Second Great Awakening (1790s-1830s)

Context/Causes:

• American Revolution weakened traditional religious practice by promoting the separation of church and state

• Enlightenment ideas encouraging individual liberty + reason

• Church membership had declined by the 1790s only a small proportion of Americans were still members of formal churches

• The emergence of rational theologies reflecting scientific beliefs and deemphasizing the role of God—concerning religious traditionalists

• Rise of Deism—God exists but is a remote being who does not intervene with the human race after creating the Universe

• Religious skepticism produced philosophies of Universalism + Unitarianism that became separate churches

  • Emerged from dissenters in New England Congregational Church that rejected Calvinist belief in predestination and the idea of the Trinity—Jesus was a religious teacher not the son of God

Second Great Awakening: Revival of traditional religious beliefs; Encouraged individuals to incorporate God into daily lives embrace ferverent, active worship while rejecting rationalism

Characteristics:

• Several denominations combined efforts to drive the religious fervor of the Second Great Awakening—prominently Baptists, Presbyterians, and Methodists & gained many new followers

  • Presbyterians

    • Aroused the faithful on the western fringes of white settlements

    • Conservatives denounced New Light dissenters (those who altered religious views to be compatible with scientific rationalism)

    • The second Great Awakening began among many Presbyterians in Eastern colleges (Yale) before spreading through the nation

  • Methodism

    • Spread to America from England with an authoritarian and hierarchical structure

    • Sent itinerant preachers throughout the nation for recruits—becomes fastest growing denomination in the US

  • Baptists new to America found supporters in the South

• Camp Meetings- large outdoor religious gatherings attracted tens of thousands of attendees

  • Methodists used these events to harvest new members

• Prevelance of (young) women

  • Many men moved westward thus many women faced uncertainty regarding marriage and future prospects—chose religion as a foundation

  • Transition of economy to industrialization deprived older women of an important social role of earning income by spinning and weaving at home to a factory

  • Churches opened opportunities like ministries for orphans and the poor + missionaries that women could play a role in

• Free will & Egalitarianism:

  • ALL individuals are able to attain salvation through their actions while rejecting Calvinist ideas of predestination (influence of Enlightenment ideas)

Effects of the Second Great Awakening:

• Accelerated growth of several denominations

• Broad acceptance that men and women should be divided into different Protestant Churches committed to the same faith

• Religious fervor established a sense of order + social stability in communities seeking an identity

• Revivalism in African-American communities stirred plans for rebellion + racial unrest in the South

• Revivalism in Native Americans stimulated Indian military efforts to defend their lands and denounce relationships with white civilization

• Sparked conversions of many natives in Iroquois tribes encouraged to give up hunter-gatherer lifestyles for agrarian

• Rational freethinkers declined in influence

• Inspired moral & social reform movements - especially those led by women

Transcendentalism-

• A group of New England writers and philosophers inspired by from German philosophers and English writers to embrace a theory of the individual that rested on a distinction between “reason” and “understanding”

• “Reason”, instead of rationality, was an individual’s innate capacity to grasp beauty and truth through instinct and emotions “nature”

• “Understanding” was use of intellect in artificial ways imposed by societal structures that repressed instinct with externally imposed learning

• Strive to transcend the limits of intellect to follow the soul

Impact

• Emphasis on individualism with respect to religion, education, etc.

• Transcendentalists often supported reform movements like antislavery and educational reforms

• Advocated for the protection of the natural world as a source of spirituality and harmony

Henry David Thoreau and Civil Disobedience

• Transcendentalists who opposed slavery and felt strongly about the US war against Mexico thus refused to pay a poll tax to support the war.

• After being jailed for one night he published the essay “On Civil Disobedience” arguing that the proper response to opposition against immoral government was passive resistance/civil disobedience meaning a refusal to obey unjust laws

• Thoreau’s ideas inspired future non-violent protests from reform movement leaders like Gandhi and MLK

Stimulus: Emerson transcendentalist

Henry David Thoreau

Supreme Court

John Adams Midnight Judges (1801-1835)

• Federalist party in decline and following the election of 1800, Democratic-Republican candidate Thomas Jefferson won over John Adams

• Judiciary Act of 1801- In a last attempt by the Federalist controlled Congress to secure Federalist influence in the Judiciary branch by reduce the Supreme Court justiceships by one but greatly increasing the number of judges in the Federal Court System as a whole. Adams also last-minute appointed Federalists to newly created court positions called the “Midnight Judges”.

• Result

  • For much time, although the executive & legislative branches were under Democratic-Republican control, the judiciary branch remained Federalist dominated

  • Ultimately, Judiciary Act of 1801 was repealed by Jefferson and his party attempted to nullify many of Adams’ appointments leading to Marbury v. Madison court case in 1803

John Marshall- Chief justice from 1801-1835 who strengthened the role of the judicial branch at the expense of the executive & legislative branches AND increased the powers of the federal government at the expence of the states—advancing interets of thoe property owning and commerical clases; Previously a Federalist served as Secretary of State for John Adams

Cases and Rulings:

• Marbury v. Madison- Assert power of Judicial Review (nullify acts of Congress) and established the judical branch as a branch coequal with the executive and legislature

• Fletcher v. Peck- Defended inviolability of contracts—land grant was a valid contract that could not be repealed regardless of corruption

• Dartmouth College v. Woodward- Reinforced the inviolability of contracts and limited ability of state governments to control corporations

• McCulloh v. Maryland- Confirmed implied powers of Congress upholding the constitutionality of the Bank of the United States

• Gibbons v. Ogden- Strengthened Congress’ power to regulate interstate commerce

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

• Background:

  • Democratic-Republicans sought to repeat the Judiciary Act of 1801 and eliminating the Midnight Judges

  • Judicial Review- Federalists believed Supreme Court had the power of judicial review or authority to nullify acts passed by Congress

• Dispute:

  • William Marbury, one of the Midnight Judges was named a justice of the peace in the District of Columbia but his commission was not delivered before John Adams left office

  • New Secretary of State, James Madison, who was responsible for transmitting appointments refused to hand over commission to Marbury

