations to Allies, and Allies paid back the US government *Cycle based on loans from American banks *The plan would play a part in the development of the Great Depression

Calvin Coolidge

1925-1929 *Thirtieth President *Republican candidate who came to office first after Harding’s death and then after a landslide victory *Avoided responsibility for most of Harding’s cabinet scandals *Reputation for honesty *Believed in leading through inactivity *Stated, "The chief business of the American people is business"

Creationism and the Scopes Trial

1925 *Fundamentalist Protestants supported Creationism as a ways to prohibit the teaching of evolution in schools *They hopes to protect belief in the literal understanding of the Bible *John Scopes, a young Biology teacher, broke the law by teaching Darwinism and served as a test case for the ACLU *Darwinism was a concept of evolution created by Charles Robert Darwin and written about in Origin of the Species *Clarence Darrow defended Scopes, and William Jennings Bryan defended the State of Tennessee *Judge refused to allow expert witness testimony *Scopes was convicted and fined $100, which was later dropped *Some states passed anti-evolution laws

Kellogg-Briand Pact

1928 *Also known as the Pact of Paris *Fifteen-nation pact agreed that all conflicts should be settled by peaceful means and that war was to be renounced *The US Congress demanded a right of self-defense and that America should not have to act against countries that broke the treaty *The pact lacked effectiveness as it failed to provide enforcement measures

Herbert Hoover

1929-1933 *Thirty-first President *Coolidge did not seek nomination in 1928, leaving Hoover to run against Alfred E, Smith, Governor of New York, a Catholic anti-prohibitionist *He had become a multimillionaire in the mining industry *Hoover had served as Sec. of Commerce and head of the Food Admin. *A conservative economic philosophy and continuation of Prohibition won the election for Hoover *He used the phrase "rugged individualism," which called for people to succeed on their own with minimal help from the government *Hoover became the scapegoat for the Depression and was soundly defeated by FDR in 1932

Stock Market Crash of 1929

October 1929 *Investors began to panic during late October 1929, creating tremendous losses in the stock market *On October 24, 1929 (Black Thursday), the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped fifty percent and over 13 million shares of stock were traded *On 29th, (Black Tuesday), over 16 million shares of stock were traded *The crash led to the Great Depression

Foreign Economies and the Great Depression

1920s-1930s *Within months of Hoover’s election, the stock market crashed, leading the nation into the Great Depression *Decline in the American economy meant less money spent on loans and products from other countries *Foreign powers were not able to pay debts back to the US *American exports dropped and the Depression spread

Reconstruction Finance Corporation

1920s-1930s *Chartered by Congress and Hoover to loan money to railroads and financial institutions *Meant to keep basic institutions in business *Accused of assisting the wealthy

"Hoovervilles"

1929-1930s *Term used to describe makeshift shacks that housed groups of homeless people *Used in open areas near cities during the Great Depression *Named after Herbert Hoover to mock his presidency

Hawley-Smoot Tariff

1930 *Brought tariff to the highest level in its history *In retaliation, foreign countries set tariffs on American goods, creating a decline in exports and further deepening the economic depression *This was another expression of isolationism

Hoover-Stimson Doctrine

1932 *Henry L. Stimson, Sec. of State under Hoover, sent identical notes to China and Japan, which became known as the Hoover-Stimson Doctrine *The notes were a reaction to Japan’s movement into Manchuria *They stated that the US would not recognize any treaty or agreement that would limit China’s territory, encroach on US’s rights in China, upset the political situation in China, or hinder the Open Door Policy

The Bonus Army

1932 *A group of 14,000 unemployed veterans who marched on Washington *They sought additional payments from Congress *Hoover had the Senate kill a bill that would have provided additional payment, and half of the veterans took the government’s offer of transportation back home *The remaining veterans took shelter in shacks near the Anacostia River to draw attention to their cause *Hoover called in the Army and had the remainder of the veterans removed from Washington *The event created the impression that Hoover did not care about the plight of the poor

Dust Bowl

1930s *Areas of American prairie states that experienced ecological damage due to huge clouds of soil *Mismanagement of grazing land and severe winds swept unprotected soil into dust storms *Led to both economic and health hardships for many

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

1933-1945 *Thirty-second President *With the slogan "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself," he encourages new hope for emerging from the Great Depression *At age 39, he contracted polio and lost partial use of his legs *Led Congress through the "Hundred Days" *Focused on economic and agricultural recovery and support for the unemployed and elderly *Attempted to enlarge the Supreme Court and put in place justices that would support his legislation, but he failed *Mobilized the US for entry into WWII

The Hundred Days

Commenced on March 9, 1933 *President Roosevelt called a special session of Congress to deal with the weak American banking system *Congress passed an emergency act to deal with banking and then continued the session to handle the problems of unemployment and falling farm prices *This special session became known as the "Hundred Days" *It launched the First New Deal

FDR’s Banking ACts, the Gold Standard, and the SEC

1933-1934 *The Emergency Banking Relief ACt was the first act of FDR’s Hundred Days; it provided funds to open some banks and it combined and liquidated others *The Glass-Steagall Banking Act insured deposits in commercial banks, created the FDIC, and separated commercial and investment banking to reduce risk *FDR removed gold from circulation; the resulting devaluation of the dollar helped raise prices and assisted the US exports *The Securities and Exchange Commission was created as a watchdog for the stock exchange and securities

Banking Failures

1933 *Banks were unable to collect on loans because of the Great Depression *Banks could not return money to depositors, leading to bank closures *On March 5, 1933, FDR reacted by closing all banks and instituting the Emergency Banking Act, which gave him the power to reorganize insolvent national banks

National Industrial Recovery Act

1933 *The National Industrial Recovery Act, or NIRA, was passed on the last day of the "Hundred Days" as the pillar of FDR’s assistance program *Goal of NIRA was to help businesses self-regulate and to aid in employment *NIRA created the National Recovery Administration (NRA), which oversaw the creation of fair competition codes *NRA codes abolished child labor, creating minimum wages, and capped hours for workers *In Schechter v. United States (1935), the Supreme Court overturned NIRA, holding that it granted the president too much leeway and that these powers should be in the hands of the states

Eleanor Roosevelt

1884-1962 *Wife of FDR *Strong supporter of civil rights, women’s rights, and world peace *Resigned from Daughters of the American Revolution after they refused to allow Marian Anderson, an African AMerican, to sing at Independence Hall *Served as delegate to the UN from 1945-1953

Fireside Chats

1933-1945 *FDR’s method of addressing the nation through radio *Created assurance among the public in the strength of the banks he was opening *Led to people depositing money again

