Jefferson-Manifest Destiny Terms

Anti-Federalists / Democrat-Republicans

They distrust government power and support state power, agriculture, and personal liberty.

male white suffrage

Expansion of voting rights to all white men, regardless of property ownership.

Democratic Party

Founded by Andrew Jackson, emphasizing states' rights and limited government.

Whig Party

Opposition party to the Democrats, supporting federal power and
economic modernization.

common man

The idealized average American citizen, central to Jacksonian democracy.

veto

presidential power to reject a bill passed by Congress.

spoils system

the practice of rewarding political supporters with public office positions.

Indian Removal Act

1830 law authorizing the relocation of Native American tribes to lands west of the Mississippi River.

Trail of Tears

Forced relocation of Cherokee Indians resulting in significant hardship and death.

Bank War

Conflict between President Jackson and the Second Bank of the United States, leading to its eventual demise.

2nd Bank of the United States

National bank opposed by Jackson for its perceived elitism and corruption.

Nullification Crisis

Confrontation between South Carolina and the federal government over the state's attempt to nullify federal tariffs.

Tariff of Abominations

1828 tariff that sparked the Nullification Crisis due to its high rates.

Panic of 1837

Financial crisis triggered by speculative lending practices and the collapse of the banking system.

Specie Traditional

Executive order requiring payment for government land in gold and silver, contributing to the Panic of 1837.

Pet Banks

State banks selected by Jackson to receive federal deposits after the dismantling of the Second Bank of the United States.

political campaigning

Strategies used to promote candidates, including rallies, speeches, and parades.

states’ rights

The belief that individual states have the right to govern themselves and resist federal overreach.

executive orders

Directives issued by the President to manage operations of the federal government.

political parties

Organized groups with shared political goals; notably the Democrats and Whigs during this era.

popular sovereignty

The principle that the authority of the government is created and sustained by the consent of its people.

Manifest Destiny

Belief that America had an inevitable right to expand, coined term of 1845

American Exceptionalism

The idea that the United States is inherently different from other nations, given context for the Manifest Destiny in the 19th century

Louisiana Purchase

The acquisition of the Louisiana territory by the United States from France in 1803, doubling the size of the US.

Oregon County

A jointly occupied land in the North owned by the US and Britain until the Oregon Treaty of 1846

Fifty-Four Forty or Fight

A slogan used by followers of Manifest Destiny that advocated for US control of the entire Oregon Territory up to the latitude line of 54°40′. The dispute was settled peacefully with the Oregon Treaty in 1846.

Texas Revolution

The rebellion of colonists from the United States and Tejanos (Texas Mexicans) against the Mexican government, which led to the Republic of Texas in 1836 and later annexation in the U.S.

James K. Polk

The 11th President of the United States (1845-1849), known for his expansionist policies,
including the annexation of Texas and the acquisition of Oregon and California, huge on Manifest Destiny.

Annexation of Texas

The addition of the Republic of Texas into the United States as the 28th state in 1845.

Mexican-American War

A war between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848, resulting in the US acquiring territories in the present-day southwestern United States.

Treaty of Guadulupe Hidalgo

The 1848 treaty that ended the Mexican-American War and forced Mexico to cede large territories to the US, including present-day California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico.

Gadsden Purchase

The 1853 purchase of land from Mexico that established the present US-Mexico boundary, which provided land to the construction of a southern transcontinental railroad.

Comanche, Apache, and Navajo

a few indigenous tribes in the southwestern region of the United States who resisted US expansion and faced consequence and conflict during the 19th century.

Missouri Compromise

An 1820 agreement admitting Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, maintaining the balance of power between slave and free states.

California Gold Rush

The mass migration to California following the discovery of gold in 1848, significantly
impacting the state's population and economy, and also boosted immigration and development.

Compromise of 1850

A series of laws passed to quench the issue of slavery in territories acquired from Mexico, which admitted California as a free state and enacted a stricter Fugitive Slave Act.

Popular Sovereignty

The idea that the settlers of a given residence have the right to decide whether slavery will be permitted there, notably applied in the Kansas-Nebraska Act and Compromise of 1850.

Fugitive Slave Act

Part of the Compromise of 1850, this law required that escaped slaves be returned to their owners, even if they were found escaped to free states.

Wilmot Proviso

An 1846 proposal to ban slavery in any territory acquired from Mexico, which heightened tensions between the North and South.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

An 1854 law that allowed settlers in Kansas and Nebraska to decide on the
legality of slavery through popular sovereignty, led to violent conflict known as "Bleeding Kansas."

Bleeding Kansas

A series of violent confrontations between pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers in Kansas from 1854 to 1859, a cause to the Civil War.