HIST 201 — Exam 1 Study Guide Flashcards

Vocabulary study flashcards covering key historical terms, figures, dates, and East Coast state capitals for HIST 201 Exam 1.

Reconstruction

The period from 1865 to 1877 after the Civil War when the United States worked to rebuild the South and address the status and rights of formerly enslaved people.

Freedmen’s Bureau

A federal agency created (1865–1872) to assist formerly enslaved people and poor Southerners by providing food, education, medical assistance, and employment support.

Radical Republicans

Republicans in the U.S. Congress during the 1860s–1870s who supported stronger protections and civil rights for formerly enslaved people, pushing for the 14th and 15th Amendments.

Tenure of Office Act

An 1867 law restricting the president’s ability to remove certain federal officials without Senate approval, the violation of which led to Andrew Johnson's 1868 impeachment.

Sharecropping

A farming system originating in the late 1860s in which workers farmed land owned by someone else for a share of the crop, keeping many formerly enslaved people and poor white farmers in economic debt.

Panic of 1873

A major financial crisis in 1873 that triggered a severe economic depression, bank failures, business closures, and weakened support for Reconstruction.

Electoral Commission

A special commission created by Congress in 1877 to resolve disputed electoral votes in the 1876 presidential election, awarding them to Rutherford B. Hayes.

Compromise of 1877

An informal political agreement resolving the 1876 election, resulting in Rutherford B. Hayes becoming president and federal troops being withdrawn from the South, ending Reconstruction.

“New South”

A movement from the 1870s onward to modernize the Southern United States through industrial development, factories, railroads, and economic diversification.

Redeemers

Conservative white Southern Democrats in the 1870s–1890s who sought to regain political control from Republicans, reestablishing white Democratic rule and dismantling Reconstruction reforms.

“Jim Crow” laws

State and local laws enforced from the late 1870s through the 1960s that required racial segregation and discrimination against African Americans.

Plessy v. Ferguson

An 1896 Supreme Court ruling that upheld racial segregation under the “separate but equal” doctrine after Homer Plessy challenged segregation on a Louisiana railway.

Populism

A 1890s political movement led primarily by farmers and workers that advocated for railroad regulation, a graduated income tax, and an expanded money supply.

Molly Maguires

An alleged secret organization of Irish immigrant coal miners in Pennsylvania active in the 1860s–1870s, accused of using violence in conflicts with mine owners.

Haymarket Affair

A labor rally on May 4, 1886, in Chicago for the eight-hour workday that turned violent after a bomb exploded, police opened fire, and public fear of labor radicals increased.

Tenements

Crowded, poorly maintained urban apartment buildings where many working-class families lived during the 1800s and early 1900s.

Nativism

A belief system in the 1800s–early 1900s favoring native-born citizens over immigrants, leading to anti-immigrant sentiment and restrictive policies.

Parlor

A formal room in 19th-century American homes used for receiving visitors and socializing, symbolizing middle-class respectability and social status.

Saloons

Establishments in 19th-century American towns and cities where people gathered to drink, eat, socialize, and discuss politics, especially working-class men and immigrants.

Patronage

The 19th-century practice of awarding government jobs and benefits to political supporters.

Booker T. Washington

African American leader and founder of Tuskegee Institute who advocated vocational education, economic self-reliance, and gradual advancement.

W.E.B. Du Bois

African American sociologist, author, and civil rights activist who demanded immediate political equality, civil rights, and higher education, opposing Washington's approach.

Ku Klux Klan

A white supremacist terrorist organization founded in Tennessee in 1865 by former Confederate soldiers to suppress Black political participation through intimidation and violence.

Great Uprising (Great Railroad Strike)

An 1877 nationwide wave of railroad worker strikes starting in Martinsburg, West Virginia, prompted by wage cuts, which resulted in government military intervention.

Dawes Act

An 1887 federal law that divided Native American tribal lands into individual family allotments to encourage assimilation, resulting in massive land loss for Indigenous tribes.

Frederick Jackson Turner

American historian who presented the Frontier Thesis in 1893, arguing that the Western frontier shaped American democracy, individualism, and identity.

Capital of Maine

Augusta

Capital of New Hampshire

Concord

Capital of Massachusetts

Boston

Capital of Rhode Island

Providence

Capital of Connecticut

Hartford

Capital of New York

Albany

Capital of New Jersey

Trenton

Capital of Pennsylvania

Harrisburg

Capital of Delaware

Dover

Capital of Maryland

Annapolis

Capital of Virginia

Richmond

Capital of North Carolina

Raleigh

Capital of South Carolina

Columbia

Capital of Georgia

Atlanta

Capital of Florida

Tallahassee

Devastation in the South

The South’s economy, infrastructure and farms were devastated by the Civil War

Lincoln’s Plan and Congress’ Response

Lincoln favored a lenient Reconstruction plan; Congress pushed for stronger protections for formerly enslaved people.

Southern Stubbornness:

Many white Southerners resisted racial equality and federal Reconstruction policies

Johnson’s Battle with Congress:

President Andrew Johnson clashed with Republicans over Reconstruction and civil rights.

The Reconstructed South

Southern governments changed during Reconstruction, and African Americans gained political rights and representation.

The Grant Years

Ulysses S. Grant’s presidency faced corruption scandals and struggled to enforce civil rights in the South.

End of Reconstruction

Federal efforts to protect African Americans declined after the political settlement of 1877.

Disenfranchising African Americans

Southern states used poll taxes, literacy tests and other barriers to prevent African Americans from voting.

Spread of Segregation

Racial segregation expanded in public facilities, schools and transportation.

Labor Conditions and Organization

Industrial workers faced low wages, long hours and unsafe conditions, prompting labor organizing

Disorganized Protest

Early labor protests were often divided and faced strong opposition from employers and authorities.

America’s Move to Town

Industrialization encouraged urbanization as people moved to cities for jobs.

New Immigration

Large numbers of immigrants arrived from Southern and Eastern Europe and other regions in the late 19th century.

Nativist Response

Anti-immigrant movements grew in reaction to immigration and cultural change.

Popular Culture

Mass entertainment, consumer culture, sports and public leisure expanded.

The West and Politics

Western farmers and settlers faced conflicts over land, railroads, debt and federal policies.

Conflicts Labor

disputes, racial violence, political struggles and conflicts over Indigenous land shaped the period.

Gilded Age Politics

Political machines, patronage, corruption and debates over economic reform characterized the era.