American History Key Concepts

A comprehensive set of flashcards covering key vocabulary terms and concepts from American history, suitable for exam preparation.

Maize Cultivation

The domestication and farming of corn by indigenous civilizations in the Americas, supporting sedentary agriculture and complex societies.

Sons of Liberty

A secret organization of American colonists formed to protest British policies, notably using intimidation and boycotts against tax collectors.

Daughters of Liberty

A women's organization that boycotted British goods and produced homespun cloth as part of the colonial resistance.

Strict vs. Loose Interpretation

Competing views of the Constitution where strict interpretation limits government powers to those explicitly granted, and loose interpretation allows broader implied powers.

Republican Motherhood

An ideology that emphasized women's roles in raising virtuous citizens for the new republic, justifying expanded women's education.

Cult of Domesticity

A 19th-century ideal that glorified women's roles in the home, emphasizing piety, purity, and submissiveness.

Intolerable Acts

A series of punitive laws passed by Parliament in 1774 in response to the Boston Tea Party, which united the colonies in support of Massachusetts.

Corrupt Bargain

Term used to describe the alleged deal between John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay during the 1824 presidential election.

Whiskey Rebellion

A 1794 uprising by farmers protesting Hamilton's whiskey tax, suppressed by George Washington to demonstrate federal authority.

City on a Hill

A phrase from John Winthrop envisioning the Massachusetts Bay Colony as a model Christian community.

Shays’ Rebellion

A 1786-87 armed uprising of indebted farmers in Massachusetts that exposed the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation.

Navigation Acts

British laws designed to enforce mercantilism by regulating colonial trade and requiring goods to be shipped on British ships.

Seneca Falls Convention

The first major women's rights convention in 1848 that produced the 'Declaration of Sentiments' demanding social and legal equality for women.

Election of 1860

The presidential election where Abraham Lincoln's victory without Southern electoral votes led to the secession of Southern states.

GW Farewell Address

George Washington's 1796 address warning against permanent foreign alliances and political parties.

Emancipation Proclamation

Lincoln's 1863 order declaring all enslaved persons in Confederate-held territory to be free, changing the war's purpose.

Declaration of Independence

The document adopted in 1776 announcing the colonies' separation from Britain and outlining Enlightenment principles.

Manifest Destiny

The belief that the U.S. was divinely ordained to expand across North America, influencing territorial acquisition.

Hartford Convention

Secret meetings by New England Federalists to discuss grievances about the War of 1812, leading to their party's decline.

Eli Whitney

An American inventor known for the cotton gin and the promotion of interchangeable parts in manufacturing.

Interchangeable Parts

Components made to precise specifications that can be swapped in assembly without custom fitting, revolutionizing manufacturing.

Cotton Gin

A machine invented by Whitney that quickly separates cotton seeds from fibers, increasing the demand for enslaved labor.

Frederick Douglass

An African American abolitionist who advocated for emancipation and equality through powerful speeches and writings.

William Lloyd Garrison

A radical white abolitionist known for founding 'The Liberator' and promoting immediate emancipation.

Salutary Neglect

Britain's policy of relaxed enforcement of laws in the colonies, fostering independence and self-governance.

Great Awakening

An evangelical religious revival in the colonies during the 1730s-40s, promoting emotional conversion and shared identity.

Second Great Awakening

A significant religious revival in the early 19th century emphasizing individual responsibility and leading social reforms.

Stamp Act

A 1765 law imposing a direct tax on printed materials in the colonies, leading to unified colonial protests.

Nullification Crisis

A confrontation in which South Carolina asserted the right to nullify federal tariffs, leading to a compromise.

Tobacco

A cash crop that shaped the economy and society of the Chesapeake colonies, initially reliant on indentured servants.

Battle of Gettysburg

A major Civil War battle that marked the turning point of the war with a decisive Union victory.

Battle of Yorktown

The decisive engagement of the Revolutionary War where British forces surrendered, effectively ending major combat.

Anaconda Plan

The Union's strategy during the Civil War to blockade the South and capture key territories to defeat the Confederacy.

Second Continental Congress

The governing body of the American colonies that managed the war effort and adopted the Declaration of Independence.

Compromise of 1877

An informal deal resolving the 1876 election dispute, leading to the withdrawal of federal troops from the South.

Market Revolution

A transformation in the U.S. economy marked by a shift to a national market economy and regional specialization.

