The Only APUSH Terms You Need

Have fun cramming :D (all the terms I chose are the ones that are most useful if you need EPTLS for outside evidence in DBQS, SAQS, LEQS)

Mayflower Compact – 1620

The first agreement for self-government in America. It was signed by the 41 men on the Mayflower and set up a government for the Plymouth colony.

William Bradford 1621-1657

A Pilgrim, the second governor of the Plymouth colony, 1621-1657. He developed private land ownership and helped colonists get out of debt. He helped the colony survive droughts, crop failures, and Indian attacks.

Pilgrims and Puritans contrasted 1600s

The Pilgrims were separatists who believed that the Church of England could not be reformed. Separatist groups were illegal in England, so the Pilgrims fled to America and settled in Plymouth. The Puritans were non-separatists who wished to adopt reforms to purify the Church of England. They received a right to settle in the Massachusetts Bay area from the King of England.

Massachusetts Bay Colony – 1629

King Charles gave the Puritans a right to settle and govern a colony in the Massachusetts Bay area. The colony established political freedom and a representative government.

Cambridge Agreement – 1629

The Puritan stockholders of the Massachusetts Bay Company agreed to emigrate to New England on the condition that they would have control of the government of the colony.

Puritan migration1630s-40s

Many Puritans emigrated from England to America in the 1630s and 1640s. During this time, the population of the Massachusetts Bay colony grew to ten times its earlier population.

First Great Awakening (1739–1744)

Puritanism had declined by the 1730s, and people were upset about the decline in religious piety. The Great Awakening was a sudden outbreak of religious fervor that swept through the colonies. One of the first events to unify the colonies.

Jonathan Edwards, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, a Careful and Strict Inquiry Into…That Freedom of Will 1730s-40s

Part of the Great Awakening, Edwards gave gripping sermons about sin and the torments of Hell.

George Whitefield 1730s-40s

Whitefield is credited with starting the Great Awakening, also a leader of the "New Lights."

Mercantilism

features, rationale, impact on Great Britain, impact on the colonies 1500-700

Navigation Acts of 1650, 1660, 1663, and 1696

British regulations designed to protect British shipping from competition. Said that British colonies could only import goods if they were shipped on British-owned vessels and at least 3/4 of the crew of the ship were British.

Salutary neglect 1600s-700s

Prime Minister Robert Walpole’s policy in dealing with the American colonies. He was primarily concerned with British affairs and believed that unrestricted trade in the colonies would be more profitable for England than would taxation of the colonies.

John Locke (1632–1704), his theories

Locke was an English political philosopher whose ideas inspired the American revolution. He wrote that all human beings have a right to life, liberty, and property, and that governments exist to protect those rights. He believed that government was based upon an unwritten "social contract" between the rulers and their people, and if the government failed to uphold its end of the contract, the people had a right to rebel and institute a new government.

French and Indian War (1756-1763)

Part of the Seven Years’ War in Europe. Britain and France fought for control of the Ohio Valley and Canada. The Algonquians, who feared British expansion into the Ohio Valley, allied with the French. Some of the Mohawks also fought for the French while the rest of the Iroquois Nation allied with the British. The colonies fought under British commanders. Britain eventually won and gained control of all of the remaining French possessions in Canada, as well as India. Spain, which had allied with France, ceded Florida to Britain, but received Louisiana in return.

Albany Plan of Union, Benjamin Franklin 1700s

During the French and Indian War, Franklin wrote this proposal for a unified colonial government, which would operate under the authority of the British government.

Proclamation of 1763

A proclamation from the British government which forbade British colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains, and which required any settlers already living west of the mountains to move back east.

Stamp Act 1765-66

March 22, 1765 - British legislation passed as part of Prime Minister Grenville's revenue measures which required that all legal or official documents used in the colonies, such as wills, deeds and contracts, had to be written on special, stamped British paper. It was so unpopular in the colonies that it caused riots, and most of the stamped paper sent to the colonies from Britain was burned by angry mobs. Because of this opposition, and the decline in British imports caused by the non-importation movement, London merchants convinced Parliament to repeal the Stamp Act in 1766.