FDR’s Good Neighbor Policy

1930s *Foreign policy doctrine adopted by FDR for the US *Withdrew many marines from Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and other areas *America stayed out of the Cuban revolution *America settled with Mexico on American properties in that country

First New Deal

1933-1934 *First phase of FDR’s domestic reform program *Aimed to provide recovery and relief through public works, business and agricultural regulation, and stabilizing prices *Agencies such as the Agricultural Adjustment Admin., Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Civilian Conservation Corps, and National Recovery Admin. were founded *Economy improved to a degree as unemployment decreased *Criticized by conservatives for going too far in the use of deficit spending and for spending on relief *Attacked by liberals for being in favor of business

First New Deal Programs

1933 *Civilian Conservation Corp (1933): Provided work for young men through projects such as road construction and flood control *National Industrial Recovery Act (1933): Created National Recovery Administration, which prepared codes for fair competition *Public Works Administration (1933): Constructed roads, schools, dams, bridges, and other projects to aid the economy through increasing jobs *Agricultural Adjustment Act (1933): Encouraged farmers to decrease their production, thereby increasing their profits

Muscle Shoals and the Tennessee Valley Authority

1933 *Muscle Shoals was the location of a dam and two nitrate plants built by the government during WWI *President Coolige vetoed the Senate’s plan to lease the property to the private sector *The facility became the center of the Tennessee Valley Authority in 1933, giving FDR a chance to do his first large-scale experiment in regional planning *TVA build a series of dams to provide electricity and flood control *Dams gave economic and environmental boosts to an area in need of rehabilitation

Bureau of Indian Affairs

1934 *Led by commissioner John Collier *Returned ownership of certain lands to tribes, established tribal governments, and provided economic relief *Created a program of work projects for reservations

Indian Reorganization Act

1934 *Reversed the Dawes Severalty Act *Attempted to restore the tribal basis of Native American life *Tribal life was to be recognized as "normal"

Share Our Wealth Society

1934 *Group founded by Louisiana Senator Huey "Kingfish" Long *Long, a populist, criticized FDR for not doing more to help those on the lower end of the scale *Proposed a radical taxation plan on the wealthy to make "every man a king" *When Long was assassinated, the society lost its drive

Second New Deal

1935-1941 *Like the First New Deal, it offered sweeping economic changes to in relief and recovery *While the First New Deal emphasized central planning, the SEcond pushed programs to aid particular groups, such as labor organizations *The US tax structure was finessed through various revenue acts *Some New Deal acts were declared unconstitutional in 1935

Second New Deal Programs

1935 *The Works Progress Admin. (WPA): provided jobs and income for the unemployed *WPA: Many projects were in construction and community development and were labor-intensive to cut equipment costs *The Wagner Act/National Labor Relations ACt clarified the rights of workers and created a board of oversight for relations between management and labor; workers were permitted to bargain collectively *The Social Security Act was created to protect older workers; funds came from taxes on money earned by employees and paid equally by the employer, and this money supported unemployment programs and offered states matching funds for social services

Isolationism and the Neutrality Acts of 1935

1935 *America became isolationist after World War I, mainly because its citizens had felt the harsh effects of the conflict *Isolationist acts include the rejection of the Treaty of Versailles and the imposition of higher tariffs *Neutrality Acts: In the event of war, American exports of military components were to be stalled for six months, which would stop ships that were leaving the US from transporting arms to combatants

Charles Evans Hughes

1930-1941 *Eleventh Chief Justice of the Supreme Court *Had also served as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court (1910-1916) and US Secretary of State (1921-1925) *As Chief Justice, he often voted to uphold FDR’s New Deal legislation, although he wrote the opinion in Schechter v. US (1935) finding the National Recovery Admin. unconstitutional

Father Charles E. Coughlin

1930s *A Catholic priest who headed the National Union for Social Justice, which denounced FDR’s New Deal policies *Held a weekly radio show and discussed politics and finance *Proposed to his many listeners an ambiguous currency program, but found popularity mostly through anti-Semitic rhetoric

FDR’s Court Packing Scheme

1937 *Bill proposed by Roosevelt allowing the president to appoint a new federal judge for those who did not retire by a certain age *Offered by Roosevelt after he received overwhelming support from the voting public *Served as Roosevelt’s reaction to the Supreme Court, which had declared much of the New Deal unconstitutional *Huge reaction by both Dems. and Repubs. against this show of power *Roosevelt lost the bill and some influence over Congress *Later FDR proposals, like Social Security, were upheld by the Supreme Court

Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO)

1938 *Association of laborers from industries including steel and auto *Organized in reaction to the AFL, which represented primarily craft unions *Headed by John L. Lewis *Originally a committee within the AFL (1935) before becoming independent in 1938 *United with the AFL in 1955

Fair Labor Standards Act

1938 *Minimum wage law *Established a riding minimum wage and reduction of the work week *Provided time-and-a-half for work over that period of time

Hitler and Germany’s Actions Leading to WWII

1930s *Hitler’s rise to power in 1933 led to the persecution of German Jews *Germany and Austria became unified *Germany and Britain signed the Munich Pact, authorizing Germany to force the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia *Germany took over the rest of Czechoslovakia *The Nazis systematically eliminated the civil and human rights of Jews and other "undesirables" under their control *Germany signed a nonaggression pact with Russia, agreeing to divide Poland *Nazis built death camps to attain "the final solution of the Jewish question," resulting in the murder of 6 million Jews and more than 5 million others *Germany invaded Poland *Britain and France declared war

Charles Lindbergh

1902-1974 *American pilot who made the first non-stop solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean *Flew his plane, The Spirit of St. Louis, from NY to Paris *Most famous speaker for the America First Committee (1930s), which opposed American intervention in WWII *Was a noted Nazi sympathizer

Selective Service and Training Act

September 1940 *US’s first peacetime draft *Men between ages 21 and 35 were signed into service, and a group of them was chosen for a year of training in the military

Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Election to a Third Term

1940 *Broke the precedent set by Washington *Agreed to accept the nomination *When faced by his opponent with charges of warmongering, told voters that he would not enter the war *Lost many supporters because of his choice to run again, but he won by a narrow margin over Wendell Willkie

Lend-Lease Act

March 1941 *American proposal to aid the British, who had little cash for supplies *Offered to give the British American supplies in exchange for payment after the war *Payment could be made in material goods and services *Put the US on the side of the Allies *The US began a program of cash and carry (1939), in which British and French ships could come into US ports and buy anything that they could carry

