History Midterm Study Set

Articles of Confederation

1st Constitution of the U.S. 1781-1788 (weaknesses-no executive, no judicial, no power to tax, no power to regulate trade)

Shay's Rebellion

A 1787 rebellion in which ex-Revolutionary War soldiers attempted to prevent foreclosures of farms as a result of high interest rates and taxes

Constitution

A document which spells out the principles by which a government runs and the fundamental laws that govern a society

Declaration of Independence

Signed in 1776 by US revolutionaries; it declared the United States as a free state.

John Adams

2nd president of the United States; federalist who won most of the north; Jefferson became Vice President

Judiciary Act of 1789

In 1789 Congress passed this Act which created the federal court system. The act managed to quiet popular apprehensions by establishing in each state a federal district court that operated according to local procedures.

Hamilton, Jefferson, and Knox

Secretary of Treasury, Secretary of State, Secretary of War during the Washington Administration

Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson

Disagreements between these cabinet members led to the formation of the first political parties

First National Bank

First bank of the U.S. government, set up by Alexander Hamilton. Aimed at alleviating states debts and national debt incurred from the Revolution. Controversial as Jefferson opposed this arguing the Constitution did provide the authority to create such a thing.

Federalist Party

A political party created in the 1790s and influenced by Alexander Hamilton that wanted to strengthen the federal government and promote industry and trade.

Democratic-Republican Party

Led by Thomas Jefferson, believed people should have political power, favored strong STATE governments, emphasized agriculture, strict interpretation of the Constitution, pro-French, opposed National Bank

Whiskey Rebellion

In 1794, farmers in Pennsylvania rebelled against Hamilton's excise tax on whiskey, and several federal officers were killed in the riots caused by their attempts to serve arrest warrants on the offenders. In October, 1794, the army, led by Washington, put down the rebellion. The incident showed that the new government under the Constitution could react swiftly and effectively to such a problem, in contrast to the inability of the government under the Articles of Confederation to deal with Shay's Rebellion.

Edmond Genet

French diplomat who tried to get American support against the British

Pinckney's Treaty of 1795

Land purchase that gave America access to the Mississippi river

George Washington

1st President of the United States; set many presidents on how the executive branch should work; military leader in the revolutionary war.

XYZ Affair

A 1797 incident in which French officials demanded a bribe from U.S. diplomats

Alien and Sedition Act of 1798

passed by federalists making it harder to become citizens and to deport any immigrant deemed dangerous. the second one outlawed the writing, speaking, or publications of false, scandalous, or malicious statements against the government

Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions of 1798

Written anonymously by Jefferson and Madison in response to the Alien and Sedition Acts, they declared that states could nullify federal laws that the states considered unconstitutional.

Thomas Jefferson

3rd President of the United States; Democratic Republican popular in the south

John Marshall

American jurist and politician who served as the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1801-1835) and helped establish the practice of judicial review.

Maubury v. Madison

(1803) Established Supreme Court's power of judicial review.

Louisiana Purchase of 1803

U.S. purchased the Louisiana Territory from France for $15 million, doubling the size of the U.S. and giving the U.S. full control of the Mississippi River

Louis and Clark

Sent by Thomas Jefferson to Explore west of the Mississippi River (The Louisina Purchase)

Impressment

British practice of taking American sailors and forcing them into military service

Embargo Act of 1807

Act passed by congress in 1807 prohibiting American ships from leaving for any foreign port; halting trade with foreign countries

Tecumseh

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.

War Hawks

Southerners and Westerners who were eager for war with Britain. They had a strong sense of nationalism, and they wanted to takeover British land in North America and expand; examples are Calhoun and Clay

War of 1812

A war between the United States and England which was trying to interfere with American trade with France.

Eli Whitney

United States inventor of the mechanical cotton gin (1765-1825). During the War of 1812, he devised a system to make rifles with mass-produced interchangeable parts.

Industrial Revolution

A series of improvements in industrial technology that transformed the process of manufacturing goods.

Embargo Act of 1807, and the War of 1812

This caused merchants from predominantly the north, to change jobs and move into manufacturing.

Samuel Slater

He was a British immigrant who, in 1793 established in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, the first successful mechanized textile factory in America. it only mass-produced one part of the textile, or finished cloth: thread.

Francis Cabot Lowell, Nathan Appleton, and Patrick Tracy Jackson

In 1813, these Bostonians revolutionized the American textile industry by mechanizing all the stages in the manufacture of cloth. They built a weaving factory in Waltham, Massachusetts, and outfitted it with power machinery.