Townshend Acts, reaction 1767

Another series of revenue measures, passed by Townshend as Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1767, they taxed quasi-luxury items imported into the colonies, including paper, lead, tea, and paint. The colonial reaction was outrage and they instituted another movement to stop importing British goods.

Boston Tea Party, 1773

British ships carrying tea sailed into Boston Harbor and refused to leave until the colonials took their tea. Boston was boycotting the tea in protest of the Tea Act and would not let the ships bring the tea ashore. Finally, on the night of December 16, 1773, colonials disguised as Indians boarded the ships and threw the tea overboard. They did so because they were afraid that Governor Hutchinson would secretly unload the tea because he owned a share in the cargo.

Coercive Acts / Intolerable Acts / Repressive Acts 1770s

All of these names refer to the same acts, passed in 1774 in response to the Boston Tea Party, and which included the Boston Port Act, which shut down Boston Harbor; the Massachusetts Government Act, which disbanded the Boston Assembly (but it soon reinstated itself); the Quartering Act, which required the colony to provide provisions for British soldiers; and the Administration of Justice Act, which removed the power of colonial courts to arrest royal officers.

Massachusetts Government Act 1770s

This was another of the Coercive Acts, which said that members of the Massachusetts assembly would no longer be elected, but instead would be appointed by the king. In response, the colonists elected their own legislature, which met in the interior of the colony.

Quebec Act, First Continental Congress, 1774

The Quebec Act, passed by Parliament, alarmed the colonies because it recognized the Roman-Catholic Church in Quebec. Some colonials took it as a sign that Britain was planning to impose Catholicism upon the colonies. The First Continental Congress met to discuss their concerns over Parliament's dissolutions of the New York, Massachusetts, and Virginia Assemblies. The Congress rejected the plan for a unified colonial government, stated grievances against the crown called the Declaration of Rights, resolved to prepare militias, and created the Continental Association to enforce a new non-importation agreement.

Lexington and Concord, April 19, 1775

General Gage, stationed in Boston, was ordered by King George III to arrest Samuel Adams and John Hancock. The British marched on Lexington, where they believed the colonials had a cache of weapons. The colonial militias, warned beforehand by Paul Revere and William Dawes, attempted to block the progress of the troops and were fired on by the British at Lexington. The British continued to Concord, where they believed Adams and Hancock were hiding, and they were again attacked by the colonial militia. As the British retreated to Boston, the colonials continued to shoot at them from behind cover on the sides of the road. This was the start of the Revolutionary War.

Thomas Paine

Common Sense 1770s

French Alliance of 1778, reasons for it

The colonies needed help from Europe in their war against Britain. France, Britain’s rival, hoped to weaken Britain by causing her to lose the American colonies. The French were persuaded to support the colonists by news of the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga.

Articles of Confederation

powers, weaknesses, successes 1770s

Shay’s Rebellion 1786-7

A 1786-1787 uprising by poor, indebted Massachusetts farmers that exposed the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation. The rebellion signaled the need for a stronger national government and helped lead to the drafting of the U.S. Constitution.

Federalists 1700s-800s

A group led by figures like John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison, advocating for a strong central government and supporting the ratification of the Constitution. Their efforts, especially through the Federalist Papers, helped secure the Constitution's passage.

The Federalist Papers, Jay, Hamilton, Madison 1787-88

A series of essays written by these three leaders to persuade New York to ratify the U.S. Constitution. These essays are critical for understanding the intellectual foundations of American government and the justification for a strong federal system.

Bill of Rights adopted, 1791

The first ten amendments to the Constitution, which guarantee individual freedoms and limit the power of government. This was a critical compromise to secure ratification of the Constitution, addressing concerns raised by Anti-Federalists.

National debt, state debt, foreign debt 1790s

The U.S.'s national debt included domestic debt owed to soldiers and others who had not yet been paid for their Revolutionary War services, plus foreign debt to other countries that helped the U.S. The federal government also assumed all the debts incurred by the states during the war.

