apush potential dbq topics

Columbian Exchange

Transfer of plants, animals, people, and disease between Europe, Africa, and the Americas.

Encomienda system

Spanish forced Native Americans to work for them in exchange for 'protection.'

Pueblo Revolt (1680)

Native American uprising that expelled the Spanish for over 10 years in New Mexico.

Maize cultivation

Corn farming by Native peoples, especially in the Southwest.

Smallpox

European disease that killed millions of Natives.

Spanish caste system

Racial hierarchy in colonies (Spaniards at top, Natives/Africans at bottom).

Treaty of Tordesillas

Spain and Portugal divided the New World; Spain got most of the Americas.

French fur trade

French traded fur with Native tribes in Canada, had better relations than the Spanish/English.

Roanoke (1587)

First English colony, mysteriously disappeared ('Lost Colony').

Joint-stock companies

Investors pooled money to fund colonies like Jamestown.

Jamestown (1607)

First permanent English colony in North America.

Mayflower Compact

First agreement for self-government by Pilgrims.

Bacon's Rebellion

Poor farmers rebelled in Virginia; led to increased African slavery.

Navigation Acts

Laws to enforce British mercantilism and control colonial trade.

First Great Awakening

Religious revival in the 1730s-1740s; emphasized emotion and personal faith.

Maryland Toleration Act

Law allowing religious freedom for Christians in Maryland.

Indentured servants

Workers who agreed to labor for years in exchange for passage to America.

New England town meetings

Early form of direct democracy.

Middle colonies diversity

New York, Pennsylvania had religious/ethnic diversity.

Atlantic slave trade

Transport of African slaves to the Americas via the Middle Passage.

French and Indian War

War between Britain and France over land; led to British debt and new taxes.

Proclamation of 1763

Banned colonists from settling west of the Appalachians.

Stamp Act (1765)

Tax on printed materials; led to colonial protests.

Boston Tea Party (1773)

Colonists protested British taxes by dumping tea into the harbor.

Declaration of Independence (1776)

Colonies broke from Britain; listed grievances.

Articles of Confederation

First U.S. government; too weak (no power to tax or regulate trade).

Constitution (1787)

Replaced Articles; strong federal gov't with separation of powers.

Federalists vs Anti-Federalists

Debate over Constitution; Anti-Feds wanted a Bill of Rights.

Washington's Farewell Address

Warned against political parties and foreign alliances.

Alien and Sedition Acts

Federalist laws limiting speech and targeting immigrants.

Revolution of 1800

Peaceful power shift to Jefferson's Democratic-Republicans.

Louisiana Purchase

U.S. bought massive territory from France, doubled its size.

War of 1812

U.S. vs Britain over trade and impressment; ended in stalemate.

Market Revolution

Economic growth with factories, canals, railroads.

Missouri Compromise

Missouri = slave, Maine = free, no slavery north of 36°30′.

Monroe Doctrine

Warned Europe not to colonize in the Americas.

Second Great Awakening

Religious revival promoting reform movements.

Jacksonian Democracy

Expanded voting to all white men; anti-elite.

Indian Removal Act

Forced Native relocation (Trail of Tears).

Seneca Falls Convention

First women's rights convention; issued Declaration of Sentiments.

Manifest Destiny

Belief U.S. should expand across the continent.

Mexican-American War

U.S. gained Southwest after winning war with Mexico.

Compromise of 1850

California = free; strict Fugitive Slave Law passed.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

Allowed popular sovereignty; led to 'Bleeding Kansas.'

Dred Scott v. Sandford

Ruled slaves were property, not citizens.

Lincoln elected (1860)

Southern states seceded after his election.

Emancipation Proclamation

Freed slaves in Confederate states.

Gettysburg Address

Lincoln reaffirmed purpose of the war: equality and unity.

13th-15th Amendments

Ended slavery, granted citizenship, and voting rights to Black men.

Compromise of 1877

Ended Reconstruction; pulled federal troops from the South.

Gilded Age

Period of wealth and corruption after Civil War.

Transcontinental Railroad

Connected the U.S. coast-to-coast; helped economy.

Dawes Act

Tried to assimilate Natives by giving them land.

Plessy v. Ferguson

'Separate but equal' upheld segregation.

Big business

Monopolies like Standard Oil grew; robber barons.

Labor unions

Workers formed groups like AFL to fight for rights.

Populist Party

Farmers' political party demanding reform (silver, regulation).

Political machines

Corrupt city bosses (like Boss Tweed).

Social Darwinism

Belief rich were superior, poor were lazy.

Sherman Antitrust Act

Tried to break up monopolies (not enforced at first).

Spanish-American War

U.S. gained Philippines, Guam, Puerto Rico.

Progressive Era

Reforms to fix industry, politics, society.

19th Amendment

Women gained the right to vote (1920).

Great Migration

African Americans moved North for jobs.

Red Scare

Fear of communism after WWI.

Stock Market Crash (1929)

Triggered Great Depression.

New Deal

FDR's programs to fix the Depression.

Pearl Harbor

Japan bombed U.S.; led to WWII.

WWII Homefront

Rationing, women working, internment of Japanese.

Manhattan Project

Secret U.S. atomic bomb program.

Cold War

U.S. vs Soviet Union tension (no direct war).

Truman Doctrine

U.S. would contain communism.

Korean War

U.S. fought to stop communism in Korea (ended in stalemate).

Brown v. Board

Ended school segregation (1954).

Civil Rights Act (1964)

Banned discrimination in public places.

Vietnam War

U.S. failed to stop communist takeover.

Great Society

LBJ's anti-poverty programs (Medicare, etc.).

Women's Movement

Feminist push for rights (NOW, Equal Rights Amendment).

Watergate Scandal

Nixon resigned after cover-up of break-in.

Reagan elected

Conservative movement gained power in 1980.

Reaganomics

Tax cuts and deregulation to grow economy.

End of Cold War (1991)

USSR collapsed, U.S. emerged as sole superpower.

9/11 attacks (2001)

Al-Qaeda attacked U.S.; sparked War on Terror.

War on Terror

U.S. military campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Affordable Care Act (2010)

Expanded healthcare access under Obama.

Rise of the Internet

Transformed communication and the economy.

Globalization

Increased global trade and interconnected economies.

Partisan polarization

Sharpened divide between political parties.

Immigration debates

Ongoing tension over border policy and reform.

Rise of conservatism

Political shift starting in the 1980s with Reagan and continuing.