Lowell Mills (Lowell, MA)

In 1822, Nathan Appleton, and Patrick Tracy Jackson built a larger version of their first factory here, which was so impactful, that the town was renamed for their deceased partner.

North Eastern Economy

An economy based on Industry because cash crops like cotton couldn't grow there. (still grew food for their family) No slaves.

Southern Economy

An economy that never industrialized because there was no incentive to because cash crops like cotton were so profitable. Lots of slaves.

Western Economy

An economy that was based on a mix of the North and South. Provided food. Very few slaves.

James Madison

4th U.S. President. 1809-1817. Democratic-Republican

Henry Clay

Speaker of the House. He developed the American System as well as negotiated numerous compromises.

John C. Calhoun

South Carolina Senator - advocate for state's rights, limited government, and nullification

American System

Economic program advanced by Henry Clay and James Madison where the North would produce the manufactured goods. And the South and West would produce most of the grain, meat, and cotton. A nationally accepted currency and improved transportation network would facilitate the exchange of goods. With each part of the country sustaining the other, Americans would finally be economically independent of other nations.

National Road

A federally funded road, stretching from Cumberland, Maryland, to Vandalia, Illinois.

Erie Canal

an artificial waterway stretching 363 miles, connecting the Hudson river at Albany with Lake Erie at Buffalo, an in affect the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. Fully paid for by tolls in 12 years.

Tariff of 1816

Because of this the cost of foreign goods would increase and thereby eliminate their price advantage. Also revenues from this would help pay for internal improvements, such as roads, canals, and lighthouses. Supported in Northeast but not the South and West.

James Monroe

5th President

John C. Calhoun and Henry Clay

swayed congressmen from their regions to approve the Tariff of 1816 in the national interest.

Second National Bank

This would make a single currency guaranteed to be accepted nationwide, making it easier for people in different regions to do business with one another. In 1816, Congress chartered it for a 20-year period, until 1836.

Era of Good Feelings

A name for President Monroe's presidency, where he was welcomed in strongly federalist areas like Boston.

John Quincy Adams

6th president; elected via the house because neither him or Jackson had a majority of the popular vote

Jacksonians

Term used to describe supporters of Andrew Jackson

Andrew Jackson

The seventh 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 America, objected to the right of individual states to nullify disagreeable federal laws, and increased the presidential powers.

Kitchen Cabinet

A small group of Jackson's friends and advisors who were especially influential in the first years of his presidency. Jackson conferred with them instead of his regular cabinet. Many people didn't like Jackson ignoring official procedures, and called it the "Kitchen Cabinet" or "Lower Cabinet".

Spoils System

the system of employing and promoting civil servants who are friends and supporters of the group in power

Indian Removal Act of 1830

Passed by Congress on May 28, 1830, during the presidency of Andrew Jackson. It authorized the president to negotiate with Indians tribes in the Southern U.S. for their removal to federal territory west of the Mississippi River in exchange for their homelands. The act was strongly supported by non-native people of the South, who were eager to gain access to lands inhabited by the Five Civilized Tribes. The Removal Act paved the way for the reluctant migration of tens of thousands of American Indians to the West, an event widely known as the "Trail of Tears".

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 1828 (Tariff of Abominations)

Tariff passed by Congress that imposed very high duties on imports ( 62% tariff on 92% of imported goods). Southerners protested because it increased the cost of the manufactured good they bought. It was said to have been passed not to raise money but to protect the interests of Northern manufacturers at the expense of Southern farmers.

Nullification Theory

theory that a U.S. state has the right to invalidate any federal law which that state has deemed unconstitutional

Robert Hayne and Daniel Webster

The debate on the Senate floor about whether states could or could not judge whether they thought a law was or was not a constitutional

Order of Nullification

response to tariff of abominations, passed by south carolina legislature in 1832, stated that the tariff of abominations was null and void in the state of south carolina

The Force Act of 1833

An 1833 law that expanded presidential power by authorizing President Andrew Jackson to use the army and navy to collect customs duties.

Nicholas Biddle

As President of the Second Bank of the United States, this man occupied a position of power and responsibility that propelled him to the forefront of Jacksonian politics in the 1830s. He, along with others who regarded the bank as a necessity, realized the threat posed by the election of Andrew Jackson in 1828. Jackson was bitterly opposed to the national bank, believing that it was an unconstitutional, elitist institution that bred inequalities among the people. A bitterly divisive issue, the rechartering of the bank dominated political discussion for most of the 1830s, and for many, this man became a symbol of all for which the bank stood. After Jackson's reelection, the Second Bank of the United States was doomed.

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.