Whiskey Rebellion 1794

In 1794, farmers in Pennsylvania rebelled against Hamilton's excise tax on whiskey. The army, led by Washington, put down the rebellion. The incident showed that the new government under the Constitution could react swiftly and effectively, in contrast to the inability of the government under the Articles of Confederation to deal with Shay’s Rebellion.

Alien and Sedition Acts 1798

A set of laws passed by the Federalist Congress and signed by President Adams in 1798, including the Naturalization Act, Alien Act, Alien Enemy Act, and the Sedition Act, which were aimed at limiting immigration and stifling opposition, particularly from the Democratic-Republicans.

Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions 1798-99

Written anonymously by Jefferson and Madison in response to the Alien and Sedition Acts, these resolutions declared that states could nullify federal laws they considered unconstitutional, a key assertion of states' rights.

Election of 1800

Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr, both Democratic-Republicans, defeated Federalist John Adams, but tied with each other. The House of Representatives decided in favor of Jefferson after several ties, leading to the 12th Amendment, which changed how the president and vice president were elected.

War of 1812

A war between the U.S. and Great Britain caused by American outrage over the impressment of American sailors by the British, the British seizure of American ships, and British aid to the Indians attacking the Americans on the western frontier. Also, a war against Britain gave the U.S. an excuse to seize the British northwest posts and to annex Florida from Britain’s ally Spain, and possibly even to seize Canada from Britain. The War Hawks (young westerners led by Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun) argued for war in Congress. The war involved several sea battles and frontier skirmishes. U.S. troops led by Andrew Jackson seized Florida and at one point the British managed to invade and burn Washington, D.C. The Treaty of Ghent (December 1814) restored the status quo and required the U.S. to give back Florida. Two weeks later, Andrew Jackson’s troops defeated the British at the Battle of New Orleans, not knowing that a peace treaty had already been signed. The war strengthened American nationalism and encouraged the growth of industry.

Clay’s American System 1812

Proposed by Henry Clay after the War of 1812, it included using federal money for internal improvements (roads, bridges, industrial improvements, etc.), enacting a protective tariff to foster the growth of American industries, and strengthening the national bank.

Bank War

Veto message by Andrew Jackson 1832

Louisiana Purchase

reasons, Jefferson, loose construction (1803)

Tecumseh (1763-1813)

A Shawnee chief who, along with his brother, Tenskwatawa, a religious leader known as The Prophet, worked to unite the Northwestern Indian tribes. The league of tribes was defeated by an American army led by William Henry Harrison at the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811. Tecumseh was killed fighting for the British during the War of 1812 at the Battle of the Thames in 1813.

Hartford Convention (1814)

A convention of New England merchants who opposed the Embargo and other trade restrictions, and the War of 1812. They proposed some amendments to the Constitution and advocated the right of states to nullify federal laws. They also discussed the idea of seceding from the U.S. if their desires were ignored. The Hartford Convention turned public sentiment against the Federalists and led to the demise of the party.

Panic of 1819

A natural post-war depression caused by overproduction and the reduced demand for goods after the war. However, it was generally blamed on the National Bank.

Monroe Doctrine (1823)

Declared that Europe should not interfere in the affairs of the Western Hemisphere and that any attempt at interference by a European power would be seen as a threat to the U.S.

Missouri Compromise (1820)

Admitted Missouri as a slave state and at the same time admitted Maine as a free state. Declared that all territory north of the 36°30" latitude would become free states, and all territory south of that latitude would become slave states.

Jacksonian Revolution of 1828

Andrew Jackson became president after a campaign that depicted him as the representative of the “common man”; Jackson's election was billed as the revolution of the "Common Man."

Jackson's removal of deposits, Roger B. Taney, pet bank, Loco Focos 1833

In 1833, Jackson removed federal deposits from the bank, firing the secretaries of treasury who wouldn't comply. Pet banks were state banks where Jackson deposited federal funds after vetoing the re-charter of the Second Bank of the U.S.