Economic Measures Against Japan

1940-1941 *Japan used the Vichy government to expand into French Indochina *Japan wanted to build bases i the area *America responded by holding Japanese funds and creating embargos *Led to failed negotiations between the US and Japan over Japan’s presence in China

Pearl Harbor

December 7, 1941 *Hawaiian base for the American Pacific fleet and site of massive sneak attack by the Japanese *Carrier-based aircraft attacked American ships, meeting little defense *The Japanese destroyed all the US aircraft, major battleships, and naval crafts at the base, and they killed 2,323 military personnel *FDR asked Congress to declare war on Japan, calling the attack "a date which will live in infamy"

United States Domestic Measures for WWII

1942-1943 *War Production Board regulated raw materials *Prices and wages were frozen *Income tax was extended to more people *The US sold Liberty Bonds The government had the power to take over businesses closed by strikes

American Women During WWII

1940s *216,000 women served in the armed forced in non-combat duties *WAACS(Army), WAVES(Navy), and SPARS(Coast Guard) were forced made of women *Women also served as defense plant workers *The women who worked in the manufacturing plants during WWII were symbolized by the icon "Rosie the Riveter," a feminist image that represented the growth of women’s economic power

Braceros

1942 *An agreement between the Us and Mexico brought thousands of Mexican agricultural workers, or braceros, to the US *Braceros were prevalent in the South and the West *They became part of the American agricultural economy after WWII

Battles of the Coral Sea and Midway

1942 *Battle of the Coral Sea (May 1942): American carriers sent planes against the Japanese troops, forcing them to turn back from an invasion of Australia *Battle of Midway (June 1942): American planed destroyed Japanese carriers as they moved toward the American-owned Midway Islands, becoming a defining moment in the Pacific front

Japanese Internment Camps

1942 *FDR authorized the evacuation of all Japanese from the West Coast into relocation centers *The government interned around 120,000 Japanese-Americans, 2/3 of them native-born US citizens *The move came with public fear of Japanese sabotage following Pearl Harbor and was in some part due to racial discrimination *In 1988, Congress voted to pay compensation to each surviving internee

Smith-Connally Anti-Strike Act

1943 *Congress was concerned about the loss of production due to labor strikes *The Act authorized the federal government to seize and operate industries stopped by strikes

Teheran Conference

November 28-December 1, 1943 *Meeting of the Big Three: Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin *Agreement that Russia would attack Germany from the east as the Allies would attack from the west *First time Roosevelt met Stalin

G.I. Bill

1944 *Signed by FDR and passed to give educational benefits to those who had served in the Armed Forces during WWII *Bill was created to help members of the Armed Forced adjust to civilian life, afford a higher education, buy a house, and restore lost educational opportunities *The G.I. Bill also promoted volunteerism for the Armed Forces and led to a better educated population

Korematsu v. US

1944 *Fred Korematsu was arrested and convicted after failing to comply with a military order to move to a Japanese relocation center *The Supreme Court upheld his conviction based on war power; the government’s need to protect against espionage outweighed Korematsu’s rights *Justice Frank Murphy, in his dissent , stated the decision was the "legalization of racism"

D-Day

June 6, 1944 *Dwight Eisenhower, Commander-in-Chief of Allied forced, ordered an invasion at Normandy, France * The operation involved over 4,500 vessels *American troops commanded by George S. Patton weakened the German troops in France

Battle of the Bulge

December 1944 *German counterattack that pushed ALlies back into Belgium *Last stand of Hitler’s armies *Eventually, the Allies returned to GErmany, leading to its surrender on May 7, 1945

Yalta Conference

February 1945 *Meeting of the Big 3 to talk about post-WWII plans *Germany was to be divided into American, British, French, and Soviet zones *Poland’s boundaries would be revised and free elections would be established *Russia would help by attacking Japan three months after Germany’s collapse in exchange for the Sakhalin and Kurile Islands *Agreement was made to hold a conference in San Francisco to from a peacekeeping organization (UN)

Harry S Truman

1945-1953 *Thirty-third President *Became president in 1945 after FDR dies *Decided to drop atomic bombs on Japan *Banned racial discrimination in federal hiring and the armed forced *The Truman Doctrine instituted the policy of "containment" against Communism *Re-elected against Thomas Dewey in 1948

Potsdam Conference

August 2, 1945 *Attended by Truman, Stalin, Churchill, and Churchill’s replacement, Clement Attlee *Agreed upon a policy for the occupation of both Germany and Japan *Decided German reparations *Demanded that Japan surrender or be destroyed

Manhattan Project, Enola gay, and hiroshima/Nagasaki

Man. Proj.(1942-1945); Enola Gay’s Flight (Aug. 6, 1945); Bombing of Hiroshima(Aug. 6, 1945); Bombing of Nagasaki (Aug. 9, 1945) *The Manhattan Project described operations by Army engineers to design an atomic bomb *J. Robert Oppenheimer directed the group at Los ALamos, New Mexico *Enola Gay was the plane that carried the atomic bomb to Hiroshima, killing 40,000 people immediately *A second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki *The decision to drop the bombs was controversial, as some argued that the Japanese were essentially beaten and were willing to surrender but that the US insisted on an unconditional surrender

V-E Day and V-J Day

May 8, 1945 and August 15, 1945 *VE Day or Victory in Europe Day, was the day the Allies announced Germany’s surrender in Europe *VJ Day or Victory in Japan Day, was the day the Allies announced Japan’s surrender to end WWII

Richard Wright

1908-1960 *African American author who wrote about racial oppression His novels included Uncle Tom’s Children (1938), Native Son (1940), and Black Boy (1945) *He joined the Communist Party for a brief time in the early 1930s

United Nations

Established Summer 1945 *Created at San Francisco conference *Representative body of nations that wished to resolve global issues *Composed of a General Assembly and Security Council *All members sit on General Assembly and form policy *Security Council has eleven members, five permanent and six additional that rotate *Permanent members are the US, Britain, France, Russia, and China

Cold War

Began 1946 *War of words caused by differences in economic and political beliefs between the US and USSR *No actual fighting took place *Churchill commented that an "Iron Curtain" had been dropped between Western Europe and the Soviet’s Eastern Europe

Taft-Hartley Act

1947 *Purpose was to reduce management-labor dispute and to reduce unfair labor practices *Passed over Truman’s veto *Required sixty-day notice be given by employers to terminate a contract *Federal government could take legal action to delay for eighty days any strike that threatened the public’s health or safety *Provided a cooling-off period for unions and management *Act slowed unionization throughout the country, especially the South *Part of the anti-Communist crusade