  • Judiciary Act of 1789- gave Court the power to force executive officials to act in matters such as the delivery of commissions—Marbury filed lawsuit on the basis of this act

• Decision:

  • Marbury had a right to his commission however Court could not order Madison to deliver it

  • Congress had exceeded its authority in creating the Judiciary Act since that the Constitution defined the powers of the judiciary, and legislature has no right to expand them—that section of the Judiciary Act was void

• Impact:

  • Asserted that Judicial Branch had the power of Judicial Review/ability to nullify laws passed by Congress—strengthened power of Judicial branch

Fletcher v. Peck (1810)

Background:

• Caused by a series of fraudulent land grants in Georgia

• Georgia state legislature passed the Yazoo Land Act (1795)- authorized sale of millions of acres of land at low prices to several private land companies including one owned by John Peck

• Public outrage over corrupt deal led to the legislature repealing the Yazoo Land Act making the land sales invalid

• Peck had aquired the land and sold it to Fletcher years later claiming the the land sales were legitimate

Dispute:

• Fletcher sued Peck arguing that since the land sales to Peck were now invalid, Peck had no right to sell the land to him and had breached the contract between Fletcher and Peck

• Question of whether the contract between Fletcher and Peck could be invalidated by the act passed by Georgia legislature

• Also question of whether the repeal of the Yazoo Land Act made by Georgia legislature was unconsitutional

Decision:

• Repeal of the Yazoo Land Act was unconstitutional because it violated the Contract Clause- No state can interfere with established contracts and the land grant was a contract

• Ruled in favor of Peck that his land sales were valid

Impact:

• Reinforced the Contract Clause that contracts are inviolable and state laws cannot interfere with contracts

• Developed Supreme Court’s power to invalidate state laws that conflicted with the Constitution

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

Background

• Second Bank of the United States was opposed by the Southern + Western states and some states such as Maryland tried to drive branches out of business through prohibition or taxing the bank

• Maryland passed a law in 1818 imposing a tax on all banks not chartered by the state—included Second Bank of the US

• McCulloch was a cashier at the Baltimore branch who refused to pay the tax—charged with violation of Maryland law and fined

Debate:

• Question of whether Congress had the authority to charter a bank + whether individual states could ban or tax the National Bank

• Daniel Webster, the Bank’s attorney argued that establishing a National Bank was an implied power that fell under the Necessary and Proper Clause of the Constitution and the power to tax involved a power to destroy the bank

• Ruled in favor of McCulloch that Maryland’s attempt to tax the National Bank was unconstitutional because it was an infringement on federal authority

Impact:

• Confirmed the implied powers Congress had and that the creation of a National Bank was constitutional because it was considered necessary and proper

• Asserted that federal authority trumped the authority of the states in regulating the economy—paved the way for increased federal role in promoting economic growth and protecting corporations from local government interference

Dartmouth College v. Woodward (1819)

Background:

• Dartmouth College’s charter was originally a royal charter granted by King George III in 1769 as a private institution

• Republicans in New Hampshire state legislature tried to revise Dartmouth College’s charter to turn it into a state university

Debate:

• Should the state be able to alter the college’s charter

• Daniel Webster argued that Dartmouth’s charter was a contract that was protected under the constitution as established in Fletcher v. Peck

Decision:

• Ruled in favor of Dartmouth believed the charter was a contract between the college and the Crown and contracts were inviolable by state laws under the Contract Clause of the Constitution

Impact:

• Reinforced the inviolability of contracts by state laws under the Contract Clause of the Constitution

• Restricted the ability of state governments to control private corporations

Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)

Background:

• Previously the Hudson river was used for commercial transportation and required licenses to operate vessels in the river

• State of New York indirectly granted Aaron Ogden the business of carrying passengers across the river between New York and New Jersey

• The key issue before the Supreme Court was whether the state of New York had the authority to regulate interstate commerce or if that power was reserved exclusively for the federal government under the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution (Article I, Section 8, Clause 3).

• In a unanimous decision, Chief Justice John Marshall held that the power to regulate interstate commerce was granted to the federal government. Marshall argued that the Commerce Clause gave Congress the authority to regulate commerce "among the several states," and that this encompassed both the regulation of the actual exchange of goods and navigation. The Court ruled that New York's attempt to grant a monopoly and regulate interstate commerce in this manner was unconstitutional.

• The Gibbons v. Ogden decision established a broad interpretation of the Commerce Clause, affirming the federal government's role in regulating interstate commerce and limiting the power of the states in this regard. The case had lasting implications for the development of American federalism and the distribution of powers between the federal and state governments.

Revolution (Election) of 1800

Background:

• Following the Alien and Sedition Acts Federalist Party lost support

• John Adams previous Federalist President

Jefferson vs. Adams

• John Adams (Federalist) and Thomas Jefferson (Democratic-Republican) were the primary candidates running against each other

• Emphasized sectionalism as radical supporters from both sides argued or even resorted to physical violence

• Close election with the crucial state being New York—Aaron Burr (Democratic-Republican) mobilized an organization of Revolutionary War veterans called the Tammany Society to serve as a political machine for the Republicans

• Tammanys let Republicans win over New York with a large majority and Jefferson was elected

• Due to the Constitution calling for each elector to vote two persons by ballot, one elector would cast one vote for the presidential candidate and another for the vice presidential candidate

• Aaron Burr was the second Republican candidate and the Republican plan for one elector to refrain from voting for Burr but it did not go as planned and Jefferson and Burr were tied—the House of Representatives chooses the candidate (Burr was suspected of engineering the deadlock)

• Federalist-dominated Congress at the time concluded that Burr was not to be rusted with the presidency and Jefferson was elected as President with Aaron Burr as the Vice President

Importance

• Marked the first time there was a transfer of power from one party to another—a decline of Federalist influence to Democratic-Republican dominated government

Louisiana Purchase (1803)

Background:

• Napoleon became ruler of France during Jefferson’s presidency—following a failure to acquire India, Napoleon desired to restore French power/imperialism in the New World

