Download Pre-Colonial “Summer Stuff” Christopher Columbus (1492): • Italian

Pre-Colonial “Summer Stuff”
Christopher Columbus (1492):
• Italian-born navigator who found fame when he landed in the Americas (October 12, 1492)
• Left Spain with three ships (Nina, Pinta, Santa Maria)
• He sailed west across the Atlantic Ocean to find a water route to Asia (was convinced the Americas were an
extension of China)
• Returned from his expedition with gold, encouraging future exploration and the Columbian Exchange
Amerigo Vespucci (1454-1512):
• Italian member of a Portuguese expedition who explored South America
• Discovery suggested that the expedition had found a “New World”
Treaty of Tordesillas (1493):
• Treaty made by the Pope between Spain and Portugal
• Created an imaginary Line of Demarcation to divide the New World
• East of the line went to Portugal; west of the line went to Spain
• The line would later affect colonization in Africa and Asia
“New Spain” (1400s and 1500s):
• Spain’s tightly controlled empire in the New World
• Spaniards developed the encomienda system, using Native Americans as their forced form of labor
• With the death of Native Americans, Spaniards began importing African slaves to supply their labor needs
St. Augustine, Florida (1598):
• French Protestants (Huguenots) went to the New World to freely practice their religion; they formed a colony
near modern-day St. Augustine, Florida
• Spain, which oversaw Florida, reacted violently to the Huguenots, because they were trespassers and
because they were viewed as heretics by the Catholic Church
• Spain sent a force to the settlement and massacred the fort’s inhabitants
• The settlement of St. Augustine, Florida is considered to be the first permanent European settlement in what
would become the USA
Triangular Trade/Atlantic Trade (1600s):
• Exchange between Europe, Africa, and the Caribbean colonies
• Traded Europeans goods for African slaves; African slaves for sugar, cotton, and tobacco
• It was useful for all parties because it was an exchange of goods, not money
Mercantilism (1500s-1700s):
• Leading economic philosophy of the 1600s that held that colonies existed to serve the mother country
• Founded on the belief that the world’s wealth was sharply limited and, therefore, one nation’s gain was
another nation’s loss
• Each nation’s goal was to export more than it imported in a favorable balance of trade; the difference would
be made up in their possession of gold and silver, which would make the nation strong both economically
and militarily
• Mercantilists believed economic activity should be regulated by the government
Dutch West India Company (1500s and 1600s):
• The joint-stock company that ran the colonies in Fort Orange and in New Amsterdam, which later became
New York
• Carried on a profitable fur trade with the Native American Iroquois
• Established the patroon system, in which large estates where given to wealthy men who transported at least
50 families to New Netherland to tend the land; few took on the opportunity
Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603):
• Protestant successor to Queen Mary (England)
• Popular leader and the first woman to successful hold the throne
• Invested in English raids on the Spanish New World
• Brought on a war response from Spain in the form of the Spanish Armada
• Established Protestantism in England and encouraged English business
Spanish Armada (1588):
• Fleet assembled by King Philip II of Spain to invade England
• The Armada was defeated by the skill of British military leaders and by rough seas during the assault
• England’s victory over Spanish forces established England as an emerging sea power; it was one of the great
achievements of Queen Elizabeth I and helped bring about the decline of the Spanish empire
English Puritanism (1500s and 1600s):
• Movement by those who wished to reform the Church of England to be more in line with their ideology
• Puritans were Calvinist in their religious beliefs; they believed in predestination and in the authority of
Scripture over papal authority
• Though King Henry VIII had set out to separate from papal authority in favor of his own Church of England,
many Roman Catholic traditions and practices remained
• Puritans rejected these Roman Catholic holdovers because of their Calvinist ideology; they sought to make the
English Church “pure”
• Puritanism would echo throughout American culture in the ideas of self-reliance, moral fortitude, and an
emphasis on intellectualism
English Civil War (1642-1648):
• Conflict was based in the struggles between King Charles I (son of King James I) and the English Parliament
• Charles claimed to rule by divine right; Parliament said that its membership had rights that were separate
from those granted to the king
• Parliament’s members were mostly Puritan and had the support of the merchant class and small landowners
• Wealthy nobles tended to support Charles I, who opposed Puritans on questions of religion
• The conflict led to fighting between the Royalist military forces and forces opposing Charles I
Glorious Revolution (1688):
• Internal British struggle that replaced the Catholic King James II with his Protestant daughter, Mary, and her
husband, William of Orange
• Inspired colonial uprisings in New York and Maryland against ruling Royal governors who pressed for more
control
• Led to the overthrow of the Dominion of New England, the central authority imposed by Britain on colonists
• William and Mary’s new government generally accepted these actions, permitting the growth of colonial
institutions and culture
The Enlightenment (1700s):
• Connects to the idea of Deism, in which the universe was created by God and then abandoned; no
supernatural controls would be exerted and all things were explainable by reason
• Enlightenment philosophy stated that human reason was enough to solve mankind’s problems, and, much
less faith was needed in the central role of God as an active force in the universe
• Important Enlightenment writers included: (1) John Locke; (2) Isaac Newton; (3) Rene Descartes.
John Locke and Natural Law (1632-1704):
• Locke was a major English political philosopher during the Enlightenment
• He identified Natural Laws of Humans: rights of life, liberty, and property
• He believed that if these natural rights were not protected, governments could be justly overthrown
• His ideas were influential on Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson (Declaration of Independence)
Puritans and the Original 13 English Colonies
Types of Colonies in the New World (1600s):
• Charter colony: colonists were essentially members of a corporation and, based on an agreed-upon charter,
electors among the colonists would control the colony.
• Royal colony: had a governor selected by England’s king; he would serve in the leadership role and choose
additional, lesser officers
• Proprietary colony: owned by an individual with direct responsibility to the king; the proprietor selected a
governor, who served as the authority figure for the property
Sir Walter Raleigh (1587):
• Selected Roanoke Island as a site for the first English settlement
• Returned to England to secure additional supplies; on his return, he found the colony deserted; it is not known
what became of the Roanoke settlers
• After the failure at Roanoke, Raleigh abandoned his attempts to colonize Virginia
• Held back by a lack of financial resources and the war with Spain, English interest in American colonization was
submerged for 15 years
Joint Stock Charter Colonies and the “Starving Time” (1600s):
• Charter colonies were associations that sought trade, exploration, and colonization overseas
• Jamestown was the first charter colony (1607)
• “Starving Time” was a period in the 1600s during which many colonists died and others considered returning
to England
Jamestown (1607):
• Named for King James I, the king of England, who granted charters for charter colonies in the New World
• The Virginia Company of London settled Jamestown, the first permanent English colony in America
• It was a swampy location, which led to disease and contaminated water sources
• Despite location and hostile relations with Native Americans, John Smith’s harsh, charismatic leadership of
the colony kept it from collapsing
• 1619- African slaves arrived in Jamestown, becoming the first group of slaves to reach a British settlement
John Rolfe (1585-1622):
• English colonist in Jamestown
• Married Pocahontas, the daughter of the local Native American chief
• Created process for curing tobacco, ensuring economic success for Jamestown
Indentured Servitude (1600s):
• Poor workers, convicted criminals, and debtors received immigration passage and fees in return for a number
of years at labor on behalf of a planter or company
• Servants entered into their contracts voluntarily and kept some legal rights but they had little control over
their conditions of work and living arrangements
• The system often led to harsh and brutal treatment
House of Burgesses (1619):
• Representative assembly in Virginia and the first representative house in America
• Election to a seat was limited to voting members of the charter colony, which at first was all free men; later
rules required that a man own at least fifty acres of land to vote
• Instituted private ownership of land; maintained rights of colonists
First Families of Virginia (1600s):
• Wealthy and socially prominent families in Virginia who by 1776 had been in America 4-5 generations
• Included the Lees, Carters, and Fitzhughs
Headright System (started in 1618):
• System used by the Virginia Company to attract colonists; it promised them 50 acres of land in America
• Also gave 50 acres for each servant a colonist brought, allowing the wealthy to obtain large tracts of land
English Puritanism (1500s and 1600s):
• Movement by those who wished to reform the Church of England to be more in line with their ideology
• Puritans were Calvinist in their religious beliefs; they believed in predestination and in the authority of
Scripture over papal authority
• Though King Henry VIII had set out to separate from papal authority in favor of his own Church of England,
many Roman Catholic traditions and practices remained
• Puritans rejected these Roman Catholic holdovers because of their Calvinist ideology; they sought to make the
English Church “pure”
• Puritanism would echo throughout American culture in the ideas of self-reliance, moral fortitude, and an
emphasis on intellectualism
Separatists and Plymouth:
• Puritans who believed the Church of England was beyond saving and felt they must separate from it
• One group of Separatists suffering government harassment fled to Holland, then America
• Members of this group traveled on the Mayflower and became known as the Pilgrims, a term used for
voyagers seeking to fulfill a religious mission
• Mayflower left Plymouth, England in September 1620 and landed in Provincetown Harbor, settling what later
became Plymouth, Massachusetts
• Before landing the Pilgrims formed the Mayflower Compact, (provided for a government of the majority)
• William Bradford (1590-1657) served as the Plymouth Colony’s first governor
Massachusetts Bay Company (1629):
• Joint-stock company chartered by a group of Puritans escaping King James I
• Led by John Winthrop, who taught that the new colony should be a model Christian society
• These Puritans carefully organized their venture and, upon arriving in Massachusetts, did not undergo the
“starving time” that had often plagued other first-year colonies
