Key 19th Century American History Terms: Uncle Tom's Cabin & Compromise of 1850

The only place the word slavery appears in the Constitution

13th Amendment

Compromise of 1877

Ended Reconstruction. Republicans promise 1) Remove military from South, 2) Appoint Democrat to cabinet (David Key postmaster general), 3) Federal money for railroad construction and levees on Mississippi river

Essay questions choice between 1: Reconstruction, 2: Slide to civil war since around 1850

Era of Good Feelings

a period following the War of 1812 characterized by a strong sense of national purpose, confidence, and unity under the one-party rule of the Democratic-Republicans. This political harmony eventually concluded with the rise of Andrew Jackson and the emergence of the Whig Party, which restored the competitive two-party system

Panic of 1819

the first of several major economic depressions in the 19th century, triggered by factors such as inflation, war debts, and mismanagement within the National Bank. This two-year downturn fostered a deep mistrust of banks and paper money among the public, which later influenced Andrew Jackson's political war against the Second Bank of the United States

1st Seminole War and Adams-Onis Treaty

when Andrew Jackson interpreted orders to stop frontier raiding as a mandate to invade Spanish Florida, an action that included executing British agents and seizing Pensacola. This military pressure forced Spain to sign the Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819, through which the United States acquired Florida for $5 million and established a transcontinental boundary where Spain relinquished its claims to Oregon

James Tallmadge and Missouri

a New York representative who triggered the Missouri Crisis by proposing an amendment to prohibit the further introduction of slavery into Missouri and mandate the gradual emancipation of children born to slaves there. While his proposal passed the House, it was rejected by a balanced Senate, marking the first major political conflict over the expansion of slavery into the Louisiana Purchase

Missouri Compromise

an 1820 agreement brokered by Henry Clay that admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state while establishing the 36°30' line as the boundary for the future expansion of slavery within the Louisiana Purchase. Although it maintained sectional balance for thirty years, it was eventually repealed by the Kansas-Nebraska Act, fulfilling Thomas Jefferson's fear that the "momentous question" was a "firebell in the night" signaling the end of the Union.

Andrew Jackson and Demagoguery

America's "original demagogue" because he gained popularity and power by arousing the emotions, passions, and prejudices of the "common man" against the political elite,. He famously spent years spinning his 1824 defeat as a "corrupt bargain," a populist tactic that led critics to fear his presidency represented the "reign of King 'Mob'" rather than traditional statesmanship

The Corrupt Bargain and JQ Adams

the alleged deal in the Election of 1824 where Henry Clay used his influence in the House of Representatives to secure the presidency for John Quincy Adams in exchange for being appointed Secretary of State,,. This outcome, despite Andrew Jackson winning the popular vote, allowed Jackson to spend the next four years attacking Adams as an aristocratic insider who had bartered the rights of the people for political office

The Election of 1828

a rematch where Andrew Jackson defeated John Quincy Adams, signaling the end of the era of "trained statesmen" and the rise of the "popular hero" and the "common man". This transition to a more populist democracy was fueled by Jackson's rhetoric regarding the "corrupt bargain" and was marked by intense personal mudslinging that targeted his wife, Rachel, who died shortly after the victory.

Indian Removal Act of 1830

a cornerstone of Andrew Jackson's administration that authorized the forced relocation of eastern Native American tribes to territory in present-day Oklahoma to facilitate white settlement and land seizure,,. This act directly led to the Trail of Tears, a tragic forced march during which at least 4,000 Cherokees died from exposure, disease, and heartbreak

Worcester v. Georgia and the Trail of Tears

an 1832 Supreme Court ruling recognizing Cherokee sovereignty that Andrew Jackson famously refused to enforce, facilitating the seizure of native lands after gold was discovered,,,. This defiance led to the Trail of Tears, a forced relocation of 16,000 Cherokees to Oklahoma during which at least 4,000 individuals died from exposure, disease, and heartbreak,

The Birth of the Whigs

was established by opponents of Andrew Jackson who, frustrated by his perceived executive overreach, adopted the name of the British anti-monarchical party to champion a Federalist-style vision of internal improvements, tariffs, and a National Bank. This national "Compromise Party" successfully united diverse regions around economic growth until it ultimately collapsed after splintering over the Kansas-Nebraska Act

John C. Calhoun and Nullification

John C. Calhoun, while serving as Vice President, secretly authored the South Carolina Exposition and Protest to champion nullification, the doctrine that states have the right to reject federal laws like the "Tariff of Abominations". This led to a major crisis where Andrew Jackson obtained the Force Bill to enforce federal authority by force, ultimately causing a permanent political rift and Calhoun's resignation

South Carolina Exposition and Protest

a document secretly authored by John C. Calhoun to outline a case against the Tariff of 1828 and establish the doctrine of nullification,. Building on the earlier Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions, it argued that individual states had the sovereign authority to reject and void federal laws they deemed unconstitutional.