• Treaty of San Ildefonso (1800): France regained control over Louisiana territory (lands west of the Mississippi River + New Orleans) which belonged to Spain

• France also controlled sugar-rich + valuable West Indies; Unrest among African slaves in Santo Domingo (Haiti) led by Toussaint L’Ouverture who revolted and created their own republic

• Jefferson was Pro-French appointed American minister, Robert Livingston, to Paris as an ambassador to secure the ratification of the Franco-American settlement of 1800 (ended the Quasi-War)

• Previously John Adams sided with British in supporting the rebellion of African slaves in Santo Domingo—Jefferson assured French minister that Americans (Southerners) did not approve of slave revolts

• Pinckney Treaty let American ships sailing down the Mississippi River to deposit cargo in New Orleans to transfer onto vessels—now French forbade this practice and closed the lower Mississippi to Americans

• Westerners demanded the federal government help reopen the river; Jefferson was conflicted: if he tried to change the policy there would be a risk of war with France if not, he would lose support

• Instructed American ambassador to negotiate the purchase of New Orleans—Livingston proposed the purchase of the western Louisiana Territory as well

• Napolean agreed and offered to sell the US the entire Louisiana Territory

  • Plans to reestablish control in the US had gone off-course

  • Yellow fever epidemic wiped out French army in New World

  • Napoleon preparing for a renewed war—insufficient resources to secure an American empire

Events:

• Livingston & James Monroe proceeded with the treaty without government permission—US needed to pay 15 million USD for the purchase of the Louisiana Territory + exclusive commercial privileges to the French in New Orleans port + French residents in Louisiana incorporated into Union with the same rights

• Jefferson uncertain if federal government had power to purchase Louisiana since acquisition of new territory was not a right stated in the Constitution

• Eventually pursuaded to go through with the purchase

Impact:

• Significantly expanded US territory—doubled in size

• Conflict over spread of slavery into Western Territories/states Northern v. Southern states eventually leading to Civil War

• Increased nationalism and (Manifest Destiny)

• Conflicts with Native American tribes and forcing them out of their lands (Trail of Tears)

Lewis & CLark Expedition (1804-1806)

• Lewis & Clark and several men commissioned to explore the Louisiana Territory to gather information about geological features and trade with natives

• Started out from the Missouri River led by Sacajawea of the Shoshone tribe as their guide

• Returned with elaborate records of geography/maps, Indian civilizations, plant & animal species, and a diary documenting their adventures

Burr Conspiracy (Reelection of Jefferson)

Essex Junto

• New England Federalists were still against the new territorial acquisition from the Louisiana Purchase as they believed the more new states joined the Union, the less power the Federalists in New England would retain

• A group of extremist Federalists in Massachusettes who conspired for New England to secede from the Union and form a separate Northern Confederacy that must include New York and New Jersey

• Alexander Hamilton in New York refused to support succession thus the Federalists turned to Hamilton’s political rival Vice President Aaron Burr (who did not have great relations with his own Republican party after causing the deadlock in the election of 1800)

• Burr accepted Federalist proposal to become the candidate for governor of New York in 1804 and possibly supported succession

• Hamilton accused Burr of treason and criticized his character which was published in the press and when Burr lost the New York election he blamed the defeat on Hamilton and challenged Hamilton to a duel to which Hamilton was mortally wounded and died

Embargo Act (1807)-

Background:

• US caught between conflict between Britain and France (Napoleonic Wars)

• Act passed by Thomas Jefferson responding to the impressment of American sailors and seizure of American ships by both British + French vessels

Provisions:

• Prohibited American ships from engaging in foreign trade cutting off all exports and imports to protect Americans from involvement in European conflicts

• Goal to pressure Britain and France into respecting American neutrality

Effects:

• Harmed US merchants, businesses, farmers, those industries that relied on foreign trade leading to economic depression

• Widespread smuggling and violations as many continued to trade with foreign nations

• Highly unpopular and many protested against it leading to its repeal

Results:

• The Embargo Act was replaced by the Non-Intercourse Act (1809) allowing foreign trade with all nations except Britain and France

End of the Slave Trade

Background

• British Abolition of Slave Trade Act (1807)- British Parliament made it illegal to engage in the transatlantic slave trade

• State of South Carolina had excessive demand for importing slaves

Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves (1808)-

• Promoted by Jefferson (opposed slavery) that declared no new slaves were permitted to be imported into the US

Effects

• Illegal smuggling of slaves continued to take place

• Only the international slave trade did not affect the internal trade of slaves between states that persisted

• Many US citizens continued to trade slaves with Cuba or Brazil rather than directly from Africa

War of 1812-

Causes:

• British impressment of American sailors

• British provided weapons to Native Americans attacking the Western frontier

Result:

• US developed a strong sense of nationalism —> less sectionalism

• Due to talks of succession at the Hartford Convention, Federalist Party came to an end

• War heroes like Andrew Jackson and William Henry Harrison would later become political leaders

War Hawks:

• A group of young Democrat-Republicans who mostly hailed from the frontier states (Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio)

• They were elected to the US Congress in 1810 and garnered influence in the House of Representatives led by Henry Clay, the speaker of the house and John C. Calhoun

• The War Hawks had an aggressive stance against Britain and advocated for war against Britain. Supported war to destroy American Indian resistance on the frontier, defend American honor as British humiliated the US and wanted to gain Canada.

• The War Hawks were able to get public support articles, speeches, and rallies that led to the United States declaring war on Great Britain in 1812.

Treaty of Ghent (1814)

• Following peace negotiations with Britain, neither country really “won” the war and it returned to the status quo before the war while addressing no grievances that caused the war

• War achieved none of its original aims lmao

Era of Good Feelings-

• A period of increased feelings of nationalism and unity in the United States following the War of 1812. American politics was characterized by a decrease in sectionalism/factions following the collapse of the Federalist Party which led to the end of the First Party System, a term for the two-party system in the U.S. during around 1796-1816 with the two major political parties dominating American politics: the Federalists and Democratic-Republicans. Instead, during the Era of Good Feelings, the U.S. national government was dominated by one party--the Democratic-Republican Party. 