• The government of Massachusetts developed to include a governor and a representative assembly
Anne Hutchinson (1638):
• Claimed to have had special revelations from God that superseded the Bible, contrary to Puritan doctrine
• The leadership of New England accused her of antinomian teachings (the belief that salvation is attained
through faith and divine grace and not through strict adherence to rules or moral laws)
• She was banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony and with her followers she founded Portsmouth in
1638 in what is now Rhode Island
Roger Williams and Rhode Island (1644):
• Williams was a Puritan preacher who fled Massachusetts after his views on religious observance became too
extreme for the colonists
• He bought land from Native Americans and founded Providence (1636); it was soon populated by his many
followers
• Rhode Island formed as a combination of Providence, Portsmouth, and other area settlements
• Williams granted the colony complete religious toleration
• Rhode Island tended to be populated by exiles and troublemakers and was sometimes called “Rogue’s Island”
and suffered from constant political unrest
Half-Way Covenant (1690s):
• Decision by Puritan colony churches to allow the grandchildren of those who had the personal experience of
conversion to participate in select church affairs
• Previously, only the children of those who had experienced conversion could participate
• Reflected the decline of piety and zeal among New Englanders
Salem Witch Trials (1692):
• Several young girls in Salem Village claimed to be tormented by the occult activities of certain neighbors
• 20 people were executed; Puritan ministers finally intervened to stop the executions
• Writer Arthur Miller produced The Crucible, a retelling of the Salem Witch Trials and a reflective commentary
on the witch-hunts of Joseph McCarthy (1953)
Connecticut (1662):
• Thomas Hooker led a large group of Puritans to settle in the Connecticut River Valley; they had some religious
disagreements with the leadership of Massachusetts
• The major colonies in the Connecticut River Valley agreed to unite as the Connecticut colony
• 1639- the colony formed a set of laws known as the Fundamental Orders, that provided for representative
government by those who were permitted to vote
• The Orders later served as the foundation of the charter recognized by England
• The Orders are an important example of the growth of political democracy
First Great Awakening (1720s-1740s0:
• Series of emotional religious revivals occurring throughout the colonies, especially in New England
• Preachers proclaimed a message of personal repentance and faith to avoid hell
• Suggested an equality between an authority (God) and a fixed standard (the Bible)
• Helped to lay the foundation for a written “contract” which would be important to the establishment of the
future USA
• George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards became the most dynamic preachers of the Great Awakening
Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758):
• Preacher of the Great Awakening who emphasized personal religious experience, predestination, and
dependence of man upon God and divine grace
• One of his well-read sermons was “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”
• While Edwards is known for being one of the most prominent Calvinists, the Great Awakening was partially
responsible for spreading the idea that salvation was possible without predestination, an important Calvinist
belief
Effects of the First Great Awakening (post 1740s):
• America’s religious community came to be divided between those who rejected the Great Awakening and
those who accepted it
• More denominations of Christianity were formed
• While the Awakening created conflict among those who argued the points of religion, its ideas helped build
connections between people living in different colonies
• A number of colleges were founded by those who accepted the Great Awakening, including Princeton,
Brown, and Rutgers
New York and New Jersey (1664):
• Last Dutch governor of New York was Peter Stuyvesant
• After the British conquered the Dutch lands in America, English King Charles II gave the lands to his brother
James, the Duke of York
• James was very opposed to representative assemblies, even though residents of the colonies continued to
call for self-government
• New York eventually split into 2 colonies- New York and New Jersey
John Peter Zenger (1697-1746):
• German American newspaper publisher and printer
• His acquittal of libel charges in NYC (1735) established a legal precedent for freedom of the press
William Penn and Pennsylvania:
• Founded Pennsylvania as a refuge for his fellow Quakers and advertised his colony widely in Europe by
offering generous terms on land
• Guaranteed a representative assembly and full religious freedom
• Settlers flocked to Pennsylvania from all over Europe
Quakers (approx. 1680):
• Believed human religious institutions were mostly unnecessary
• They were often oppressed for several reasons: (1) they believed in direct communication with God and
placed little importance on the Bible; (2) they were pacifists and did not believe in or fight in wars; (3) they
opposed slavery and the mistreatment of Native Americans
New Hampshire (1677):
• King Charles II established it as a royal colony
• It remained economically dependent on Massachusetts; Britain continued to appoint a single person to rule
both colonies until 1741
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• Weeks before signing the Declaration of Independence by the 2 Continental Congress, New Hampshire
established a temporary constitution for itself that proclaimed its independence from Britain
Delaware (1631):
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• Dutch patrons established the 1 settlement in Delaware, but was destroyed by Native American attacks
• The Dutch West India Company and Dutchmen, including Peter Minuit, began to trade and settle in
Delaware during the mid-to-late 1630s
• Between 1664 and 1674 Delaware switched between Dutch and English ownership, ending with English
ownership in 1674
The Proprietors and Maryland (1630s):
• Proprietors owned colonies, with direct responsibility to the king
• The proprietors were supposed to provide opportunity for Royal control and to decrease the practice of
granting charters for charter colonies
• In practice, proprietary colonies turned out much like the charter colonies because settlers insisted on selfgovernment
• 1632- under George Calvert (Lord Baltimore), Maryland became the first proprietary colony as a refuge for
English Catholics
• To protect the Catholic minority, Calvert’s son encouraged religious toleration and established a
representative assembly
Maryland Act of Toleration (1649):
• Guaranteed religious freedom to all Christians in Maryland
• Granted after a Protestant became governor
• Important precedent for later characterization of the USA and its Constitution
The Carolinas (1663):
• King Charles II rewarded loyal noblemen with these lands after the 20 year Puritan revolution in England
• In hopes of attracting settlers, the proprietors planned for a hierarchical system
• Experimented with silk manufacturing and with crops such as rice and indigo; this proved unworkable and
the Carolinas grew slowly
• Large groups of colonists in the Carolinas came from Barbados; the form of slavery that this group used
proved very harsh
Georgia (1732):
• James Oglethorpe, an English philanthropist and soldier, chartered the colony
• Settlers included those who paid their own way to receive the best land grants
• Some settlers were financed by the colony’s board of trustees, including bands of British prisoners
• After wars between the European empires began, the colony served as a buffer between South Carolina and
Spanish-held Florida
Black Slaves in the 1600s:
• Because slaves were only a small percentage of the population; they began at almost the same level of
indentured servants
• Later in the century, African-Americans came to be seen as lifelong slaves and their status was passed on to
their children as well
• Increased importation and population of African-Americans in the southern colonies began
Road to Revolution
Navigation Acts (1650-1673):
• Certain goods shipped from a New World port were to go only to Britain (especially sugar, cotton, and
tobacco)
• Served as the foundation of England’s worldwide commercial system
• Though for the benefit of all subjects of the British Empire, its provisions benefited some New World colonies
at the expense of others
• Intended as a weapon in England’s ongoing struggle against its rival, Holland (Dutch)
• Led to increased tension between Britain and the colonies
Effects of the Navigation Acts (1650-1673):
• Hurt the residents of the Chesapeake by driving down the price of tobacco
• Transferred wealth from America to Britain by increasing the prices Americans had to pay for British goods
and lowering the prices Americans received for the goods they produced
• Mercantilism also helped bring on a series of wars between England and Holland in the late 1600s
• Boosted the prosperity of New Englanders, who engaged in large-scale shipbuilding
Bacon’s Rebellion (1676):
• Virginia’s Royal governor, William Berkeley, received strict instructions to run the colony for the benefit of
Britain
• Nathaniel Bacon was a leader of colonial frontiersmen in Virginia who objected to the rights granted to
Virginia’s wealthy inner circle & was angered by Gov. Berkeley’s inability to protect VA from Nat Am attacks
• Bacon commanded 2 unauthorized raids on Native American tribes, increasing is popularity with the people;
Berkeley had him arrested
• Soon after, Bacon gathered his forces, opposed the Royal governor, & set fire to Jamestown to defend his
forces’ position
• With British military, Berkeley ended the rebellion
• After Bacon’s rebellion, American colonists turned increasingly away from indentured servants & toward
slaves
Wool Act (1699):
• All wool that was produced in the colonies could only be exported to Britain
• Act restricted Ireland in its wool manufacturing (many Irish immigrants moved to the American colonies)
• The act was meant to protect Britain’s own exports of wool at the expense of both the colonies and Ireland
Albany Plan (1754):
• Delegates of 7 colonies met in NY to discuss plans for collective defense
• Pennsylvania delegate Ben Franklin- proposed a plan for an inter-colonial government (later rejected by
colonial legislatures as demanding too great a surrender of power)
• The plan was an important precedent for the concept of uniting in the face of a common enemy
French and Indian War (1748-1763):
• Competition between France, Britain, and various Native American tribes over land in the Ohio region
• One of a series of wars fought between France and England throughout the world at the time
• Battles continued on European and American fronts until Britain gained control of Canada
• It was in these conflicts that George Washington first appeared as an able military leader
William Pitt (1708-1778):
• Britain’s prime minister
• After several humiliating defeats, he led Britain to virtually destroy the French empire in North America
• The Treaty of Paris 1763 ended hostilities
George Grenville (1712-1770):
• British Prime Minister who set out to solve the large national debt incurred in recent English wars
• Created a series of acts that raised taxes on American goods, leading to rebellious activities
• Acts included the Proclamation of 1763, Sugar Act (1763), Stamp Act (1765), and Quartering Act (1765).
