Unit 4: Mex-Am War to Civil War_APUSH

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards derived from the lecture notes for APUSH Unit 4, covering crucial terms and definitions related to U.S. expansion, Civil War, and related social movements.

Louisiana Purchase

U.S. doubled size buying French territory in 1803, enabling westward expansion and raising constitutional questions.

Adams-Onís Treaty

1819 treaty where Spain ceded Florida to U.S., defining U.S.-Spanish boundary.

Texas Annexation

1845 U.S. admission of independent Republic of Texas, escalating tensions with Mexico.

Oregon Trail

Key 19th-century migration route from Missouri to Oregon, fueling settlement and Manifest Destiny.

Bear Flag Revolt

1846 brief California rebellion against Mexico, leading to U.S. control during war.

Manifest Destiny

Belief U.S. was destined to expand westward across North America, influencing policy and conflict.

James K. Polk

1845-49 president who led territorial expansion, including Oregon Treaty and Mexican-American War victory.

Santa Anna

Mexican general and president who lost Texas and war to U.S., leading to major territorial losses.

Mexican-American War

1846-48 conflict resulting in U.S. acquisition of California, Southwest under Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

Buena Vista

1847 key U.S. victory where outnumbered Zachary Taylor defeated Mexican forces.

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

1848 treaty ending war, Mexico ceded vast Southwest to U.S., reshaping the continent.

California Gold Rush

1848 gold discovery triggered massive migration, statehood, and economic-social change.

Gadsden Purchase

1853 U.S. purchase of AZ and NM land from Mexico to facilitate southern railroad.

Ostend Manifesto

Secret 1854 U.S. plan to buy or seize Cuba, exposing pro-slavery expansionism and sparking debate.

Treaty of Wanghia

1844 first U.S.-China treaty, opened trade, granted legal protections for Americans.

Commodore Perry

Naval officer who forcibly opened Japan to trade with U.S. in 1853, ending isolation.

Sectionalism

Growing loyalty to regional interests over national unity, fueling antebellum tensions.

King Cotton

Phrase signifying importance of cotton economy in South and slavery’s role in political conflict.

Market Revolution

Early 19th-century transformation: factories, transport, communication reshaped economy and society.

Yeoman Farmer

Independent small landowner without slaves, considered ideal republican citizen.

Plantation

Large Southern farm cultivating cash crops with slave labor, foundation of Southern aristocracy.

Social Hierarchy

Southern society’s rigid class divisions structured by land, wealth, and race.

Slave Codes

Laws restricting enslaved people’s rights to control labor and social order.

American Colonization Society

Group advocating resettlement of free Blacks to Liberia, mixing reform and racist motives.

Know-Nothing Party

1840s-50s anti-immigrant, anti-Catholic party promoting nativist policies.

Free Soil Party

Short-lived party opposing slavery’s westward expansion, foundational to Republican Party.

Panic of 1819

Nation’s first major economic depression due to bank failures and land speculation.

Panic of 1837

Economic downturn caused by banking crises and failed policies, impacting millions.

Garrison (Wm. Lloyd)

Radical abolitionist who published The Liberator, advancing immediate emancipation.

The Liberator

Influential antislavery newspaper inspiring abolitionist movement.

Truth (Sojourner Truth)

Black abolitionist and women’s rights activist known for powerful speeches.

Tubman (Harriet Tubman)

Conductor of Underground Railroad, freed many enslaved people, later civil rights advocate.

Stowe (Harriet Beecher)

Author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin, influential in shaping anti-slavery sentiment.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin

Novel exposing slavery’s brutality, intensifying sectional conflict.

Nat Turner’s Rebellion

1831 slave revolt in Virginia, leading to harsh slave laws and heightened tensions.

House Gag Rule

Congressional rule blocking all antislavery petitions, suppressing abolitionist voices.

John Brown

Militant abolitionist who led failed raid on Harpers Ferry, sparking national debate on violence and slavery.

Caning Sumner

1856 violent attack on Senator Sumner, symbolizing sectional animosity and breakdown of political discourse.

Wilmot Proviso

Failed 1846 proposal banning slavery in new territories, raising sectional tensions.

Compromise of 1850

Series of laws balancing free and slave interests; included California statehood and stricter fugitive slave law.

Fugitive Slave Law

Law requiring return of escaped slaves, increasing Northern opposition and sectional conflict.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

1854 law repealing Missouri Compromise, imposing popular sovereignty, triggering Bleeding Kansas violence.

Bleeding Kansas

Violent clashes in Kansas over slavery, illustrating political failures and sectionalism.

Lecompton Constitution

Pro-slavery Kansas constitution rejected by Congress, heightening sectional conflict.

Lincoln-Douglas Debates

1858 Illinois Senate debates on slavery expansion and popular sovereignty, boosting Lincoln’s profile.

Dred Scott

1857 Supreme Court ruling denying citizenship and rights to African Americans, intensifying sectional crisis.

Popular Sovereignty

Doctrine that territories’ settlers decide on slavery, central to pre-Civil War politics.

Stephen Douglas

Illinois senator advocating popular sovereignty and authoring Kansas-Nebraska Act.

Election of 1860

Four-way contest won by Lincoln, prompting Southern secession and Civil War onset.

Secession

Southern states’ withdrawal from the Union, precipitating Civil War.

CSA (Confederate States)

Southern states forming independent government to preserve slavery and states' rights.

Jefferson Davis

Confederate president who led South during Civil War; captured but never tried for treason.

Abraham Lincoln

16th president who preserved the Union, issued Emancipation Proclamation, and led U.S. during Civil War.

Cornerstone Speech

Confederate VP’s defense of slavery as foundation of Southern society and government.

Party platforms

Political parties’ declared positions on key issues, highlighting sectional divides.

Fort Sumter

1861 Confederate attack on federal fort, starting the Civil War.

Anaconda Plan

Union strategy to blockade and divide South, aiming to crush Confederate resources and morale.

Border States

Slave states that remained loyal to Union, crucial for military and political balance.

Robert E. Lee

Leading Confederate general, surrendered at Appomattox, symbolizing Southern honor.

Ulysses S. Grant

Union general who secured victory through key sieges and battles, later became president.

Sherman (and March)

Union general whose destructive Savannah campaign severely weakened Confederate war effort.

Vicksburg

Union capture of Confederate stronghold, splitting South along Mississippi River.

Gettysburg

1863 battle marking turning point in Civil War, inspiring Lincoln’s famous address.

Appomattox

Virginia courthouse where Lee surrendered, effectively ending Civil War.

Clara Barton

Nurse and humanitarian who founded the American Red Cross.

Copperhead Democrats

Northern Democrats opposing war, advocating peace and criticized for undermining Union efforts.

Emancipation Proclamation

1863 Lincoln order freeing slaves in rebelling states, redefining war aims.

Juneteenth

June 19, 1865 celebration marking end of slavery in Texas; now a federal holiday.

Gettysburg Address

Lincoln speech reaffirming democracy and honoring Civil War sacrifices.

Conscription Act

First federal draft law during Civil War, sparking protests over fairness and civil liberties.

NYC Draft Riots

Violent 1863 resistance to the draft, highlighting class and racial tensions.

War Democrats

Democrats supporting Union war effort and Lincoln’s policies.

Soldier experience (Union/CSA)

Daily life of soldiers marked by combat, hardship, disease, morale issues, and connection to home.