Unit 4 Notes

Collapse of the Federalist Party

  • Weaknesses exposed during the War of 1812 led to the party's collapse.
  • Hartford Convention: New England Federalists discussed nullification and secession due to their opposition to the war and desire to maintain trade relations with Britain.

Increased Nationalism and Era of Good Feelings

  • America's perceived victory in the War of 1812, particularly Jackson's victory in the Battle of New Orleans, boosted national pride.
  • Collapse of the Federalist Party and the surge in nationalism led to a period of one-party rule under the Democratic-Republican Party until 1824.

The American System (1824)

  • Proposed by Henry Clay.
  • Three-part system:
    • Federally funded internal improvements
    • Tariffs to protect American industry
    • Re-establishment of the Second National Bank of the United States
  • Encountered opposition in Congress, particularly regarding the National Bank.

Regional Interests and Sectionalism

  • Sectionalism: Regional interests override federal interests.
  • Different regions prioritized their own interests, sometimes conflicting with national interests.

War of 1812 and Hartford Convention

  • New England Federalists opposed the War of 1812 due to its damaging effects on their trade and economic interests.
  • They demanded reparations from the federal government for lost trade.

Roosevelt Corollary

  • Expanded upon the Monroe Doctrine.
  • Monroe Doctrine: European powers should stay out of the Western Hemisphere.
  • Roosevelt Corollary (early 1900s): America asserted its power to regulate affairs in the Western Hemisphere.
  • Examples: Panama Canal, Venezuelan affair.

Market Revolution vs. Industrial Revolution (Gilded Age)

  • Market Revolution: Precursor to the Industrial Revolution.
    • Phase one of American industrialism.
    • Water-powered wheels, Lowell Mills, beginnings of railroads, canals, telegraph, cotton gin.
  • Gilded Age: Continuation and intensification of industrialization.
    • Electricity, more powerful steam engines, Bessemer process for steel production, transition to coal and oil.
    • Expansion of the transcontinental railroad.
    • Sears catalogs, refrigerated railcars, McCormick Reaper, steel plow.
    • More connected due to Cumberland Road (National Road).

World War I: Causes and Effects

  • Factors leading up to World War I (contextualization): Militarism, alliances, imperialism, nationalism.
  • Sinking of the Lusitania, Zimmerman telegram.
  • Wilson's initial stance of neutrality, followed by his decision to enter the war.
  • Treaty of Versailles, mandate system of the League of Nations.
  • America's rejection of the League of Nations and return to isolationism.
  • First Red Scare, nativism, immigration acts (e.g., 1924).
  • Era of industrial prosperity (Roaring Twenties), rise of mass culture.
  • Cultural and socioeconomic changes, Great Migration of African Americans to northern cities.

Watergate Scandal

  • Eroded trust in the federal government.
  • Nixon's denial of allegations ("I am not a crook") shocked the public.
  • Smoking gun tape revealed Nixon's involvement.
  • Republicans lost midterm elections in 1974.
  • Jimmy Carter, a Washington outsider, won the presidency in 1976.

American System: Regional Interests (South)

  • The South believed federally funded improvements would primarily benefit the North.
  • President Madison vetoed the internal improvements aspect of the American System.

Missouri Compromise

  • Debate over the expansion of forced labor into Missouri.
  • Talmadge Amendment: Proposed keeping forced labor out of Missouri.
  • Compromise: Missouri admitted as a state allowing compulsory labor, Maine admitted as a free state.

Territorial Expansion in the 1810s

  • Anglo-Saxophone Convention of 1818, Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819: Resolved issues regarding the northern and southern borders.

Monroe Doctrine (1823)

  • European powers should stay out of the Western Hemisphere.

Marshall Court

  • Key Cases:
    • Marbury v. Madison: Established judicial review.
    • Fletcher v. Peck: Established sanctity of contracts.
    • McCulloch v. Maryland: Federal law trumps state law, expanded Supreme Court power.
    • Worcester v. Virginia: Upheld sovereignty of the Cherokees.

Jacksonian Democracy

  • Era of sectionalism, influence of Jeffersonian and Jacksonian ideals.
  • Expanded Voting Rights: Universal white male suffrage.
  • Panic of 1819: Financial crisis led to demands for accountability.
  • Spoils System: Rewarding political supporters with jobs.

