Early American Reform Movements

These flashcards cover key terms and concepts from the Early American Reform Movements lecture, providing definitions and important context.

Unitarianism

A religious movement that emphasizes science and reason over the Bible.

Second Great Awakening

A religious revival movement that emphasized individual faith and salvation through hard work.

Burned Over District

Region in western New York known for its frequent religious revivals during the Second Great Awakening.

Charles Finney

A prominent preacher of the Second Great Awakening known for his revivalist meetings.

Baptists and Methodists

Protestant denominations that gained prominence during the Second Great Awakening.

Temperance Movement

An effort to reduce or eliminate the consumption of alcoholic beverages.

American Temperance Society

Founded in 1826 to promote total abstinence from alcohol.

Neil S. Dow

Mayor of Portland, Maine, and a prominent figure in the temperance movement.

Dorothea Dix

Reformer who advocated for the better treatment of the mentally ill and prisoners.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Leader in the women's rights movement and co-organizer of the Seneca Falls Convention.

Seneca Falls Convention

The first women's rights convention held in 1848.

William Lloyd Garrison

A radical abolitionist known for his newspaper 'The Liberator'.

Frederick Douglass

Former enslaved person who became a leading voice in the antislavery movement.

Underground Railroad

A network of secret routes and safe houses used to help enslaved people escape to freedom.

Nat Turner's Rebellion

A slave rebellion in Virginia that resulted in the deaths of 55 whites.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Philosopher and leading figure of American transcendentalism.

Henry David Thoreau

Writer and transcendentalist known for his book 'Walden' and advocacy of civil disobedience.

Walden

A book by Thoreau detailing his experiences living in solitude.

Civil Disobedience

An essay by Thoreau advocating nonviolent resistance to unjust laws.

George Ripley

A Protestant minister who founded the utopian community known as Brook Farm.

Shakers

A religious community known for their successful furniture production.

New Harmony

A utopian community that ultimately failed financially.

Oneida Community

A utopian society advocating for economic equality and shared marriages.

Transcendentalism

A philosophical movement that emphasizes intuition and the inherent goodness of people and nature.

McGuffey Readers

Books used in public schools that taught virtues such as hard work and punctuality.

Thomas Gallaudet

Founder of the American School for the Deaf.

Social Reform

The effort to improve society through various movements including education, temperance, and women's rights.

Mormons

Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, founded by Joseph Smith.

Brigham Young

Leader of the Mormons who led them to Utah to escape persecution.

Female Spiritual Worth

Belief during the Second Great Awakening that emphasized the spiritual significance of women.