APUSH: Period 4 (1800-1848)

Elections of Thomas Jefferson

Year: 1800 (elected) - 1809

Summary: Democratic-Republican and who advocated for states' rights, agrarianism, and limited government.

Significance: His election marked the "Revolution of 1800" — a peaceful transfer of power between parties.

Barbary Wars

Year: 1801-1805

Summary: Jefferson sent U.S. naval forces to fight North African pirates attacking American merchant ships.

Significance: First overseas military action by the U.S.; asserted American power and protected maritime trade.

Expanding Suffrage (for white men)

Year: 1820s-1830s

Summary: Most states eliminated property requirements for voting among white men.

Significance: Increased political participation and helped elect Andrew Jackson; however, women and people of color were still excluded.

Political Parties - Issues and Debates

Year: 1800-1848

Summary: Federalists vs. Democratic-Republicans (early), later Whigs vs. Democrats over tariffs, the national bank, and federal power.

Significance: Reflected growing sectionalism and diverging visions of America's future.

Louisiana Purchase

Year: 1803

Summary: Jefferson bought the Louisiana Territory from France, doubling U.S. land.

Significance: Expanded U.S. territory westward and challenged Jefferson's strict interpretation of the Constitution.

American Indian Removal

Year: 1830s

Summary: Jackson's Indian Removal Act forced Native tribes off ancestral lands, leading to the Trail of Tears.

Significance: Opened land for white settlers but caused immense Native suffering and death as the trail of tears.

Monroe Doctrine

Year: 1823

Summary: Declared the Americas off-limits to European colonization and interference.

Significance: Asserted U.S. dominance in the Western Hemisphere and set foreign policy precedent.

Midnight Judges / Judiciary Act of 1801

Year: 1801

Summary: Federalists passed a law to add federal judges before Jefferson took office.

Significance: Led to Marbury v. Madison and the establishment of judicial review.

Marshall Court Landmark Cases

Year: 1801-1835

Summary: Supreme Court under John Marshall strengthened federal power and upheld contracts (e.g., Marbury v. Madison, McCulloch v. Maryland, Gibbons v. Ogden).

Significance: Expanded judicial review and national supremacy over states.

Marbury v. Madison

Year: 1803

Summary: Supreme Court case that established the principle of judicial review.

Significance: Gave the Supreme Court the power to declare laws unconstitutional, strengthening the judiciary.

McCulloch v. Maryland

Year: 1819

Summary: Ruled that states could not tax the national bank and upheld the constitutionality of the Bank of the U.S.

Significance: Strengthened federal authority and supported loose interpretation of the Constitution.

Gibbons v. Ogden

Year: 1824

Summary: Ruled that only the federal government can regulate interstate commerce.

Significance: Expanded federal power over the economy and limited states' control of trade.

Embargo Act

Year: 1807

Summary: Jefferson banned all U.S. exports to avoid conflict with Britain and France.

Significance: Hurt the U.S. economy, especially in the North, and increased calls for war.

Andrew Jackson Presidency (1829-1837)

Year: 1829-1837

Summary: 7th president known for populism, Indian removal, and opposition to the national bank.

Significance: Expanded executive power but deepened sectional and Native tensions.

Whigs vs. Democrats

Year: 1830s-1840s

Summary: Whigs favored federal power, infrastructure, and industry; Democrats supported states' rights and agrarianism.

Significance: Reflected class and regional divisions in U.S. society.

Henry Clay

Year: 1810s-1840s

Summary: Senator and "Great Compromiser" who promoted the American System and helped broker the Missouri Compromise.

Significance: Tried to balance regional interests and strengthen national unity through compromise.

Henry Clay's American System

Year: Introduced in 1816

Summary: A national economic plan that included protective tariffs, a national bank, and federal funding for internal improvements (like roads and canals).

Significance: Aimed to unify the U.S. economy and promote national growth, but deepened sectional divisions—especially over federal involvement and who benefited.

Adams-Onís Treaty

Year: 1819

Summary: Spain ceded Florida to the U.S., and the U.S. gave up claims to Texas.

Significance: Strengthened U.S. control of the Southeast and clarified borders with Spanish territory.

Market Revolution

Year: 1800-1848

Summary: Economic shift with increased transportation, manufacturing, and wage labor. The Market Revolution was caused by a combination of technological innovations (like the cotton gin, steamboat, and telegraph), improved transportation (roads, canals, railroads), and changes in labor systems and production (factories, wage labor).

Significance: Transformed U.S. society and economy but widened social and regional inequalities.

Republican Motherhood

Year: Continued into early 1800s

Summary: Idea that women should raise virtuous, educated citizens of the republic.

Significance: Expanded educational opportunities for women without challenging traditional gender roles.

Second Great Awakening

Year: 1790s-1840s

Summary: Religious revival emphasizing salvation through faith and moral reform. Stressed importance of self-perfection

Significance: Inspired reform movements like abolitionism, temperance, and women's rights.

Utopianism and Religious Movements

Year: 1820s-1840s

Summary: Groups like the Shakers and Oneida Community sought to build ideal societies.

Significance: Reflected growing dissatisfaction with materialism and social norms.

