Download American History First Semester Vocabulary

American History ­ First Semester Vocabulary
Unit 1: Discovery and Settlement
Paleo­Indians
Migrated from Siberia across land bridge into the
Americas between 12,000 and 40,000 years ago.
They were nomadic hunters and gatherers who
followed large herds
reciprocal
impact
shared/mutual impact
(factors include religious, economic, social, food,
government, and exploration)
Mound
Builders
Prehistoric American cultures that began to farm
in the Ohio River Valley and built large earthen
mounds for ceremonial purposes and burial
sites. This included Adena, Hopewell, and
Mississippian cultures
Columbian
Exchange
The exchange of plants, animals, and diseases
between the Old War (Europe and Africa) and the
New World (the Americas) that began after
Columbus’s first voyage
Ancestral
Puebloans
Prehistoric Southwestern culture that built and
lived in pueblos and cliff dwellings in the present
day Four Corners area.
Iroquois
Confederacy
Confederation of five tribes; it is the oldest
participatory democracy on earth and inspired the
American colonists’ development of the U.S.
government
Prehistory
The time before any written records were kept
Christopher
Columbus
Italian explorer who reached the Americas in 1492
while searching for a western sea route from
Europe to Asia
Jacques
Marquette
French missionary who explored the Mississippi
River and spread Christianity to Native
Americans
Henry Hudson
English explorer who unsuccessfully searched for
a northern route to Asia; discovered the Hudson
Bay area
Hohokam
Prehistoric Southwestern culture that built large
and complex farming societies in present­day
Arizona. They developed advanced canal
systems to irrigate crops
Agricultural
Revolution
A change in way of life the occurred about 7,000
years ago, when hunter­gatherer societies began
to stay in one place and grow their own food
House of
Burgesses
America’s first law­making body, formed July
1619 by representatives from the different
communities in Virginia
Puritans
A group of English Protestants who left England
because of religious persecution. They
established the Massachusetts Bay Colony and
other colonies in New England in the early and
mid 1600’s
Jamestown
First successful British colony in the Americas.
Established in 1607 by John Smith
John Rolfe
English colonist who became the first tobacco
grower in Virginia when he brought the crop to
Jamestown. He helped make tobacco a profitable
export to England.
John
Winthrop
English colonist and puritan leader; he was the
first governor of the Massachusetts Bay colony
Ann
Hutchinson
Puritan leader who angered other Puritans by
claiming that people’s relationship with God did
not need guidance from ministers. She was
banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony,
and founded a colony in Rhode Island
Roger
Williams
Puritan who was banished from the
Massachusetts Bay Colony for preaching in favor
of separation of church and state. He later
established the colony of Providence in Rhode
Island
William Penn
Quaker leader who founded a colony in
Pennsylvania; the colony provided an important
example of self­government and became a model
for freedom and tolerance
John Smith
English colonist to the Americans who helped
found Jamestown Colony in 1607
indentured
servant
hired to work under contract for a certain number
of years in exchange for food, shelter, and the
journey to America
French and
Indian War
War fought between France and Britain/British
colonists over territorial claims in North America.
The French were defeated, but the war created
tensions between the British and their colonists
Roanoke
First attempt by the British to colonize the
Americas. The attempt failed when colonists
mysteriously vanished
Unit 2: Founding of a Nation
Sugar Act
Law passed by Parliament in 1764 that placed an
indirect tax on molasses imported the colonies.
Colonists, angered by the tax, argued “no taxation
without representation”
Stamp Act
Law passed by Parliament that required
colonists to pay taxes on paper items
(newspapers, licenses, legal documents); first
direct tax on colonists, who protested the Act until
it was repealed
Intolerable
Acts
Laws passed by Parliament in 1774, punishing
Massachusetts for the Boston Tea Party. The Acts
included closing the port of Boston until destroyed
tea was paid for, a new Quartering Act, amongst
other laws.
Tea Act
Law passed by Parliament in 1773 after the
repeal of the Townshend Acts. Placed a tax on
tea imports. Colonists protested by dumping tea
into the Boston Harbor in an event known as the
“Boston Tea Party”
Albany Plan
Written by Benjamin Franklin in 1754; it stated that
the colonies should partially rule themselves. It
was voted down, but was the first attempt to unite
the colonies
Boston
Massacre
Incident in 1770 where British soldiers fired into
a crowd of colonists, killing five people. Radical
colonists used the event to paint the British as
cruel oppressors of the colonists
Declaration of
Independence
Statement of the Second Continental Congress
that formally announced the colonies break with
Britain.
