US history final

Unit 1 – Foundations, Colonial America, Independence

1. Who settled the East coast of North America? Why did they come?

   • British, Dutch, French, and Spanish settlers arrived for economic opportunities, religious freedom (Puritans, Quakers, Catholics), and expansion of empire.

   • Jamestown (1607) sought profit, while Plymouth (1620) sought religious refuge.

2. Where were the original 13 Colonies? What were their similarities and differences?

   • New England: Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire – economy based on trade, shipbuilding, and fishing, with a focus on Puritan religious communities.

   • Middle Colonies: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware – diverse population, religious tolerance, economy based on farming and commerce.

   • Southern Colonies: Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia – plantation economy reliant on enslaved labor, cash crops (tobacco, rice, indigo).

3. What were the causes of the Revolution against Britain? What was the outcome?

   • Causes: Taxation without representation (Stamp Act, Tea Act), British military presence, lack of colonial autonomy, Enlightenment ideas of self-government.

   • Outcome: Treaty of Paris (1783) recognized U.S. independence, established Mississippi River as western boundary, and created a weak national government under the Articles of Confederation.

4. What were the Articles of Confederation? What flaws did they contain? Why did people advocate for replacing them?

   • First U.S. government (1781) with a weak federal structure: no executive, no power to tax, no national army, difficult to pass laws.

   • Shays’ Rebellion (1786-87) highlighted weaknesses, leading to calls for a stronger Constitution.

5. How is the U.S. government organized? What are the powers of the three branches? What rights are given to the people? Why are there both state and national governments?

   • Legislative (Congress) – makes laws.

   • Executive (President) – enforces laws.

   • Judicial (Supreme Court) – interprets laws.

   • Bill of Rights protects individual freedoms.

   • Federalism divides power between national and state governments.

Unit 2 – Westward Expansion

6. How and why did the U.S. expand? What was “Manifest Destiny”?

   • Belief that the U.S. was destined to expand westward to the Pacific for economic growth, territorial dominance, and spreading democracy.

7. Where did the U.S. get new territory from?

   • Louisiana Purchase (1803) – from France.

   • Texas Annexation (1845) – from Mexico.

   • Oregon Treaty (1846) – from Britain.

   • Mexican Cession (1848) – after the Mexican-American War.

8. Why did the government move Native Americans from their land? What were the causes and effects of the Trail of Tears?

   • White settlers wanted land for farming, gold, and railroads.

   • Indian Removal Act (1830) forced relocation; thousands died on the Trail of Tears (1838-39).

9. How were Native Americans treated during Westward Expansion?

   • Forced onto reservations, faced military conflict (Wounded Knee Massacre, Battle of Little Bighorn).

10. What was Lewis and Clark’s mission? Where did they explore?

• Sent by Jefferson (1804-1806) to map land, find trade routes, and establish relations with Native Americans.

11. What was the Oregon Trail? Why did people travel west?

• Route from Missouri to Oregon for fertile land and economic opportunities.

12. How did the Mexican-American War begin? What was the outcome?

• Began over Texas boundary disputes; ended with Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848), adding California and Southwest U.S.

13. How did expansion affect the Mexican and Latino population already living in the U.S.?

• Many lost land and political power under U.S. governance.

14. How did democracy change under Andrew Jackson?

• Expanded suffrage to all white men, introduced the spoils system, and increased executive power.

Unit 3 – Civil War and Reconstruction

15. How and why was slavery integral to the economy and life of people in the Southern states? How integral was slavery to the economy of the North?

• Southern economy: Slavery was the foundation of the plantation economy, producing cotton, tobacco, and sugar for export. The invention of the cotton gin (1793) increased cotton demand, further entrenching slavery.

• Northern economy: While the North didn’t rely on enslaved labor directly, its textile industry depended on Southern cotton. Banks and shipping industries also profited from the slave trade.

16. What were the major causes of the Civil War?

• Slavery: The primary issue dividing North and South; abolitionist movements intensified tensions.

• States’ Rights: Southern states wanted more autonomy, especially regarding slavery.

• Economic differences: The industrial North favored tariffs, while the agrarian South opposed them.

• Election of Abraham Lincoln (1860): Lincoln opposed slavery’s expansion, prompting Southern states to secede.

17. What led to the secession of the Southern states in 1860?

• South Carolina seceded first (Dec. 1860), followed by 10 other states by mid-1861, forming the Confederate States of America with Jefferson Davis as president.

• The South believed Lincoln’s presidency threatened slavery and their economic system.

18. What were some important battles of the Civil War?

• First Battle of Bull Run (1861): First major battle; Confederate victory, showing war wouldn’t be short.

