Core Subjects Social Studies Review

Vocabulary flashcards covering exploration, colonial America, U.S. founding documents, major wars, industrialization, westward expansion, Civil War, social movements, Texas history, government structure, economics, and geography.

3 G’s

Motives for European exploration—Gold, God, and Glory.

Northwest Passage

Fabled water route through North America sought by Europeans to reach Asia.

Conquistador

Spanish soldier-explorers who conquered lands in the Americas.

St. Augustine (1565)

First permanent European settlement in present-day United States, founded by Spain in Florida.

Jamestown (1607)

First permanent English settlement in North America, located in Virginia.

Quebec City (1608)

First permanent French settlement in North America, founded by Samuel de Champlain.

Mission

Spanish religious settlement aimed at converting Native Americans to Catholicism.

Cash Crop

Crop grown for profit rather than subsistence, e.g., tobacco, cotton, sugarcane.

Mercantilism

Economic system in which colonies exist to generate wealth for the mother country.

Navigation Acts

English laws (1650-1700) that controlled colonial trade and shipping.

French & Indian War

1754-1763 conflict between Britain and France in North America; set stage for taxes on colonies.

Sugar Act (1764)

British law taxing sugar and molasses imported into the colonies.

Stamp Act (1765)

Tax on printed materials in the colonies; sparked widespread protest.

Patriot

Colonist who supported independence from Britain during the Revolution.

Loyalist

Colonist who remained loyal to Britain during the American Revolution.

First Continental Congress

1774 meeting of colonial delegates that organized a boycott of British goods.

Lexington and Concord

April 1775 battles that started the American Revolutionary War.

Declaration of Independence

1776 document announcing the colonies’ break from Britain, primarily authored by Thomas Jefferson.

Battle of Saratoga

1777 turning-point American victory that convinced France and Spain to aid the U.S.

Valley Forge

Winter camp (1777-78) where Washington’s army endured hardships but emerged better trained.

Treaty of Paris (1783)

Agreement that ended the Revolutionary War and recognized U.S. independence.

Articles of Confederation

First U.S. governing document (1777-1787) that created a weak central government.

Shays’s Rebellion

1786-87 Massachusetts farmer uprising that highlighted weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation.

Great Compromise

Constitutional agreement creating a bicameral Congress: Senate and House of Representatives.

Three-Fifths Compromise

Agreement to count three-fifths of enslaved populations for representation and taxation.

Federalist Papers

Essays by Hamilton, Madison, and Jay advocating ratification of the Constitution.

Bill of Rights

First ten amendments to the Constitution, protecting individual liberties (1791).

Impressment

British practice of seizing American sailors and forcing them into the Royal Navy.

Embargo Act (1807)

U.S. law banning trade with foreign nations, aimed at Britain and France; hurt U.S. trade.

War of 1812

Conflict between the U.S. and Britain (1812-1815) over maritime rights and frontier issues.

Industrial Revolution

Period of technological change shifting production from hand-made to machine-made goods.

Interchangeable Parts

Eli Whitney’s 1798 concept of uniform components, revolutionizing manufacturing and repair.

Steamboat

Robert Fulton’s 1807 invention that cut shipping costs on rivers.

Railroad

19th-century transportation network that sped movement of goods and people, especially in the North.

Telegraph

Samuel Morse’s 1832 invention enabling rapid long-distance communication via Morse code.

Mechanical Reaper

Cyrus McCormick’s 1831 machine that increased grain harvesting efficiency.

Manifest Destiny

Belief that the U.S. was destined to expand across the continent.

Louisiana Purchase (1803)

U.S. purchase of territory from France that doubled the nation’s size.

Mexican Cession (1848)

Land ceded to the U.S. after the Mexican-American War via the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo.

Gadsden Purchase (1853)

U.S. purchase of land from Mexico for a southern transcontinental railroad route.

Lewis and Clark Expedition

1804-06 Corps of Discovery that explored the Louisiana Territory to the Pacific.

Civil War

U.S. conflict (1861-1865) between the Union and Confederacy, primarily over slavery.

Emancipation Proclamation

1863 Lincoln order freeing slaves in Confederate states; shifted war aims to abolition.

Battle of Gettysburg

1863 three-day Union victory that was the Civil War’s turning point.

Reconstruction

Period (1865-1877) of rebuilding the South and integrating freed slaves into society.