Treaty of Paris 1763:
• Ended the 7 Years War
• From France, Britain took Canada and some of what would become the USA east of the Mississippi River
• France lost all of its North American holdings
• Spain took the Louisiana Territory
• Treaty marked the end of “salutary neglect,” a relationship in which the British Parliament had somewhat
ignored the colonies, allowing them to develop their character without interference
Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790):
• Was a colonial writer, scientist, diplomat, printer, and philosopher
• Published the Pennsylvania Gazette and wrote Poor Richard’s Almanac
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• Served in the 2 Continental Congress and was a drafter and signer of the Declaration of Independence
Writs of Assistance (1750s-1770s):
• Court orders that authorized customs officials to conduct non-specific searches to stop colonial smuggling
• Allowed for the searching of homes, warehouses, and shops
• James Otis served as a prosecutor in a failed Massachusetts legal case; he argued that these searches were
contrary to natural law
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• Later the 4 amendment would protect citizens against “unreasonable searches and seizures”
Proclamation of 1763:
• Was a result of Pontiac’s Rebellion, a Native American uprising against the British for their mistreatment
• Forbade white settlement west of the Appalachians to reduce friction between Native Americans and the
settlers
• Stated that Native Americans owned the land on which they were residing
• Outraged colonists believed that the successful outcome of the French and Indian War should have allowed
settlement in the Ohio Valley
Sugar Act (1764):
• Taxed goods imported to America to raise revenue for England after it incurred debt during the French and
Indian War
• Strictly enforced (unlike the Molasses Act of 1733)
• Taxed goods including wine, cloth, coffee, and silk
Quartering Act (1765):
• Act that required the colonies in which British troops were stationed to provide soldiers with bedding and
other basic needs
• Colonists reacted negatively, fearing a standing army and disliking the additional costs
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• After the emergence of the US Constitution, the 3 Amendment protected citizens against the stationing of
troops in their homes
Stamp Act (1765):
• An internal tax, the sole purpose of which was to raise revenue
• Required Americans to use “stamped” paper for legal documents, newspapers, and playing cards, among
other goods
• Revenue from this tax was to be used solely for the support of the British soldiers protecting the colonies
Stamp Act Congress (October 1765):
• Delegates of 7 colonies met in New York to discuss plans for defense
• Adopted the Declaration of Rights and Grievances, which stated that freeborn Englishmen could not be taxed
without their consent
Declaratory Act (1766):
• Act giving Britain the power to tax and make laws for Americans in all cases
• Followed the repeal of the Stamp Act
• Colonists ignored the working of the Declaratory Act
Samuel Adams (1722-1803):
• Revolutionary resistance leader in Massachusetts
• Along with Paul Revere, he headed the Sons of Liberty in Massachusetts
• Worked with the committees of correspondence, which provided communication about resistance among
colonies
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• Attended both the 1 and 2 Continental Congresses and signed the Declaration of Independence
Townshend Acts (1767):
• Created by British Prime Minster Charles Townshend (Grenville’s replacement)
• Formed a program of taxing items imported into the colonies, such as paper, lead, glass, and tea; it replaced
the direct taxes of the Stamp Act
• Led to boycotts by Boston merchants, a key contributor to the Boston Massacre
Boston Massacre (March 5, 1770):
• Happened when the British attempted to enforce the Townshend Acts
• British soldiers killed 5 Bostonians, including Crispus Attucks, an American patriot and former slave
• John Adams provided the legal defense for the soldiers
• Though the British soldiers acted mostly in self-defense, anti-Royal leaders used the event to spur action in the
colonies
Virtual Representation (1770s):
• British principle stating that the members of Parliament represented all of Britain and the British Empire,
even though members were only elected by a small number of constituents
• This idea was meant to be a response to the colonial claim of “no taxation without representation,” meaning
that Parliament was itself a representation of those being taxed
Tea Act and the Boston Tea Party (1773):
• Concession allowed the British East India Company to ship tea directly to America and sell it as a bargain;
cheap tea undercut the local merchants
• Colonists opposed these shipments; they turned back ships, left shipments to rot, and held ships in port
• Led to the Boston Tea Party in December of 1773, where citizens, dressed as Native Americans, destroyed tea
on the British ships
Intolerable Acts and the Coercive Acts (1774):
• Name given by colonists to the Quebec Act (1774) and to a series of acts by the British in response to the
Boston Tea Party
• Acts closed the Port of Boston to all trade until citizens paid for the lost tea
• Acts increased the power of Massachusetts’ Royal governor at the expense of the legislature
• Allowed Royal officials accused of crimes in Massachusetts to be tried elsewhere
Methods of Colonial Resistance (1770s):
• Americans first reacted with restraint and respective petitions, suggesting “taxation without representation is
tyranny”
• Colonial merchants then boycotted British goods (non-importation)
• Colonists of the Revolution finally turned to violence
• Crowds took action against custom officials and against merchants who violated the boycotts
• Some colonists continued to follow British command and became English “Loyalists”
First Continental Congress (September-October 1774):
• Meeting in Philadelphia of colonial representatives to denounce the Intolerable Acts and to petition the British
Parliament
• A few radical members discussed breaking from England
• Created Continental Association and forbade the importation and use of British goods
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• Agreed to convene a 2 Continental Congress in May 1775
American Revolution
Battles of Lexington and Concord (April 1775):
• Concord- site suspected by British General Gage of housing a stockpile of colonial weapons.
• Paul Revere and William Dawes detected movement of British troops toward Concord and warned militia and
gathered Minutemen at Lexington
• Lexington- militia and Royal infantry fought; the colonial troops withdrew
Second Continental Congress (May 1775):
• Colonia representative meeting in Philadelphia, presided over by John Hancock
• Group torn between declaring independence and remaining under British power
• Moderates forced the adoption of the Olive Branch Petition, a letter to King George III appealing one final time
for a resolution to all disputes; the king refused to receive it
• The Congress sent George Washington to command the army around Boston
• American ports were opened in defiance of the Navigation Acts
• Congress requested the drafting of the Declaration of Independence
Battle of Bunker Hill (June 17, 1775):
• Bunker Hill was an American post overlooking Boston; the stronghold allowed Americans to contain General
Gage and his troops
• The colonists twice turned back a British assault; they held off the British until the Bunker Hill force ran out of
ammunition and was overrun
• America’s strong defense led to strengthened morale
Common Sense (January 1776):
• Pamphlet published by Thomas Paine that called for immediate independence from Britain
• Sold largely and carried favor in the colonies
• Weakened resistance in the Continental Congress toward independence
Lee’s Resolutions (1776):
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• Presented to 2 Continental Congress by Richard Henry Lee of Virginia
• Urged Congress to declare independence; accepted July 2, 1776
• Said “That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States”
Declaration of Independence (adopted July 4, 1776):
• Document restating political ideas justifying the separation from Britain
• Thomas Jefferson and his committee had the duty of drafting the document for the Continental Congress
• John Locke’s influences served as a foundation for the document
• The final product lacked provisions condemning the British slave trade and a denunciation of the British
people that earlier drafts had contained
Articles of Confederation (submitted July 1776; ratified 1781):
• Framework for an American national government; states had the most power
• Empowered the federal government to make war, treaties, and create new states
• No federal empowerment to raise taxes, raise troops, or regulate commerce
• Congressional revision of the articles created a weak national government
General George Washington’s Leadership (1775-1781):
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• Named Commander-in-Chief of Continental Forces in June 1775 by the 2 Continental Congress
• Forced British to evacuate Boston in March 1776
• Defeated British at Trenton, NJ after crossing the Delaware on December 25, 1776
• Survived tough winter at Valley Forge (1777-78); he strengthened his troops during the winter and gained
respect
• General Cornwallis surrendered to Washington on October 19, 1781
Battle of Saratoga (1777):
• Battle fought in northern New York
• The British planned to end the American Revolution by splitting the colonies along the Hudson River, but they
failed to mobilize properly
• The British ended up surrendering, allowing for the first great American victory
• Demonstrated that the British could more easily hold the cities, but that they would have trouble subduing the
countryside
• Considered a turning point, as French aid began after this battle
John Paul Jones (1747-1792):
• Famous American naval leader
• Carried on maritime raids against the British throughout the Revolution, restricting their ability to receive
supplies
• “Surrender? I have not yet begun to fight”
Charles Cornwallis (1738-1805):
• British military and political leader
• Was a member of Parliament and even opposed the tax measures that led to the American Revolution
• Led British forces during the war
• The British defeat happened with Cornwallis’s surrender at Yorktown in 1781
Treaty of Paris 1783:
• Peace settlement that ended the Revolutionary War
• The US was represented by Ben Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay
• Britain reorganized the United States’ independence and outlined its borders
• The US received all lands east of the Mississippi River, north of Florida, and south of the Great Lakes
• The US agreed that Loyalists to Britain were not to be persecuted
The New Nation
Articles of Confederation (submitted July 1776; ratified 1781):
• Framework for an American national government; states had the most power
• Empowered the federal government to make war, treaties, and create new states
• No federal empowerment to raise taxes, raise troops, or regulate commerce
• Congressional revision of the articles created a weak national government
Western Land Cessions (1781-1781; Georgia in 1802):
• The original 13 states ceded their western land claims to the new federal government
• The states that lacked western land claims feared that states with claims could grow in size; skewing
representation in the federal government
• Before signing the US Constitution, these states demanded that those with claims cede the land
• Ordinances in 1784 and 1785 and the Northwest Ordinance (1787) organized the ceded areas in preparation
for statehood
• New states were organized and admitted to the Union
• This policy strengthened the ties of the western farmers to the central government
Land Ordinance of 1785
• Act of Congress to assist in settlement of the West; the sale of land provided federal reserve
• Organized distribution of land into townships, setting aside a section of each in support of public education
• A successful accomplishment by a federal government that before had been seen as ineffective
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
• Described how the land north of the Ohio River could become sectioned into states; 5 states created
• States would be admitted to the Union when free inhabitants reached 60,000
• Slavery and involuntary servitude were not allowed in these states
• Set a precedent of how states could join the Union
• A successful accomplishment by a federal government that before had been seen as ineffective
Shay’s Rebellion (1786-1787):
