Fabric of a Nation Module 4 Key Terms and Definitions

AP US History

abolitionists

Members of the movement seeking to end the system of slavery.

Adams Onís Treaty

Treaty negotiated by John Quincy Adams and signed in 1819 by which Spain ceded all of its lands east of the Mississippi River to the United States.

The Alamo

Texas fort captured by General Santa Anna on March 6, 1836, from rebel defenders. Sensationalist accounts of the siege of the Alamo increased popular support in the United States for Texas independence.

American Anti Slavery Society (AASS)

Abolitionist society founded by William Lloyd Garrison in 1833 that became the most important northern abolitionist organization of the period.

American System

Plan proposed by Henry Clay to promote the U.S. economy by combining federally funded internal improvements to aid farmers with federal tariffs to protect U.S. manufacturing and a national bank to oversee economic development; not to be confused with the American system of manufacturing

American system of manufacturing

Production system focused on water powered machinery, division of labor, and the use of interchangeable parts. The introduction of the American system in the early nineteenth century greatly increased the productivity of American manufacturing.

Amistad mutiny

1839 slave rebellion on the Amistad, a slave ship headed for Cuba. The mutineers were captured two months later, and their ship was towed to Connecticut, a slave state. There, the mutineers sued for their freedom, and in 1841 the U.S. Supreme Court declared them to be free because it was illegal to import enslaved people from Africa to America.

Bank of the United States

National bank established in 1791. The bank was responsible for holding large portions of federal funds and distributing loans and currency.

Barbary States

Series of states in North Africa that used state sanctioned piracy to gain wealth from other weaker nations in the Atlantic world. The pirates would frequently seize American ships and hold the sailors for ransom in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.

Battle of Horseshoe Bend

In 1814, Tennessee militia led by Andrew Jackson fought alongside Cherokee warriors to defeat Creek forces allied with Britain during the War of 1812.

Battle of New Orleans

January 8, 1815 battle during the War of 1812, resulting in an American victory. The Treaty of Ghent, which had technically ended the war, had been signed two weeks prior to the battle, but forces on neither side knew the war had ended.

boomtown

Areas that rapidly developed following the swift arrival of capital, typically from mining enterprises or the railroad, in the west.

Cherokee Nation v. Georgia

1831 Supreme Court ruling that denied the Cherokee claim to be a separate independent nation, ruling that all American Indian nations were "domestic dependent nations" rather than fully sovereign governments.

"come outer" movement

Protest movement whose members would frequently abstain from political office, activity, or voting to protest the government and other organizations' complicity in slavery.

Corps of Discovery

Expedition organized by the U.S. government to explore the Louisiana Territory. Led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark and aided by American Indian interpreters like Sacagawea, the expedition set out in May 1804 and journeyed to the Pacific coast and back by 1806.

"corrupt bargain"

Agreement between Henry Clay and John Quincy Adams in the 1824 presidential election that Clay would withdraw from the race in exchange for an appointment in Adams's cabinet.

cotton gin

Machine invented by Eli Whitney in 1793 to deseed short staple cotton. The cotton gin dramatically reduced the time and labor involved in deseeding, facilitating the expansion of cotton production in the South and West.

cult of domesticity

New ideals of womanhood that emerged alongside the middle class in the 1830s and 1840s that called for women to be confined to the domestic sphere and devote themselves to the care of children, the home, and hard working husbands.

Declaration of Sentiments

Call for women's rights in marriage, family, religion, politics, and law issued at the 1848 Seneca Falls convention. It was signed by 100 of the 300 participants.

Democrats and National Republicans

Two parties that resulted from the split of the Democratic Republicans in the early 1820s. Andrew Jackson emerged as the leader of the Democrats, while figures like Henry Clay and John Quincy Adams emerged as leaders of the National Republicans.

deskilling

The replacement of skilled labor with unskilled labor and machines.

Embargo Act

1807 act that prohibited American ships from leaving their home ports until Britain and France repealed restrictions on U.S. trade. The act had a devastating impact on American commerce.

Erie Canal

Canal built in the early 1820s that made water transport from the Great Lakes to New York City possible. The success of the Erie Canal inspired many similar projects and ensured New York City's place as the premier international port in the United States, fueling industrial development throughout the Northeast.

Free Soil Party

Party founded by political abolitionists in 1848 to expand the appeal of the Liberty Party by focusing less on the moral wrongs of slavery and more on the benefits of providing economic opportunities for northern white people in western territories.

