ID Triads for Exam 2

Plantations

Large agricultural estates that produced cash crops, such as cotton, using enslaved labor. They concentrated wealth and political power among Southern slaveholders.

Cotton Gin

A machine patented by Eli Whitney in 1794 that quickly separated cotton fibers from seeds. It made cotton production more profitable and increased demand for enslaved labor.

King Cotton

A phrase describing cotton’s dominance in the Southern economy and its importance to American exports. Southern leaders believed dependence on cotton gave them economic and political power.

Slave Codes

Laws that controlled enslaved people and protected slaveholders’ authority. They restricted movement, assembly, education, and other freedoms, although specific rules varied by place and time.

Field Labor

Agricultural work performed by enslaved people, including planting, tending, and harvesting crops. It involved long hours, demanding conditions, and coercive supervision.

Domestic Labor

Work performed by enslaved people in and around households, including cooking, cleaning, childcare, and laundry. Close contact with enslavers brought constant supervision and vulnerability to abuse.

Revolts

Organized uprisings against slavery, such as Nat Turner’s rebellion in Virginia in 1831. Revolts challenged slavery directly and often led to harsher restrictions and violent retaliation.

Resistance

Actions enslaved people took to challenge slavery, including slowing work, breaking tools, escaping, and preserving family and cultural practices. Resistance could be everyday or openly confrontational.

Underground Railroad

A loose network of people, routes, and safe houses that helped enslaved people escape to freedom. Black communities, freedom seekers, and abolitionists played central roles.

The Whigs

A political party formed in the 1830s in opposition to Andrew Jackson. Whigs generally favored congressional power, a national bank, protective tariffs, and federally supported transportation improvements.

Bank War

Jackson’s struggle against the Second Bank of the United States. He vetoed its recharter in 1832 and removed federal deposits, arguing that the bank privileged wealthy interests.

Specie Circular

Jackson’s 1836 order requiring payment for most federal land purchases in gold or silver. It aimed to curb land speculation and paper money use but contributed to financial pressures before the Panic of 1837.

The Nullification Crisis

The 1832–1833 conflict in which South Carolina declared federal tariffs void within the state. Jackson rejected nullification and supported enforcement; a compromise tariff helped resolve the confrontation.

Andrew Jackson

Seventh U.S. president, serving from 1829 to 1837. He expanded presidential power, opposed the national bank and nullification, and promoted Native American removal while presenting himself as a champion of ordinary white men.

Tecumseh

A Shawnee leader who worked to unite Native nations against U.S. expansion. He argued that Native land belonged collectively to Indigenous peoples and could not be sold by individual nations acting alone.

Prophet

Tenskwatawa, Tecumseh’s brother and a Shawnee religious leader. He encouraged spiritual renewal, rejection of U.S. cultural influence, and Native unity; his movement was centered at Prophetstown.

The “Civilized Tribes”

A historical label used by white Americans for the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole. It reflected white cultural bias and referred to their adoption of some European American institutions and practices.

The Cherokee

A Native nation in the Southeast that developed a written constitution and used Sequoyah’s syllabary. Despite diplomatic and legal resistance, most Cherokee were forcibly removed west during the 1830s.

The Trail of Tears

The forced removal of the Cherokee to Indian Territory, especially in 1838–1839, during Martin Van Buren’s presidency. Thousands died from disease, exposure, and harsh conditions; Jackson’s removal policies helped establish its foundation.