Truman Doctrine

1947 *Proposal that the US must bolster the deeds of free people resisting Communism *$400 million appropriated for aid to Greece and Turkey to fight Communism’s spread *Supported "containment" as a response to the Cold War

National Security Act

1947 *Created the Central Intelligence Agency *Created the National Security Council *Reorganized the military under one Department of Defense head

Growth of the Suburbs

1940s-1950s *After WWII, people began to move away from cities, leading to suburban growth *Causes of this migration included the mass production of automobiles, the growth of the road system, governmental policies, including the FHA (Federal Housing Administration), and better living conditions *As African Americans began to move to northern cities, whites began to move to suburbs ("white flight") *Suburban developments included Levittown, a planned community which offered inexpensive houses built by Levitt & Sons

Jackie Robinson

1919-1972 *Baseball player who became a symbol of civil rights when he broke the Major League’s color barrier in 1947 *Recruited from Kansas City Monarchs, a team in the Negro League, to play with the Brooklyn Dodgers

Marshall Plan

June 1947 *Recovery program paid America and Allies to rebuild Europe *Helped support a strong European economy and stable politics to resist Communism *Defined by Sec. of State George Marshall and signed by Pres. Truman *America provided over $15 billion in aid to Europe

Fair Deal

1948 *Proposal by Truman to extend the New Deal for the new era *Increased the minimum wage to $0.75/hour *Social Security was enlarged to cover more people *Called for low-cost housing projects and slum cleanup

Soviet Spies in the United States

1948 &1950 *Alger Hiss: Former State Department official who was convicted of supplying information to the Soviets *Alger Hiss: Implicated by Whittaker Chambers during testimony before the House Committee on Un-American Activities *Alger Hiss: Richard Nixon gained national exposure during his investigation into Hiss *Julius and Ethel Rosenberg: Couple executed for giving atomic information to the Soviets *Rosenbergs: Some argued that they could not receive a fair trial because of the political sentiment of the time

Berlin Airlift

June 1948 *Allies designated Western Germany to be free from Communism *Soviets blocked both land and water access to West Berlin in the hopes that the Allies would abandon West Berlin *The US lifter supplies for more than 10 months unto the city, forcing the Soviets to remove the blockade in 1949

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

Established 1949 *Original members included US, Britain, France, Italy, and Portugal *Allowed for collective self-defense against the Soviet threat in the North Atlantic region *Since its creation, it has influenced economic and social cooperation between member nations *The fall of the Soviet Union has led to NATO expanding membership and moving toward peacekeeping throughout the world *Headquartered in Brussels, Belgium

Korean War

1950-1953 *Korea was taken from Japan at the end of WWII and divided at the 38th parallel; the northern half was controlled by the USSR and the southern by the US *North Korea invaded South Korea and the UN sent in troops *General MAcArthur led forced and pushed the North Koreans back across the 38th parallel *China, recently communist, sent in troops to fight the UN in Korea *Truman disagrees with both MacArthur’s desire to start an all-out war against China and with his foreign policy statements; Truman removed him from command *Cease-fire was called and an armistice was signed in July 1953

Joseph McCarthy

Early 1950s *Republican senator from Wisconsin who claimed to have detailed information on Communists within the State Department (1950) *Was never able to prove Communists were within the State Department or any other government agency *In 1954, the Army accused McCarthy of attempting to gain preferential treatment for one of his consultants, and McCarthy accused the Army of keeping him from finding more Communists *A televised Army-McCarthy hearing was held, and McCarthy came off in a negative light, leading to Congress condemning his conduct

Rock and Roll

1950s *Music genre that originated in the US *Combine rhythm and blues, gospel, jazz, and country-and-western music *Alan Freed, a Cleveland disc jockey, coined the phrase "rock and roll" and produced the first rock and roll concert *Early artist included Elvis, the Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Chuck Berry, and Buddy Holly

Beat Generation

1950s *Group of artists and writers who rejected traditional artistic and social forms *Influences included psychedelic drugs and Eastern beliefs, such as Zen Buddhism *Members rejected regular work and preferred communal living *Many members were located around San Francisco *Writers of the generation included Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, and Lawrence Ferlinghetti

Dwight Eisenhower

1953-1961 *Thirty-fourth President *Became Allied military commander during WWII and led forces in North Africa, Italy, and England *Became Republican president after defeating Adlai Stevenson *Signed the truce in 1953 to end Korean War *Completed integration of military forces *Sent troops into Little Rock, Arkansas, to ensure desegregation *Gave momentum to desegregation movement *Warned the Us about the "military-industrial complex," which refers to the relationship between the government, the military, and the defense industry

Domino Theory

1950s-1980s *Guiding principle of US foreign policy during Cold War era *Started publicly by Pres. Eisenhower in 1954 *Belief that if one area was overtaken by communism, nearby nations would follow *Used as a motivation for the United States’ intervention in foreign affairs and conflicts throughout the world

Geneva Accords

1954 *The foreign ministers of 19 nations, including the US, decided to divide Vietnam at the 17th north latitude *The North would be Nationalist led by Ho Chi Minh, while the South would be Western-influenced republic *Provided for free elections within two years to reunite the two Vietnams

Vietnam War: Causes

Beginning 1954 *Vietnam was divided into the Communist North, led by Ho Chi Minh, and the South, supported by the US *The Viet Cong (Communist guerillas) attempted to overthrow Saigon, South Vietnam’s capital *South Vietnam asked President Kennedy for aid to fend off the Communists

Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO)

1954-1977 *Created to oppose the spread of Communism in Southeast Asia after France’s withdrawal from Indochina *Original members included the US, Britain, France, Pakistan, Thailand, and the Philippines *The organization was meant to justify an American presence in Vietnam, though some members did not support America in this effort *Dismantled in 1977

The Warren Court

1953-1969 *Reference to Supreme Court if the US when Earl Warren was Chief Justice *Court expanded civil rights, civil liberties, and federal power *Brown v. Board of Education (1854) found segregation in public schools to be illegal *Engel v. Vitale(1962) found it unconstitutional for public schools to have an official prayer *Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) provided criminal defendants with counsel even if they couldn’t afford it *Griswold v. Connecticut (1965) established a general right to privacy

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

1954 *Supreme Court case the challenged Plessy v. Ferguson *The Court, led by Chief Justice Earl Warren, held that separate was inherently unequal and instructed states to integrate *Massive Southern resistance slowed the advance f integration *Federal troops used to help 9 black students attend an all white school in Little Rock, despite mobs and the Arkansas National Guard