Peggy Eaton and the Petticoat Affair

a social scandal where cabinet wives, led by Floride Calhoun, shunned Peggy Eaton due to rumors regarding her moral character and past. Andrew Jackson's fierce defense of Peggy created a permanent political rift with John C. Calhoun, who refused to force his wife to include her in Washington's elite social circles.

Nicholas Biddle and the Bank

the powerful president of the Second Bank of the United States who triggered a political war by attempting to make the 1832 election a referendum on the bank's future. After losing the election to Andrew Jackson, Biddle's efforts backfired as Jackson dismantled the institution by withdrawing federal funds and distributing them to state-chartered "pet banks"

Pet Banks and the Panic of 1837

state-chartered institutions used by Andrew Jackson to hold federal deposits after he dismantled the Second Bank of the United States, a move that severely destabilized the national financial system. This aggressive redistribution of funds triggered the Panic of 1837, a major economic collapse that "sank" the economy just as Martin Van Buren began his presidency

Martin Van Buren

a New York politician who served as Andrew Jackson's "handpicked successor" and is often credited as the first modern campaign manager for orchestrating Jackson's 1828 electoral victory,,. His presidency was marred by the economic collapse of the Panic of 1837, which led political opponents to derisively nickname him "Martin Van Ruin"

King Cotton ('Being Sold Down River')

the dominance of the cotton industry, which revitalized slavery and fueled the expansion of the plantation economy into the Southwest. "Being sold down river" was a dreaded euphemism for the forced relocation of enslaved people from the Upper South to labor-intensive deep South plantations, often permanently breaking up kinship networks and families

John Tyler and the Texas Question

a president without a political party, sought to salvage his legacy by championing the annexation of Texas to prevent potential British influence in the territory. Although his initial treaty was defeated in the Senate, his persistence made the "Texas Question" a defining issue of the 1844 election, eventually resulting in the Lone Star Republic joining the Union

James K. Polk and Manifest Destiny

an "unabashed expansionist" who championed Manifest Destiny, successfully campaigning on promises to annex Texas and occupy Oregon to extend the nation from "sea to shining sea". During his single term, he added over a million square miles of territory to the United States, a feat that fulfilled his platform but gave "new urgency" to the national conflict over slavery.

The Mexican American War

conflict sparked by the Thornton Affair in disputed territory and served as a crucial training ground for a young Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant. It concluded with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which added 55% of Mexico's territory to the U.S. while simultaneously reigniting the national conflict over slavery's expansion

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

concluded the Mexican-American War, granting the U.S. over 525,000 square miles—representing 55% of Mexico's territory—in exchange for $15 million. Although it established the Rio Grande as the border and promised to protect the rights of Mexican citizens, these provisions were largely ignored, and the massive land acquisition reignited the volatile debate over slavery's expansion.

David Wilmot and his Proviso

a Pennsylvania congressman who proposed the Wilmot Proviso, a failed 1846 rider to an appropriations bill that sought to prohibit slavery in all territories acquired during the Mexican-American War. This proposal reignited the volatile national debate over slavery's expansion and is credited with "kicking everything off" regarding the sectional tensions that led toward the Civil War

The Compromise of 1850

a series of bills that admitted California as a free state while allowing the Utah and New Mexico territories to decide the issue of slavery through popular sovereignty. It also abolished the slave trade in Washington, D.C., and enacted a strict new Fugitive Slave Law, a highly controversial measure that many historians believe directly paved the way for the Civil War

The Fugitive Slave Act

mandated that federal officials assist in capturing runaways and denied the accused jury trials, notably paying special commissioners $10 for ruling a person a runaway compared to only $5 for freeing them. This measure radicalized Northerners, prompted the passage of state-level "Personal Liberty Laws," and is considered by many historians to be the primary legislative driver that brought about the Civil War

Anthony Burns and Personal Liberty Laws

an escaped slave whose 1854 arrest in Boston became a radicalizing test case that forced Northerners to witness the federal government's enforcement of the Fugitive Slave Act. Personal Liberty Laws were statutes passed by Northern states to prohibit local officials from assisting in these federal seizures, acting as a historical precursor to modern sanctuary city policies

Stephen Douglas and Popular Sovereignty

an Illinois senator known as the "Little Giant" who authored the Kansas-Nebraska Act and sought to preserve the Union through political compromise. Popular Sovereignty was his signature doctrine that granted territorial settlers the right to decide the status of slavery through a vote, a policy that effectively repealed the Missouri Compromise and triggered violent conflict in Kansas

Kansas-Nebraska Act

An 1854 law authored by Stephen Douglas that instituted the doctrine of popular sovereignty in those territories, effectively repealing the Missouri Compromise. This legislation triggered the collapse of the Whig Party and sparked violent sectional conflict between pro- and anti-slavery settlers

'Bleeding Kansas' and Beecher's 'Bibles'

a period of violent sectional conflict between pro- and anti-slavery settlers who flooded the territory to influence its status under popular sovereignty, leading to atrocities that turned the region into a "bloodbath". Beecher's Bibles were high-powered Sharps rifles provided by abolitionist minister Henry Ward Beecher and smuggled into the conflict in crates labeled as Bibles to arm anti-slavery settlers