• During a period of economic depression, Daniel Shays led a group of farmers to stop the courts from seizing a
farmer’s land and enacting debt collection
• Citizens of Boston raise an army and suppressed the rebels
• Americans felt pressure to strengthen the government and avoid future violence
Constitutional Convention- NJ and Virginia Plans (1787):
• Virginia Plan- presented by Edmund Randolph and written by James Madison
• Called for bicameral legislature based on population and both the chief executive and judiciary to be chosen
by legislatures
• NJ Plan- presented by William Patterson
• Called for unicameral legislature with equal representation
Constitutional Convention- Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise) - 1787:
• Called for a bicameral legislative system in which the House of Representatives would be based on population
and the Senate would have equal representation in Congress
• Combined pieces of the NJ and Virginia plans and other proposals at the constitutional convention
Constitutional Convention- 3/5 Compromise (1787):
• Part of the Great Compromise
• Counted slaves as 3/5 of a person for representation and called for direct taxation on the states
Constitution of the United States (signed September 17, 1787; ratified June 21, 1788):
• Drafted at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787
• Included a preamble and 7 articles
• Created a stronger federal government
• Bill of Rights is the first 10 amendments; they protect individual rights and freedoms
th
Elastic Clause and the 10 Amendment (ratified 1791):
th
• 10 amendment restricts the federal government to those powers delegated to it by the Constitution and
gives all other powers to the states (or the people)
• Article I, Section 8 grants the federal government the power to make all laws “which shall be necessary and
proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing powers”
• The conflict between these 2 ideas is the determination of which group, the federal government or the states
and their people, has the right to exercise powers that have not been expressly delegated to the central
government
Federalist Party (1788):
• Americans who supported centralized power and constitutional ratification by the states
• Used The Federalist Papers to show how the Constitution was designed to prevent the abuse of power
• Supporters included Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay, and northeastern business groups
• They believed that the government was given all powers that were not expressly denied to it by the
Constitution; they had a loose interpretation of the Constitution
Anti-Federalist Party (1780s-1790s):
• Americans against the ratification of the Constitution because of suspicion against centralized government
ruling at a distance and limiting freedom
• Included George Mason, Patrick Henry, George Clinton and Thomas Jefferson
• Many of the anti-federalists would later oppose the policies of Alexander Hamilton and the Federalist Party
• The Jeffersonian Republican Party absorbed many of the anti-federalists after the Constitution was ratified
into law
Jeffersonian-Republicans (Democratic-Republicans) 1792-1860:
• Political party that took in members of the anti-federalist party
• Included Thomas Jefferson and James Madison
• Favored states’ rights and power in the hands of commoners; supported by southern agriculture and
frontiersmen
• Believed that the federal government was denied all powers that were not expressly given to it by the
Constitution; a “strict interpretation” of the document
George Washington (1789-1797):
st
• 1 president; unanimously elected president
• Served 2 terms
• His leadership led to a standard of a strong presidency with control of foreign policy and the power to veto
Congress’s legislation
• Declared Proclamation of Neutrality in April 1793, keeping the US neutral in the European wars
• Farewell Address (1796) - warned against entangling alliances, suggested isolationism, and warned of political
party factions
Judiciary Act of 1789:
• Provided for a Supreme Court with a Chief Justice and 5 associates
• Established the office of Attorney General
• Created federal district courts and circuit courts
Alexander Hamilton (1754-1804):
st
• 1 Secretary of Treasury
• Proposed the federal assumption of state debts, the establishment of a national bank, and federal stimulation
of industry through excise tax and tariffs
• Opponents, including Jefferson, saw program as aiding a small, elite group at the expense of the average
citizen
• Hamilton died from wounds he received in a duel with Aaron Bur, Jefferson’s vice-president
Jeffersonian-Republicans (Democratic-Republicans) 1792-1860:
• Political party that took in members of the anti-federalist party
• Included Thomas Jefferson and James Madison
• Favored states’ rights and power in the hands of commoners; supported by southern agriculture and
frontiersmen
• Believed that the federal government was denied all powers that were not expressly given to it by the
Constitution; a “strict interpretation” of the document
Eli Whitney (1765-1825):
• Inventor and manufacturer
• Invented the cotton gin in 1793, revolutionizing the cotton industry and increasing the need for slaves
st
• Established the 1 factory to assemble muskets with interchangeable standardized parts
• Innovations led to an “American system” of manufacture, where those workers with less skill could use tools
and templates to make identical parts; the manufacture and assembly of parts could be done separately
Whiskey Rebellion (1794):
• Western whiskey farmers refused to pay taxes on which Hamilton’s revenue program was based
• A group of farmers terrorized the tax collectors; Washington responded with a federalized militia
• Washington and Hamilton rode out to Pennsylvania to emphasize their commitment
st
• 1 test of federal authority- established the federal government’s right to enforce laws
John Jay (1745-1829):
st
nd
• Member of the 1 and 2 Continental Congresses
• Negotiated Treaty of Paris and Jay’s Treaty
st
• 1 Chief Justice of Supreme Court
• Wrote portions of The Federalist Papers
Jay’s Treaty (1794):
• Attempt at settling the conflict between the USA and England over commerce, navigation, and violations of
the Treaty of Paris 1783
• Provided the eventual evacuation by the British of their posts in the Northwest, but it allowed them to
continue their fur trade
• Allowed for the establishment of commissions to settle US-Canada border disputes and US-British losses
during the Revolutionary War
• The generous terms to Britain upset Americans because these were promises that had been made and not
fulfilled in the Treaty of Paris 1783
Pinckney Treaty (1795):
• Signed by the USA and Spain
• Free navigation of the Mississippi River was given to the USA
• US gained area north of Florida that had been in dispute (present-day Mississippi and Alabama)
• Gave western farmers the “right of deposit” in New Orleans, allowing them to use the port for their goods,
making it easier for them to get their goods to the East
John Adams (1797-1800):
nd
st
• 2 president; 1 vice-president
• Served 1 term
• Diplomat and signer of the Declaration of Independence
• Led the country through the XYZ Affair, the Alien and Sedition Acts, and the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions
• Kept nation from war during his administration
XYZ Affair (1798):
• US wanted an end to French harassment of American shipping
• French representatives demanded a bribe of $250,000 from the US just to open negotiations with French
Minister Talleyrand
• US refused the bribe and suspended trade with the French
• Led to the creation of the American Navy
Alien and Sedition Acts (1798-99):
• Four laws passed by the Federalists to reduce foreign influences and increase their power
• New requirements for citizenship were established
• Broadened the power to silence print media critics, especially Jeffersonian Republican critics of the
Federalists
st
• Laws tested the strength of the 1 Amendment and limited the freedom of the press
• Federalist Party gained a reputation as being a less democratic party, leading to its end as a political
organization
Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions (1798-1799):
• Response by Jeffersonian Republicans to the Alien and Sedition Acts that included text written by Jefferson
and Madison
• Suggested that states should have the power within their territory to nullify federal laws
• Stated that federal government had no right to exercise powers not specifically delegated to it
th
• Called into question the opposing arguments found in the Elastic Clause and the 10 amendment
• The resolutions represented a future argument that would be used when secession and Civil War threatened
the nation
Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815):
• War between Napoleon’s France and the other European powers, led by Britain
• Both sides tried to prevent neutral powers, especially the USA, from trading with their enemy
• American ships were seized by both sides and American sailors were “impressed” or forced into the British
navy
• The US was angered by this violation of the “freedom of the seas” (outside its territorial waters, a state may
not claim sovereignty over the seas)
• These violations would escalate and lead to the War of 1812
Judiciary Act of 1801:
• Created new judgeships to be filled by the president
• John Adams filled the new vacancies with party supporters (“Midnight Judges”) in the hours before he left
office
• Led to bitter resentment by the incoming Jeffersonian Republican Party
• Act would play a role in the case Marbury v. Madison
Age of Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809):
• 3rd President; 1st Secretary of State
• Served 2 terms
• Author of the Declaration of Independence
• First president to reside in Washington DC
• His taking of office was called the “Revolution of 1800” - 1st time America changed presidential leadership
• His embodiment of the Jeffersonian Republican Party helped increase its strength, while weak leadership in the
Federalist Party was a reason for its demise
• Responsible of the Embargo Act of 1807
• Presided over the Louisiana Purchase
• His politics were characterized by support of states’ rights
John Marshall (1755-1835):
• Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court (1801-1835)
• A Federalist installed by Adams
• His decisions defined/strengthened the powers of the judicial branch & asserted the power of judicial review over
federal legislation
• His Court made determinations that cemented a static view of contracts
• His Court’s decisions advanced capitalism
• Significant cases included Marbury v. Madison, Fletcher v. Peck, Dartmouth College v. Woodward, McCullough v.
Maryland, Gibbons v. Ogden
Marbury v. Madison (1803):
• William Marbury had been appointed justice of the peace in DC by President John Adams as a “midnight judge”
• His commission was not delivered, so he sued President Jefferson’s Secretary of State, James Madison
• Chief Justice John Marshall held that while Marbury was entitled to the commission, the statute which allowed it
was unconstitutional, as it granted the Supreme Court powers beyond what the Constitution permitted
• This decision paved the way for judicial review, which gave courts the power to declare statutes unconstitutional
Louisiana Purchase (April 30, 1803):
• Purchased for $15 million from France
• Jefferson was concerned about the constitutionality of purchasing land without having this authority granted by the
Constitution to make the purchase, he employed the presidential power of treaty-making
• US territory was doubled and helped remove France from the western borders of the US
• Farmers could now send their goods (furs, grains, tobacco) down the Mississippi River, thru New Orleans to Europe
• Opened land to agrarian expansion, helping fulfill one of the aspects of Jefferson’s social ideology
• The expansion westward created more states with Jeffersonian Republican representation to the point that the
Federalists became a marginalized party
Lewis and Clark Expedition (1803-1806):
• Expedition through the Louisiana Purchase and the West
• Left from St. Louis and explored areas including the Missouri River, the Yellowstone River, and the Rockies
• Sacajawea, a Shoshone guide, helped them on their journey
• Opened up new territories to America
Burr Conspiracy (1806):
• Aaron Burr planned to take Mexico from Spain and establish a new nation in the West
• Burr, a fugitive in politics after Hamilton’s death, was arrested in Natchez and tried for treason
• Under John Marshall, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Burr was acquitted