• Battle of Antietam (1862): Bloodiest single day of the war; strategic Union victory that led to the Emancipation Proclamation.

• Battle of Gettysburg (1863): Turning point; Union victory stopped Lee’s invasion of the North.

• Siege of Vicksburg (1863): Gave the Union control of the Mississippi River, splitting the Confederacy.

• Appomattox Court House (1865): Lee surrendered to Grant, effectively ending the war.

19. What was the Emancipation Proclamation? When was it decreed? Why then? What effect did it have on the war?

• Issued Jan. 1, 1863, by Lincoln after the Battle of Antietam.

• Freed enslaved people in Confederate-held territories (but not border states).

• Shifted war aims from preserving the Union to abolishing slavery, discouraging European support for the Confederacy.

20. How did the war end? What led to the South’s surrender? When was Lincoln assassinated?

• Sherman’s March to the Sea (1864) devastated Southern infrastructure.

• Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House (April 9, 1865).

• Lincoln assassinated (April 14, 1865) by John Wilkes Booth, leading to uncertainty over Reconstruction.

21. What was Reconstruction? Was it successful?

• Presidential Reconstruction (1865-67): Lenient policies under Andrew Johnson; allowed ex-Confederates to regain power.

• Radical Reconstruction (1867-77): Military districts enforced rights for freed African Americans.

• Reconstruction Amendments:

  • 13th (1865) – Abolished slavery.

  • 14th (1868) – Granted citizenship & equal protection.

  • 15th (1870) – Gave Black men voting rights.

• Failure: Rise of Black Codes, Ku Klux Klan, and eventual end of Reconstruction (1877) left African Americans vulnerable to segregation (Jim Crow laws).

Unit 4 – Development of Industrial America

22. What factors led to the “closing of the frontier”?

• Homestead Act (1862) encouraged settlement.

• Railroads expanded, connecting remote areas.

• Native American resistance was crushed (e.g., Wounded Knee Massacre, 1890).

23. How was the Transcontinental Railroad completed? What obstacles had to be overcome?

• Union Pacific (East) and Central Pacific (West) met at Promontory Point, Utah (1869).

• Built using immigrant labor (Chinese in West, Irish in East).

• Overcame mountains, harsh weather, and Native American conflicts.

24. What new technologies were developed over the 19th century?

• Steam engines, electricity, telegraph, telephone, Bessemer process (steel production), light bulb.

• Increased productivity, urbanization, and factory work.

25. How did industrialization change American society?

• Rise of urbanization; overcrowded cities with poor sanitation.

• Factory system: Harsh working conditions, long hours, child labor.

• Growth of labor unions (Knights of Labor, AFL) to demand rights.

26. Who were the Robber Barons?

• John D. Rockefeller (Standard Oil) – monopolized oil.

• Andrew Carnegie (steel) – promoted philanthropy (Gospel of Wealth).

• Cornelius Vanderbilt (railroads) – controlled transport infrastructure.

• Mixed impact: Exploited workers but also modernized industry.

27. What factors led to a huge increase in immigration after the Civil War?

• Push factors: Famine (Irish), political unrest (Germany, Russia), poverty.

• Pull factors: Factory jobs, American Dream.

• Ellis Island (East Coast) and Angel Island (West Coast) processed millions of immigrants.

• Faced discrimination (Chinese Exclusion Act, 1882).

Unit 5 – Emergence of Modern America

28. Who were the Progressives? What types of problems were they attempting to address?

• Reformers addressing industrialization’s negative effects (corruption, poverty, labor rights).

• Muckrakers (journalists) exposed corruption (e.g., Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle led to FDA).

• Urban reforms: Sanitation, housing codes, public health improvements.

• Workplace reforms: Child labor laws, safer conditions.

• Political reforms: Initiative, referendum, recall, direct election of senators (17th Amendment).

29. What was Prohibition? Why was it passed? Why was it repealed? What effect did it have?

• 18th Amendment (1920) banned alcohol, pushed by Temperance Movement.

• Led to organized crime (Al Capone, speakeasies).

• Repealed (1933) with the 21st Amendment due to enforcement failures and economic issues (Great Depression).

30. What were key events in the Women’s Suffrage movement?

• Seneca Falls Convention (1848): First major women’s rights convention.

• Susan B. Anthony & Elizabeth Cady Stanton led protests.

• Women were arrested for voting (Anthony arrested, 1872).

• 19th Amendment (1920) granted women voting rights after decades of activism.

• Impact: Increased political engagement, paved way for later rights movements.