Unit 3: Antebellum America

Antebellum

Before war, period of American history roughly from 1820-1860

James Monroe

President of the United States from 1817-1825. Marked by Era of Good Feelings, Missouri Compromise and a doctrine (named after him) declaring U.S. opposition to European interference in the Americas

Era of Good Feelings

A name for President Monroe's two terms, a period of strong nationalism, economic growth, and territorial expansion. Since the Federalist party dissolved after the War of 1812, there was only one political party and no partisan conflicts.

Secretary of State

Leader of US foreign policy and member of President's cabinet. In the early 1800s, it was seen as a stepping stone to the Presidency

Nationalism

A strong feeling of pride in and devotion to one's country

Monroe Doctrine (1823)

US foreign policy regarding Latin American countries stated that further efforts by European nations to colonize land or interfere with states in North or South America would be viewed as acts of aggression, requiring U.S. intervention.

Missouri Compromise (1820)

Allowed Missouri to enter the union as a slave state, Maine to enter the union as a free state in order to maintain balance of power between free states and slave states, prohibited slavery north of latitude 36˚ 30' within the Louisiana Territory (1820)

Industrial Revolution

A period of rapid growth in the use of machines in manufacturing and production that began in America in the late 1700s

Cotton Gin

A machine for cleaning the seeds from cotton fibers and led to the expansion of slavery in the United States, invented by Eli Whitney in 1793

interchangeable parts

Identical components that can be used in place of one another in manufacturing

American System

Economic program advanced by Henry Clay that included support for a national bank, high tariffs, and internal improvements; emphasized strong role for federal government in the economy.

Erie Canal

A canal between the New York cities of Albany and Buffalo, completed in 1825. The canal, considered a marvel of the modern world at the time, allowed western farmers to ship surplus crops to sell in the North and allowed northern manufacturers to ship finished goods to sell in the West.

Henry Clay

A northern American politician. He developed the American System as well as negotiated numerous compromises such as the Missouri Compromise. He was also responsible for the "Corrupt Bargain"

John Quincy Adams

President of the United States and Secretary of State to James Monroe, ran against Jackson in 1824 and 1828

Andrew Jackson

President of the United States (1829-1837), who as a general in the War of 1812 defeated the British at New Orleans (1815). As president he opposed the Bank of the United States, objected to the right of individual states to nullify disagreeable federal laws, and increased the presidential powers.

Corrupt Bargain

Refers to the presidential election of 1824 in which Henry Clay, the Speaker of the House, convinced the House of Representatives to elect Adams rather than Jackson.

Spoils System

A system of public employment based on rewarding party loyalists and friends.

Indian Removal Act of 1830

Passed by Congress under the Jackson administration, this act removed all Indians east of the Mississippi to an "Indian Territory" where they would be "permanently" housed.

Trail of Tears

The forced removal of Cherokees and their transportation to Oklahoma

Worcester v. Georgia

Supreme Court Decision - Cherokee Indians were entitled to federal protection from the actions of state governments which would infringe on the tribe's sovereignty - Jackson ignored it

Tariff of Abominations (1828)

Tariff with such high rates that it set off tension between northerners and southerners over tariff issues (called the Nullification Crisis)

Nullification Crisis

A sectional crisis during the presidency of Andrew Jackson when South Carolina attempted to nullify the 1828 Tariff.

Pet Banks

A term used by Jackson's opponents to describe the state banks that the federal government used for new revenue deposits in an attempt to destroy the Second Bank of the United States; the practice continued after the charter for the Second Bank expired in 1836.

Democratic Party

A political party formed by supporters of Andrew Jackson after the presidential election of 1824.

Whig Party

An American political party formed in the 1830s to oppose President Andrew Jackson, stood for protective tariffs, national banking, and federal aid for internal improvements

Panic of 1837

A financial crisis in the United States that led to an economic depression and is often attributed to Jackson's destruction of the Bank of the United States

Underground Railroad

a system of secret routes used by escaping slaves to reach freedom in the North or in Canada

Harriet Tubman

United States abolitionist born a slave on a plantation in Maryland and became a famous conductor on the Underground Railroad leading other slaves to freedom in the North (1820-1913)

Second Great Awakening

A series of religious revivals starting in 1801, based on Methodism and Baptism. It had an effect on moral reform movements such as the temperance movement and abolition movement.

Temperance Movement

Campaign to eliminate alcohol consumption in the United States that began in the 1820s

Abolition

Movement to end slavery

Women's Rights Movement

An organized effort to improve political, legal and economic status of women in American society

Manifest Destiny

A notion held by a nineteenth-century Americans that the United States was destined to rule the continent, from the Atlantic the Pacific.

Compromise of 1850

Resulted in (1) California admitted as free state, (2) territorial status and popular sovereignty of Utah and New Mexico, (3) new fugitive slave law

Fugitive Slave Act of 1850

Allowed federal government officials to arrest any person accused of being a runaway slave; all that was needed to take away someone's freedoms was word of a white person; northerners required to help capture runaways if requested, suspects had no right to trial