Nullification crisis, South Carolina Exposition and Protest 1828

John Calhoun presented a theory in the South Carolina Exposition and Protest (1828) that federal tariffs could be declared null and void by individual states, leading to the Nullification Crisis.

Clay

Compromise Tariff of 1833

Force Bill (1833)

The Force Bill authorized President Jackson to use the army and navy to collect duties on the Tariffs of 1828 and 1832. South Carolina's ordinance of nullification had declared these tariffs null and void, and South Carolina would not collect duties on them. The Force Act was never invoked because it was passed by Congress the same day as the Compromise Tariff of 1833, so it became unnecessary. South Carolina also nullified the Force Act.

Panic of 1837

When Jackson was president, many state banks received government money that had been withdrawn from the Bank of the U.S. These banks issued paper money and financed wild speculation, especially in federal lands. Jackson issued the Specie Circular to force the payment for federal lands with gold or silver. Many state banks collapsed as a result. A panic ensued (1837). Bank of the U.S. failed, cotton prices fell, businesses went bankrupt, and there was widespread unemployment and distress.

Nativism 1840s-50s

An anti-foreign feeling that arose in the 1840s and 1850s in response to the influx of Irish and German Catholics.

Seneca Falls Convention (1848)

The first modern women's rights convention. At the gathering, Elizabeth Cady Stanton read a Declaration of Sentiment listing the many discriminations against women and adopted eleven resolutions, one of which called for women's suffrage.

Manifest Destiny 1840s-50s

Phrase commonly used in the 1840s and 1850s. It expressed the inevitableness of continued expansion of the U.S. to the Pacific.

Texas War for Independence 1835

After a few skirmishes with Mexican soldiers in 1835, Texas leaders met and organized a temporary government. Texas troops initially seized San Antonio but lost it after the massacre of the outpost garrisoning the Alamo. In response, Texas issued a Declaration of Independence and eventually secured independence in 1836.

Treaty of Guadeloupe Hidalgo (1848)

This treaty required Mexico to cede the American Southwest, including New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and California, to the U.S. The U.S. gave Mexico $15 million in exchange, so that it would not look like conquest.

Mexican Cession 1848

Some of Mexico's territory was added to the U.S. after the Mexican War

Wilmot Proviso 1840s

When President Polk submitted his Appropriations Bill of 1846 requesting Congress' approval of the $2 million indemnity to be paid to Mexico under the Treaty of Guadeloupe Hidalgo, Pennsylvania Representative David Wilmot attached a rider which would have barred slavery from the territory acquired. The South hated the Wilmot Proviso and a new Appropriations Bill was introduced in 1847 without the Proviso. It provoked one of the first debates on slavery at the federal level, and the principles of the Proviso became the core of the Free Soil, and later the Republican, Party.

Abolitionism 1830s-40s

The militant effort to do away with slavery rooted in the North in the 1700s. It became a major issue in the 1830s and dominated politics after 1840. Congress became a battleground between pro and anti-slavery forces from the 1830s to the Civil War.

Nat Turner's Insurrection (1831)

Slave uprising. A group of 60 enslaved people led by Nat Turner, who believed he was a divine instrument sent to free his people, killed almost 60 white residents in South Hampton, Virginia. This led to a sensational manhunt in which 100 black people (both enslaved and free) were killed. As a result, slave states strengthened measures against the enslaved and became more united in their support of fugitive slave laws.

Compromise of 1850

Called for the admission of California as a free state, organizing Utah and New Mexico without restrictions on slavery, adjustment of the Texas/New Mexico border, abolition of slave trade in the District of Columbia, and tougher fugitive slave laws. Its passage was hailed as a solution to the threat of national division.

Fugitive Slave Law 1790-50

Enacted by Congress in 1793 and 1850, these laws provided for the return of escaped slaves to their owners. The North was lax about enforcing the 1793 law, which irritated the South. The 1850 law was tougher and aimed at eliminating the underground railroad.