Southern Regional Identity

Year: 1800-1848

Summary: Based on plantation agriculture, slavery, and states' rights.

Significance: Set the South apart culturally and politically, contributing to sectional conflict.

African American Resistance

Year: 1800-1848

Summary: Enslaved and free Black communities resisted oppression and preserved family and culture.

Significance: Showed resilience under slavery and laid groundwork for abolitionist movements.

Reform Organizations

Year: 1820s-1840s

Summary: Citizens formed groups to address issues like temperance, education, and abolition.

Significance: Reflected growing belief in human improvement and moral responsibility.

Abolitionist and Anti-Slavery Movements

Year: 1830s-1840s

Summary: Leaders like William Lloyd Garrison and Frederick Douglass demanded immediate or gradual end to slavery.

Significance: Increased North-South tensions and helped fuel future conflict over slavery.

Slave Rebellions

Year: 1800-1831

Summary: Included Gabriel's Rebellion (1800), Denmark Vesey's plot (1822), and Nat Turner's Rebellion (1831).

Significance: Led to harsher slave codes and fear among Southern whites.

Seneca Falls Convention

Year: 1848

Summary: First women's rights convention, led by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott.

Significance: Issued the Declaration of Sentiments and began the organized women's rights movement.

Technologies of Transportation, Manufacturing, and Agriculture

Year: 1800-1848

Summary: Innovations like steamboats, railroads, the telegraph, and the cotton gin transformed the U.S.

Significance: Spurred economic growth, expanded markets, and deepened North-South economic differences.

Gender and Family Role Changes

Year: 1800-1848

Summary: Market economy and reform movements altered women's roles, especially in the North.

Significance: Led to increased advocacy for women's education and rights.

Internal Migration

Year: 1800-1848

Summary: Americans moved westward in search of land and opportunity.

Significance: Intensified Native displacement and debates over the expansion of slavery.

Industrialization in Northern Cities

Year: 1800-1848

Summary: Northern urban areas grew with factories and immigrant labor.

Significance: Created working-class struggles and fueled labor and reform movements. But the average living conditions of people improved.

Ohio and Mississippi River Transportation

Year: Early 1800s

Summary: Steamboats and canals improved shipping on major rivers.

Significance: Linked agricultural regions to markets and supported westward expansion.

The American System

Year: 1816

Summary: Henry Clay's plan for tariffs, a national bank, and internal improvements.

Significance: Aimed to unify the national economy but deepened sectional tensions.

Missouri Compromise

Year: 1820

Summary: Admitted Missouri as a slave state, Maine as free, and banned slavery north of the 36°30′ line.

Significance: Temporarily eased sectional conflict over slavery's expansion.

Extension of Slavery into New Territories

Year: 1800-1848

Summary: As Americans moved west, debates erupted over whether new states would allow slavery.

Significance: Heightened sectionalism and foreshadowed Civil War conflict.

Jacksonian Reform Movements and Leaders

Year: 1820s-1840s

Summary: Reformers like Dorothea Dix (mental health), Horace Mann (education), and temperance advocates worked for societal improvement.

Significance: Reflected democratic ideals and growing middle-class activism.

Lowell System and Lowell Girls

Year: 1820s-1830s

Summary: Textile mills in Massachusetts employed young women in factory work with strict rules.

Significance: Gave women new economic roles, but also highlighted harsh labor conditions.

War of 1812

Year: 1812-1815

Summary: Conflict between the U.S. and Britain over trade restrictions, maritime conflicts (impressment) and Native resistance.

Significance: Boosted U.S. nationalism and ended Federalist influence after Hartford Convention.

Hartford Convention

Year: 1814-1815

Summary: Federalists met to protest the War of 1812 and proposed constitutional changes and potential secession from the union.

Significance: Seen as disloyal after war's end; contributed to Federalist Party's collapse.

Era of Good Feelings

Year: 1815-1825

Summary: A term coined for a period of political unity under the Democratic-Republicans after War of 1812.

Significance: Masked growing sectional tensions and debates over federal power.

Virginia Dynasty

Year: 1801-1825

Summary: Three Virginian presidents in a row (Jefferson, Madison, Monroe).

Significance: Dominated early U.S. politics and reflected Southern political strength and power over government.

Corrupt Bargain

Year: 1824

Summary: Alleged deal between John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay to win the presidency in the House of Representatives.

Significance: Fueled distrust in government and helped Jackson build support for 1828 election.

Bank War

Year: 1832-1836

Summary: Andrew Jackson vetoed the recharter of the Second Bank of the U.S. and moved federal money to state "pet banks."

Significance: Weakened the national bank, increased state bank power, and contributed to the Panic of 1837. Republicans also criticized his abuse of power.

Transcendentalism

Year: 1830s-1840s

Summary: A movement emphasizing individualism, nature, and spiritual self-reliance; key figures included Emerson and Thoreau.

Significance: Challenged materialism and inspired reform movements like abolition, education, and civil disobedience.

The Gag Rule

Year: 1836-1844

Summary: Congressional rule that automatically tabled all anti-slavery petitions without discussion.

Significance: Suppressed debate on slavery and increased tensions between North and South.