American System

An economic program with components to protect American industry and improve infrastructure.

Indentured Servitude

A labor system where individuals worked for a number of years in exchange for passage to America.

Black Codes

Laws restricting freedoms of African Americans post-Civil War, aiming to compel them to a labor system.

King Cotton

The economic ideology that cotton's global market dominance would ensure support for the Confederacy.

Mayflower Compact

A document establishing a framework for self-government signed by Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower.

Louisiana Purchase

An acquisition of territory from France that doubled the size of the U.S. and secured control of New Orleans.

Roger Williams

A Puritan dissenter who founded Rhode Island, advocating for religious freedom and separation of church and state.

Monroe Doctrine

A U.S. policy declaring the Western Hemisphere closed to European colonization and asserting American leadership.

Fugitive Slave Law (1850)

A law requiring escaped enslaved persons to be returned to their enslavers, leading to heightened tensions.

Missouri Compromise (1820)

An agreement to maintain balance between slave and free states by admitting Missouri as a slave state.

Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists

The two factions debating the ratification of the Constitution, with Federalists supporting a strong national government.

A.O.C. (Articles of Confederation)

The first constitution of the U.S. creating a weak national government, leading to its eventual failure and replacement.

Jamestown

The first permanent English settlement in North America founded in 1607, establishing patterns of governance and labor.

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments to the Constitution, guaranteeing individual liberties and reserving powers for states.

Olive Branch Petition

A final appeal from the Continental Congress to King George III professing loyalty while asserting colonial rights.

Transcendentalism

A philosophical movement emphasizing individualism and a spiritual connection with nature, influencing American culture.

3/5 Compromise

An agreement counting three-fifths of the enslaved population for representation and taxation purposes.

Triangular Trade

A trade system between the Americas, Africa, and Europe, crucial for the growth of colonial economies.

Columbian Exchange

The transfer of plants, animals, and ideas between the Americas and the Old World after Columbus's voyages.

De Las Casas’s Black Legend

The perception of Spain's brutality in colonization based on Bartolomé de Las Casas's writings.

Dred Scott Decision

A Supreme Court ruling declaring that African Americans were not U.S. citizens and Congress couldn't ban slavery in territories.

Alien and Sedition Acts

Laws enacted to suppress political opposition by raising residency requirements and punishing dissent against the government.

Treaty of Paris 1763

The treaty that ended the French and Indian War, ceding significant territory to Britain.

Treaty of Paris 1783

The treaty that formally recognized American independence and established boundaries for the new nation.

Popular Sovereignty

The political doctrine that government authority is sustained by the consent of the governed, applied to slavery in territories.

Proclamation Line of 1763

Line forbidding colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains to prevent conflicts with Native Americans.

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

A landmark case establishing the principle of judicial review, asserting the power of courts to declare laws unconstitutional.

Know-Nothings (American Party)

A 1850s nativist political party that opposed immigration and reflected ethnic and religious tensions.

Proclamation of Neutrality (1793)

Washington's declaration of U.S. neutrality in European conflicts during the French Revolution.

Puritans

English Protestants seeking to purify the Church of England, founding the Massachusetts Bay Colony as a moral community.

Whigs (Colonial Era)

Colonists who supported independence and democratic reforms during and after the Revolution.

Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions (1798-99)

Political statements asserting states' rights to nullify federal laws they deemed unconstitutional.

Pet Banks

State banks chosen by Jackson to hold federal funds, contributing to financial instability and the Panic of 1837.

Battle of New Orleans (1815)

The last major battle of the War of 1812, making Andrew Jackson a national hero despite occurring after the war's end.

Bacon’s Rebellion (1676)

An armed rebellion in Virginia highlighting class tensions and leading to a reliance on racial slavery.

King Philip's War (1675-1678)

A conflict between New England colonists and Native American tribes that resulted in a significant loss of life and Native resistance.

Sharecropping

An agricultural system in the post-Civil War South where landless farmers worked plots in exchange for a share of the crop.

Civil War Amendments (Reconstruction Amendments)

The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, abolishing slavery and defining citizenship and voting rights.

Dawes Act (1887)

A law attempting to assimilate Native Americans by allotting individual parcels of tribal land.

Wounded Knee Massacre (1890)

The last major confrontation between the U.S. Army and Native Americans, marking the end of armed resistance.