Battles of
Lexington and
Concord
First battles of the American Revolutionary War
where the first shot of the war was fired on April
19, 1775
Common
Sense
A pamphlet written by Thomas Paine in 1776 that
criticized monarchies and convinced many
Americans colonists of the need to break away
from Britain
Battle of
Bunker Hill
Revolutionary War battle that ended with a British
victory, but boosted American morale because it
proved that the colonists could hold their own
against the British.
Battle of
Saratoga
1777 Revolutionary War battle in that resulted in a
major defeat of the British; marked significance
colonist victory, convincing France to join the war
on the colonists’ side.
Battle of
Yorktown
Last major battle of the Revolutionary War in
1781. British commander, General Cornwallis,
surrenders to the Patriots, ending the war.
George
Washington
First president of the United States and
commanded the Continental Army during the
American Revolutionary War
Bill of Rights
First 10 amendments to the Constitution, ratified
in 1791; protected basic rights
Articles of
Confederation
The first U.S. Constitution; ratified in 1777 and
created the first central government for the United
States; it was replaced by the Constitution in 1789
Constitutional
Convention
Delegates from the colonies gathered in
Philadelphia and decided to draft an entire new
Constitution to replace the Articles of
Confederation
Great
Compromise
Compromise at the Constitutional Convention that
created two houses of Congress: The House of
Representatives (representation determined by
population) and the Senate (two senators per
state)
Whiskey
Rebellion
A 1794 protest of small farmers in Pennsylvania
against new taxes on whiskey. Successfully put
down by Washington, showing the strength of the
new federal government under the Constitution
Federalist
Papers
Series of essays printed in New York that argued
for the ratification of the Constitution
checks and
balances
System established by the Constitution that
prevents any branch of government from
becoming too powerful
Anti ­
Federalists
people who opposed the ratification of the
Constitution
Federalists
People who supported the ratification of the
Constitution
Three Fifths
Compromise
Compromise at the Constitutional Convention
between North and South. The South could count
3/5ths of their slaves as a part of their population
to determine representation in the House; goal
was to not make slavery another issue to debate
Alexander
Hamilton
American statesman and member of the
Continental Congress; author of the Federalist
Papers, developed the Bank of the United States,
believed in a strong central government and that
the U.S. needed to be an industrial power
Thomas
Jefferson
American statesmen and third president of the
United States. He was a member of the
Continental Congress and drafted the Declaration
of Independence. Believed in a weak central
government and that the U.S. needed to be an
agricultural power
Hamilton’s
financial plan
Three part economic plan created to strengthen
the new central government by restoring the
government’s credit. The three parts were 1. Pay
the national debt, 2. Raise money to pay the debt
(taxes), and 3. Create Bank of the United States
Unit 3: Expansion and Conflict
Louisiana
Purchase
The 1803 purchase by President Thomas
Jefferson’s administration of French land,
located between the Mississippi River and the
Rocky Mountains that doubled the size of the
United States.
Marbury vs.
Madison
Supreme Court case that established the
Supreme Court’s right to declare that a law
violates the Constitution. This power, called
judicial review, expanded the power of the Court
Monroe
Doctrine
James Monroe’s 1823 statement that declared
the Americas off limits to European colonization
Nationalism
A sense of pride and devotion to a nation
Lewis and
Clark
Expedition
the first American expedition of what is now the
western part of the united States; led by
Meriwether Lewis and William Clark in 1804 with
the purpose of exploring new territory and making
contact with Native Americans
Bank War
The political struggle over the recharter of the
Second Bank of the United States; Congress
passed the recharter, but President Andrew
Jackson vetoed it and removed federal funds
from the Bank of the United States
Trail of Tears
An 800 mile forced march made by the Cherokee
in 1838­39 from their homeland in Georgia to
Indian Territory in Oklahoma; almost one fourth of
the Cherokee people died along the way
cotton gin
invention created by Eli Whitney that removed
seeds from cotton; made the South dominant in
cotton production; cotton became the foundation
of the southern economy
spoils system
President Andrew Jackson's policy of replacing
political opponents from federal offices and
replacing them with his supporters
Gadsden
Purchase
Strip of land in present­day southern Arizona that
was purchased from Mexico by the United States
in 1853; allowed U.S. to use land for railroads to
the West
War of 1812
War fought between the United States and Britain
over the impressment of U.S. sailors and
troubles with Native Americans in the Northwest
Territory. The U.S. won, reaffirming American
independence and spurred a period of intense
patriotic feelings (nationalism)
Texas
Revolution
War fought that begun when American settlers in
the Mexican territory of Texas clashed with the
Mexican government. The Texans achieved their
independence. Texas was an independent
country for 9 years until it was annexed by the
U.S.