Jim Crow Laws

State and local statutes enforcing racial segregation after Reconstruction.

Bessemer Process

Method that made steel production faster and cheaper during the 2nd Industrial Revolution.

Urbanization

Population shift from rural areas to cities, driven by industrial jobs.

19th Amendment

1920 constitutional amendment granting women the right to vote.

Brown v. Board of Education

1954 Supreme Court case declaring segregated schools unconstitutional.

Civil Rights Act (1964)

Federal law banning discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

Voting Rights Act (1965)

Law prohibiting racial discrimination in voting practices.

Empresario

Land agent who brought settlers to Mexican Texas, e.g., Stephen F. Austin.

Old 300

First 300 American families settled in Texas by Stephen F. Austin.

Battle of the Alamo

1836 siege where Texan defenders were defeated by Santa Anna’s Mexican forces.

Treaty of Velasco

1836 agreement in which Santa Anna recognized Texas independence.

Spindletop (1901)

East Texas oil gusher that launched the Texas and U.S. oil boom.

Barbed Wire

Joseph Glidden’s 1874 invention that ended open-range cattle drives.

Meusebach-Comanche Treaty

1847 peace agreement between German settlers and Comanche tribes in Texas.

Red River War (1874)

U.S. Army campaign that forced Plains tribes from Texas into reservations.

Monarchy

Government ruled by a king or queen.

Oligarchy

Government power held by a small elite group.

Totalitarianism

System in which the state controls all aspects of life.

Representative Democracy

Government where citizens elect officials to make laws; also called a republic.

Magna Carta (1215)

English charter that limited the king’s power and established rule of law.

Mayflower Compact

1620 Pilgrim agreement establishing self-government in Plymouth Colony.

Checks and Balances

Constitutional system where each branch can limit the others’ powers.

Federalism

Division of power between national and state governments.

Judicial Review

Supreme Court power to declare laws unconstitutional (established in Marbury v. Madison).

13th Amendment

1865 amendment abolishing slavery in the United States.

14th Amendment

1868 amendment granting citizenship and equal protection to former slaves.

15th Amendment

1870 amendment granting voting rights to African-American men.

Prohibition

Period (1920-1933) banning manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages via the 18th Amendment.

Electoral College

Body that formally elects the U.S. president based on state electoral votes.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

Total value of goods and services produced within a country in a year.

Tariff

Tax on imported (or exported) goods.

Traditional Economy

Economic system based on customs and subsistence activities like farming and hunting.

Command Economy

Economic system where government controls production and prices.

Market Economy

Economic system driven by supply, demand, and private enterprise; also called free enterprise.

Supply and Demand

Economic model where price is determined by quantity available and consumer desire.

Scarcity

Condition of limited resources versus unlimited wants.

Labor Productivity

Amount of goods and services produced per hour of work.

Division of Labor

Splitting production into specialized tasks to increase efficiency.

Cattle Drive

Movement of herds to railheads for shipment, prominent in post-Civil War Texas.

Goodnight-Loving Trail

Famous cattle trail from Texas to Wyoming created by Charles Goodnight.

King Ranch

Large Texas ranch founded by Richard King, pivotal in cattle industry.

Lizzie Johnson

First Texas woman to drive her own branded cattle up the Chisholm Trail.

Chisholm Trail

Major post-Civil War cattle route from Texas ranches to Kansas railheads.

Isolationism

Policy of avoiding political or military involvement with other countries.

Interstate Commerce

Trade and business activities crossing state lines, regulated by Congress.

Seneca Falls Convention

1848 women’s rights meeting that issued the Declaration of Sentiments.

Susan B. Anthony

Prominent leader of the women’s suffrage movement.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Civil Rights leader advocating non-violent protest.

Freedom Rides

1961 civil rights bus trips challenging segregated interstate travel.

Monroe Doctrine

1823 policy opposing European colonization in the Americas.

Homestead Act (1862)

Law granting 160 acres to settlers willing to farm western land.

Dred Scott Decision

1857 Supreme Court ruling that African Americans were not citizens.

Fugitive Slave Act (1850)

Law requiring escaped slaves to be returned to owners even in free states.

Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)

Law allowing territories to decide on slavery by popular sovereignty; led to “Bleeding Kansas.”

Total War

Military strategy targeting civilian resources as well as armies, used by Sherman.