• Marshall stated that treason charges required more than just proof of conspiracy to commit treason; this helped
narrow the legal definition of treason
Embargo of 1807:
• American declaration to keep its own ships from leaving port for any foreign destination
• Jefferson hoped to avoid contact with vessels of either of the warring sides of the Napoleonic Wars
• The result was economic depression in the US; this angered the Federalists, who were well-represented in
Northeast commerce and were hit hard by the depression
Age of Madison and the War of 1812
James Madison (1809-1817):
th
• 4 President
• Served 2 terms
• His work before becoming president led him to be considered the “Father of the Constitution”
• He participated in the writing of The Federalist Papers
• In Congress, he wrote the Virginia Plan
• He was a Republican president in a Federalist-controlled Congress
• Faced pressure from “War Hawks” like Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun to get involved in the Napoleonic Wars
and end the damaging embargo
• Led the US into the War of 182 and ended the war in 1814
Non-Intercourse Act (1809):
• Congress opened trade to all nations except France and Britain
• Trade boycott appeared to have little effect on stopping French/British aggression caused by the Napoleonic
Wars
• Though the Embargo Act was a protective measure, the Non-Intercourse Act re-engaged the US in trade while
continuing its stance against alliances with either France or Britain
• The act was repealed in 1810
Fletcher v. Peck (1810):
• Marshall Court decision
st
• The 1 time state law was voided on grounds that it violated a principle of the US Constitution
• The Georgia legislature had issues extensive land grants in a corrupt deal
• A legislative session repealed that action because of the corruption
• The Supreme Court decided that the original contract was valid, regardless of the corruption
• Reaffirmed the sanctity of contracts
Expansion of the Electorate (1810-1828):
• Most states had already eliminated the property qualifications for voting
• African Americans were still excluded from polls across the South and most of the North
• The political parties established national nomination conventions
Tecumseh (1811):
• Native American chief who was encouraged by British forces to fight against pressured removal from Western
territories
• William Henry Harrison destroyed the united Native American Confederacy at Tippecanoe
Causes of the War of 1812:
• British impressments of American sailors
• American frontiersmen wanted more free land, as the West was held by Native Americans and the British
• The US suspected the British were encouraging Native American rebellion
• “War Hawk” Congressional leaders, such as Henry Clay and John Calhoun, pressed for intervention
• War Hawks desired annexation of Canada and Florida
• Despite the Embargo Act and Non-Intercourse Act, hostilities could not be eliminated
• The US sided with France against Britain
War of 1812 Events (1812-1815):
• Early victories at sea by the US, then overcome by British
• The USA’s Admiral Perry took Lake Erie with the navy
• Opened the way for William Henry Harrison to invade Canada and defeat the British and Native American
forces
• Andrew Jackson led the American charge through the Southwest
• Battle of New Orleans was a decisive conflict where Jackson defeated the British; battle was actually fought
after the signing of the Treaty of Ghent
Washington DC Burned (1814):
• A British armada sailed up the Chesapeake Bay and burned the White House
• Attack came in response to the American burning of Toronto
• The armada proceeded toward Baltimore; America’s Fort McHenry held firm through the bombardment
• Inspired Francis Scott Key’s “Star Spangled Banner”
After the War of 1812 (post-1814):
• Increased American nationalism
• High foreign demand for cotton, grain, and tobacco
• Changed from agrarian to industrialization
• Depression in 1819 due to influx of British goods; the Bank of the US responded by tightening credit to slow
inflation, which caused business to slump
Rush-Bagot Agreement (1817):
• The Treaty of Ghent, which ended hostilities after the War of 1812, set the groundwork for this agreement by
encouraging both sides to continue to study boundary issues between the US and Canada
• Rush-Bagot was an agreement between Britain and the US to stop maintaining armed fleets on the Great
Lakes
st
• Served as the 1 “disarmament” agreement and laid the foundation for future positive relations between
Canada and the US
James Monroe and the Era of Good Feelings
James Monroe (1817-1825):
th
• 5 president
• Served 2 terms
• Administration was marked by the domination of his political party, the Democratic-Republicans, and the
decline of the Federalist Party
• National identity grew, mostly through the westward movement of the country and various public works
projects
• Monroe Doctrine- the US would not allow foreign powers to lead new colonies in the western hemisphere or
allow existing colonies to be influenced by outside powers
• America feared international influence because of a period of world-wide revolutionary fervor after
Napoleon’s fall
• The “era” saw the beginnings of North-South tensions over slavery
Convention of 1818:
th
• Provided for boundary between the US and Canada at the 49 parallel
• Allowed for joint occupation of the Oregon territory by Americans and Canadians
• Allowed American fishermen to fish in the waters of Newfoundland and Labrador
McCullough v. Maryland (1819):
• Marshall Court decision
• Determined that no state can control an agency of the federal government
• Maryland tried to levy a tax on a local branch of the BUS to protect its own state banks
• Supreme Court said such state action violated Congress’s “implied powers” to operate a national bank
• Use of judicial review over state law made this a division of powers case
Dartmouth College v. Woodward (1819):
• Marshall Court decision
• Severely limited the power of state govts. to control corporations, which were the emerging form of business
• New Hampshire legislature tried to change Dartmouth from a private to a public institution by having its
charter revoked
• The Court ruled that the charter issued during colonial days still constituted a contract and could not be
arbitrarily changed without consent of both parties
• Reaffirmed the sanctity of contracts
Adams-Onis Treaty (1819):
• Helped define the US-Mexico border, which had created conflict under Spanish control
• Spain sold its remaining Florida territory to the US and drew the boundary of Mexico to the Pacific
• US ceded its claims to Texas, and Spain kept California and the New Mexico region
• US assumed $5 million in debts owed by Spain to American merchants
• Later, lands kept by Spain would become battlegrounds for American expansion
Cotton in the Early 1800s:
• The new invention of the cotton gin separated the seeds from the fibers
• New stats, such as Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas, produced cotton
• Led to a boom in the cotton market; its global effects crowned the staple as “King Cotton”
• Need for cotton encouraged westward expansion in farming
Lowell System (1820s):
• A popular way of staffing New England factories
• Young women were hired from the surrounding countryside, brought to town, and housed in dorms in mill
towns for a short period
• The owners called these “factories in the garden” to spread the idea that these facilities would not be like the
dirty, corrupt mills in English towns
• The rotating labor supply benefited the owners, so no unions could be formed against them
• The system depended on technology to increase production
Transportation Revolution (1800-1850):
• Innovation included new construction of roads, addition of canals, and the expansion of the railroads
• Robert Fulton built the modern-day steamboat, transforming river transportation
• The transportation revolution cheapened the market for trade and encouraged population movement west of
the Appalachian Mountains
Missouri Compromise (1820):
• Henry Clay’s solution to deadlock over the issue of the acceptance of the proposed new state, Missouri
• At the time, the Senate was evenly divided between slave and free states
• A slave state of Missouri would tip the balance of power
• John Tallmadge added an antislavery amendment meant to prohibit the growth of slavery into Missouri and to
free slaves already in Missouri when they had reached a certain age
• The Tallmadge Amendment caused the Senate to block the Missouri Compromise; it sparked heated debate
about the future of slavery
• To settle the dispute, northern Massachusetts became a new free state (Maine)
• The legislative section prohibiting slavery in Missouri was replaced by a clause stating that all Louisiana
Purchase land north of the 36’30 parallel would prohibit slavery
John Quincy Adams
“Corrupt Bargain” (1824):
• Four candidates- Henry Clay (Speaker of the House); John Quincy Adams (Secretary of State), Andrew Jackson
(1812 war hero), and William Crawford (Secretary of the Treasury)
• Jackson won the popular vote but did not win the majority of the electoral vote; as a result, the election went
to the House of Representatives
• Henry Clay, in the House of Representatives vote, threw his support to John Quincy Adams
• In exchange for Adams winning the presidency over Jackson, Adams gave Clay the post of Secretary of State
• Accusations of a “corrupt bargain” were made by Jackson, but are considered to be largely untrue
John Quincy Adams (1825-1829):
th
• 6 president
• Served 1 term
• Supporters called themselves National Republicans; Jackson supporters called themselves DemocraticRepublicans
• Led an active federal government in areas like internal improvements and Native American affairs
• Policies proved unpopular amidst increasing sectional interest and conflicts over states’ rights
• After his presidency, he served in the House of Representatives, where he forced debates against slavery and
against the removal of certain Native American tribes, a Jacksonian policy
Tariff of Abominations (1828):
• Tariff bill with higher import duties for many goods bought by Southern planters
• John C. Calhoun, John Quincy Adams, vice president and champion of states’ rights, anonymously protested
his own leaderships’ bill, suggesting that a federal law harmful to an individual state could be declared void
within that state (The South Carolina Exposition and Protest)
• This suggestion of nullification would be utilized by other states and would escalate hostilities, leading to the
Civil War
Age of Jackson
Andrew Jackson (1829-1837):
th
• 7 president
• Served 2 terms
• After the War of 1812, he invaded Spanish Florida to stop Native American rebellions
• After the treaty for the War of 1812 had already been signed, he defeated a British force that had invaded
New Orleans, safeguarding the Mississippi River
• He was a popular president due to his image as the self-made Westerner
• Implemented the spoils system approach to civil service
• Signed the Indian Removal Act, which provided for federal enforcement to remove Native Americans tribes
west of the Mississippi
• Was against the BUS
Jacksonian Politics (1828-1840):
• Called for a strong executive who liberally used the veto
• Relied on the party system
• Emphasized states’ rights
• Politics came to rely on emotional appeals, with meetings in mass conventions to nominate national
candidates for office
Spoil System (1828):
• Jackson’s method of exchanging government officials with new civil servants
• “Rotation in office” was supposed to democratize government and lead to reform by allowing common folk
to run the government
• This system had been in place long before Jackson, but his name is tied to it because he endorsed its usage
• In general, officials were replaced by those loyal to the new administration; they were not always the most
qualified for the positions
• Over the span of several presidential terms, the system led to corruption and inefficiency; it was ended with
the passage of the Pendleton Act
Alexis de Tocqueville (early 1830s):
• French civil service who traveled to and wrote about the US
• Democracy in America- reflected his interest in the American democratic process
• Assessed the American attempt to have both liberty and equality
• Provided an outsider’s objective view of the Age of Jackson
Webster-Hayne Debate (1830):
• Debate in the Senate between Daniel Webster (MA) and Robert Hayne (SC) that focused on sectionalism
and nullification
• Came after the “Tariff of Abominations” incident
• At issue was the source of constitutional authority- was the Union derived from an agreement between
states or from the people who had sought a guarantee of freedom?