Election of 1824

  • End of the Era of Good Feelings.
  • Democratic-Republican Party split into National Republicans (loose constructionists) and Democrats (strict constructionists).
  • Candidates: John Quincy Adams, Henry Clay (National Republicans), Andrew Jackson (Democrat).
  • Jackson won the most popular and electoral votes but not a majority.
  • Election decided by the House of Representatives.
  • Henry Clay supported John Quincy Adams, who was then elected.
  • Adams appointed Clay as Secretary of State, leading to accusations of a "corrupt bargain."

Realignment of Political Parties

  • Revival of political division reminiscent of Federalists vs. Democratic-Republicans.
  • National Republicans: Loose constructionists, supported tariffs and the North.
  • Democrats: Strict constructionists, supported by Andrew Jackson.

Andrew Jackson's Presidency (1828)

  • Nullification Crisis: Tariff of 1828 (Tariff of Abominations) angered the South.
    • South Carolina attempted to nullify the tariff.
    • Jackson passed the Force Bill, asserting federal authority.
    • Compromise tariff eventually reached.
  • Bank War: Jackson opposed the National Bank.
    • Vetoed its rechartering and directed treasury funds to "pet banks."
    • Implemented the Specie Circular, leading to deflation and the Panic of 1837.
  • Native Americans: Indian Removal Act of 1830.
    • Forced relocation to reservations on the Western Frontier.
    • Worcester v. Georgia: Supreme Court ruled in favor of Cherokee sovereignty, but Jackson defied the ruling.
    • Trail of Tears: Forced removal under Van Buren's administration.
  • Formation of the Whig Party in opposition to Jackson's use of federal power.

Market Revolution

  • Linking of northern industry to southern farms through new technologies.
  • Key Technologies:
    • Textile machinery, steam engines, interchangeable parts, telegraphs, agricultural inventions.
  • Examples: Lowell Mills, cotton gin, steamboats, American system of manufacturing.

Immigration and Internal Migration

  • Old Immigration: From Britain, Ireland, Germany.
    • Germans moved to cities and westward.
    • Irish stayed in cities.
    • Irish potato famine of the 1840s and failed political revolutions led to immigration.
  • Nativist Backlash: Know-Nothing Party.

Development of a Middle Class

  • Lawyers, doctors, white-collar workers with disposable incomes for leisure.
  • Urban culture: Circuses, plays, sports.

Societal Expectations of Women

  • Cult of Domesticity: Women's identity and purpose centered around being a housewife.

Cultural Impact of Immigration

  • Establishment of Roman Catholic churches and Jewish synagogues.

Effects of Internal Migration

  • Movement from East to West: Manifest Destiny, California Gold Rush, homesteading.
  • Movement from West to East: Seeking jobs in factories.

Second Great Awakening

  • Causes:
    • Rise of democratic ideals and individualism.
    • Influence of the market revolution, emphasizing self-reliance.
    • Rejection of rationalism in favor of romanticism.
    • Increased geographic mobility.
  • Emphasized personal agency and personal salvation.

Effects on Reform Movements

  • Abolitionist Movement: William Lloyd Garrison, Liberator.
  • Women's Rights: Seneca Falls Convention.
  • Temperance Movement: American Temperance Society.
  • Education Reform: Horace Mann, standardized curriculum.
  • Mental Health, Mental Health Asylums, such as Dorothy Dix.

American Culture

  • Transcendentalism: Self-reliance, intuition, connection with nature (Henry David Thoreau, Walden).
  • Utopian Communities: Oneida community (communal living, equality).
  • Romanticism: Hudson River School (American art), Noah Webster's dictionary (standardized American English).
  • Religious Reform: Mormonism, Joseph Smith.

African Americans in the South

  • Economic Dependence: King cotton, plantation system.
  • Southern Paternalism: False belief that compulsory labor was a positive moral good.
  • Overcultivation of Southern Land: Led to westward expansion of forced labor.
  • Resistance to Institution:
    • Nat Turner's Rebellion (1831): Led to stricter codes.
    • Covert Resistance: Breaking tools, slowing down labor.