Westward Expansion

Election of 1800

• A rematch between the sitting president, John Adams, and the sitting vice president, Thomas Jefferson after being the runner-up in 1796

• Thomas Jefferson defeated Adams for the presidency after one term in office

• Adams’ supporters spread rumors about Jefferson such as robbing a widow & stealing from her children’s trust funds

• Jefferson and his running mate, Aaron Burr (no team candidacy at the time) tied with the same number of electoral votes, and the House of Representatives elected Jefferson to the presidency

• Aaron Burr became Vice President with the rule of the runner-up becoming the Vice President at the time

• After this election, the 12th amendment was ratified which established the two-team candidacy that exists today

• Jefferson dropped Burr completely after his first term in office

Thomas Jefferson

• Won the election of 1800 becoming the third president by defeating John Adams after serving as vice president for one term under Adams

• Jefferson allowed the Alien & Sedition Acts to expire, pardoned many who were serving in jail over them, & changed the naturalization time from 14 to 5 years

• Kept many other Federalist policies intact

• He made it clear that a change in political parties is not the end of the world by not implementing radical changes

Federalists vs. Democratic-Republicans

• Two major political parties at the time

• Federalists were led by Alexander Hamilton and wanted a strong central government

• Democratic-Republicans were led by Thomas Jefferson and against a strong central government and more for states’ rights

• John Adams was the last Federalist president as this party later dissolved

Impressment

• American soldiers were forced to enlist in their army by the British

Marbury v. Madison

• William Marbury had been appointed as a justice of peace by Adams however he never received his commission

• James Madison, secretary of state, refused to deliver the commission

• The court ruled in favor of Madison and Marbury was denied his commission

• This established the concept of judicial review, making the judicial branch equal in power to the other branches

McCulloch v. Maryland

• The state of Maryland attempted to tax the Bank of the United States

• The court led by John Marshall ruled that Congress had the authority to create a national bank through implied powers

Battle of New Orleans

• On January 8, 1815, the British launched an assault on the American riflemen and commoners

• British lost over 2,000 soldiers in 30 minutes

• Andrew Jackson was hailed as a hero for leading the Americans to victory

War of 1812

• Warhawks in Congress, Native Americans armed by the British & actively fighting with Americans, & the desire to bring back confidence in the “American experiment” (desire to end British rule in territories)

• Congress agreed to declare war, despite New England’s opposition (some of them even supported Britain in the war with $$)

• The British set fire to both the Capitol and the White House

James Madison

• Became president after Thomas Jefferson

• Re-established an embargo act with Britain which meant that they could trade with France and not Britain

Star-Spangled Banner

• The US National Anthem that Francis Scott Key wrote

• He wrote this while watching the Battle of Fort McHenry

Henry Clay/American System

• Henry Clay was speaker of the House who decided that John Quincy Adams won the election in 1824

• He was known for striking a “corrupt bargain” for Adams to win so that he could have a high-ranking position in the administration

• Clay developed the “American System”

  • Strong banking system

  • Protective tariff

  • Network of roads & canals

Era of Good Feelings

• Used to describe James Monroe’s presidency

• Many were happy with his election

• Yet there were issues with banking, tariffs, selling of public land, sectionalism, slavery

James Monroe

• His presidency was dubbed the “Era of Good Feelings”

• He had a profound impact on expanding westward

Spoils system

• This is when political supporters are rewarded with public office

• This promotes party over country

• Jackson used this as a way to win the election

• He promised all of his supporters a public office in the administration if they supported him

John Quincy Adams

• Elected president in 1824 after defeating Andrew Jackson despite losing the popular vote

• Son of former president John Adams

• Known for striking a “corrupt bargain” with Henry Clay after no candidate got a majority of the electoral votes

• He had strong support for the American System

• Passed the Tariff of Abominations which imposed high duties on imported goods

• Lost to Andrew Jackson in 1828

Andrew Jackson

• Known as “Old Hickory”

• Ran for the presidency two times

  • Ran in 1824, won the popular vote, and tied in the electoral college with John Quincy Adams but lost due to the House of Representatives

  • Ran again in 1828 and won the presidency

• Established the Democratic Party (Jascksonian Democrats)

• Hailed a hero for leading the Americans to victory in the Battle of New Orleans

• Passed the Indian Removal Act

• Passed the Force Bill which authorized the president to use the military if necessary to enforce federal laws

• He dismantled the Second Bank of the United States and transferred federal funds to state banks known as “pet banks”

• He implemented the “spoils system”

Martin Van Buren

• Known as “The Little Magician”

• As Vice-President under Jackson, he helped form the Democratic Party into a strong political force

• He supported states' rights

• The first president born after the US declared independence

• His presidency was highly affected by the Panic of 1837

• Major economic troubles from the Specie Circular which required all lands to be purchased with hard or metallic money

• He highly opposed slavery

William Henry Harrison

• He led the US forces to victory over Native Americans led by Tecumseh in the Battle of Tippecanoe

• Earned the nickname “Old Tippecanoe”

• Participated in the War of 1812

• Became the first Whig president after defeating Martin Van Buren in the election of 1840

• He served the shortest presidency in US history dying one month into office and also becoming the first president to die in office

• Gave a 2-hour long inaugural speech (longest in US history) on a cold rainy day without proper clothing and later died of pneumonia

• Due to his presidency being too short, he couldn’t implement any significant policies to shape the country

John Tyler

• Vice President under William Henry Harrison

• Succeeded William Henry Harrison after his death establishing that the vice president becomes the president if their predecessor dies in office

Election of 1824

• Between Andrew Jackson and John Quincy Adams

• Andrew Jackson won the popular vote however they both tied in the electoral college

• The House of Representatives decided that John Quincy Adams be declared the winner

• Jackson suggested that Adams had become president by striking a “corrupt bargain” with Henry Clay who was speaker of the house

• Adams won and offered Clay a high-ranking position in his administration

Monroe Doctrine

• This emerged as nations in Europe such as Spain sought to re-colonize territories in America after losing their colonies

• This stated that the western hemisphere was off-limits to new European colonization

• The US stated that they would interfere if Europe had any plans to invade

• Monroe promised that the US would not interfere in any European affairs

Trail of Tears

• This was a forced journey that was meant to relocate Native American tribes west of the Mississippi River as authorized by the Indian Removal Act

• Many suffered deaths from diseases and starvation

Treaty of Ghent

• This officially ended the War of 1812 with nothing lost or gained

Nationalism

• Sense of pride, loyalty, and devotion to one nation

• Many of the policies and acts passed by Jackson, Monroe, and others were influenced by nationalism and protecting the country