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APUSH Exam Prep

Period 1 & 2: 1492 - 1754

  • English, Spanish, & French colonization methods differed based on their goals.
    • encomienda system: Spanish labor system rewarding conquerors with the labor of particular groups of subject people.
    • mestizos: Individuals of mixed Spanish and Indigenous descent.
    • Black Legend/De las Casas: Anti-Spanish historical propaganda.
    • God, Gold, Glory: Primary motivations for exploration and colonization.
    • Jesuits, Huron: Religious order and Indigenous people in New France.
  • Mayflower Compact: Agreement for self-government in Plymouth Colony.
  • Joint stock company: A business venture where shares are sold to raise capital for expeditions and settlements.
  • Tobacco: Cash crop that saved the Jamestown colony.
    • John Rolfe: Credited with the first successful cultivation of tobacco as an export crop in the Colony of Virginia.
  • John Winthrop: Puritan leader and governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony; envisioned a "city upon a hill."
  • Headright System: Land grant program used to attract settlers, offering land to those who paid for their passage and indentured servants.

Theme/Trend

  • Colonists developed distinct political, economic, social interests & identities during Salutary Neglect.

    • Salutary Neglect: British policy of avoiding strict enforcement of parliamentary laws, meant to keep the American colonies obedient to England.
    • Virginia House of Burgesses: First legislative assembly in the American colonies.
    • Mayflower Compact: Agreement for self-government in Plymouth Colony.
    • Fundamental Orders of Connecticut: First written constitution in America.
    • Halfway Covenant: Partial church membership for children/grandchildren of full members.
    • Navigation Acts: Laws restricting colonial trade to benefit England.
    • Great Awakening: Religious revival in the 1730s and 1740s.
    • Act of Toleration (Maryland): Law mandating religious tolerance for Trinitarian Christians.
    • Quakers: Religious group known for their belief in equality and pacifism.

  • Colonial period marked by tension between conflicting social, religious & ethnic groups.

    • Squanto & Thanksgiving: Native American who helped the Pilgrims survive; celebration of harvest.
    • Anglo-Powhatan Wars: Conflicts between English settlers and Powhatan Confederacy.
    • Pope’s Rebellion: Pueblo revolt against Spanish colonizers in 1680.
    • Beaver Wars: Conflicts among Native American tribes for control of the fur trade.
    • William Penn: Quaker founder of Pennsylvania.
    • Bacon’s Rebellion: Uprising of Virginia settlers against the governor due to lack of protection from Native American attacks.
    • Puritan’s religious intolerance: Persecution of those with differing religious beliefs.
    • Anne Hutchinson: Puritan dissenter who challenged religious doctrine.
    • Roger Williams: Founder of Rhode Island, advocated for separation of church and state.
    • Great Awakening: Religious revival in the 1730s and 1740s.

Period 3: 1754 - 1800

  • Background & Causes of the American Revolution:
    • Economic, political & philosophical factors.
    • Enlightenment (Locke, Rousseau)
      • Republican government: System where power resides in elected individuals representing the citizens.
      • Consent of governed: Idea that government legitimacy comes from the people.
      • French and Indian War: (1754-1763).
      • Sugar Act, Stamp Act/Stamp Act Congress: Tax laws imposed by Britain; colonial protest.
      • Townshend Acts: Series of British acts of Parliament passed in 1767 and 1768, relating to the British colonies in North America
      • Quartering Act: Required colonists to house British soldiers.
      • Other taxes/laws: British policies that angered colonists.
      • Boston Massacre: British soldiers killed five colonists in 1770.
      • Coercive Acts/Intolerable Acts: British laws passed in response to the Boston Tea Party.
    • Common Sense (Thomas Paine): Pamphlet advocating for American independence.

Theme/Trend

  • Turning points during the Revolution & Reasons for American victory:
    • Declaration of Independence: Formal statement declaring the colonies independent from Britain; articulated new purpose of war.
    • Battle of Saratoga: American victory that led to French alliance.
    • Franco-American alliance: Critical support from France.
    • Battle of Yorktown: Last major battle of the war; Cornwallis surrendered.
  • Development of the new Government:
    • Compromises and Challenges:
      • Shays’ Rebellion: Uprising of farmers protesting economic conditions.
      • Constitutional Compromises: Agreements on representation, slavery, etc.
      • Federalist Papers: Essays supporting the Constitution.
      • Hamilton’s Financial Plans: Policies to stabilize the American economy, including the establishment of a national bank.
      • Whiskey Rebellion: Protest against a tax on whiskey.
      • Franco-American alliance causes conflict with Jay’s Treaty: Diplomatic treaty between the US and Great Britain that averted war, resolved issues remaining since the Treaty of Paris of 1783.
      • XYZ Affair: Diplomatic incident involving French officials requesting bribes.
      • Alien and Sedition Acts: Laws targeting Anti-Federalists.
      • Virginia/Kentucky resolutions: Asserted state’s rights in response to the Alien and Sedition Acts.

