Ch 26

Chapter 26: An Age of Democracy and Progress – Complete Study Guide

1 U.S. Expansion & Manifest Destiny

Key Terms:

Manifest Destiny – Idea that the U.S. had the right and duty to expand from Atlantic to Pacific.

Abraham Lincoln – Fought to preserve the Union and end slavery.

Trail of Tears – Forced relocation of Cherokee; ~¼ died.

Texas Independence – Led to Texas joining the U.S. in 1845.

Mexican Cession – Included California and Southwest; opened land for settlement.

Timeline of Expansion:

Event Date Significance

Louisiana Purchase 1803 Doubled U.S. territory to Rocky Mountains

Florida Cession 1819 Spain gave Florida to U.S.

Oregon Treaty 1846 U.S. gained Oregon Territory from Britain

Texas Annexation 1845 Sparked war with Mexico

Mexican-American War 1846–1848 Gained Mexican Cession

Gadsden Purchase 1853 Completed continental U.S. borders

Key Points:

U.S. expansion caused tension over slavery in new territories.

The North: industrial + free labor economy.

The South: plantation + slave labor economy.

Different economies and views on slavery contributed to the Civil War.

2 Civil War & Reconstruction

Key Terms:

Secede – Southern states left the Union after Lincoln’s election.

U.S. Civil War – Fought to preserve the Union; ended in Northern victory.

Emancipation Proclamation – Helped shift the war to anti-slavery; encouraged European non-support of South.

Segregation – Postwar laws restricted African Americans’ rights.

Civil War Facts:

North advantages: larger population, industry, transportation.

South advantages: superior military leadership, defensive fighting.

Outcome: South surrendered 1865; slavery abolished (13th Amendment).

Reconstruction (1865–1877): Federal troops enforced rights; segregation persisted after withdrawal.

War accelerated industrialization and urban growth.

3 Immigration & Railroads

Immigrants: >20 million from Europe & Asia by 1914.

Railroads: linked farms to cities, boosted trade, carried raw materials & goods.

Transcontinental railroad completed 1869.

Result: U.S. became a global industrial leader.

4 Science & Technology

Key Terms & People:

Henry Ford – Used assembly line to mass-produce affordable cars.

Assembly line – Cut production time; lowered costs.

Charles Darwin – Proposed theory of evolution via natural selection.

Theory of evolution – Challenged idea of fixed species.

Louis Pasteur – Developed germ theory; pasteurization.

Marie Curie – Discovered radium & polonium; pioneered radioactivity.

Mass culture – Movies, vaudeville, sports, music reached all classes.

Major Inventions & Impacts:

Event

Year

Louisiana Purchase

1803

Trail of Tears

1830–1838

Texas Independence

1836

Oregon Treaty

1846

Mexican-American War / Mexican Cession

1846–1848

Gadsden Purchase

1853

Lincoln elected / Southern secession

1860

Civil War

1861–1865

Emancipation Proclamation

1863

Reconstruction

1865–1877

Ford Model T & assembly line

1908

Wright brothers’ first flight

1903

Mass culture rise

~1900

Pasteur’s germ theory

1860s

Marie Curie discovers radium & polonium

1898

Pavlov: unconscious reactions can be trained.

Freud: unconscious mind influences behavior; founded psychoanalysis.

Social Darwinism: applied Darwin’s ideas to society, economics, and imperialism.

Mass Culture Effects:

Public education → literacy → mass book/newspaper markets.

Movies, sports, music became widely available.

Olympics revived; spectator sports flourished.

🔹 Combined Timeline (Key Events)

Event Year

Louisiana Purchase 1803

Indian Removal Act / Trail of Tears 1830–1838

Texas Independence 1836

Oregon Treaty 1846

Mexican-American War / Mexican Cession 1846–1848

Gadsden Purchase 1853

Lincoln elected / Southern secession 1860

Civil War 1861–1865

Emancipation Proclamation 1863

Reconstruction 1865–1877

Ford Model T & assembly line 1908

Wright brothers’ first flight 1903

Mass culture rise ~1900

Pasteur’s germ theory 1860s

Marie Curie discovers radium & polonium 1898

🔹 Key Concepts to Remember

Expansion & Manifest Destiny → new territory caused tensions over slavery.

Civil War → conflict between North (free labor) & South (slave labor) led to abolition of slavery.

Industrialization & Immigration → railroads and factories connected the country and grew cities.

Science & Technology → inventions (Ford, Edison), medical advances (Pasteur, Curie), and Darwin’s theory changed society.

Mass Culture → entertainment, sports, and media became accessible to all.