• The Era of Good Feeling also saw economic prosperity with an economic plan called the American System that included infrastructure improvements such as roads and canals, the establishment of a National Bank, and implementation of protective tariffs. 

• President James Monroe attempted to eliminate political parties from national politics and bring national unity. This goal was reflected in his cabinet member nominations, which consisted of both northerners and southerners as well as former Federalists and Republicans. Additionally, soon after his inauguration, Monroe did a goodwill tour through the country. During this tour his visit to Boston saw demonstrations of loyalty from the New England Federalists and acceptance of the Republican government. 

Adams-Onis Treaty (1819)

Background:

• America annexed west Florida but some Americans wanted the entire peninsular so Adams began negotiations with Spanish minister Onis

• Seminole War- Andrew Jackson in command of American troops along Florida border invaded Florida and seized Spanish forts while hanging two British subjects

• Adams used this to tell the Spanish that the US has right under international law to defend itself against threats across its borders and the raid demonstrated Americans could easily take Florida—Otis left no choice but to agree to Americans’ terms

The Treaty:

• Spain ceded all of Florida to the US as well as its claim to the territory North of the 42nd parallel in the Pacific Northwest and Americans gave up claims to Texas in return

Henry Clay’s American System Plan:

• 1. Reestablishment of a National Bank

  • Clay wanted to establish a stable national currency by replacing the state-chartered banknotes. He also believed the national bank could serve as a reliable source of credit fostering economic growth with businesses and entrepreneurs. Finally, he saw the institution as a means to regulate and supervise state-chartered banks to prevent financial crises and ensure responsible banking practices

• 2. Protective Tariffs

  • Tariffs would protect America’s domestic industries from foreign competition by imposing import taxes on foreign goods thereby making them more expensive. This would also serve to generate revenue for the federal government for purposes like infrastructure improvements

• 3. Internal Improvements

  • Clay proposed investing funds into developing infrastructure like the construction of roads, canals, and other networks of transportation

Panic of 1819

Background

• Period of high demand for American farm goods (food shortage in Europe from Napoleonic Wars) and high prices for these crops leading to land boom in western US and land prices soared following speculative investments

• Under the land acts of 1800 and 1804 there was an availability of easy credit to settlers and speculators from the government, state banks, and wildcat banks, and even the Bank of the US

Causes

• In 1819 new management in the Bank of the US tightened credit to curb inflation, called in loans, and foreclosed mortgages causing failures by state banks

• Dramatic decline in cotton prices

• Closing of factories due to foreign competition

Result

• Six years of economic depression with mass unemployment, followed ending the Era of Good Feelings

• Mass protest with debtors advocating for stay laws to provide relief from debts and abolishment of imprisonment for debt

• Many blamed the panic on the Bank of the US and the tariffs

• Resulted in hostilities toward privileged corporations and monopolies and tensions within the Republican party with Northerners supporting higher tariffs and Southerners opposing nationalistic economic programs

Tallmadge Amendment (1819)-

• Missouri was trying to enter the Union as a state and Representative James Tallmadge of New York offered to make Missouri a non-slave state

• Tallmadge Amendment: Amendment to the Missouri statehood bill that prohibits further introduction of new slaves and the gradual emancipation of slaves with African Americans born there being free.

• Begged the question of whether slavery should be allowed into the western territories and exist in the future as some advocated for the gradual emancipation of slaves, some wanted mass emancipation, some believed slavery should be kept in certain states

Missouri Compromise (1820)-

Background

• Tensions over the Tallmadge Amendment

• Previously states were admitted to keep a balance in Congress—eleven free and slave states

• The admission of Missouri as a free state upset the balance between free and slave states in Congress then Maine also applied to be admitted as a free state

Missouri Compromise

• Proposed by Henry Clay Missouri was admitted as a slave state and Maine as a free state

• Thomas Amendment drew a line at the 36 30’ parallel at the southern border of Missouri with slavery prohibited in states north of the line

• Revealed the strong sectionalism over the issue of slavery

Monroe Doctrine (1823)

Background (Latin America Revolution)-

• US had developed strong trading relations with Latin America rivaling that of Great Britain as the principal trading nation

• Many Americans supported the anti-Spanish revolutions believing they would strengthen America’s position in the Western Hemisphere

• US proclaimed neutrality (1815) in the war between Spain and its colonies—partially recognize the rebelling colonies as nations

• US also sold ships and supplies to the rebelling colonies—helping the colonies

• In 1822 Monroe established diplomatic relations with five new nations in Latin America (Mexico, Chile, Peru, Colombia, La Plata/Argentine)

Monroe Doctrine

• 1823 Monroe announced a policy that the American continents would not be subjects for future colonization by European powers just as Americans will not interfere with the internal affairs of European powers

Impact

• Immediate—expression of the growing spirit of nationalism in the US and established the US as the dominant power/policing power in the Western Hemisphere

• Precedent for isolationist policies

• Although initially used to justify protection of Latin American sovereignty later used to justify US invasions and military interventions

Age of (Andrew) Jackson (1828-1830s)

General Information:

• Andrew Jackson was known as the president of the “common man” who was a champion of democracy and the values of egalitarianism + anti-elitism—offering equality to all white, male citizens without class or regional favoritism

• Assault on eastern aristocracy (wealthier, elite class) and tried to extend opportunities to the rising classes of the West and South

• Commitment to the subjugation of African Americans and Indians (as well as women) because they believed that these dangerous elements should be kept from the body politic to preserve a white-male democracy

Spoils System

• Spoils System: Practice of elected officials appointing their own supporters to public office—used by Jackson

• Question: What is Jackson best known for? Establishment of merit

• Jackson believed government jobs should be open to a wide range of citizens not just the elites and a spoils system promoted more participatory democracy by allowing common citizens to serve in government positions

• Jackson removed many federal officeholders under the justification of corruption/misuse of government funds

• Jackson’s supporters transformed the process by which presidential candidates won their party’s nomination—disliked the congressional caucus which they believed favored the elites