Rosa Parks

1913-2005 *African American woman who refused to give her bus seat to a white in Alabama (1955) *Parks was arrested, drawing the support of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. *Dr. Kin organized a bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama, leading to desegregation in the US and strengthening support for the civil rights movement

Suez Canal Crisis

1956 *International waterway through Isthmus of Suez *Egypt had been receiving aid from the Soviets, leading Eisenhower to promise money to Egypt to curtail the Soviets *Eventually, Eisenhower took back his offer and Egypt attempted to nationalize the Canal *Britain, France, and Israel invaded to gain control of the canal *Fearing escalation, Eisenhower forced France, Britain, and Israel to withdraw

Interstate Highway Act (Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956)

1956 *Under the Act, the interstate highway system was expanded to 41,000 miles *Signed by Eisenhower *Federal government was to pay 90% of the cost of the expansion *$25 billion was authorized from 1957-1969; $114 billion was eventually expended over 35 years *Besides allowing motorists to travel easily throughout the country, the expanded highway system also allowed for troop movement and evacuation routes

Martin Luther King, Jr.

1929-1968 *Civil rights leader and Chairman of Southern Christian Leadership Conference *Believed in non-violent civil disobedience *Key member of the 1963 March on Washington, a response to a civil rights bill by Kennedy being stalled in Congress *At the March on Washington, King delivered his "I Have A Dream" speech *Opposed the war in Vietnam *Assassinated by James Earl Ray in 1968

Civil Rights Act of 1957

1957 *First civil rights act since Reconstruction *Stimulated by Brown v. Board of Edu. of Topeka and civil rights activism *Created a panel to ensure that voting rights of African Americans were not violated

Little Rock Crisis

1957 Brown v. Board of Ed. 1954) called for desegregation of schools *In 1957 the NAACP registered 9 African American students to attend the previously all-white Little Rock Central High *Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus used the Arkansas National Guard to try and block the kids on Sept, 4, 1957 *Eisenhower sends in federal troops and the students attend their first day on Sept. 25, 1957

Civil Rights Movement Incidents

1950s-1960s *Emmett Till, a teenage African American, was killed by two white men after supposedly whistling at one of their wives; the two men were acquitted *In 1960, four African American students in Greensboro, North Carolina, sat at the Woolworth’s "Whites Only" lunch counter and refused to leave until they were served, sparking sit-ins throughout the South *An explosion at the Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, killed four African American girls (1963) *During a voter registration drive in Mississippi, two white college students and a local African American were murdered; civil rights legislation was enacted as a result *In 1965, a group marched from Selma, Alabama, to Birmingham, Alabama, for voting rights; the 1965 Voting Rights Act was signed soon thereafter

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)

1950s-1960s *Formed in 1910 by a group of whites and African Americans, including W. E. B. DuBois, to stop racial discrimination *Supported sit-ins as a form of protest against segregation as well as other methods of nonviolent protest * Disapproved of the more radical groups such as SNCC and the Black Panthers *Because of its mission, methods, and organization, the NAACP remains a force in social issues and political affairs

Civil Rights Organizations

1950s-1960s *Congress of Racial Equality (CORE): Founded by James Farmer in Chicago and advocated nonviolence *CORE:Sponsored the 1961 Freedom Rides in the South, breaking segregation rules on buses and eventually changing those rules *Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC): Founded in 1961 to support sit-ins *Stokely Carmichael, a leader of the SNCC and the Black Panther Party, called for "Black Power," which urged independence and solidarity among African Americans; he worked separately from other civil rights organizations

Sputnik

Launched October 5, 1957 *Soviet satellite launched into space *First unmanned spacecraft to escape Earth’s gravity *Caused concern in the United States because Americans realized they were not as technologically advanced as the Soviets *Led to an increased emphasis on science education in the US

Eisenhower Doctrine

1957 *Created as a partial reaction to the Suez Canal crisis *The doctrine committed forces and economic aid to the Middle East to stop Communist threats *Some nations, including Egypt and Syria, denounced the doctrine

Television

1950s-1960s *Invented in the 1930s *FDR was the first president to appear on TV; he gave a speech in 1939 at the New York World’s Fair, where the television was being officially introduced to the mass public *Seminal shows during the 1950s and 1960s included The Honeymooners, I Love Lucy, and The Ed Sullivan Show *By 1960, over forty million homes had televisions

Fidel Castro

1959 *Communist-friendly leader of Cuba *Took power in Cuba after overthrowing Fulgencio Batista in 1959 *Signed agreements with Soviets for trade *The United States broke diplomatic and trade relations with Cuba

Election of 1960

1960 *Richard Nixon, Eisenhower’s former vice president, was nominated by the Republicans *Senator John F. Kennedy was nominated by the Democrats *Kennedy’s Catholicism was a campaign issue because of fears that Catholic leaders would influence him *The four presidential debates were televised and watched by approximately 75 million Americans *Nixon’s negative appearance on television affected voters’ perception of him and aided Kennedy in the election

U-2 Spy Plane

1960 *Soviets shot down a United States U-2 reconnaissance plane in Soviet airspace *Eisenhower admitted to spying on the Soviets *The pilot, Francis Gary Powers, survived and served eighteen months in a Soviet jail

John F. Kennedy

1961-1963 *Thirty-fifth President *Democrat and first Catholic president *Domestic program (New Frontier) included tax reforms, educational aid, and emphasis on the space program *Raised minimum wage *Approved the Bay of Pigs invasion *Established the Peace Corps in 1961 as an agency to send American volunteers to developing countries *Successfully led America through the Cuban Missile Crisis *He was assassinated in Dallas on November 22, 1963, by Lee Harvey Oswald

Bay of Pigs

April 1961 *Attempted invasion of Cuba by CIA-trained Cuban refugees *Goal was to overthrow Fidel Castro, Cuba’s Communist-friendly leader *The invasion failed after Kennedy refused air support *JFK assumed responsibility for the invasion

Berlin Wall

Erected in 1961 *Barrier erected by the East German government to separate East and West Berlin *East Berlin was under Communist control, while West Berlin remained under WEstern control (American, British, and French) *Meant to stop defections and travel of East Berliners *"Fell" in 1989

Alliance for Progress

1961 *The Alliance was a "Marshall Plan" for Latin America *Its purpose was to provide economic aid to help the region resist Communism *The results of the Alliance were disappointing to those who supported it

