Key Figures and Events in 19th Century U.S. History: Politics, Reform, and Social Movements

John C. Calhoun

South Carolina senator and vice president under Andrew Jackson; advocate for states' rights, nullification, and slavery as a "positive good."

Henry Clay

Senator known as the "Great Compromiser"; promoted the American System (tariffs, national bank, internal improvements) and helped craft the Missouri Compromise.

Nullification Crisis

1832-33 conflict when South Carolina declared federal tariffs null and void; tested states' rights vs. federal authority; ended with a compromise tariff.

Martin Van Buren

Jackson's vice president and later president; his term was plagued by the Panic of 1837.

Commonwealth v. Hunt (1842)

Massachusetts Supreme Court case ruling that labor unions and strikes were legal if done peacefully.

Tariff of Abominations (1828)

High tariff on imported goods that angered the South; led to the Nullification Crisis.

Worcester v. Georgia (1832)

Supreme Court ruled Georgia had no authority over Cherokee lands; Jackson ignored the decision.

Indian Removal Act (1830)

Law authorizing removal of Native Americans east of the Mississippi to western lands ("Indian Territory").

Black Hawk War (1832)

Conflict between U.S. forces and Native Americans led by Black Hawk in Illinois/Wisconsin; ended in U.S. victory and Native defeat.

Trail of Tears

Forced march of the Cherokee and other tribes to Indian Territory (1838-39); thousands died from disease and exposure.

Whig Party

Political party formed to oppose Andrew Jackson; supported Congress over the presidency and promoted modernization, banks, and tariffs.

Panic of 1837

Major economic depression during Van Buren's presidency; caused by speculation, bank failures, and Jackson's financial policies.

Know-Nothing Party

Nativist political party of the 1850s that opposed immigration and Catholic influence.

Cult of Domesticity

Ideal that women should stay at home, be pious, pure, submissive, and devoted to family and domestic life.

Nat Turner's Rebellion (1831)

Slave revolt in Virginia led by Nat Turner; killed about 60 whites; led to harsher slave laws in the South.

Transcendentalism

Intellectual movement emphasizing individual intuition, nature, and self-reliance (leaders: Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau).

Free Soil Party

Political party (1848-1854) opposing expansion of slavery into western territories; slogan: "Free Soil, Free Speech, Free Labor, Free Men."

Second Great Awakening

Religious revival (early 1800s) emphasizing salvation through personal faith; inspired social reform movements.

Charles Finney

Leading preacher of the Second Great Awakening; promoted emotional revivals and social reform.

Horace Mann

Education reformer who promoted public (common) schools and standardized teacher training.

Temperance Crusade

Movement to reduce or eliminate alcohol consumption; led by women and religious reformers.

Dorothea Dix

Advocate for humane treatment of the mentally ill; pushed for asylum reform.

Seneca Falls Convention (1848)

First women's rights convention; issued the Declaration of Sentiments demanding equal rights, including suffrage.

William Lloyd Garrison

Radical abolitionist and publisher of The Liberator newspaper; called for immediate emancipation.

Sojourner Truth

Former enslaved woman and abolitionist; famous for her "Ain't I a Woman?" speech advocating racial and gender equality.

Frederick Douglass

Former enslaved man; leading abolitionist and orator; published The North Star.

Harriet Beecher Stowe

Author of Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852), which exposed the brutality of slavery and increased Northern opposition to it.