• Jackson’s supporters staged a national party convention to renominate him for presidency which they thought was a triumph for democracy at the time since the power raised from the people not aristocratic political institutions like the caucus—later considered a source of corruption and political exclusivity

• Spoils system and political convention did limit the power of two entrenched elites—permanent officeholders and the exclusive party caucus yet still did not transfer power to the people but instead to the prominent political allies of the president

Webster-Hayne Debate (1830)- States’ Rights vs National Power

Background-Nullification issues:

• John C. Calhoun created the theory of nullification—the states, not the courts or Congress, would make the final decision regarding the constitutionality of federal laws

• If state believed Congress had passed an unconstitutional law, it could hold a convention to declare the law null and void in the state

• Many Southern states wanted to use this power to nullify the 1828 tariff

The Debate:

• A debate in the Senate over the issue of nullification

• A senator from Connecticut suggested that all land sales and surveys in the west would be temporarily discontinued to slow the spread however

• Robert Y. Hayne, senator from South Carolina, in hopes of attracting support for South Carolina’s goal to lower the tariff of 1828, argued that slowing down the growth of the West was a way for the East to retain power and the South & West were victims of the tyranny of the Northeast

• Daniel Webster, a senator from Massachusetts and a Whig challenged Hayne to a debate not just on the issue of public lands and the tariff but the issue of states’ rights vs national power

• Hayne defended the theory of nullification while Webster responded with his famous “Second Reply to Hayne”

• At the annual Democratic Party banquet, Jackson revealed his thoughts on the issue with a toast—that the federal union must be preserved

Nufficiation Crisis (1832)

Background- Tariff of 1828 (Tariff of Abominations)

• Congress passed the Tariff of 1828 and 1832 which taxed imported manufactures to protect domestic manufacturing industries—supported the Northern manufacturing industries but disadvantaged the Southerners who relied on imports

• South Carolina legislation summoned a state convention and voted to nulify the tariffs of 1828 and 1832 + elected Hayne as governor and Calhoun as senator

• Jackson insisted nullification was treason and proposed the Force Bill (1833) which allowed the president to use military force on South Carolina to ensure acts of Congress were obeyed

• No states had come to South Carolina’s defense and even the state itself was divided

• Henry Clay proposed the Compromise Tariff of 1833 that gradually lowered the tariff

• Both the Force Bill and the compromise was signed—South Carolina state legislature repealed the Nullification Act

Impact:

• Showed that no state could defy the federal government alone and federal laws trumped state laws

Indian Removal:

• Black Hawk War- White settlers in Illinois vs Alliance between Sauk and Fox Indians led by Black Hawk; Indians retreated across the Mississipi into Iowa and White troops pursued and killed most of them

• Five Civilized Agrarian Tribes of the South- The Five Civilized Trives living in the Southern states (Cherokee, Creek, Seminole, Chicksaw, and Choctaw) had established settled agriculture societies and adopted American/European ways of life in place of traditional practces

  • Cherokees had written language, formal Constitution creating the independent Cherokee Nation

  • Some white settlers argued Cherokees should be allowed to retain their lands since pressure from missionaries + government agents cause them to give up traditional ways—farming instead of hunting-gathering, men taking over agriculture and women doing domestic tasks

• Federal government negotiate treaties with souther Indians to move them westward but white settlers thought this process was too slow —> state legislatures passed laws to regulate tribes in their state

• Congress passed Indian Removal Act (1830)-

  • Authorized and appropriated money to finance federal government negotiations with the Southern tribes to relocate them westward to lands West of the Mississippi River

• Most tribes under state + federal pressure ceded their lands to white settlers, but Cherokees in Georgia tried to resist white encroachment

• Worcester v. Georgia (1832)

  • Cherokees appealed to Supreme Court about the sovereignty of the Cherokee Nation that was protected under the federal government that Georgia could not enroach upon

  • Supreme Court and John Marshall ruled in favor of the Cherokee Nation as they were a sovereign nation and Georgia violated federal treaties—federal government responsible for regulating relations with Natives

  • Jackson opposed this decision John Marshall has made his decision; now let him enforce it." and this decision was not enforced

• In 1835 federal government extracted a treaty from a minority faction of Cherokees (not chosen representatives) and ceded the tribe’s lands to Georgia for $5 million and a reservation West of the Mississippi—vast majority of Cherokees did not recognize the legitimacy of the treaty but Jackson forced them to move westward by sending an army

Trail of Tears (1838)

• Cherokees forced to move into Indian Territory in Oklahoma in the winter—thouands of Indians died along the way before reaching the reservations

Jackson and the Bank War

Background:

• Jackson opposed concentrated power in the federal government or aristocratic institutions—Bank of the US

• Role of the National Bank: Only place where federal government could deposit funds; Provided credit for growing enterprises, issued bank notes as a medium of exchange throughout the country

• Nicholas Biddle- President of the Bank from 1823 worked to put the institution on a sound and prosperous basis by stabilizing investments, regulating money supply, and protecting government deposits

Opposition to the Bank

• Two groups—soft-money & hard-money factions

• Soft-money faction:

  • Wanted more currency in circulation and believed issuing bank notes unsupported by gold and silver was the best way to circulate more currency

  • Made up of state bankers and their allies

  • Bank of the US restrained state banks from issuing notes freely

  • Valued rapid economic growth and speculation

• Hard-money faction:

  • Believed gold and silver were the only basis for money

  • Condemned all banks that issued bank notes

  • Wanted older ideas of public virtue

  • Supported by Andrew Jackson

• Jackson made it clear he would not renew the charter of the Bank of the US set to expire in 1836

Biddle’s Plan

• Nicholas Biddle granted financial favors to influential men he thought might help him preserve the Bank esp. Daniel Webster (Nullification Crisis) who was named the Bank’s legal counsel and director of the Boston branch

• Webster helped Biddle win the support of other prominent figures like Henry Clay

• Biddle applied to Congress in 1832 for a Recharter Bill to renew the bank’s charter (Why 1832? It was around the time of the national election allowing the Bank to become a major voting issue)

• Congress passed the recharter bill but Jackson vetoed it and Congress failed to override the veto—Bank becomes major issue in the elections

• Henry Clay ran for president for the National Republicans but Bank War was insufficient to help him win and Jackson ended up winning by large majority—Bank was not renewed

Demise of the National Bank:

• Jackson worked to weaken the National Bank by removing the government’s deposits—Jackson hired secretary of treasuring to place federal funds in state banks called “pet banks”

• Pet Banks: the name of the state banks that received deposits of federal money

• The removal of federal deposits in 1833, resulting not only in a reduction in the Bank’s size but also in its ability to influence the nation’s currency and credit.