Period 4: 1800 - 1848

  • Debates over the proper role of government - Jefferson through Jackson:
    • Marshall Court: Supreme Court under Chief Justice John Marshall; established judicial review.
    • Louisiana Purchase: Acquisition of territory from France in 1803.
    • Embargo Act: Law prohibiting American ships from trading in foreign ports.
    • American System: Policies promoting economic development, included debates over infrastructure.
    • Jackson’s veto of the bank recharter: Opposition to the national bank.
    • Force Act: Authorized President Jackson to use military force to enforce federal laws.
    • Nullification Crisis: South Carolina’s attempt to nullify federal tariffs.
    • Presidential use of veto: Jackson’s use of presidential power.

Theme/Trend

  • The development of Sectional Identities [including the Market Revolution]:
    • Cotton Gin (Eli Whitney): Led to southern reliance on slavery.
    • Interchangeable parts: Revolutionized manufacturing assembly, making production faster, cheaper, and more reliable.
    • Steam ships (Robert Fulton): Improved transportation.
    • Completion of the Erie Canal: Facilitated trade and transportation.
    • Lowell factories (Samuel Slater): Early industrial factories.
    • Embargo Act: Restrictions on US trade that impacted various regions.
    • Bread Basket in the midwest: Region known for grain production.
    • Yeomen in the South: Independent farmers.
    • Cumberland Road: Early federal infrastructure project.
  • The Age of Reform (1830s & 1840s):
    • 2nd Great Awakening: Religious revival.
    • Elizabeth Cady Stanton: Women's rights advocate.
    • Seneca Falls Convention: First women's rights convention.
    • Frederick Douglass: Abolitionist and writer.
    • Neal Dow: Prohibition advocate.
    • Dorothea Dix: Advocate for the mentally ill.
    • Horace Mann: Advocate for public education.
    • Ralph Waldo Emerson: Transcendentalist writer.
    • Henry David Thoreau: Transcendentalist writer.
    • Oneida Community, Brook Farm: Utopian communities.

Period 5: 1844 - 1877

  • Manifest Destiny & Territorial Expansion:
    • Spot Resolution: Lincoln questioned Polk's justification for war with Mexico.
    • Webster-Ashburton Treaty: Established Maine border.
    • Oregon Treaty/49th Parallel: Established US-Canada border.
    • Free Soil Party: Opposed slavery expansion.
    • Ostend Manifesto: Attempt to acquire Cuba.
    • Mexican American War → Mexican Cession/Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo: US gained territory from Mexico.
    • Gadsden Purchase: Acquisition of additional territory from Mexico.

Theme/Trend

  • Failure of Compromise & the Causes of the Civil War:
    • Wilmot Proviso: Proposed ban on slavery in territory gained from war.
    • Compromise of 1850: Series of laws addressing slavery issues.
    • Fugitive Slave Law: Required the return of runaway slaves.
    • Dred Scott decision: Supreme Court decision denying citizenship to slaves.
    • Kansas-Nebraska Act: Allowed popular sovereignty to decide slavery issue.
    • Stephen Douglas: Politician associated with popular sovereignty.
    • Bleeding Kansas: Violence over slavery in Kansas.
    • Uncle Tom’s Cabin: Anti-slavery novel.
    • John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry: Attempt to incite slave rebellion.
    • Rep. Brooks beats Senator Sumner: Violence in Congress over slavery.
    • South Carolina secedes: First state to secede from the Union.
  • Civil War & Reconstruction:
    • Antietam: Civil War battle; led to Emancipation Proclamation.
    • Emancipation Proclamation: Declared slaves free in Confederate territories.
    • Gettysburg Address: Lincoln's speech dedicating the Gettysburg battlefield.
    • Fall of Atlanta, Sherman’s march: Union victories.
    • Appomattox: Site of Confederate surrender.
    • Freedmen's Bureau: Agency to assist former slaves.
    • Black Codes: Laws restricting African American rights.
    • 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments: Abolished slavery, granted citizenship and suffrage.
    • Carpetbaggers (N), Scalawags (S), redeemers: Groups involved in Reconstruction politics.
    • Thaddeus Stevens: Radical Republican leader.
    • 10% Plan: Lincoln’s Reconstruction plan.
    • Wade-Davis Bill: Radical Republican Reconstruction plan.

