US History Review Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards for US History review.

Louisiana Purchase

The acquisition of the Louisiana territory by the United States from France in 1803.

Second Great Awakening

A Protestant religious revival movement during the early 19th century.

Reform Movements (1810-1850)

A period of social activism aimed at addressing various issues such as abolition, temperance, and women's rights.

Gold Rush (1849)

A period of mass migration to California following the discovery of gold.

Market Revolution (1815-1840)

A transformation in the US economy characterized by increased production, transportation, and commercial activity.

Age of Jackson

A political era dominated by Andrew Jackson, marked by populism, nationalism, and conflict over issues like nullification and the national bank. 1828

Nullification Crisis

A confrontation between the federal government and South Carolina over the state's attempt to nullify federal tariffs.

Indian Removal Act

A law passed in 1830 that authorized the forced removal of Native American tribes from their ancestral lands in the southeastern United States.

Bank War

Andrew Jackson's conflict with the Second Bank of the United States, which he opposed and ultimately dismantled.

Industrial Revolution (1790-1820)

A period of significant technological and economic advancements, characterized by the rise of factories and mass production.

Marbury v. Madison

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

Judicial Review

The power of the Supreme Court to declare laws unconstitutional.

War of 1812

A conflict between the United States and Great Britain, fought over maritime rights and territorial expansion.

Missouri Compromise

An agreement in 1820 that admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, while also establishing a line to regulate slavery in the Louisiana Territory.

Manifest Destiny

The belief that the United States was destined to expand its dominion and spread democracy across the North American continent.

Seneca Falls Convention

The first women's rights convention, held in Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848.

Declaration of Sentiments

A document signed at the Seneca Falls Convention that outlined the rights that American women should be entitled to as citizens.

Mexican-American War (1846-1848)

An armed conflict between the United States and Mexico, resulting in the US acquisition of vast territories in the Southwest.

American Revolution

A war fought between Great Britain and its thirteen American colonies, leading to the establishment of the United States of America.

Stamp Act

A British tax imposed on the American colonies, requiring them to pay a tax on every piece of printed paper they used.

Tea Act

A British law that gave the British East India Company a monopoly on tea sales in the American colonies.

Lexington and Concord

The first battles of the American Revolutionary War.

Land Ordinance of 1785

An act of Congress that established a standardized system for surveying and selling western lands.

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

An act of Congress that established a system for governing the Northwest Territory and admitting new states into the Union.

US Constitution

The supreme law of the United States, establishing the framework of the federal government and outlining the rights and liberties of citizens.

Separation of Powers

The division of governmental power among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches.

Checks and Balances

A system in which each branch of government can limit the power of the other branches.

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments to the US Constitution, guaranteeing fundamental rights and freedoms.

European Colonization

The establishment of colonies by European powers in the Americas, driven by economic, religious, and political motives.

Mercantilism

An economic policy under which nations sought to increase their wealth and power by obtaining large amounts of gold and silver and by selling more goods than they bought.

Salutary Neglect

A British policy of avoiding strict enforcement of parliamentary laws meant to keep the American colonies obedient to England.

French and Indian War

A conflict between Great Britain and France (and their respective allies) for control of North America.

Compromise of 1850

A package of five separate bills passed by the United States Congress in September 1850 that defused a four-year political confrontation between slave and free states regarding the status of territories acquired during the Mexican–American War.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

Repealed the Missouri Compromise, created two new territories, and allowed for popular sovereignty.

Reconstruction

The period after the Civil War in which the United States attempted to rebuild and reintegrate the South.

13th Amendment

Abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime.

14th Amendment

Granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States, including formerly enslaved people, and guarantee all citizens 'equal protection of the laws.'

15th Amendment

Prohibits the federal and state governments from denying a citizen the right to vote based on that citizen's 'race, color, or previous condition of servitude.'

Civil War

A war fought from 1861 to 1865 between the United States (the Union) and several Southern states that seceded to form the Confederate States of America.

Emancipation Proclamation

An executive order issued on January 1, 1863, by President Lincoln freeing slaves in designated areas of the Confederacy.