• In April 1834, the House of Representatives voted against rechartering the Bank and confirmed that federal deposits should remain in state banks. These developments, coupled with Jackson’s determination to do away with the Bank and the widespread defeat of the pro-Bank Whig Party in the 1834 congressional elections, sealed the Bank’s fate.

• Species Circular (1836)- Before leaving office Jackson issued an executive order that required all payments for purchase of public lands be made in species meaning gold or silver coins rather than paper money/bank notes

  • Aimed to stabilize financial system and protecting federal revenues by requiring hard currency for land purchases and ensure government received real value for its land also curbing high inflation and land specultion in the West

  • Led to a reduction in the use of paper money and increased demand for specie which was in short supply, it led to Bank failures, reduction of credit, increased unemployment which contributed to the economic depression called the Panic of 1837

Panic of 1837

Background:

• Following the election of 1836 and Democratic candidate Van Buren was elected as President during the time he was elected the US was experiencing a nationwide economic boom

• Around this time government sold millions of acre of public land along with revenues from the tariff of 1833 created substantial federal budget surpluses and reduction of national debt

• In deciding what to do with the surplus passed the Distribution Act to return the surplus to the states as loans that did not to be repaid—states quickly spent the loans

• Jackson issued the Specie Circular before leaving office requiring public lands to be paid in gold or silver

Contributors of the problem:

• Europeans faced economic depressions of their own causing European investors to withdraw funds from America

• Crop failures on American farms reduced purchasing power of farmers and required imports of food

• Democratic government in control did little to fight the depression

Events:

• Hundreds of banks and businesses failed

• Rising unemployment

• Prices fell including land

• Railroad and canal projects failed

• Debt-burdened state governments ceased to pay interest on their bonds and some repudiated their debts

Webster-Ashburton Treaty (1842)

• The Webster-Ashburton Treaty was a diplomatic agreement between the United States and Great Britain, signed on August 9, 1842. It was negotiated by U.S. Secretary of State Daniel Webster aThe central legal question was whether the state of New York could grant a monopoly to a steamship operator, thereby interfering with the authority of Congress to regulate interstate commerce, as outlined in the Commerce Clause of the Constitution.

  In a unanimous decision, Chief Justice John Marshall ruled in favor of Gibbons, asserting that the power to regulate interstate commerce was a federal power and that it belonged exclusively to Congress. Marshall's opinion emphasized a broad interpretation of the Commerce Clause, stating that Congress had the authority to regulate not only the buying and selling of goods but also the transportation of those goods across state lines.

  The ruling in Gibbons v. Ogden was significant in several ways:

  1. Supremacy of Federal Authority: The case affirmed the supremacy of federal law over state law in matters of interstate commerce, reinforcing the idea that the federal government had the ultimate authority to regulate commerce that crossed state lines.

  2. Expansive Definition of Commerce: Chief Justice Marshall's opinion broadened the understanding of what constituted commerce, extending it beyond mere buying and selling to include commercial activities such as transportation and navigation.

  3. Precedent for Federal Regulation: The decision set a precedent for future cases involving the regulation of interstate commerce, establishing the principle that Congress had the power to regulate activities that affected multiple states.nd Alexander Baring, 1st Baron Ashburton, who represented the British government.

• The treaty addressed several long-standing issues between the two nations, particularly those related to the border between the United States and British North American colonies (now Canada). One of the key provisions of the treaty settled the border dispute between Maine and the Canadian provinces, defining the boundary more accurately. This resolved tensions that had arisen from competing land claims and potential conflicts in the region.

  Another important aspect of the Webster-Ashburton Treaty was the agreement to suppress the transatlantic slave trade. Both the United States and Britain committed to increased efforts to patrol and interdict slave ships off the coast of Africa. The treaty helped to foster cooperation between the two nations in combating the illegal slave trade.

• The Webster-Ashburton Treaty is often seen as a successful diplomatic effort to avoid conflict and improve relations between the United States and Great Britain. It helped pave the way for a more stable relationship between the two nations in the mid-19th century.

Birth of the Whig Party

• Began the Second Party System

• In the campaign of 1840 the Whigs presented themselves as a party of the common people like the Democrats selecting candidate William Henry Harrison a celebrated war hero and using mass voter appeal making their candidate a wealthy member of the elite as a simple man while they portrayed the opposing Van Buren as an aloof aristocrat

Industrial Revolution

Inventors and Technology

• Samuel Slater Father of the American Industrial Revolution

  • Slater emigrated from England and brought textile manufacturing to the US by replicating designs of British textile machinery

  • Created a spinning mill that became the first modern factory in America(?)

• Cyrus McCormick

  • Invented the Mechanical Reaper that could effectively harvest grain making harvesting more efficient and less labor-intensive significantly increasing crop yields

• John Deere

  • Invented the Steel Plow that was more durable and effective in breaking up the tough soil in the Midwest led to expansion of agriculture in the US and increased yields

• These agricultural innovations/mechanization enabled greater agricultural surplus which spurred industrialization and urbanization as more workers could work jobs outside of farming in factories in the city

Industry and Factory Systems

• Eli Whitney’s Interchangeable Parts:

  • Initially created for the manufacturing of guns rather than producing one whole product, makes parts that can be put together into a whole product and easily replace parts that are broken

  • Revolutionized manufacturing allowed for mass production in factories, the hiring of unskilled workers and reduction of labor costs

• Lowell System

  • A labor system relying heavily on young unmarried women to work in textile mills but unlike the inhumane conditions in England, the workers lived in boardinghouses and dormitories being well-fed and supervised