• Webster stated- “Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable”
Tariff of 1832 and the Order of Nullification ( 1832):
• The tariff favored Northern interests at the expense of Southern ones
• Calhoun led a state convention calling for the Order of Nullification, which declared the tariff laws void; SC
would resist by force any attempt to collect the tariffs
• Jackson, though a states’ rights supporter, defended the Union above all, and asked Congress to issue a new
bill to give him authority to collect tariffs by force
• Jackson encouraged his allies to prepare a compromise bill so that the federal government would not lose its
image of control and so that SC could back down from nullification
• Henry Clay presented his Compromise Tariff of 1833 and SC withdrew the Order, but tensions between the
federal government and state governments grew
Biddle’s Banks ( 1832):
• Jackson objected to the BUS created by Alexander Hamilton- he felt that the bank had great influence in
national affairs but did not respond to the will of working and rural class people
• Henry Clay wanted the Bank to be a political issue for the upcoming presidential election in 1832 against
Jackson
• Nicholas Biddle, chairman of the Bank, worked with Clay to recharter the BUS 4 years earlier than it was due
• Jackson vetoed the measure, increasing his popularity
Texas, Leading to the Battle of the Alamo (1800s):
• Mexico refused to sell Texas to the USA, which had given up its claims to Texas in the Adams-Onis Treaty
• Texas had been a state in the Republic of Mexico since 1822, following a revolution against Spain
• Mexico offered land grants for immigration to the area; many Americans responded and went to Texas,
increasing population and revenue
• Southerners moved to Mexico with interest in becoming slave masters; the presence of slavery angered the
Mexican government
• When the population changed, Mexico’s power began to erode
• Stephen Austin worked to first make Texas a Mexican state and later independent of Mexico
Battle of the Alamo (Feb 24-Mar 6, 1836):
• During Texas’s revolution against Mexico, Ft Alamo was attacked by the Mexican Army and 187 members of
the Texas garrison were killed
• Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna- victorious Mexican military and political leader
• “Remember the Alamo”- battle cry in its fight for independence
Sam Houston (1793-1863):
• Leader of Texas Independence
• Defeated Santa Anna at the Battle of San Jacinto and claimed independence
• Houston requested both President Jackson and Van Buren to recognize Texas as a state, which was denied out
of the feat that a new slave state would be formed
Panic of 1837 and Specie Circular:
• Recession caused by Jackson’s drastic movement of federal bank deposits to state and local banks (pet banks)
• Led to relaxed credit policies and inflation
• Jackson demanded a Specie Circular, stating that land must be paid for in hard money, not paper or credit
• Recession lasted into the 1840s
Trail of Tears ( 1838-1839):
• Worchester v Georgia was a response to Jackson’s Indian Removal Policy
• Cherokees in Georgia claimed to be a sovereign political entity
• Native Americans were supported by the Supreme Court; Jackson refused to enforce the court’s decision
• Cherokees had largely me the government’s demands to assimilate into Western-style democratic institutions
but were still forced to give up lands to the east of the Mississippi and travel to an area in present-day
Oklahoma
• The migration’s effects were devastating as hunger, disease, and exhaustion killed about 4,000 Cherokees
Whig Party (1840s):
• Group that had its roots in the old Federalist party, the old National Republican Party, and others who
opposed Jackson’s policies
• Encouraged commercial/industrial development, banks/corporations
• Gave lukewarm support to westward expansion
• Supported mostly by Northern business/manufacturing and large Southern planters
• John C. Calhoun, Henry Clay, Daniel Webster
1840s:
US-British Tension and Webster-Ashburton Treaty (1842):
• American ship was burned by Canadian loyalists
• Canada and the US disputed the boundary of Maine
• British ships sometimes stopped American ships to suppress American slave smuggling
• The treaty settled the boundary of Maine and border disputes in the Great Lakes
• Created more cooperation between the US and Britain in curbing the slave trade
Irish and German Immigration:
• Irish: dramatic increase in Irish immigration in the 1840s because of the potato famine in Ireland
• Poverty for Irish immigrants caused settlement in eastern cities and competition for jobs
• German: the 1850s saw an increase in German immigration due to the failed revolution in 1848
• Many Germans settled in Wisconsin because they had money and other resources; helped to settle the upperMidwest portion of the US
• 5 Points Neighborhood of NYC: “melting pot” of Irish/Anglo/Italian/Jewish immigrants and African-Americans
Transportation in the 1840s and 1850s:
• Tremendous expansion of railroad lines, creating a national market for goods
• Railroads linked the Midwest to the Northeast
• Steamboats and clipper ships became more popular for travel
Stephen Douglas (1813-1861):
• Senator from Illinois dubbed the “Little Giant”
• Was an expansionist and a supporter of the Mexican War
• Believed popular sovereignty was the appropriate way to handle the slavery question
Popular Sovereignty (1840s):
• Doctrine under which the status of slavery in the territories was to be determined by the settlers themselves
• Doctrine was first put forward by General Lewis Cass and was promoted by Stephen Douglas
• It was intended as a resolution to the impending crisis of the slavery question
Mexican War (1846-1848) (1846-1848):
• John C. Fremont (US) won attacks by land and sea in California
• Zachary Taylor defeated large forces in Mexico (later became president)
• Mexicans refused to negotiate; President Polk ordered forces led by Winfield Scott into Mexico City
• Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848) ended the war giving the US land originally sought by Slidell (New Mexico,
Arizona, California, and parts of Texas, Colorado, Utah, and Nevada)
• Border was set at the Rio Grande River
• Raised questions of slavery in the new territory
• War was opposed by some (Henry David Thoreau and Abe Lincoln)
Wilmot Proviso (1846):
• Amendment to a Mexican War Appropriations Bill
• Proposed that slavery could not exist in any territory to be acquired from Mexico
• The amendment was defeated several times in Congress
• Represented the question of slavery’s future, which would be decided in the Civil War
Mexican Cession and Slavery (1848):
• Argument existed about slavery in the new-acquired Mexican Cession
• States-righters believed that the territory was the property of all states and that the federal government had no
right to prohibit property ownership in territories
• Many anti-slavery/federal govt. supporters stated that Congress had the power to make laws for the territories
• Argument in favor of federal power was based on the Northwest Ordinance (1787) & Missouri Compromise (1820)
Gold Rush (1848-1850s):
• Miners who rushed to California after the discovery of gold were called “49-ers”
• Over 80,000 prospectors “rushed” to San Francisco ; Increased population led to California becoming a state (free)
• Connected to the idea of Manifest Destiny
Antebellum South
Four Classes in the South:
• Yeoman- largest group; worked land independently, sometimes along with slaves, to produce their own
foods, like corn
• Planters- owned large farms and groups of slaves; exercised political and economic control with cotton
exports
• Poor Whites- lived in squalor, often worse than the slaves
• Slaves- worked land; ¾ of whites in the South did NOT own any slaves
Slave Labor System:
• Large Farms: white overseers directed black drivers, who supervised groups in the fields as they performed
gang labor
• Smaller Farms: a slave was assigned specific tasks, then given the remainder of the day to himself
• House Servants: spared physical labor, but they enjoyed less privacy and had direct responsibility to the
master
Slaves in Southern Urban Areas:
• Slaves served as factory workers or in construction
• Some purchased their freedom with their savings or disappeared into society
• As sectional troubles rose, fewer salves were able to buy freedom or work in urban areas
Elements of Slavery (1700s-1800s):
• Slaves suffered varying degrees of repression, although most received adequate housing and diet
• Slaves did commit some violent uprisings
• Many slaves tried to run away into bordering free states
• Injustice created quiet revolt as slaves sabotaged their facilities, found ways to become unproductive for their
masters, and ridiculed their masters
• Despite their repression, slaves created their own common culture
Slave Codes (1650s-1860s):
• A series of laws that limited slave rights
• Slave owners were given authority to impose harsh physical punishment and to control their slaves in any
fashion they sought, without court intervention
• Prohibited slaves from owning weapons, becoming educated, meeting with other African-Americans without
permission, and testifying against whites in court
• Severely limited the rights of slaves
Southern Response to Slavery (1790-1860s):
• Defense of slavery shifted from an early view (1790) that slavery was a “necessary evil” to being a “positive
good” (after 1840)
• Used scientific arguments, biblical texts, and historical examples to justify slavery
• Both this defensive position and abolitionist movements increased
• Some Southerners (VA lawyer George Fitzhugh) defended slavery by condemning Northern “wage slavery”; he
used the idea of African-American inferiority to suggest that whites were protecting slaves from a world of
fierce competition in which they could not survive on their own (paternalism)
Reform Era of the mid-1800s:
nd
2 Great Awakening and Protestant Revivalism (1830s-1840s):
• A wave of religious fervor spread through a series of camp meeting revivals
• The “Burnt Over District” was an area in Upstate NY that was the center of the movement
• Protestant Revivalism was a reaction to rationalism, emphasizing personal salvation, strong nationalism, and the
improvement of society through social reform
• Revivalism included participation by women and African Americans, demonstrating the influence and growth of
democracy
• Created diversity in American religious sects and dome anti-Catholic sentiment
Dorothea Dix (1802-1887):
• Social reformer who worked to help the mentally ill
• Northeastern jails housed both criminals and the mentally ill in the same facilities
• Dix became determined to change this; her memorandum to the Massachusetts legislature (1842) led to the
establishment of state hospitals for the insane
Utopian Communities (1820-1850):
• Movement that copied early European efforts at utopianism
• Attempt by cooperative communities to improve life in the face of increasing industrialism
• Groups practiced social experiments that generally saw little success due to their radicalism
• Included attempts at sexual equality, racial equality, and socialism (Examples: Brook Farm and Oneida)
Mormonism (1830):
• Religion founded by Joseph Smith Jr.