Cuban Missile Crisis

October 1962 *An American spy plane discovered Soviet missile sites being placed in Cuba *In response, President Kennedy blockaded Cuba and demanded that the Soviets remove the missile bases and all long-range weapons *Kennedy declared that any missile attack on the US would result in retaliation against the U.S.S.R. *Khrushchev removed the missile sites; the US lifted the blockade and removed its intermediate-range ballistic missiles from Turkey *Led to Nuclear Test Ban (1963), in which the United States, Britain, and the U.S.S.R. agreed not to perform nuclear tests in the atmosphere or underwater

James Meredith

Born 1933 *James Meredith obtained a federal court order to allow him to enroll at the University of Mississippi in 1962 *On several occasions, he was barred from enrolling *Federal marshals were called in to aid him in enrolling and attending classes

Engel v. Vitale

1962 *Supreme Court held that a prayer created by the New York State Board of Regents was unconstitutional *Even though this prayer was "non-denominational," the Court held that state’sponsored prayer of any type went against the First Amendment’s establishment of religion clause

Baker v. Carr

1962 *Tennessee had failed to reapportion its state legislature for sixty years despite growth and population movement *Charles Baker, a Tennessee voter, brought suit against the state, arguing a violation of the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment *Baker claimed that his vote had been diluted *The Supreme Court held that the political question would be heard, opening the way for numerous voting suits

Rachel Carson

1907-1964 *American writer and marine biologist *Wrote Silent Spring (1962), a study on dangerous insecticides *Helped initiate the environment movement

Lyndon Johnson

1963-1969 *Thirty-sixth President *Became president after JFK’s assassination *Previously served as a Democratic senator from Texas, where he was both the whip and floor leader *Promoted Kennedy’s agenda through Congress, including a tax cut and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 *Elected in 1964 *Called for war against poverty and promoted social and economic welfare legislation (his Great Society program)

Gideon v. Wainwright, Escobedo v. Illinois, and Miranda v. Arizona

1963, 1964, 1966 respectively *Gideon: The Supreme Court held that all persons charged with a felony (later expanded to other charges) must be provided legal counsel *Escobedo: The Supreme Court found that the police must honor a person’s request to have an attorney present during interrogation *Miranda: The Supreme Court determined that an arrested person had the right to remain silent, the right to be told that whatever he said could be used against him, the right to be represented by an attorney, the right to have a lawyer even if he could not afford one, and the right to one phone call to obtain a lawyer

Women’s Liberation Movement

1960s *Spurred by increasing employment opportunities and increasing numbers of educated women *The Movement questioned "traditional" definitions of women’s roles *There became increased opportunities for women in work, education, and business *Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited discrimination by employers on the basis of gender *National Organization for Women (NOW) was founded in 1966 to create equality between the sexes

Betty Friedan

1963 *Author and activist *Published The Feminine Mystique in 1963, which attacked the belief that a woman’s sole satisfaction comes through homemaking *Friedan was one of the founders of the National Organization of Women (NOW), which helped advance women’s rights and causes

Civil Rights Act of 1964

1964 *Pased by Lyndon Johnson, who followed Kennedy’s political agenda *The March on WAshington in 1963 aided the passage of the Act *The ACt strengthened voting rights protection *Prohibited discrimination in places of public accommodations (including stores, restaurants, and hotels) *Required the federal government to withdraw support from any state or program that discriminated *Established the Equal Employment Commission to oversee hiring practices

Heart of Atlanta Motel v. U.S.

1964 *A motel operator refused to serve an African American customer *The SUpreme Court upheld the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlawed discrimination in schools, places of work, voting sites, public accommodations, and public areas

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

1964 *The North Vietnamese supposedly fired on American ships in the Gulf of Tonkin *Congress passed a resolution allowing President Johnson to use military action in Vietnam *Johnson retaliated against the Viet Cong with bombing attacks in the North followed by ground troops

Ralph Nader

1934-Present *Political activist and advocate for consumers *His book Unsafe at Any Speed (1965) shed light on poor safety standards for automobiles, leading Congress to pass auto safety measures *Unsuccessfully ran as a third-party candidate for the United States presidency in 1996, 2000, and 2004

Voting Rights Act of 1965

1965 *Signed into law by Lyndon Johnson *Resulted after demonstrations against the measures used to prevent African Americans from voting; these measures included violence *Voters could no longer be forced to take literacy tests *Provided federal registration of African Americans voters in areas that had less than fifty percent of eligible voters registered

Watts Riots

August 1965 *Six-day riots in Watts, a depressed African American section of Los Angeles *Causes included a drunk-driving arrest of a young African American and claims of police brutality *Thirty-four deaths and over $200 million worth of property damage resulted *Sparked other riots throughout the country

Malcolm X

1925-1965 *African Americans advocate and leader who moved away from Martin Luther King;s nonviolent methods of civil disobedience *While in prison, he became a Black Muslim and later a minister in the Nation of Islam *The leader of the Black Muslims, Elijah Muhammad suspended Malcolm X when he made derogatory remarks about President Kennedy’s assassination *Malcolm X formed a new organization, the Muslim Mosque *After a pilgrimage to Mecca, he converted to Orthodox Islam and began publicly accepting the idea of cooperation between African Americans and whites *He was assassinated in NYC during a speech; assailants were said to be with the Black Muslim group, but this has never been confirmed

Black Panthers

1966 *Founded in 1966 by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale in California *Initially focused on the protection of African American neighborhoods from police brutality, but its goals changed over the years *Provided a variety of social programs within the African American community, such as free lunches for children *Its political objectives were often hindered by the confrontational and sometimes violent means *A split in party ideology over how to achieve these objectives led to its decline

Robert F. Kennedy

1925-1968 *Brother of JFK *Served as Attorney General under Kennedy *Elected as senator from New York in 1964 *Pushed for desegregation and election regulation *Presidential candidate in 1968 *He was assassinated in California by Sirhan Sirhan in June 1968

Cesar Chavez

1927-1993 *Migrant farmer who founded the National Farm Workers Association *His goal was to defeat persecution throughout the migrant worker system *Used strikes, picketing, and marches to help protect workers

Counterculture Movement

1960s *Began at Berkeley with free speech movement *Beliefs included women’s liberation, anti-materialism, and opposition to the war in Vietnam *Experimented with drugs and sex *Young people who favored the counterculture were called "hippies" *The Woodstock Music and Art Festival in NY State (1969) marked the culmination of the counterculture movement

Tet Offensive

January 1968 *North Vietnam violated a truce during Tet (New Year), attacking cities throughout South Vietnam *Despite initiating the fighting, the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong were defeated and suffered heavy casualties *The offensive surprised the US and the American public because it showed that the communists were able to launch an organized attack