  • Since many New Englanders considered the employment of women immoral—factory owners provided proper conditions for their employees with strict curfews & church attendance and generous wages

Changes to the Southern Economy

Southern Cotton Industry in the Antebellum Era

• Cotton was the primary cash crop of the Southern economy during this time period and cotton production rose exponentially following the creation of the cotton gin, further expanding cotton plantations and the need for slave labor as well as increasing the influence of Southern states due to their economic contributions

Eli Whitney’s Cotton Gin

Background: Short-staple cotton

• A major cash crop grown in Southern states that shaped their economy and society with the need for slave labor

• Traditionally short-staple cotton was difficult and labor-intensive to harvest as it had brought seeds that would take hours to get out by hand unlike long-staple cotton that grew along the coast

• Following Eli Whitney’s creation of the cotton gin to make the process of removing seeds from short-staple cotton easier drastically increased cotton production allowed short staple cotton to become a major cash crop

Impacts of the Cotton Gin

• Invented by Eli Whitney in 1793 it automated the time-consuming process of separating cotton fibers from the seeds

• This greatly increased the efficiency of cotton production and drastically increased cotton production and altered the Southern economy to rely on cotton —> increasing the demand for slave labor which would later contribute to the tensions between Northern and Southern states leading to the Civil War

Transportation Improvements

Canal System

• The Erie Canal connected New York City’s Hudson River to the Great Lakes and cities in the West like Chicago, turning New York City into a major port much like New Orleans

• Increased white settlement in the Northwest as canals made it easier for migrants to make the westward journey and ship goods to eastern markets

• Allowed for reduced transportation costs, more efficient transportation, and boosted trade + economic growth

• Canals also led to the development of cities and towns along their routes and the building of canals opened up job opportunities, especially for immigrants

• Question: What canals helped with- market economy and migration,

• Question: What simultaneous development made migration possible? US industrialization, agriculture being mechanized so people able to move west(?)

Steamboats

• By the 1820s steamboats were used to carry the crops (wheat, corn) of northwestern farmers and the cash crops (cotton, tobacco) of southwestern farmers to New Orleans where they are loaded onto ships to send to eastern ports in much quicker time than previously

• Steamboats were able to travel upstream rather than just downstream

• Stimulated agricultural economy of the Wrt and Douth providing readier access to markets at reduced costs

Railroads

• Railroads allowed for efficient transportation of goods and people over long distances and opened up new markets as well as strengthened connections + and trade relations between different areas connected by railroad

• Towns and cities often popped up and/or experienced population booms along railroad routes

• The building of railroads like the Continental Railroad opened up job opportunities for immigrants and allowed for easy westward migration

• Railroads triumphed over canals

Immigration

1st Wave (1820s-1840s)

• Immigrants from various nations in Europe especially the Germans and Irish came to America

• Germans migrated due to economic dislocations and a failed liberal (democratic) revolution that caused many Germans to migrate to America seeking democracy

• Irish moved because of the oppressiveness of English rule but more importantly, the potato famine that led to millions dying of starvation and disease

• Irish vs. German Immigrants

  • Location: Irish- eastern cities; Germans- Northwest

  • Occupation: Irish- Unskilled workers (most immigrants had little money); Germans- Farmers or businessmen (most had some wealth)

  • Gender: Irish- young, single women likely to stay in Eastern cities; Germans- members of family groups or single men, more likely to move to the agricultural frontier

Cult of Domesticity

Background

• Following the Industrial Revolution rise of class distinctions with a rising middle-class

• Traditionally women and men had sharp distinctions in their social roles and “spheres” with women being dined many legal and political rights as well as job opportunities

• With middle-income families, many women had the ability to purely tend to the home and not earn income

Cult of Domesticity

• A set of ideals that defined women’s roles in society emphasizing “domestic virtues” and the growing importance of their role as mothers/nurturers and as wives—companions and helpers to their husbands rather than workers

• Piety- devotion to religion and Christian values and morals

• Purity- Chastity

• Submission- Obedient to their husbands and male authority

• Domesticity- The house was seen as the woman’s sphere with her primary responsibilities revolving around keeping a clean and comfortable home, nurturing children

Reform Movements

Background:

• In the 1830s America saw a rise in societal reform movements over a range of issues like education, women’s rights, care of the mentally ill, treatment of criminals, temperance, etc.

• This was caused by the optimism of those like the transcendentalists who rejected Calvinist teachings of predestination and embraced Unitarianism and Universalism with European romanticism

• Protestant revivalism caused by the Second Great Awakening evolved into a force of social reform

Temperance Movement

• Believed that excessive alcohol consumption was a social vice that was a widespread issue—sought to either have state legislature restrict the sale and consumption of alcohol or promote individual abstinence for moral reasons

• Neal Dow- Mayor of Portland who founded the Maine Temperance Union & advocated for the Maine Law of 1851 that was passed which prohibited the manufacturing, trade, and use of alcohol in the state of Maine and set a precedent for other states to pass similar laws—he late ran for President as part of the Prohibition Party

Education Reform

• Efforts to produce a system of universal public education

• Horace Mann- First secretary of the Massachusetts Board of Education established in 1837 and he believed education was the only way to protect democracy thus he reorganized the Massachusetts school system by lengthening the academic year, doubling teacher salaries, enriching the curriculum, and introducing professional training for teachers

Prison Reform

• Creation of asylums and penitentiaries and mental institutions to provide a proper environment for criminals and the mentally ill to encourage rehabilitation through strict discipline to remove the laxness they had accumulated

• Dorothea Dix- Advocate for reform/change in how people viewed the mentally ill not as criminals but as people who could be helped and she pushed for the establishment of numerous hospitals/asylums for the treatment of the mentally ill

Utopian Communities (Brook Farm & Oneida Community)

Brook Farm-

• Based in the beliefs of transcendentalism an experimental community founded by George Ripley and located in Massachusetts where residents would equally share labor as well as leisure, participating in manual labor to bridge the gap between intellect & learning with instinct & nature.