Force Bill

1833 bill passed by Congress in response to South Carolina's Ordinance of Nullification. It gave the president the authority to use military force to enforce national laws.

gag rule

Rule passed by the House of Representatives in 1836 to postpone action on all antislavery petitions without hearing them read in an attempt to stifle debate over slavery. It was renewed annually until it was rescinded in 1844.

Haitian Revolution

Revolt against French rule by free and enslaved black people in the 1790s on the island of Saint Domingue. It led to the establishment of the Republic of Haiti, the first independent black led nation in the Americas, in 1803.

Hartford Convention

1814 convention of Federalists opposed to the War of 1812. Delegates to the convention considered a number of constitutional amendments, as well as the possibility of secession.

Hudson River School

A mid nineteenth century American artistic movement in which artists painted romanticized landscapes, primarily from New York's Catskill and Adirondack Mountains.

Indian Removal Act

1830 act, supported by President Andrew Jackson, by which American Indian peoples in the East were forced to exchange their lands for territory west of the Mississippi River.

judicial review

The Supreme Court's ability to rule on cases at both the federal and state level.

Judiciary Act

Act passed in 1801 by the Federalist controlled Congress to expand the federal court system by creating sixteen circuit (regional) courts, with new judges appointed for each, just before Democratic Republicans took control of the presidency and Congress.

The Liberator

Radical abolitionist newspaper launched by William Lloyd Garrison in 1831. Through the Liberator, Garrison called for immediate, uncompensated emancipation of enslaved people.

Liberty Party

Antislavery political party formed in 1840. The Liberty Party, along with the Free Soil Party, helped place slavery at the center of national political debates.

Louisiana Purchase

U.S. government's 1803 purchase from France of the vast territory stretching from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from New Orleans to present day Montana, doubling the size of the nation.

Marbury v. Madison

1803 Supreme Court decision that established the authority of the Supreme Court to rule on the constitutionality of federal laws.

market revolution

Innovations in agriculture, industry, communication, and transportation in the early 1800s that fueled increased efficiency and productivity and linked northern industry with western farms and southern plantations.

McCulloch v. Maryland

1819 Supreme Court decision that reinforced the federal government's ability to employ an expansive understanding of the implied powers clause of the Constitution.

Missouri Compromise

1820 act that allowed Missouri to enter the Union as a slave state and Maine to enter as a free state and established the southern border of Missouri as the boundary between slave and free states throughout the Louisiana Territory.

Monroe Doctrine

Assertion by President James Monroe in 1823 that the Western Hemisphere was part of the U.S. sphere of influence. Although the United States lacked the power to back up this claim, it signaled an intention to challenge Europeans for authority in the Americas.

multiplier effect

The diverse changes spurred by a single invention, including other inventions it spawns and the broader economic, social, and political transformations it fuels.

mutual aid societies

Voluntary associations that provide a variety of economic and social benefits to their members.

Nat Turner's rebellion

1831 slave uprising in Virginia led by Nat Turner. Turner's rebellion generated panic among white southerners, leading to tighter control of African Americans and white southerners, leading to the passage of stricter slave codes in southern states.

National Road

Road constructed using federal funds that ran from western Maryland through southwestern Pennsylvania to Wheeling, West Virginia; also called the Cumberland Road. Completed in 1818, it was part of a larger push to improve the nation's infrastructure.

nativists

Anti immigrant Americans who launched public campaigns against foreigners in the 1840s. Nativism eemerged as a response to increased immigration to the United States in the 1830s and 1840s, particularly the large influx of Catholic immigrants.

NonIntercourse Act

Act passed by Congress in 1809 allowing Americans to trade with every nation except France and Britain. The act failed to stop the seizure of American ships or improve the economy.

North Star

Abolitionist newspaper started by fugitive from slavery and antislavery activist Frederick Douglass in 1847.

nullification

The doctrine that individual states have the right to declare federal laws unconstitutional and, therefore, void within their borders. South Carolina attempted to invoke the doctrine of nullification in response to the tariff of 1832.

Ordinance of Nullification

1832 law passed by South Carolina proclaiming several congressional tariff acts null and void within the state and threatening secession if the federal government attempted to enforce the tariffs.