American Indian Movement

1968 *Supported Native American civil rights and recognition of past treaties within the US *Militants associated with the organization stages an occupation of the town of Wounded Knee, South Dakota, arguing that treaties had been ignored

Moon Landing

July 20, 1969 *Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the Earth’s moon *Armstrong made the famous statement, "That’s one small step for man… one giant leap for mankind" *Armstrong’s fellow astronauts were Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins

Richard M. Nixon

1969-1974 *Thirty-seventh President *Prior to becoming president in 1969, Nixon served as US representative, senator, and vice president *Nixon oversaw "Vietnamization," which called for the training of South Vietnamese troops to assume responsibility for military actions *He began to remove United States troops in phase from South Vietnam *Ended the draft *Opened China for trade *Reduced tension with U.S.S.R. with the SALT agreements *Resigned following Watergate scandal, becoming the first president to do so *Credited with aiding detente, the easing of strained relations between the US and the U.S.S.R.

Pentagon Papers

Completed 1969, Published 1971 *Defense Department papers that discussed America’s involvement in Southeast Asia *Discussed how the government had falsely portrayed its intentions during the Vietnam War in the 1960s *The New York Times received the papers from Daniel Ellsberg, who had studied defense policies; the Times began publishing articles about the study in June 1971 *The US tried to stop the Times by arguing national security, but the Supreme Court allowed publication based on freedom of the press *Set a precedent for future conflicts in the press over security versus liberty

Kent State

1970 *Site of a university protest against the Vietnam War and the Cambodian conflict *The Ohio National Guard killed four students during the event and wounded many others *Led to other uprisings on college campuses, including Jackson State, where two students were killed

Twenty-sixth Amendment

Ratified 1971 *Ratified in response to Vietnam War *Gave the right to vote to citizens eighteen and older *By November 1971, eleven million Americans between eighteen and twenty-one were eligible to vote

Henry Kissinger

1960s-1970s *National Security Advisor and Secretary of State under Nixon *Pursued relations with China *Played significant role in SALT *Negotiated talks after Six-Day War between Arab countries and Israel

SALT I & II

1972 (I) & 1979 (II) *Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty *SALT I: Agreement signed by the US and Soviets to stop building nuclear ballistic missiles for five years *SALT II: Signed by Carter and Brezhnev; it reduced and limited number of missile launchers and bombers *These treaties helped to reduce tension between the United States and the U.S.S.R.

Watergate Scandal

June 17, 1972 *CRP/CREEP(Committee for the Re-election of the President) attempted to spy on Democrats at their headquarters in the Watergate Hotel *Men with connections to CRP/CREEP were arrested and convicted *Nixon stated that the burglars had no connection to his administration *James McCord, one of the convicted burglars, claimed a Republican cover-up *An investigation uncovered wiretaps, presidential tapes, and further evidence of espionage *Robert Woodward and Carl Bernstein, writers for The Washington Post, helped reveal the details behind the break-in *This deception at the highest political level caused many Americans to become disenchanted with the government

Furman v. Georgia

1972 *Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was unconstitutional unless fairly applied *Subsequent Supreme Court decisions have allowed the death penalty in certain circumstances

War Powers Act

1973 *Required the President to report to Congress within 48 hours of committing US troops or substantially increasing troops in foreign conflicts *Congressional approval was necessary for any military commitment of troops for more than ninety days *The requirement was enacted by Congress over Nixon’s veto

Saturday Night Massacre

1973 *Followed Nixon’s refusal to give his tapes to Archibald Cox, the government’s special prosecutor *Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire Cox from this appointment *Rather than fire Cox, Richardson quit *Eventually, the tapes surfaces and Nixon resigned in August 1974

Rise of the New Right

1960s-1980s *Barry Goldwater, a U.S. Senator and Republican presidential nominee in 1964, sparked the resurgence of the conservative movement *Ronald Reagan, California governor and US President was known for his conservative policies, including "Reaganomics" and standing firm against the Soviet Union, which he dubbed "The Evil Empire" *Moral Majority movement was led by evangelical Christians, including Jerry Falwell, and focused on a conservative agenda and "traditional" values *Abortion became an important topic during this time; fundamentalist Protestants and Catholics joined forces

Roe v. Wade

1973 *Supreme Court decision that ruled first trimester abortions were permitted *All state laws prohibiting such abortions were made unconstitutional *The decision was based on a woman’s right to privacy *Led to criticism from Roman Catholics and right-to-life groups

Gerald Ford

1974-1977 *Thirty-eighth President *Became vice president after Spiro Agnew resigned as a result of an investigation into financial irregularities *Took office after Nixon’s resignation *Pardoned Nixon, though the former president had not been charged with anything *His rise to power represented the first use of the Twenty-fifth Amendment, which provided for action in case of a vice presidential vacancy

Jimmy Carter

1977-1981 *Thirty-ninth President *Defeated Gerald Ford for presidency *Wanted to make a "responsible government" *Reduced unemployment and eased the energy crisis *Negotiated the Camp David Accords, in which Israel returned land in the Sinai Peninsula in exchange for Egyptian recognition of Israel’s rights *Iran’s holding of American hostages, along with inflation, led to his loss to Ronald Reagan in 1980 *Both during his tenure in office and since his loss Reagan, Carter has worked for improvements in human rights, including tying foreign aid to their protection

Bakke v. Regents of the University of California

1978 *The Supreme Court upheld the university’s use of race in its admissions decisions *The Court also found that Bakke, a white, should have been admitted to the university’s medical school *This finding banned the use of racial quotas

American Hostages in Iran

1979 *America had supported the Shah of Iran, who lost power after a coup by the Ayatollah Khomeini *Supporters of Khomeini were anti-American because of this support of the Shah *Carter allowed the Shah to receive medical attention in the US, upsetting Iranians *Iranian revolutionaries stormed the American embassy in Iran and took hostages *Carter froze Iranian assets in the US and sent ships within striking distance *An accord was finally signed and the revolutionaries freed the hostages on Reagan’s inauguration day

Three Mile Island

1979 *A nuclear power plant located south of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, overheated, causing part of its uranium core to melt *The overheating was caused by human, design, and mechanical errors *Radioactive water and gases were released *Led to a slowdown in the construction of other reactors and changes in the Nuclear Regulatory Commission *Americans became more aware of environmental concerns