• Tensions between the ideal of individual freedom and the demands of the communal society caused individuals to leave along with financial issues resulting from the central building being burned down causing the experiment to be dissolved

Oneida Community

• Redefined sexuality and gender roles by rejecting traditional notions of family and marriage declaring everyone in the community married to one another with no permanent ties. Children were raised by the community who believed women were liberated from the demands of male lust and traditional bonds of family

Women’s Rights

Background:

• Spheres of domesticity associated with the rising middle class defined men and women as having different roles and spheres with women responsible for taking care of the husband, child, and the home

• Many women wanted to support the abolitionist movement by speaking out however could not do so due to restrictions placed on them, thus, began fighting for women’s rights so they can speak and vote on issues

• Majority of women’s rights activists were Quakers who had been raised with gender equality

Important Figures:

• Grimke Sisters-

  • Outspoken abolitionists from South Carolina who ignored attacks by men claiming their activities/speaking out was incompatible with their role as women

  • Argued men and women are born equal with the same morality

• Elizabeth Cady Stanton-

  • Turned away at the world antislavery convention in London

  • Stanton and other female delegates decided their first duty as reformers should be to elevate the status of women

  • Held the first women’s rights convention in Seneca Falls and created the Declaration of Sentiments mirroring the Declaration of Independence stating all men AND WOMEN are created equal with inalienable rights

• Seneca Falls Convention (1848)

  • A women’s rights convention discussing grievances and the creation of the Declaration of Sentiments arguing that the Constitution should give women the same rights as men including the right to vote as well as rejecting the idea that men and women are assigned separate spheres in society

• Lucretia Coffin Mott

  • Women’s rights activist and abolitionist attending the world antislavery convention in England where she met Elizabeth Cady Stanton and together they decided to work towards elevating the status of women and helped organize the Seneca Falls convention

Southern Slavery vs Anti-Slavery Movement

Southern Defense of Slavery

Slave Codes:

• A set of rules based on the idea that slaves were property, not people thus each state created laws to protect this “property” as well as the property owner from the danger of slave violence—precedents to the Black codes later on in the mid-19th century

• The possibility of slave uprisings like the one in Haiti was a constant concern of the slave owners

Necessary Evil of Slavery

• Traditionally, slaveowners and supporters of slavery argued that it was necessary to the Southern economy since plantation-based agriculture relied heavily on slave labor even though it was immoral

• Some suggested the idea of gradual emancipation to prevent economic instability

Positive Good

• People like John C. Calhoun began to assert that slavery was a positive good for the enslaved and the South

• Argued that African Americans were racially inferior to white people

• Cited false studies of scientific racism that considered black and white people to be of different species

• Argued slavery crucial for preserving the hierarchy of the South that provided harmony and stability

• Believed slaveowners were benevolent caretakers for slaves who provided for their protection and needs

John C. Calhoun-

• United the South against the abolitionist criticism of slavery

• Advocated for the concept of positive good as he wrote the document “Slavery a Positive Good” that rather than being a necessary evil, slavery was a good that benefitted slaves and slaveowners

• Rejected Oregon and California as free states

Abolitionists

• William Lloyd Garrison-

  • Leader of the anti-slavery movement published the leading antislavery newspaper Genius of Universal Emancipation and later founded his own weekly newspaper the Liberator

  • Philosophy was to look at slavery from the perspective of the black people rather than the white people—discuss the harms to Africans rather than the evil influence of slavery on white society

  • Reject gradualism but demand immediate universal abolition

  • Attracted a large group of followers that formed the Anti-Slavery Society in 1832 that opened various chapters and over 250,000 members

• Sojourner Truth-

  • A former slave who was both an abolitionist who traveled across the nation to give speeches about her personal experiences with slavery and a women’s rights advocate with her famous speech “Ain’t I a Woman?”

  • Helped organize efforts to assist fugitive slaves in escaping to free territory in the North or Canada

  • Successfully sued a slaveowner to reclaim her son who had been illegally sold into slavery after the New York Anti-Slavery Law of 1827

• Elijah Lovejoy-

  • American newspaper editor for the Saint Louis Observer and abolitionist who lived in Missouri, a slave state. He used the newspaper to express his anti-slavery views and after facing opposition and being forced to move across the Mississippi to Illinois, he established another newspaper called the Saint Louis Times to continue advocating for abolitionism. He faced numerous attacks from pro-slavery mobs and was eventually killed by a mob, his dedication inspired other abolitionists

• Frederick Douglass-

  • Born as a slave, he escaped to freedom by learning to read on his own. He published a book called The Na

Anti-Slavery Society (1832)

• Formed by a large group of followers of the abolitionist leader William Lloyd Garrison that grew to hundreds of chapters and more than 250,000 members

• Dedicated to the immediate and unconditional emancipation of all enslaved African Americans with the granting of equal rights (Garrison’s philosophy)

• Wrote literature like newspapers and pamphlets to raise awareness of the evils of slavery and organized events like lectures and debates to spread its message

• Prominent women abolitionists like the Grimke sisters were involved in the organization

• One of the earliest organized efforts for the abolition of slavery that inspired future abolitionist groups and leaders

Liberty Party (1840)

• An antislavery Party formed by a group of abolitionists who campaigned for “free soil” or keeping slavery out of the Louisiana territories not outright abolition—allowed them to attract the support of large numbers of the white population in the North

• Believe Garrison’s moral arguments less effective than taking action through political action

• Participated in elections of 1840 and 1844 with candidate James G. Birney with little success

• Although it was short-lived, it set a precedent for future anti-slavery political parties/efforts like the Free Soil Party and later the Republican Party

  Macon’s Bill

What are the nature of the five civilized tribes? -Took in religion Christianity, -Economically stable farming (European Agriculture), -Democratic

Map migration canals

Relationship between old northwest in the mid 1800s and the west -interdependence (canals)

-Canals connected the nation economically

-Maps Lowell system and mills - talking about factory system

-Pressing issue that made the Louisiana purchase -Access to the ports of New Orleans

-Period 3 Part 2 Questions: -Which group should say America wealthy group and enlightenment A: Federalists