Harriet Tubman (1821-1913)

A former escaped slave, she was one of the shrewdest conductors of the underground railroad, leading 300 slaves to freedom.

Kansas-Nebraska Act 1854

1854 - This act repealed the Missouri Compromise and established a doctrine of congressional nonintervention in the territories. Popular sovereignty would determine whether Kansas and Nebraska would be slave or free states.

Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)

A Missouri slave sued for his freedom, claiming that his four-year stay in the northern portion of the Louisiana Territory made free land by the Missouri Compromise had made him a free man. The U.S. Supreme Court decided he could not sue in federal court because he was property, not a citizen.

Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858

A series of seven debates where Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas argued important issues like popular sovereignty, the Lecompton Constitution, and the Dred Scott decision. Douglas won the debates, but Lincoln's position helped him beat Douglas in the 1860 presidential election.

Election of 1860

candidates, parties, issues

Emancipation Proclamation 1862

September 22, 1862 – Lincoln freed all slaves in the states that had seceded, after the Northern victory at the Battle of Antietam. Also included promises of employment for any formerly enslaved individuals who wished to take paying jobs with the US military.

Reconstruction Acts (1867)

Pushed through Congress over Johnson's veto, it gave radical Republicans complete military control over the South and divided the South into five military zones, each headed by a general with absolute power over his district.

Thirteenth Amendment (1865)

Bans slavery within the United States (or anywhere under US control).

Solid South 1800s-1900s

Term applied to the one-party (Democratic) system of the South following the Civil War. For 100 years after the Civil War, the South voted Democratic in every presidential election.

Sharecropping, Crop Lien System late 1800s

Sharecropping provided the necessities for Black farmers. Storekeepers granted credit until the farm was harvested. To protect the creditor, the storekeeper took a mortgage, or lien, on the tenant's share of the crop. The system was abused, and uneducated Black people were taken advantage of. The results, for African Americans, was not unlike slavery.

Horizontal consolidation late 1800s to early 1900s

A form of monopoly that occurs when one person or company gains control of one layer of an industry, such as controlling all the raw materials, or the manufacturing/refining, or the transportation.

Leland Stanford 1824-1893

Multimillionaire railroad builder who founded Stanford University and was one of the “Big Four” who founded the Central Pacific Railroad. He later served as governor of California.

Bessemer process 1855

A method for removing air pockets from iron, allowing for the mass production of steel. This process made skyscrapers, advanced shipbuilding, and other major construction projects possible.

U.S. Steel 1900s

The world’s first billion-dollar corporation, created by the merger of National Steel, Federal Steel, and Carnegie Steel. It produced 67% of U.S. steel in 1901 and faced antitrust action in 1911.

Sherman Antitrust Act (1890)

A law aimed at countering monopolies, it gave the president the power to challenge and potentially break up monopolies. Initially, it was used to limit and break up labor unions rather than corporations.

Pullman Strike, 1894

A nationwide railroad strike initiated by workers in George Pullman’s “model town,” protesting wage cuts while rents and store prices remained high. The strike led to 30 deaths, significant damage, and the deployment of U.S. Army troops.

Booker T. Washington 1881

An educator who urged blacks to better themselves through education and economic advancement, rather than by trying to attain equal rights. In 1881 he founded the first formal school for blacks, the Tuskegee Institute.

Plessy v. Ferguson, "Separate but equal" 1886

1886 - Plessy was a black man who had been instructed by the NAACP to refuse to ride in the train car reserved for blacks. The NAACP hoped to force a court decision on segregation. However, the Supreme Court ruled against Plessy and the NAACP, saying that segregated facilities for whites and blacks were legal as long as the facilities were of equal quality.

Homestead Act 1862

1862 - Provided free land in the West to anyone willing to settle there and develop it. Encouraged westward migration.

