Honors History Test 3

Free enterprise system

Market economy in which privately owned businesses have the freedom to operate for a profit with limited government interventions.

Labor Union

An organization of workers formed for the purpose of advancing its members' interests.

Strike

Work stoppage by workers to force an employer to meet demands.

Yeoman farmer

A person who owns and cultivates a small farm.

Mudslinging

Attempt to ruin an opponent's reputation with insults.

Spoils System

The practice of handing out government jobs to supporters; replacing government employees with the winning candidate's supporters.

Secede

To leave or withdraw from a country.

Nativism

Hostility towards immigrants.

Transcendentalism

A philosophy stressing the relationship between human beings and nature, spiritual things over material things, and the importance of the individual conscience.

Benevolent Society

An association focusing on spreading the word of God and combating social problems.

Temperance

Moderation in or abstinence from consuming alcohol.

Penitentiary

Prison whose purpose is to reform prisoners.

Empresarios

A person who arranged for the settlement of Texas in the early 1800s.

Convention

An assembly of persons who meet for a common purpose.

Annexation

The incorporation of territory within the domain of a country.

Envoy

A person delegated to represent one country to another.

Cede

To give up land by treaty.

Resolution

A formal expression of opinion, will or intent voted by an official body or assembly.

Overlander

Settlers who traveled by land to the Western United States.

Monroe Doctrine

Declared the Western Hemisphere closed to European colonization; U.S. would avoid European affairs and protect the Americas from European interference.

Transportation Revolution

Improvements in roads, canals (like the Erie Canal), and steamboats made travel cheaper/faster and connected regional economies.

Cotton Becomes King

Cotton demand surged; the cotton gin boosted production; the South became economically dependent on cotton and expanded slavery westward.

Frederick Douglass

Former enslaved man who became a leading abolitionist, writer, and speaker; published The North Star and fought for equality.

Free African Americans

Lived mostly in the North; faced discrimination and limited rights; built independent churches/schools and joined reform movements.

Missouri Compromise

Missouri = slave state, Maine = free state; banned slavery north of 36°30' in the Louisiana Territory; temporarily reduced sectional tension.

Nullification Crisis

South Carolina tried to nullify federal tariffs; Jackson opposed strongly; led to the Force Bill and a compromise tariff.

Policies Toward Native Americans

U.S. pushed Native removal; Indian Removal Act (1830); forced relocations like the Trail of Tears to open land for settlers.

Germans and Irish Arrive

Irish fled the Potato Famine; Germans left political/economic issues; settled in cities/Midwest; faced discrimination and fueled nativism.

Second Great Awakening / New Religious Groups / Utopian Communities

Religious revival that created new groups (Mormons, Shakers) and utopian societies; inspired major reform movements.

Educational Reform / Women's Education

Led by Horace Mann; sought public schools, trained teachers, longer school years; expanded educational opportunities for women.

Independence for Texas / "Remember the Alamo"

Texans rebelled against Mexico; Alamo became a symbol of sacrifice; Texas became an independent republic and later joined the U.S.

Election of 1844 / Oregon Question

Polk won on expansion; "54°40' or Fight!"; U.S. and Britain peacefully divided Oregon at the 49th parallel.

War with Mexico

Fought over Texas border disputes; U.S. gained California and New Mexico; Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo gave the U.S. major western territories.