• Smith claimed to have received sacred writings; he organized the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
• Smith described a vision from God in which God declared specific tenets of Christianity to be abominations
• Because of these claims and unusual practices such as polygamy, Mormons were shunned
• Eventually, they formed communities near Great Salt Lake under Brigham Young, which became Utah
Transcendentalism (1820-1850):
• Movement to transcend the bounds of the intellect and to strive for emotional unity with God
• Capable of unity without the help of the institutional church; saw church as reactionary & stifling to self-expression
Horace Mann (1796-1859):
• The 1st secretary of the Massachusetts Board of Education; suggested reforms in education
• Made available high-quality, no-cost, nondenominational public schooling which has lasted to the present day
• “Father of the American public school”
Abolitionism (1830s-Civil War):
• Began with the idea of purchasing/transporting slaves to free African states, which had little success
• Anti-slavery societies were founded (some faced violent opposition)
• The movement split into two- radical followers and those who petitioned Congress
• Entered politics through the Liberty Party, calling for non-expansion of slavery into new western territories
• Liberty Party would later combine with the larger Free Soil Party
William Lloyd Garrison (1805-1879):
• The Liberator- newspaper that printed his views that slaves should be immediately emancipated
• Many other anti-slavery advocates of the 1830s and 1840s recommended a gradualist approach
• Because of his strict view of emancipation and the fiery language he used in his paper, opposition to his policy
developed within abolitionist groups
• After the Civil War, he promoted free trade, suffrage for women, and fair treatment of Native Americans
Frederick Douglass (1817?-1895):
• An escaped slave from Maryland and outspoken abolitionist who published his own newspaper North Star
• Favored the use of political methods of reform
• In the Civil War, he helped put together regiments of African Americans from Massachusetts and encouraged others
to join the Union army
• “Father of the American civil rights movement”
Road to the Civil War- Increasing Tensions
The North (1850):
• Wages were increasing and the economy was growing
• Railroad competition began to harm the canal business
• Large numbers of Irish and Germans immigrated to the US
• Urbanization increased as the population grew, bringing problems such as slums, impure water, rats, and raw
sewage
The South (1850):
• Plantation system- cash crops grown by slave labor
• Agrarian slave labor was more profitable that using slaves in factories
• Capital funds were tied up in land and slaves, so little was left for investing in new growth or industry
• Value system put emphasis on leisure and elegance
• Unlike the North, the South remained agrarian and its population was less dense
• Due to the rise of cotton, the influence of the Gulf States in the South grew
• Cotton became the largest export of the US
• Slave importation continued through the 1850s into southwestern states, despite the federal outlaw
Free-Soil Party (1847-1848):
• Party created by those Democratic-Republicans opposed to slavery; included anti-slavery Whigs and former
Liberty Party members
• Opposed extension of slavery into new territories; supported national improvement programs and small
tariffs to raise revenue
• Zachary Taylor defeated Free Soil candidate Martin Van Buren for president in 1848
Stephen Douglas (1813-1861):
• Senator from Illinois dubbed the “Little Giant”
• Was an expansionist and a supporter of the Mexican War
• Broke the Compromise of 1850 into smaller, more acceptable pieces of legislation and pushed it through
using various allies in Congress
• During a Senate campaign, participated in debates against Abe Lincoln (dubbed the Lincoln-Douglas Debates)
• Believed popular sovereignty was the appropriate way to handle the slavery question
• Introduced the Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854
Compromise of 1850 (Omnibus Bill):
• Proposed by Henry Clay and handled by Stephen Douglas to assure passage by both Northerners and
Southerners
• Douglas broke the legislation into various pieces, which helped assure that each of its parts would pass
• The Compromise led to a sectional harmony for several years
• California was admitted as a free state
• New Mexico and Utah territories would be decided by popular sovereignty
• Slave trade was abolished in the District of Columbia
• Tough Fugitive Slave Act passed
• Federal payment to Texas ($10 million) for lost New Mexico territory
Fugitive Slave Act (1850):
• Part of the Compromise of 1850
• This new act reinvigorated enforcement of some guidelines that had already been established in the Fugitive
Slave Act of 1793, which had been mostly ignored by Northern states
• Created federal commissioners who could pursue fugitive slaves in any state; paid $10 per returned slave
• Blacks living in the North and claimed by slave catchers were denied portions of legal due process
• Some Northern stats passed personal-liberty laws that contradicted the Act
• Led to small riots in the North and increased the tension between the North and the South
Harriet Beecher Stowe- Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1811-1896):
• Worked with the Grimke sisters, Elizabeth Stanton, and other leaders to pursue activist goals
• Early activist in the feminist movement and author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1851), a novel about slavery
• Book was denounced in the South and praised in the North; it turned many toward active opposition to
slavery and helped increase sympathy for abolition by Europeans who read it
Ostend Manifesto (1854):
• Written by James Buchanan, John Mason, and Pierre Soule after Soule failed to purchase Cuba from Spain
• Suggested that the US should take Cuba from Spain by force if Spain refused to sell it
• Abolitionists saw Ostend as a plot to extend slavery
• Southerners supported the manifesto as they had feared Cuba would be a free “black republic”
James Buchanan (1857-1861):
• President when the Dred Scott decision was announced
• Supported the Lecompton Constitution to satisfy the South
• Buchanan, still acting as president after Lincoln’s election, denied the legal right of states to secede but
believed that the federal government cold not legally prevent them
• Before leaving office, Buchanan appointed Northerners to federal posts and helped to prepare Fort Sumter
with reinforcements
Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857):
• Supreme Court case involving a slave, Scott, who was taken by his master from Missouri, a slave state, to
Illinois, a free state
• After Scot had been returned to Missouri, he sued for freedom for himself and his family, stating that by
residing in a free state he had ended his slavery
• President Buchanan meant for the case’s decision to serve as the basis for the slavery issue
• Pro-Southern Judge Taney ruled that Scott did NOT have the right of citizenship, which he would need to be
able to bring forth a suit
• The Court further ruled that the Missouri Compromise itself was unconstitutional because Congress had no
power to prohibit slavery in the territories, as slaves were property
• The Scott decision would apply to all African-Americans, who were regarded as inferior and without rights
Causes of the Panic of 1857:
• Failure of the Ohio Life Insurance and Trust Co in NY
• Overspeculation in railroads and lands
• Decrease in flow of European capital for US investments because of Europe’s own wars
• Surplus of wheat hurt Northern farmers
• Panic spread to Europe, South America, and the Far East
• The Panic fueled sectional tensions as Northerners blamed it on the low tariff policies of the Southerndominated Congress
Creation of Lincoln’s Republican Party (1854):
• Democratic Party divided along North-South lines
• Whig Party disintegrated, with its members joining the Known-Nothings or the newly-created Republican
Party
• The Republican Party’s unifying principle was that slavery should be banned from all the nation’s territories
and not permitted to spread any further to established states
Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854):
• Legislation introduced by Stephen Douglas to organize the area west of Missouri and Iowa
• One goal was to facilitate the building of a transcontinental railroad that ran west from Chicago
• Called for two territories to be created (Kansas and Nebraska) and the issue of slavery to be decided by
popular sovereignty
• Kansas’ status was impacted by fighting between pro and anti slavery groups who moved to the area, where
the conflict was termed “Bleeding Kansas”
Lecompton Constitution (1857):
• Document submitted by pro-slavery leaders in territorial Kansas that put no restrictions on slavery
• Free-soilers boycotted the constitutional convention in Lecompton because the document would not leave
Kansas a free territory
• Though President Buchanan supported the constitution as the basis for Kansas’ statehood, Congress voted
against it
• The constitution was turned down and Kansa remained a territory
Lincoln-Douglas Debates (1858):
• Came out of the Illinois senatorial campaign between Stephen Douglas and Abe Lincoln
• Slavery was a major issue in the debates, as Douglas maintained that popular sovereignty was supported by
the basic elements of democracy
• Douglas’ “Freeport Doctrine”- despite the Dred Scott case, slavery could be prevented by the refusal of the
people living in a territory to pass laws favorable to slavery
• Lincoln had a moral opposition to slavery’s spread and demanded constitutional protection where it existed
• Lincoln lost the senate election to Douglas but he gained national attention
John Brown (1809-1859):
• Brown and his sons killed 5 pro-slavery settlers in Kansas in an incident known as the “Pottawattamie Creek
Massacre”
• He was supported by some Northern abolitionists to start a nationwide revolution against slavery
• He led followers to seize a federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia in hopes of starting a rebellion (1859)
• Brown was arrested and hanged
• Pro-slavery supporters saw him as a demon; abolitionists saw him as a martyr for slavery
Election of 1860:
• Republicans nominated Abe Lincoln
• Major plank of his campaign- containment of slavery and encouragement of transcontinental rail
• The Democratic vote was split between Douglas and several other strong candidates
• Lincoln won the election, even without being on the ballot in 10 southern states
• After his inauguration the South seceded
Civil War, 1861-1865
Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865):
• 16th president; elected 2 times- served 1 full term before being assassinated by John Wilkes Booth at Ford’s
Theater in Washington DC (Booth believed he was assisting the Southern cause)
• Produced and le a Northern Army to defend the Union against secessionists
• Suspended habeas corpus during the Civil War, which was upheld by Congress
• Issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed slaves within the Confederacy only
• Developed the 10% Plan for Reconstruction
• Gave the Gettysburg Address (November 19, 1863)
Secession (began December 1860):
• Response to the election of Lincoln, who south to contain slavery
• South Carolina voted to secede on December 20, 1860
• Over the next 2 months Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas seceded
• These states declared themselves the Confederate States of America and elected Jefferson Davis as
president, adopted a constitution that permitted slavery rights and the sovereignty of states
Civil War Conscription (1860s):
• Congress passed a federal conscription law in 1863
• Rioting in the North took place, especially in NYC, when drafted persons were permitted to avoid service by
hiring a substitute of paying $300
• The Confederacy’s short supply of manpower meant an earlier draft for them (1862)
• Southerners could also hire substitutes or purchase an exemption
Advantages of the South:
• Only needed to resist being conquered (defensive NOT offensive)
• Vast in land size
• Troops would fight in their familiar home territory
• Highly qualified senior officers: Robert E. Lee, Joseph Johnston, Albert Sidney Johnston, Stonewall Jackson
• Inspired to protect their familiar institutions and culture
Advantages of the North:
• Larger population
• Better railroad lines and more established trade routes than the South
• More wealth
• Able to use the moral issue of slavery as motivation for the troops
Anaconda Plan (1861):
• Civil War strategy planned by Northern General Winfield Scott to crush the Southern rebellion
o Naval blockade to shut out European supplies and exports
o Campaign to take the Mississippi River and split the South in two
o Targeting of the Southern cities in hopes that pro-Unionists would rise up and overthrow the secession
• Both the blockade and the taking of the Mississippi were successful
Homestead Act (1862):
• Granted 160 acres of government land to any person who would farm it for at least 5 years
• The government helped to settle the West with this provision
• This “Free Soil” proposal became law when the Southern Democrats were not part of Congress because of the
war
Battle of Antietam (September 17, 1862):
• General George McClellan attempted to defeat Lee and shorten the war, but failed
• McClellan had discovered detailed plans for Lee’s entire operation but ignored the opportunity because of
overcautiousness
• Lee’s army was forced to retreat to VA after a bloody battle at Antietam, Md. (single bloodiest day of the war)