Granger Movement 1867

1867 - Nation Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry. A group of agrarian organizations that worked to increase the political and economic power of farmers. They opposed corrupt business practices and monopolies, and supported relief for debtors. Although technically not a political party, local granges led to the creation of a number of political parties, which eventually joined with the growing labor movement to form the Progressive Party.

Populist Party platform, Omaha platform 1890s

Officially named the People's Party, but commonly known as the Populist Party, it was founded in 1891 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Wrote a platform for the 1892 election (running for president-James Weaver, vice president-James Field) in which they called for free coinage of silver and paper money; national income tax; direct election of senators; regulation of railroads; and other government reforms to help farmers.

William Jennings Bryan 1913-15

Three-time candidate for president for the Democratic Party, nominated because of support from the Populist Party. He never won but was the most important Populist in American history. He later served as Woodrow Wilson's Secretary of State (1913-1915).

Treaty of Paris (1898)

Approved by the Senate on February 6, 1898, it ended the Spanish-American War. The U.S. gained Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines as new territories.

Roosevelt's Big Stick Diplomacy early 1900s

Roosevelt said, "walk softly and carry a big stick." In international affairs, ask first but bring along a big army to help convince them. Threaten to use force, act as international policemen. It was his foreign policy in Latin America.

Panama Cana 1904-14l

A big ditch across Panama. Built between 1904 and 1914. Made the passage between Atlantic and Pacific oceans easier and faster.

Roosevelt Corollary 1904

An expansion of the Monroe Doctrine. Committed the US to intervene in Central and South American countries as a “last resort” to promote stability and protect the rights of international creditors.

Election of 1912

Wilson, Democrat beat Roosevelt, Progressive (Bull Moose), Taft, Republican and Debs, Socialist. The issues were the economy and growing conflict in Europe.

League of Nations 1920s-40s

Devised by President Wilson, it reflected the power of large countries. Although comprised of delegates from every country, it was designed to be run by a council of the five largest countries. It also included a provision for a world court.

Red Scare, Palmer raids 1920s

In 1919, the Communist Party was gaining strength in the U.S., and Americans feared Communism. In January 1920 after a series of bombings of prominent industrialists and government officials, Palmer raids in 33 cities broke into meeting halls and homes without warrants. 4,000 "Communists" were jailed, some were deported.

Versailles Conference, Versailles Treaty 1919

The Palace of Versailles was the site of the signing of the peace treaty that ended WW I on June 28, 1919. Victorious Allies imposed punitive reparations on Germany.

Dawes Plan, Young Plan 1920s

Post-WW I depression in Germany left it unable to pay reparation and Germany defaulted on its payments in 1923. In 1924, U.S. Vice President Charles Dawes formulated a plan to allow Germany to make its reparation payments in annual installments. This plan was renegotiated and modified in 1929 by U.S. financier Owen Young.

Emergency Banking Relief Act, 1933

March 6, 1933 - FDR ordered a bank holiday. Many banks were failing because they had too little capital, made too many planning errors, and had poor management. The Emergency Banking Relief Act provided for government inspection, which restored public confidence in the banks.

Fair Labor Standards Act 1938

June 1938 - Set maximum hours at 40 hours a week and minimum wage at 20 cents an hour (gradually rose to 40 cents).

Social Security Act 1930s

Established a retirement system for persons over 65, funded by a tax on wages paid equally by employee and employer.

"Cash and carry" revision of neutrality 1939

Stated the warring nations wishing to trade with the U.S. would have to pay cash and carry the goods away in their own ships. Benefited the Allies since German ships could not reach the U.S. due to the Allied blockades.

Pearl Harbor 1941

7

Lend Lease 1941

March 1941 - Authorized the president to transfer, lend, or lease any article of defense equipment to any government whose defense was deemed vital to the defense of the U.S. Allowed the U.S. to send supplies and ammunition to the Allies without technically becoming a co-belligerent.

Manhattan Project 1940s

A secret U.S. project for the construction of the atomic bomb.

Unconditional surrender 1940s

It means the victor decides all the conditions the loser must agree to. The Allies wanted Germany and Japan to agree to unconditional surrender.