Ronald Reagan

1981-1989 *Fortieth President *Defeated Carter after carrying a large majority *Increased military spending, including the Strategic Defense Initiative (Star Wars Program), which was a space-based defense system *Succeeded in getting a tremendous tax cut,aiming to increase investments and improve the job market (Reaganomics) *After first increasing the number of nuclear weapons, Reagan worked with Gorbachev toward the reduction of nuclear weapons *Won re-election over Democratic nominees Walter Mondale and Geraldine Ferraro

Mikhail Gorbachev

1985-1991 *Soviet political leader *Worked with Reagan to reduce nuclear weapons *Removed Soviet troops from Afghanistan *Worked to liberalize repressive atmosphere of country under governmental policies of "glasnost" (openness) and "perestroika" (restructuring) *Key player in the fall of communism in Russia

Iran-Contra Affair

1986 *Scandal involving CIA, National Security Council, and the REagan administration *The United Stated sold weapons to Iranians friendly to America in order to encourage them to free hostages *Profits from sales of weapons funded Nicaraguan revolutionaries fighting the Sandinista government *Congress had approved neither the sale nor the funding, and hearings led to convictions of Oliver North, Robert McFarlane, and John Poindexter *For many, the hearings echoed the Watergate scandal; American citizens became increasingly skeptical of their government

Black Monday (Stock Market Crash)

October 19, 1987 *The Dow Jones dropped 22.6%, the largest single-day drop since 1914 *Causes included trade deficits, computerized trading, and American criticism of West Germany’s economic policies *The crash affected the insurance industry and was a cause of the savings and loan crisis

Savings and Loan Scandal

1980s *The lax regulation of the savings and loan industry led to poor investments and high insolvency *The economic environment following Black Monday worsened the savings and loan financial disaster *As the federal government guaranteed deposits up to $100,000, it made a $166 billion rescue appropriation *The scandal is representative of the effects of poor governmental regulation

George Bush

1989-1993 *Forty-first President *Prior to becoming the president, he served as a congressman, director of the C.I.A., U.N. Ambassador, and vice president to Ronald Reagan *Sent troops to overthrow Manuel Noriega in Panama *Led the US to success in the Gulf War, forcing Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait

START

1990 *Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty *Signed by Mikhail Gorbachev and George Bush *Cut the nuclear weapons arsenals of both nations by thirty percent *START was a landmark agreement in the easing of American -Soviet tensions

Persian Gulf War

1991 *Saddam Hussein, dictator and leader of Iraq, invaded Kuwait on August , 1990 *American interests in oil were threatened *After Iraq failed to meet the deadline for peaceful withdrawal, the US launched Operation Desert Storm on January 18,1991, led by General Norman Schwarzkopf *Air strikes were followed by a ground war *Multi-national forces defeated Iraqi troops and liberated Kuwait *Though under heavy embargos, Saddam was left in power, which would lead to a second war with Iraq in the George W. Bush presidency

Effect of the Collapse of Soviet Union

1990s *Break-up of nations created new foreign policy challenges in Europe and Asia as well as a proliferation of weaponry *Provided new opportunities for US trade *Left former Soviet territories with challenges in political stability and corruption

Bill Clinton

1993-2001 *Forty-second President *Former law professor, attorney general of Arkansas, and governor of Arkansas *Achieved gun control measures, a strong economy, acts supporting time off for family leave, and welfare reform *Led the US into joining the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), lifting trade barriers between the US, Canada, and Mexico *Became the second president to be impeached by the House of Representatives after an extra-marital affair with Monica Lewinsky

Branch Davidian Incident

1993 *Apocalyptic Christian group founded during the 1930s *David Koresh and his followers lived at a compound outside Waco, Texas *A shootout occurred between the FBI, ATF, and Branch Davidians as a warrant for illegal weapons and child abuse was attempted to be served *Four federal agents and five Branch Davidians were killed *A fifty-one day standoff occurred, ending with the burning of the compound and the death of Koresh and the rest of his followers

Oklahoma City Bombing

1995 *Timothy McVeigh destroyed the Oklahoma City Federal Building with a fertilizer bomb *168 people were killed in the destruction caused by the explosion *McVeigh said he was upset with the government about the Branch Davidian fiasco and the events at Ruby Ridge *McVeigh was executed by lethal injection in 2001

George W. Bush

2001-2009 *Forty-third President *Former Texas governor sworn into office in 2001 *Won presidential race after the Democratic nominee and former vice president, Al Gore, conceded following a voting ordeal in Florida *Gore had more popular votes than Bush but fewer electoral votes *Passed initiatives in attempts to improve education (No Child Left Behind Act) *His declaration against terrorism led to the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq *Son of former president, George Bush *Re-elected in 2004

September 11, 2001

September 11, 2001 *Day of attacks by terrorist cells connected to the Al Qaeda network, which was led by Osama bin Laden, a Saudi dissident *Al Qaeda operatives hijacked two airliners and crashed them into NY’s World Trade Center, destroying the buildings and killing thousands *Another hijacked plane hit the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. *A final hijacked plane was diverted from its mission, crashing in Pennsylvania *As a result of the attacks, Congress passed the USA Patriot Act, which broadened government authority to gather intelligence and further defined crimes that were punishable as terrorism *Attacks led to the invasion of Afghanistan

Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan

2001-Present *War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as US and UK forces responded to the September 11, 2001, attacks on the US *Objectives include ending the safe haven of Al Qaeda fighters and ending the Taliban’s reign *War in Iraq began on March 20, 2003, with an invasion by multinational forces *War based on US and UK claims that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction, which posed threats to them and their allies *US continues to fight in Iraq to support democracy and human rights and to end the threat of terrorism

Hurricane Katrina

August 29, 2005 *A large hurricane that caused major destruction and loss of life along the Gulf Coast of the US *The levee system in New Orleans, Louisiana, flooded due to catastrophic failure; water covered the city and nearby areas for weeks, and more than 1500 people died *The federal government was widely blamed for its slow response to the crisis, and the federal, state, and local governments were criticized for their lack of communication *Issues of race, poverty, and political power were debated nationwide as news of the tragedy spread *The levee failures led to investigation of the US Army Corps of Engineers, which had designed and built them, and into local levee boards that managed the system

Barack Obama

2009-Present *Forty-fourth President *Member of the Democratic Party *First African American to be elected President *Signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in February 2009

Evolution of the Major Political Parties from Civil War to Modern Day

1854-Modern Day *Key Moment: Passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act *Parties: Lincoln’s Republicans were concerned mainly with preventing the extension of slavery into the territories, while Democrats were split North-South over the issue *Parties: Modern-day Republicans tend to emphasize business activity while modern-day Democrats support broad social programs