Panic of 1819

The nation's first severe recession. It lasted four years and resulted from irresponsible banking practices and the declining demand abroad for American goods, including cotton.

Panic of 1837

Severe economic recession that began shortly after Martin Van Buren's presidential inauguration. The Panic of 1837 started in the South and was rooted in the changing fortunes of American cotton in Great Britain.

Petticoat Affair

1829 political conflict over Andrew Jackson's appointment of John Eaton as secretary of war. Eaton was married to a woman of allegedly questionable character, and the wives of many prominent Washington politicians organized a campaign to snub her.

planters

White southern slaveholders who owned the largest plantations and forged a distinct culture and economy around the institution of slavery.

Romantic era

Early nineteenth century artistic and intellectual movement that reflected a belief in human perfectibility and challenged Enlightenment ideas of rationality by insisting on the importance of human passion, the mysteries of nature, and the virtues of common folk.

Second Bank of the United States

Bank established in 1816 that distributed national currency and regulated state banks after the First Bank of the United States' charter expired. It ceased operation in 1836.

Second Great Awakening

Evangelical revival movement that began in the South in the early nineteenth century and then spread to the North. The social and economic changes of the first half of the nineteenth century were a major spur to religious revivals, which in turn spurred social reform movements.

Second Seminole War

1835 to 1842 war between the Seminoles, including enslaved African Americans who had escaped captivity and had joined the tribe, and the U.S. government over whether the Seminoles would be forced to leave Florida and settle west of the Mississippi River. Despite substantial investments of men, money, and resources, it took seven years for the United States to achieve victory.

separate spheres

Widespread social belief that emerged in the late 1700s and early 1800s that men and women had separate roles and should occupy separate places in society. According to this belief, men should occupy the social public sphere and work, while women belonged in the domestic private sphere, caring for their family and household.

spoils system

Patronage system introduced by Andrew Jackson in which federal offices were awarded on the basis of political loyalty. The system remained in place until the late nineteenth century.

Tariff of 1816

Protective tariff designed to increase the cost of imported manufactured goods in order to improve domestic sales.

Tariff of 1828

Tariff that extended duties to include raw materials such as wool, hemp, and molasses. It was passed despite strong opposition from southeastern states.

Tariff of Abominations

White southerners' name for the 1828 tariff act that benefited northern manufacturers and merchants at the expense of agriculture, especially southern plantations.

Tejanos

Mexican residents of Texas. Although some Tejano elites allied themselves with American settlers, most American settlers were resistant to adopting Tejano culture.

Trail of Tears

The forced march of some 15,000 Cherokees from Georgia to areas west of the Mississippi River that were designated as Indian Territory, beginning in 1831. Inadequate planning, food, water, sanitation, and medicine led to the deaths of thousands of Cherokees.

transcendentalism

Movement founded by Ralph Waldo Emerson in the 1830s that proposed that individuals look inside themselves and to nature for spiritual and moral guidance rather than to formal religion. Transcendentalism attracted a number of important American writers and artists to its vision.

Treaty of Ghent

Accord signed in December 1814 that ended the War of 1812 and returned to U.S. and Britain the lands each controlled before the war.

Treaty of New Echota

1836 treaty in which a group of Cherokee men agreed to exchange their land in the Southeast for money and land in Indian Territory. Despite the fact that the treaty was obtained without tribal sanction, it was approved by the U.S. Congress.

underground railroad

A series of routes from southern plantation areas to northern free states and Canada along which abolitionist supporters, known as conductors, provided hiding places, transportation, and resources to enslaved people seeking freedom.

unions

Groups of workers seeking rights and benefits from their employers through their collective efforts.

utopian societies

Communities formed in the first half of the nineteenth century to embody alternative social and economic visions and to create models for society at large to follow.

War of 1812

1812 to 1815 war between the United States and Great Britain. The war was one consequence of ongoing conflict between Great Britain and France, as each nation sought to forcibly restrict the United States' trade with the other.

Whig Party

Political party formed in the 1830s to challenge the power of the Democratic Party. The Whigs attempted to forge a diverse coalition from around the country by promoting commercial interests and moral reforms.

white supremacy

An ideology promoted by southern planters and intellectuals that maintained that all white people, regardless of class or education, were superior to all black people.

yeomen farmers

Southern independent landowners who were not slaveholders. Although yeomen farmers had connections to the South's plantation economy, many realized that their interests were not always identical to those of the planter elite.