Martin Van Buren

8th President; carried out Indian Removal Act

William Henry Harrison

9th President

John Tyler

10th President

Rush-Bagot Treaty of 1817

Provided for a large demilitarization of the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain, where many British naval arrangements and forts still remained; stipulated that the United States and British North America could each maintain one military vessel as well as one cannon on Lake Ontario and Lake Champlain.

Convention of 1818

Britain and the United States agreed to the 49th parallel as the northern boundary of the Louisiana Territory between Lake of the Woods and the Rocky Mountains. The two nations also agreed to joint occupation of the Oregon country for ten years.

Adams-Onis Treaty of 1819

The U.S. paid Spain $5 million for Florida, Spain recognized America's claims to the Oregon Country, and the U.S. surrendered its claim to northern Mexico.

Missouri Compromise of 1820

Allowed Missouri to enter the union as a slave state, Maine to enter the union as a free state, prohibited slavery north of latitude 36˚ 30' within the Louisiana Territory (1820)

Monroe Doctrine of 1823

Written by John Q. Adams, this doctrine stated that Europeans could not intervene in the Western Hemisphere in exchange, the U.S. would not interfere with existing European colonies and wars. If Europe intervened, the U.S. would interpret this as dangerous to U.S. national security and take appropriate action.

John Deere

Invented the steel plow

Cyrus McCormick

Invented the mechanical reaper

Charles Goodyear

Invented vulcanized rubber

Elias Howe

invented the sewing machine

Samuel F.B. Morse

invented the telegraph

Market Revolution

economic changes where people buy and sell goods rather than make them themselves

Specialization

the development of skills in a specific kind of work

Capitalism

an economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state.

I. M. Singer

added the foot treadle to the sewing machine; this made store bought clothes more affordable

Robert Fulton

American inventor who designed the first commercially successful steamboat and the first steam warship (1765-1815)

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.

Black Hawk War

Chief Black Hawk of Sauk tribe, led rebellion against US; started in Illinois and spread to Wisconsin Territory; 200 Sauk and Fox ppl murdered; tribes removed to areas west of Mississippi

Fort Laramie Treaty

1851 treaty with indian nations located near fort laramie in wyoming. the treaty asked each indian nation to keep to a limited area in return for money, domestic animals, agricultural tools, and other goods (reservations- theirs forever)

Santa Fe Trail

A trail that extends from Missouri to New Mexico

Oregon Trail

Trail from independence Missouri to Oregon used by many pioneers during the 1840s

Mormon Migration

The Mormons moved west to escape religious persecution, they settled in Missouri and Illinois but were later persecuted by their neighbors ; decided to move Northwest towards the Great Salt Lake.

Empresario System

Mexican system that offered land grants to empresarios for importing hundreds of families to Texas. But it required people to convert to Catholicism and to be basically Mexican.

Stephan F. Austin

American empresario in Texas, he was imprisoned for urging Texas statehood after Santa Anna suspended Mexico's constitution. After helping Texas win independence from Mexico, he became secretary of state for the Texas Republic

Santa Anna

Mexican dictator who was in charge when war broke out between the Mexicans and Americans. He lost Texas to rebels, and was the leader of the armed forces during the war.

Sam Houston

Commander of the Texas army at the battle of San Jacinto; later elected president of the Republic of Texas

James K. Polk

11th President

Slidell Rejection

This was a last ditch attempt to gain California for America. Polk sent Slidell to offer a maximum of $25 million for it, but it was rejected by the Mexicans. This prompted Polk to provoke war with the Mexicans.

Zachary Taylor

12th President

Wilmot Proviso

Bill that would ban slavery in the territories acquired after the War with Mexico

Battle of Matamoros

Santa Anna's troops cross Rio Grande and attack Taylor's troops;leads to Polk petitioning for a declaration of war

Stephan Kearny

was ordered by Polk to march from Fort Leavenworth Kansas across the desert to Santa Fe New Mexico

John C. Fremont

American military officer, explorer, the 1st candidate of the Republican Party for the office of President of the US & 1st presidential candidate of a major party to run on a platform in opposition to slavery; founded & explored CA in preceding decades; "Pathfinder"- mapped Oregon Trail; 1845 report on explorations encouraged westward movement

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

Treaty that ended the Mexican War, granting the U.S. control of Texas, New Mexico, and California in exchange for $15 million

Gadsden Purchase

Agreement w/ Mexico that gave the US parts of present-day New Mexico & Arizona in exchange for $10 million; all but completed the continental expansion envisioned by those who believed in Manifest Destiny.

California Gold Rush

Mass migration to California following the discovery of gold in 1848