Period 6: 1865 - 1898

  • The development of the American Economy - Industry in the East & Agriculture in the West
    • Transcontinental railroad: Facilitated trade and settlement.
    • Pullman & Homestead steel strike: Labor conflicts.
    • Closed shop vs open shop: Labor practices regarding union membership.
    • AFL (Gompers), Knights of Labor, IWW: Labor unions.
    • Eugene Debs: Labor leader and socialist.
    • Chinese Exclusion Act: Prohibited Chinese immigration.

Theme/Trend

  • From the Gilded Age to the Progressive Era - Changes in government policy:
    • United Coal Workers’ Strike: Labor strike settled by TR.
    • Trust Busting: Government action against monopolies.
    • Sherman Antitrust Act: Law to promote competition.
    • Populist Party: Agrarian-based political movement.
    • Interstate Commerce Commission: Regulated railroads.
    • 3 C’s of TR’s Square Deal: Conservation, control of corporations, consumer protection.
    • Prohibition: Ban on alcohol.
    • Social Darwinism: Belief in survival of the fittest.
    • Hull House (Jane Addams): Settlement house providing social services.
  • America on the World Stage - Growth of Imperialism:
    • Occupation of Philippines: US control after Spanish-American War.
    • Annexation of Hawaii: US acquisition of Hawaii.
    • Sinking of USS Maine: Sparked Spanish-American War.
    • Theodore Roosevelt: Imperialist United States President.
    • Open Door Policy: Guaranteed equal trade access to China.
    • Yellow Journalism: Sensationalized news reporting.
    • USS Maine/Spanish American War: Conflict leading to US expansion.
    • Cuba: Platt Amendment: Limited Cuban sovereignty following the Spanish-American War.
    • Roosevelt Corollary: US asserted right to intervene in Latin America.
    • Anti-Imperialist League: Opposed US expansion.
    • Insular Cases: Determined rights of people in US territories.

Period 7: 1898 - 1945 [Part A]

  • Effects of WWI & WWII on Americans at home
    • Espionage and Sedition Acts: Limited free speech during wartime.
    • Schenck v. United States: Supreme Court case on free speech limits.
    • Harlem Renaissance: African American cultural movement.
    • Post-WWII migration to Sun Belt: Population shift to southern states.
    • Great Migration: Movement of African Americans to northern cities.
    • War Labor Board: Government agency regulating labor during wartime.
    • Fair Employment Practices Commission: Prevented discrimination in defense industries.
    • Korematsu vs US: Upheld Japanese internment.
    • Japanese Internment camps (E.O. 9066): Forced relocation of Japanese Americans.

Theme/Trend

  • To what extent was the US isolationist between WWI & WWII?
    • Reservationists + Irreconcilables: Opposed Treaty of Versailles.
    • Treaty of Versailles: Treaty ending WWI.
    • League of Nations: International organization; US did not join.
    • Great Depression: Economic crisis.
    • Neutrality Acts: Laws to avoid involvement in foreign wars.
    • London Economic Conference: International effort to address the Depression.
    • Destroyer Deal: US aid to Britain before WWII.
    • Munich Conference: Appeasement of Hitler.
    • Lend-Lease Bill: US provided aid to Allies.
    • Embargoes on Japanese exports: Economic pressure on Japan.
  • Clashes between Traditionalism & Modernism in the 1920s
    • Scopes Trial: 1925 trial over teaching evolution.
    • 18th prohibition Amendment with Volstead Act: Ban on alcohol.
    • Fundamentalists: Religious conservatives.
    • Margaret Sanger: Birth control advocate.
    • “Flapper,” “New Woman”: Challenged traditional gender roles.
    • Gertrude Stein, Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway = Lost Generation: Writers disillusioned after WWI.
    • Organized Crime Al Capone: Crime boss during Prohibition. Commercialism.

Period 7: 1898 - 1945 [Part B]

  • Causes & Immediate Effects of the Great Depression:
    • Hoovervilles: Shantytowns during the Depression.
    • Bonus army vs. Hoover: WWI veterans seeking early payments.
    • First Hundred Days Congress + 100 days: Period of intense legislative activity under FDR.
    • Bull Market: Period of rising stock prices.
    • Buying on margin: Purchasing stocks with borrowed money.
    • Overuse of credit: Contributed to economic instability.
    • Harding + Coolidge: Republican presidents of the 1920s.
    • Andrew Mellon: Secretary of the Treasury.
    • Hoover’s unsuccessful efforts:
      • Reconstruction Finance Corporation: Provided loans to businesses.
      • Hawley-Smoot Tariff: Increased tariffs, worsening the Depression.