Mexican ­
American War
War fought from 1846­1848 between the United
States and Mexico in which the U.S. gained more
than 500,000 square miles of land in the United
States, including New Mexico and California
Mexican
Cession
Land ceded by Mexico to the United States after
the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the
Mexican­American War in 1848
Nullification
the theory that an individual state can nullify (void)
a federal law if that states believes it violates the
Constitution
manifest
destiny
Belief by many Americans in the 1800’s that the
United States should expand across the
continent to the Pacific Ocean
Unit 4: Civil War and Reconstruction
Missouri
Compromise
An 1820 agreement proposed by Henry Clay that
allowed Missouri to enter the Union as a slave
state and Maine to enter as a free state and
outlawed slavery in any territories or states north
of the Missouri Compromise Line
Compromise
of 1850
Henry Clay’s proposed agreement that allowed
California to enter the Union as a free state and
divided the rest of the Mexican Cession into two
territories where slavery would be decided by
popular sovereignty
Dred Scott
Decision
Supreme Court case that ruled slaves were not
citizens, that the 5th amendment protected
slaveholders’ property rights and that the
Missouri Compromise Line of 1820 was
unconstitutional
Bleeding
Kansas
Series of violent outbursts between proslavery
and antislavery supporters over whether the
Kansas Territory should be free or slave territory
Kansas­Nebra
ska Act
Law that allowed voters in Kansas and Nebraska
to choose whether to allow slavery
abolitionist
someone who believes slavery is morally wrong
and should be abolished
Frederick
Douglas
American abolitionist and writer, he escaped
slavery and became a leading African American
spokesman and writer. He published an
autobiography and founded the abolitionist
newspaper, the North Star
William Lloyd
Garrison
American journalist and abolitionist; he
published the famous antislavery newspaper,
the Liberator, and promoted immediate
emancipation of slaves and racial equality
John Brown
American abolitionist; he stated the Pottawatomie
Massacre in Kansas to revenge killings of
abolitionists. He later seized the federal arsenal
at Harpers Ferry, Virginia, to encourage a slave
revolt. He was tried and executed
popular
sovereignty
the idea that political authority belongs to the
people; states should decide, not the federal
government
Presidential
election of
1860
Abraham Lincoln wins the presidential election
against multiple Democratic opponents; his
victory spurs South Carolina to succeed from the
Union. The rest of the South follows.
Battle of
Gettysburg
1863 Union victory during the Civil War that
turned the tide of the war against the
Confederacy
Vicksburg
1863 Union victory that used siege warfare to
capture the city; Union gained control of the
Mississippi
Battle of
Antietam
1862 Union victory during the Civil War that
marked the bloodiest single­day in U.S. history.
Prompted Lincoln to issue the Emancipation
Proclamation
Sherman’s
March to the
Sea
1864 Union march from Atlanta to Savannah,
Georgia, led by General William Tecumseh
Sherman; used scorched earth tactics to destroy
the South’s desire and ability to rebel
Abraham
Lincoln
Sixteenth president of the United States; he
promoted equal rights for African Americans. His
election sparked the succession of the South
and the start of the Civil War.
Jefferson
Davis
First and only president of the Confederate States
of America after the election of President
Abraham Lincoln in 1860 led to the secession of
many southern states
Robert E. Lee
Lead Confederate forces during the Civil War. He
successfully led several major battles until his
defeat and Gettysburg, and he surrendered to
General Grant in 1865
Ulysses S.
Grant
Eighteenth president of the U.S.; during the Civil
War, he received a promotion and commanded
all Union forces.
Emancipation
Proclamation
An order issued by President Abraham Lincoln
freeing the slaves in areas rebelling against the
Union; in effect January 1, 1863
Anaconda
Plan
The Union’s three part strategy to win the Civil
War. Includes: 1. Capture the Mississippi River,
2. Capture Richmond, and 3. Naval blockade of
Southern coast
Lincoln
Douglas
Debates
A series of debates between Republican
Abraham Lincoln and Democrat Stephen
Douglas during the 1858 U.S. Senate race in
Illinois
Wade­Davis
Bill
Congress’s (mostly radical Republicans) plan for
Reconstruction; it was tough on the South,
requiring the majority of a Southern state’s
population pledge loyalty before that state could
rejoin.
