American Traditions - Final Exam Study Guide

Vocabulary flashcards covering key historical figures, terms, and events from the American Traditions final exam study guide.

George Washington

The first President of the United States and leader of the Continental Army during the American Revolution.

Alexander Hamilton

The first Secretary of the Treasury and leader of the Federalist Party who advocated for the First Bank of the United States.

Thomas Jefferson

The third President of the United States, author of the Declaration of Independence, and proponent of strict construction.

John Marshall

The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court whose landmark rulings, such as Marbury v. Madison, established the principle of judicial review.

James Madison

The fourth President of the United States, often called the 'Father of the Constitution,' who led the country during the War of 1812.

Andrew Jackson

The seventh President of the United States, associated with 'Jacksonian Democracy,' the Nullification Crisis, and the Trail of Tears.

Eli Whitney

The inventor of the cotton gin, which significantly impacted the growth of the 'Cotton Kingdom' and the domestic slave trade.

Frederick Douglass

A prominent African American abolitionist, author, and orator who escaped slavery and campaigned for immediate emancipation.

Dred Scott

The enslaved man who unsuccessfully sued for his freedom in the landmark Supreme Court case Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857).

Abraham Lincoln

The 16th President of the United States whose election in 1860 led to Southern secession and who prioritized the preservation of the Union.

Expressed powers

Specific powers granted to the federal government as clearly listed in the Constitution.

Implied powers

Powers not explicitly named in the Constitution but assumed to exist through the 'necessary and proper' clause.

Whiskey Rebellion (1794)

A 1794 uprising of farmers in Pennsylvania protesting a federal tax on whiskey, which was suppressed by George Washington.

Washington's Farewell Address (1796)

A 1796 statement advising the nation to avoid permanent foreign alliances and the dangers of political parties.

Alien and Sedition Acts

A series of laws passed in 1798 that restricted the rights of immigrants and limited freedom of speech against the government.

"Peaceful revolution" (Election of 1800)

The first orderly transfer of power between opposing political parties in U.S. history, from Federalists to Democratic-Republicans.

Louisiana Purchase (1803)

The 1803 acquisition of a vast territory from France that doubled the size of the United States.

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

The landmark 1803 Supreme Court case that established the principle of judicial review.

Judicial review

The power of the Supreme Court to determine whether laws or executive actions are constitutional.

Monroe Doctrine (1823)

A 1823 policy statement warning European nations against further colonization or intervention in the Western Hemisphere.

The American System

A program of economic development advocated by Henry Clay, involving protective tariffs, a national bank, and internal improvements.

Nullification Crisis (1832)

A conflict in 1832 when South Carolina attempted to declare federal tariffs, specifically the Tariff of Abominations, void within the state.

Trail of Tears

The forced and deadly removal of Native American tribes from their ancestral homelands to designated Indian Territory in the West.

Seneca Falls Convention (1848)

The first women's rights convention in the U.S., where the 'Declaration of Sentiments' was signed.

Manifest Destiny

The 19th-century belief that the United States was divinely ordained to expand across the entire North American continent.

Compromise of 1850

A set of laws including the Fugitive Slave Law intended to settle disputes between slave and free states following the Mexican-American War.

Popular sovereignty

The principle that the authority of a state and its government are created and sustained by the consent of its people, specifically regarding slavery in territories.

Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)

An 1854 law that used popular sovereignty to decide the slavery status of new territories, leading to violent conflict known as 'Bleeding Kansas.'

Anaconda Plan

The Union's Civil War strategy involving a total naval blockade and control of the Mississippi River to 'strangle' the Confederacy.

Emancipation Proclamation (1863)

An executive order issued by Abraham Lincoln in 1863 declaring all slaves in Confederate-held territory to be free.

14th Amendment

A constitutional amendment granting citizenship to all persons born in the U.S. and providing equal protection under the law.

Compromise of 1877

An informal agreement that settled the 1876 presidential election and resulted in the withdrawal of federal troops from the South, ending Reconstruction.