Know-Nothings

a nativist and xenophobic political organization, formally known as the American Party, that emerged from a secret society in the mid-1850s to campaign on anti-Catholic and anti-immigrant platforms. They earned their nickname because members claimed to "know nothing" when questioned about the party's activities, which ultimately dissolved as members split between the Republican and Democratic parties over the sectional conflict of slavery

The Caning of Charles Sumner

a violent 1856 assault in the Senate chamber where South Carolina Representative Preston Brooks beat Senator Charles Sumner unconscious with a cane in retaliation for an insulting speech targeting pro-slavery colleagues. This event served as a radicalizing milestone in the march toward the Civil War, as Sumner's years-long recovery left behind an empty desk that became a potent symbol of sectional division and Northern outrage

Dred Scott and Roger Taney

an enslaved man from Virginia who sued for his freedom after living in various free territories with his owner, a legal battle that eventually reached the Supreme Court. Roger Taney was the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court who authored the majority opinion in that case, infamously ruling that Black people were not citizens and possessed no rights that white men were bound to respect.

Abraham Lincoln and the Republicans

Abraham Lincoln was a self-educated former Whig who led the nation through the Civil War, prioritizing the preservation of the Union and its eventual restoration. The Republicans were a new political organization born from the collapse of the Whig Party that championed a "free soil" ideology, opposing the expansion of slavery primarily to protect the economic interests and labor of free white men

John Brown and Harper's Ferry

a radical abolitionist and religious zealot whose violent tactics against pro-slavery forces made him a polarizing figure and, following his execution, a martyr for the anti-slavery cause. Harper's Ferry was a federal armory in Virginia that Brown raided in 1859 in a failed attempt to incite a slave revolt, an action that further divided the nation and fueled Southern fears of insurrection.

The Election of 1860

Republican Abraham Lincoln win the presidency over a divided field of candidates that included Northern and Southern Democrats, as well as the Constitutional Union Party. This victory served as the immediate catalyst for the secession of South Carolina and other Southern states, leading directly to the outbreak of the Civil War.

The Anaconda Plan

a Union military strategy conceived by General Winfield Scott that aimed to strangle the Confederacy by blockading Southern ports and seizing control of the Mississippi River to divide the South in half. Although initially mocked for its slow-acting nature, this "choking" strategy eventually became the blueprint for the Union's victory by cutting off the South's ability to import essential resources.

Antietam and Emancipation

the bloodiest single day in American history and a sizable Union victory that provided President Lincoln with the "position of strength" necessary to issue his executive order. Emancipation was the strategic redefinition of the conflict as a war for liberation through a proclamation that declared slaves in rebellious territories free, effectively isolating the Confederacy diplomatically

Gettysburg and Vicksburg

victory for the North in the East, resulting in 50,000 casualties, and became the site where Abraham Lincoln delivered his historic address while dedicating a national cemetery. Vicksburg was a strategic city dominating the Mississippi River that fell to Ulysses S. Grant's forces the day after Gettysburg, a victory that "choked the city to death" and fulfilled a key part of the Anaconda Plan by cutting the Confederacy in half

U.S. Grant and R.E. Lee

a relentless Union general who secured victory through persistent brutality and constant pressure on the enemy, though his later presidency was marked by corruption. R.E. Lee was a brilliant and dignified Confederate general from Virginia who turned down leadership of the Union Army to defend his home state, commanding Southern forces until he was cornered and forced to surrender at Appomattox Courthouse.

Restoration v. Reconstruction

Abraham Lincoln's lenient vision for the post-war era that focused on quickly reuniting the country with "malice toward none," while Reconstruction was the more punitive, Congress-led period that imposed radical social changes and military occupation on the South following Lincoln's assassination. This shift in terminology signaled a move from a policy of national reconciliation and state reinstatement to one of radical rebuilding and perceived punishment

Andrew Johnson

17th President of the United States, A Southerner form Tennessee, as V.P. when Lincoln was killed, he became president. He opposed radical Republicans who passed Reconstruction Acts over his veto. The first U.S. president to be impeached, he survived the Senate removal by only one vote. He was a very weak president.

Iron Clad Oath

a strict loyalty pledge during the American Civil War requiring federal employees and military officers to swear they had never supported the Confederacy

Nathan Bedford Forrest and the Klan

a Confederate cavalry general during the American Civil War who became the first "Grand Wizard" of the original Ku Klux Klan (KKK) in 1867. His involvement with the white supremacist hate organization, which used violence and intimidation against Black Americans and Republicans during Reconstruction

Redemption and the Compromise of 1877

The Compromise of 1877 was an informal, unwritten deal that settled the disputed 1876 U.S. presidential election, awarding Republican Rutherford B. Hayes the presidency over Democrat Samuel Tilden in exchange for withdrawing federal troops from the South