10% Plan
President Abraham Lincoln’s plan for
Reconstruction; considered very lenient, it
forgave all Southerners who pledged loyalty to
the Union, except high ranking confederate
leaders. Onced 10% of a Southern state’s voters
had pledged loyalty, the state could rejoin the
Union
Andrew
Johnson’s
Plan
After Lincoln’s assassination, Johnson’s plan
was the presidential plan for Reconstruction; it
was very easy on the South and allowed pardons
for Confederate leaders
sharecropping
system where freedmen and poor whites worked
for a share of a landowner’s crops instead of
wages
Lincoln’s
Assassination
President Lincoln is shot and killed on April 15,
1865 by John Wilkes Booth; his Vice President,
Andrew Johnson, became president and the
future of Reconstruction very uncertain
Johnson’s
impeachment
The House of Representatives voted to impeach
President Johnson (remove home from office)
for breaking Congressional law, but the Senate
fell one vote short and Johnson was not
convicted
13th
Amendment
Constitutional amendment that outlawed slavery
in the United States
14th
Amendment
Constitutional amendment giving full rights to all
people born or naturalized in the United States
15th
Amendment
Constitutional amendment that gave African
American men the right to vote
Jim Crow
Laws
Laws that enforced racial segregation in the
southern states
KKK
A secret society created by white southerners in
1866 that used terror and violence to keep African
Americans from obtaining their rights
Compromise
of 1877
Law that removed federal troops from the South;
Republican leadership was quickly driven out
also, marking the end of Reconstruction
Unit 5: Post Civil War & Westward Expansion
Indian Schools
Boarding schools created by the U.S.
government to encourage Native American
Battle of Little
Bighorn
1876 battle between the U.S. Army led by
Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer
and Lakota Sioux forces led by Sitting Bull; the
Lakota won and slaughtered all of the army’s
troops under Custer’s command, but it was their
last major victory against the United States
students to abandon their culture and adopt
the culture of white America
Wounded
Knee
The U.S. Army’s killing of around 150 Lakota
Sioux at Wounded Knee Creek in 1890; ended
the U.S.­Indian wars on the Great Plains
reservations
Limited land parcels created by the U.S.
government for the relocation and restriction of
Native American tribes
Geronimo
Apache leader; he evaded capture for years and
led an opposition struggle against white
settlements in the Southwest until his eventual
surrender
Sitting Bull
Lakota Sioux leader who encouraged the Sioux
to resist government demands to buy land. He
led the Lakota to victory at the Battle of Little
Bighorn
Chief Joseph
Chief of the Nez Perce tribe; he led resistance
against white settlement in the Northwest, then
fled with his people towards Canada. He
eventually surrendered.
Transcontinent
al railroad
Rail line, completed in 1869, that connected the
East and West coasts of the United States; it
opened up the West for settlement & economic
opportunities
Homestead
Act of 1862
Law passed by Congress to encourage
settlement in the West by giving
government­owned land to small farmers
Dawes Act
Law passed by Congress in 1887 that split up
Indian reservation lands among individual Native
Americans and promised them citizenship
American History Final Review Schedule
Day →
Monday 12/9
Tuesday 12/10
Wednesday 12/11
Thursday 12/12
Friday 12/13
Review Topic
General: Work on
Review Guide
Unit 1: Discovery
and Settlement
Unit 2: Founding of a
Nation
Unit 3: Expansion
and Conflict
Unit 4: Civil War and
Reconstruction
Review Times
­Remediation /
Celebration
­Remediation /
Celebration
**no remediation /
celebration**
­Remediation /
Celebration
­Remediation /
Celebration
­During B Lunch
­During B Lunch
­During B Lunch
­During B Lunch
**no lunch review**
­After School (until
3:30)
­After School (until
3:30)
­After School (until
3:30)
­After School (until
3:30)
­After School (until
3:30)
Day →
Monday 12/16
Tuesday 12/17
Wednesday 12/18
Review Topic
Unit 5: Post Civil War and
Expansion
General Review (Units 1­5)
General Review (Units 1­5)
Review Times
­Remediation / Celebration
­Remediation / Celebration
**no remediation / celebration**
­During B Lunch
­During B Lunch
­During B Lunch
­After School (until 3:30)
­After School (until 3:30)
­After School (until 3:30)
**Extra credit will be given for:
●
Attendance at review sessions; 2 pts per session, max of 10 pts (no max for sessions attended). Must be participating 100% in
review to earn points
●
Flashcards. You can earn 2 pts per Unit of flashcards you complete (must be hand written, not cutting and gluing this vocab list). You
can earn 2 more pts with your flashcards ­ when you show Ms Jones, she’ll pick 2 for you to describe. If you get the answer write, you
earn your extra points!