American History 1-2 H

Jamestown

The first permanent English settlement in North America, founded in Virginia in 1607.

John Smith

Leader of Jamestown who helped the colony survive through strict discipline.

Starving Time

The winter of 1609-1610 in Jamestown when many colonists died of starvation.

Treatment of Native Americans

Often violent and unfair as European settlers took land and resources.

Act of Toleration

A 1649 Maryland law that allowed religious freedom for Christians.

Mayflower Compact

An agreement made by the Pilgrims in 1620 to govern themselves.

Triangular Trade

Trade between Africa, the Americas, and Europe involving slaves, raw materials, and goods.

Middle Passage

The brutal sea journey enslaved Africans took to the Americas.

Seven Years' War

A global conflict (1756-1763) that included the French and Indian War in America.

Salutary Neglect

Britain let the colonies rule themselves as long as they stayed loyal and made money.

Mercantilism

An economic system where colonies provided wealth to the mother country.

Bacon's Rebellion

A 1676 revolt by Virginia settlers angry at the government's policies.

Salem Witch Trials

A 1692 series of trials in Massachusetts where people were executed for witchcraft.

King Philip's War

A conflict in 1675-76 between New England settlers and Native Americans.

John Winthrop

Governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony who wanted a 'city upon a hill.'

Stono Rebellion

A 1739 slave uprising in South Carolina.

Great Awakening

A religious revival in the 1700s that encouraged individual faith.

Enlightenment

A movement that emphasized reason and science over tradition.

French and Indian War

The North American part of the Seven Years' War between Britain and France.

Phillis Wheatley

An enslaved African-American poet who wrote during the Revolutionary era.

Proclamation of 1763

A British law that banned colonists from moving west of the Appalachian Mountains.

Declaratory Act

Law saying Britain had the right to make laws for the colonies 'in all cases.'

Sugar Act

A 1764 British tax on sugar and molasses.

Stamp Act

A 1765 tax on paper goods like newspapers and legal documents.

Sons of Liberty

A group that protested British taxes and supported independence.

Townshend Acts

1767 taxes on goods like glass, paper, and tea.

Boston Massacre

A deadly 1770 clash between British soldiers and colonists.

Boston Tea Party

A 1773 protest where colonists dumped tea into Boston Harbor.

Intolerable Acts

British laws to punish Boston after the Tea Party, seen as too harsh by colonists.

First Continental Congress

A 1774 meeting where colonies discussed how to respond to British laws.

Lexington and Concord

The first battles of the American Revolution in 1775.

Loyalists/Patriots

Loyalists supported Britain; Patriots wanted independence.

Common Sense

A 1776 pamphlet by Thomas Paine urging independence.

John Jay

A Founding Father and first Chief Justice of the U.S.

Declaration of Independence

A 1776 document stating the colonies' break from Britain.

Treaty of Paris

The 1783 agreement that ended the Revolutionary War.

Articles of Confederation

The first U.S. government plan that was too weak.

Northwest Ordinance

A law for adding new states from the Northwest Territory.

Shays' Rebellion

A 1786 uprising of farmers protesting taxes and debt.

Virginia Plan

A proposal for Congress based on state population.

New Jersey Plan

A proposal for equal representation of states in Congress.

Constitution

The document that outlines the U.S. government structure.

Bill of Rights

The first 10 amendments to the Constitution that protect individual rights.

Anti-Federalists

People who opposed the Constitution, fearing a strong central government.

Federalist Papers

Essays supporting the Constitution.

Federalism

Sharing power between national and state governments.

National Bank

A bank created to manage U.S. finances and debt.

Whiskey Rebellion

A 1794 protest against a tax on whiskey.

Alien and Sedition Acts

Laws that targeted immigrants and limited speech against the government.

Jefferson/Burr

Tied in the 1800 election; Jefferson became president after a vote.

12th Amendment

Changed how presidents and vice presidents are elected.

Marbury v. Madison

Court case that established judicial review.

Judicial Review

The Supreme Court's power to declare laws unconstitutional.

Louisiana Purchase

U.S. bought land from France in 1803, doubling its size.

War of 1812

A war between the U.S. and Britain over trade and other issues.

Monroe Doctrine

A policy saying Europe should not interfere in the Americas.

Missouri Compromise

Kept balance between free and slave states by adding Missouri and Maine.

Election of 1824

Decided by the House of Representatives; John Quincy Adams won.

States' Rights

The idea that states have powers the federal government can't take away.

Jacksonian Democracy

Expanded voting rights and supported the 'common man.'

Trail of Tears

Forced removal of Native Americans from their lands to the west.

Nat Turner's Rebellion

A violent slave uprising in 1831.

Black Codes

Laws limiting rights of Black people after the Civil War.

Panic of 1837

A major economic depression caused by bank failures.

Harrison/Tyler

William Henry Harrison died in office; John Tyler became president.

Market Economy

An economy where people buy and sell goods freely.

Boom and Bust Cycles

Periods of fast economic growth followed by crashes.

Cotton Gin

A machine that sped up cotton processing and increased slavery.

Interchangeable Parts

Identical parts that made mass production possible.

Manifest Destiny

The belief that the U.S. should expand across the continent.

Alamo

A battle in Texas's fight for independence from Mexico.

Republic of Texas

An independent country before it joined the U.S.

Oregon Territory

Land claimed by the U.S. in the Pacific Northwest.

Gold Rush

A movement of people to California in 1849 looking for gold.

Sectionalism

Loyalty to one's region over the country as a whole.

Temperance

A movement to stop alcohol use.

Abolition

The movement to end slavery.

Mormons

A religious group that moved west to escape persecution.

Underground Railroad

A network to help enslaved people escape to freedom.

Mexican War

A war where the U.S. gained land in the Southwest.

Popular Sovereignty

Letting people in a territory vote on slavery.

Compromise of 1850

Laws to ease tensions over slavery, including a new Fugitive Slave Law.

Fugitive Slave Law

Required people to return escaped slaves.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

Allowed popular vote on slavery in new territories.

Bleeding Kansas

Violence between pro- and anti-slavery settlers.

Harper's Ferry

A failed slave revolt led by John Brown.

Emancipation Proclamation

Freed slaves in Confederate states.

13th Amendment

Ended slavery in the U.S.

Freedmen's Bureau

Helped former slaves after the Civil War.

Reconstruction

The period after the Civil War to rebuild and reunite the country.

14th Amendment

Gave citizenship to people born in the U.S.

15th Amendment

Gave Black men the right to vote.

Ku Klux Klan

A white supremacist group that used violence to stop Black rights.

Jim Crow Laws

Laws that enforced segregation in the South.

Plessy v. Ferguson

Supreme Court case that said segregation was legal.

Sharecroppers

Farmers who worked someone else's land and gave part of the crops as rent.