Period 5

Manifest Destiny

The belief that it was America's destiny to expand west across the continent.

California Gold Rush

A mass migration to California in 1849 after gold was discovered.

Preemption Acts

Laws that made land cheap to encourage westward expansion.

Election of 1844

Election where James Polk, a strong supporter of Manifest Destiny, became president.

Battle of San Jacinto

The decisive battle in the Texas Revolution that led to Texas independence from Mexico.

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

The treaty that ended the Mexican-American War and ceded Texas and California to the U.S.

Wilmot Proviso

A proposal to ban slavery in all territory acquired from Mexico; ultimately rejected.

Compromise of 1850

A series of laws that attempted to resolve the issues surrounding slavery and land acquired from Mexico.

Popular Sovereignty

The principle that the settlers of a territory had the right to decide whether slavery would be allowed.

Bleeding Kansas

Violence between pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions in Kansas in the mid-1850s.

Dred Scott Decision

The Supreme Court ruling that declared enslaved people were not citizens and could not sue.

Republican Party

A political party formed in the 1850s to oppose the spread of slavery.

Anaconda Plan

The Union's military strategy to blockade southern ports and control the Mississippi River.

Emancipation Proclamation

An executive order by Lincoln freeing enslaved people in the Confederacy.

Gettysburg Address

A speech by Lincoln that emphasized national unity and the fight against slavery.

Freedmen’s Bureau

An agency created to aid newly freed slaves during the Reconstruction era.

14th Amendment

Amendment that grants citizenship to all persons born in the U.S.

15th Amendment

Amendment that prohibits denying a citizen the right to vote based on race.

Black Codes

Laws that restrict the rights and freedoms of African Americans after the Civil War.

Ku Klux Klan

A white supremacist terrorist group that emerged during Reconstruction.

Compromise of 1877

An agreement that settled the election of 1876 and resulted in the withdrawal of federal troops from the South.