Theme/Trend

  • FDR’s Response to the Depression and how it changed ideas of the proper scope of government:
    • Fireside Chats: FDR’s radio addresses.
    • First 100 Days: Period of intense legislative activity.
    • Court-packing, Judicial Reorganization Bill: FDR’s attempt to influence the Supreme Court.
    • FDR served 4 terms: unprecedented presidential tenure.
    • The New Deal: FDR’s programs to address the Depression.
      • Relief: CCC, FERA, TVA, WPA: Provided jobs and assistance.
      • Recovery: AAA, PWA: Aimed to stimulate the economy.
      • Reform: Social Security Act, National Labor Relations Act, CIO: Long-term changes.
  • Limits on Civil Liberties in the 20th century:
    • Gentleman’s Agreement: Informal agreement limiting Japanese immigration.
    • Executive Order 9066: Japanese internment.
    • Mandatory registration for the draft: Required military conscription.
    • Sacco Vanzetti Trial: Controversial trial of Italian immigrants.
    • Immigration Quota Act of 1921: Restricted immigration.
    • Immigration Act of 1924: Further restricted immigration.
    • Executive Order 8802: Prohibited racial discrimination in defense industries.

Period 8: 1945 - 1980

  • The Cold War led the US into conflicts both abroad and at home.
    • Berlin Blockade & Airlift: US response to Soviet blockade.
    • Iron Curtain: Symbolic division of Europe.
    • Truman Doctrine & Marshall Plan: US policies to contain communism.
    • Korean War: Conflict against North Korean aggression.
    • Vietnam War: Conflict against communist North Vietnam.
    • Rosenbergs, Hollywood 10, Hiss, Lavender Scare: Anti-communist activities.
    • Berlin Wall: Barrier separating East and West Berlin.
    • Bay of Pigs & Cuban Missile Crisis: Confrontations with Cuba.
    • JFK New Frontier, Space Race: Kennedy's policies and competition with the Soviet Union.

Theme/Trend

  • America made strides toward more equality but these changes were often met with resistance.
    • Jackie Robinson: Broke baseball's color barrier in 1947, becoming the first African American to play in Major League Baseball in the modern era.
    • Executive Order 8802: Prohibited racial discrimination in defense industries.
    • Emmett Till: Murder of a young African American boy.
    • Little Rock Nine: African American students who integrated a high school.
    • NAACP, SCLC, SNCC: Civil Rights organizations.
    • Montgomery Bus Boycotts: Protest against segregation on buses.
    • Birmingham Campaign: Civil Rights protests in Birmingham.
    • Greensboro Sit-Ins: Protests at segregated lunch counters.
    • Freedom Rides: Protests against segregation on interstate buses.
    • Freedom Summer: Voter registration drive in Mississippi.
    • Selma March: Civil Rights march in Alabama.
    • March on Washington: Demonstration for civil rights.
    • Civil Rights Act of 1964: outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.
    • Voting Rights Act of 1965.: prohibited racial discrimination in voting.
    • Malcolm X, Black Panthers: Civil Rights activists and organization.
    • Watts Riots: Urban unrest in Los Angeles.
    • Stonewall Riot: LGBT rights protest.
    • Alcatraz Occupation, Cesar Chavez, Dolores Huerta: Native American and Latino activism.
    • Harvey Milk: LGBT rights activist.
    • Trail of Broken Treaties: Native American protest march.
    • Roe v. Wade: Supreme Court case on abortion rights.
  • People started to challenge and distrust their government after WWII due to corruption and poor policies.
    • Vietnam: Tet Offensive, Daniel Ellsberg, My Lai Massacre, General Westmoreland, War Powers Resolution & Gulf of Tonkin Resolution: Events and policies during the Vietnam War.
    • Watergate: Plumbers, CREEP, Saturday Night Massacre, “I am not a crook”, resignation & pardon: Scandal involving President Nixon.
    • Carter: Stagflation, OPEC Embargo, Malaise Speech, 3 Mile Island & Love Canal: Challenges during Carter's presidency.

Period 9: 1980 - Present

  • Conservative economic and social policies made a resurgence in the 1980s.
    • “Trickle down economics”, Reaganomics, supply-side economics: Economic policies of the Reagan administration.
    • National debt increased with defense spending (Star Wars/SDI): Military initiatives during the Reagan administration.
    • Moral Majority: opposed Roe v. Wade; Jerry Falwell: Conservative political organization.
    • Bush “read my lips, no new taxes”: Broken campaign promise.
    • Defeat of ERA: Failure to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment.

Theme/Trend

  • American foreign and domestic policies were shaped by the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on 9/11.
    • Department of Homeland Security: Created to protect against terrorism.
    • USA PATRIOT Act: Law passed in response to 9/11.
    • Al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, Taliban: Terrorist groups.
    • ACLU: Civil liberties organization.
    • Axis of Evil & WMD: Terms used by President Bush to describe certain countries and weapons.