• McClellan’s failure to pursue Lee led Lincoln to remove him from command
Emancipation Proclamation (effective January 1, 1863):
• Declared all slaves to be free in areas under rebel control only (exempting conquered areas of the South)
• Lincoln was criticized for not abolishing slavery everywhere
• Led to slaves in the South leaving their plantations
• Increased morale in the North (propaganda piece)
• Partly designed to keep England from joining the war on the side of the South
• Changed perception of the war from a conflict to preserve the Union to a war to end slavery
Battle of Gettysburg (July 1-3 1863):
• Lee invaded Pennsylvania from Virginia; pursued by Northern General Meade
• Lee was defeated and retreated to Virginia
• Bloodiest, most decisive battle of the Civil War
• Farthest northern advance of the Confederacy (CSA never invaded the North again)
Civil War Ships:
• Ironclads were Civil War ships protected from cannon fire by iron plates bolted over the sloping wooden sides
• Confederates outfitted an old wooden warship, the Merrimack, with iron railroad rails and renamed it the
Virginia; it achieved devastating results
• The Union’s Monitor fought the Merrimack to a standstill (March 9, 1862)
Sherman’s March to the Sea (1864):
• General William Tecumseh Sherman led Union troops through Georgia
• Sherman and Union Commander, Ulysses S. Grant, believed in a “total war” that would break the South’s
psychological capacity to fight; Sherman’s army sought to eliminate civil support of Southern troops
• The purpose of destroying Georgia was to lower Southern morale and diminish supplies
• Sherman captured and burned Atlanta in September 1864 and then led his troops to Savannah, then on to
North and South Carolina on his way to the Confederate capital of Richmond
Presidential Election of 1864:
• Lincoln ran against General McClellan (claimed that the war was a failure and called for a peace settlement)
• Lincoln ran on the ticket of national unity with Andrew Johnson from Tennessee (the only southern senator
who did not secede)
• Sherman’s taking of Atlanta helped Lincoln win the election
• Those who were sympathetic to the Southern cause were labeled “Copperheads”
Conclusion of the War (April 9, 1865):
• With his forces surrounded, General Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia
• Lee’s surrender caused the remaining Confederate soldiers to lay down their arms
• By the end of the conflict, the country had sustained over 600,000 casualties
Reconstruction
Wade-Davis Bill (1864):
• A proposal to reunite the country by Senators Wade and Davis
• Required 50% of a state’s white voters take a loyalty oath to be readmitted to the Union
• Demanded stronger efforts on behalf of states to emancipate slaves
• Lincoln pocket-vetoed the bill in favor of his 10% plan
Lincoln’s 10% Plan (1863):
• Lincoln believed that seceded states should be restored to the Union quickly and easily, with “malice toward none,
with charity for all”
• 10% Plan- allowed Southerners (but NOT high ranking confederate officers and military leaders) to take an oath
promising future loyalty to the Union and an end to slavery
• When 10% of those registered to vote in 1860 took the oath, a loyal state government could be formed
• This plan was not accepted by Congress
Radical Republicans:
• Faction of the Republican Party that believed the Civil War was meant to stop slavery/emancipate all slaves
• Believed Congress should control Reconstruction and not the president
• Rejected the reentry of Tennessee, Arkansas, and Louisiana into the Union, despite their qualification under the 10%
plan because they refused to ratify constitutional amendments
• They wanted the rebellious South to be dealt with in a harsher manner
• Ben Wade/Thaddeus Stevens
Andrew Johnson (1865-1869):
• 17th president; served the remainder of Lincoln’s term after Lincoln was assassinated
• He initially followed Lincoln’s policies but gradually became more conservative, giving amnesty to former
Confederate officials and opposing legislation that dealt with former slaves
• His veto of the Civil Rights Act was overridden by Congress, which decreased his political sway
• Johnson’s opposition to Radical Republicans and his violation of the Tenure of Office Act led to his impeachment by
the House of Representatives
• The Senate was organized as a court to hear the impeachment charges but it came one vote short of the
constitutional 2/3 required for removal
Reconstruction Amendments (1865-1870):
• 13th- abolished slavery in the USA (1865)
• 14th- African Americans became citizens; no state could deny life, liberty, or property without due process of the law
(1868)
• 15th- no state could deny the right to vote on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude (1870)
Carpetbaggers:
• Nickname for Northerners who went to the South to participate in Reconstructive governments
• Name came from the cloth bags of possession many of them used to travel South
• Response by some violent Southern whites led to organization of the Ku Klux Klan
Scalawags
• Nickname for Southerners working for or supporting the federal government during Reconstruction
• Some of them had opposed the war from the beginning, while others helped Reconstruction for financial gains
• Became a target of the KKK
Black Codes (1865):
• Restrictions by Southern states on former slaves to replicate the conditions of servitude in the post-Civil War South
• Various codes prohibited meetings without a white present, while others established segregated public facilities
• Led to Radical Republican opposition and exclusion of Southern representation in Congress
Jim Crow Laws (1880s-1900s):
• Laws separating whites and African Americans in public facilities and restricting their legal guarantees, such as the
right to vote (poll taxes/literacy tests); often part of state statutes
• Support for these laws was provided in Plessy v. Ferguson, demonstrating the limits of the 14th amendment
• Name of the laws are said to be derived from a character in a minstrel song
Freedmen’s Bureau (1865):
• Congressional support agency providing food, clothing, and education for freed slaves
• Ex-slave states were divided into districts that were managed by assistant commissioners
• Despite its benefits, the Bureau failed to establish the freed slaves as landowners
• It organized African American vote for the Republican Party, creating tension toward the Bureau in the South
Booker T. Washington (1856-1915):
• Son of a slave and a white man
• Taught at Hampton Institute and in 1881 helped organized a school for African Americans at Tuskegee, Alabama
• Tuskegee Institute emphasized industrial training to help African Americans gain wealth and become influential
• Claimed it was a mistake for blacks to push for social equality before they had become economically equal
• His ideas were denounced by some leaders of the African American community
• Lectured throughout the US and Europe and became a write (Up From Slavery- autobiography)
WEB DuBois (1868-1963):
• Civil rights leader and author
• Called for full equality of African Americans, which included social, civil, political, and economic equality
• Opposed Booker T. Washington’s “gradual approach” to equality
• Though higher education, he wanted to develop leaders from the most able 10% of African Americans (“Talented
Tenth”)
• Co-founded the Niagara Movement, which became the National Association for the Advancement of Colored
Persons (NAACP)
Ulysses S. Grant (1869-1877)
• 18th president ; served 2 terms
• Fought in the Mexican War, captured Vicksburg as a Union general, and accepted General Lee’s surrender
• Appointed Secretary of War by Andrew Johnson in 1867; disagreed with Johnson’s policies and won election
through support of Radical Republicans
• Despite his personal honesty and honor, his administration had scandals ( Credit Mobilier and the Whiskey Ring)
Credit Mobilier Scandal (1867-1872):
• Stockholders of the Union Pacific Railroad created a dummy corporation, Credit Mobilier
• The company was supposed to complete the transcontinental railroad, but instead stole millions of govt. dollars
• Blame for the scandal fell on Grant and his cabinet
Whiskey Ring Fraud (1870s):
• To aid in the cost of the Civil war, liquor taxes were increased
• Distillers and treasury officials conspired to defraud the government by giving out cheap tax stamps, robbing the
government of millions in excise tax
• One of the scandals of Grant’s administration
First Transcontinental Railroad (1869):
• Completed with Golden Spike at Promontory Point, Utah
• Marked the meeting of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads
• During construction, the Union Pacific used Irish labor, while the Central Pacific used Chinese labor
• The connection of the railroads opened national markets and met growing economic needs
Compromise of 1877:
• Compromise came out after the disputed presidential election of 1876 between Hayes and Tilden
• Tilden won the popular vote but neither candidate won the electoral vote; 3 states’ electoral votes were in dispute
• The Democrats agreed to give Hayes the presidency
• Hayes promised to show consideration for Southern interests, end Reconstruction, aid Southern industrialization,
and withdraw remaining forces from the South
• This settlement left the freed Southern blacks without support from the Republic Party
Rutherford B. Hayes (1877-1881):
• 19th president; served 1 term
• Former Ohio governor who was the Republican presidential nominee in 1876
• During his term, he removed federal troops from the South & dealt with the railroad strike in 1877
Gilded Age and Industrialization
Gilded Age (1870s-1890s):
• Period of the new industrial era
• Phrase coined by Mark Twain
• America emerged as the world’s industrial and agricultural producer
• Profits became increasingly centralized in the hands of fewer people
Divisions of the Republican Party (1880s):
• Half-Breeds- supported civil service reform and merit appointments to government
• Stalwarts- opposed civil service reform and supported the protective tariff
• Mugwumps- group that left the Republican Party to become Democrats; this group heavily favored civil
service reform and mistrusted James Blaine as the presidential nominee, as the group suspected his
involvement in past corruption
• Election of 1880 united Garfield, a half-breed, and vice president Chester Arthur, a Stalwart
Pendleton Act:
• Established open competitive exams for civil service jobs and officially ended the Spoils System, which had
been popular under Andrew Jackson
Captains of Industry/ AKA Robber Barons (1880s):
• Leaders of large, efficient corporations
• Often gained wealth through questionable business means
• Monopolies by these large companies led to demands by small businessmen and laborers for govt. regulation
John D. Rockefeller (1839-1937):
• Founder of Standard Oil Company
• Used such business practices as horizontal integration, trusts, and rebates to grow his company
• Also invested in banks, railroads, and timber
• Founded on philanthropy toward the end of his life, (Rockefeller Foundation & the University of Chicago)
Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919):
• After making money in a sleeping car company and oil, he moved on to work in the War Department
• He went to work in the iron business, then moved into steel after learning of the Bessemer Process, which
formed steel from pig iron
• Grew Carnegie Steel Company through acquisitions
• Wrote Gospel of Wealth- the wealthy were just trustees of their money & must use their efforts to help
society
• His philanthropic ventures included Carnegie Hall and public libraries
JP Morgan (1837-1913):
• Wall Street banker whose company financed railroads, banks, and insurance companies
• Bought out Carnegie for $400 million
• Philanthropist
Social Darwinism (1880s):
• Theory that wealth was based on the survival of the fittest; associated with Charles’ Darwin’s work
• Wealthy industrial leaders used the doctrines to justify vast differences in classes
• Supporters included Herbert Spencer and William Graham Sumner
Grover Cleveland (1885-1889 & 1893-1897):
nd
th
• 22 and 24 president
• Only president elected to two nonconsecutive terms
• First Democrat elected after the Civil War
• He vetoed many private pension bills to Civil War veterans who submitted fraudulent claims
• Signed the Interstate Commerce Act
• Sent in federal troops to enforce an injunction against striking railroad workers in Chicago
American Federation of Labor- AFL (1886):
• Combination of national craft unions representing labor interests in wages, hours, and safety
• Individuals were members of their local unions, which in turn, were members of the AFL
• Rather than revolutionary changes, they sought a better working life; their philosophy was “pure and simple
unionism”
• First president was Samuel Gompers
Haymarket Square Riot (May 4, 1886):
• Large rally in Haymarket Square in Chicago shortly after striking began at McCormick Harvesting Machine Co
• Police attempted to disperse the crowd, which was followed by a bomb explosion
• 11 were killed and more than 100 were injured
• 8 anarchists were put on trial and 4 were executed
• Incident was used to discredit the Knights of Labor
Interstate Commerce Act (1887):
• Established the Interstate Commerce Commission partly to monitor discrimination within the railroad industry
• Prohibited rebate and pools and required railroads to publish their rates
• Also prohibited unfair discrimination against shippers and prohibited the practice of charging more for short
hauls than long hauls
• In general, the Act opened competition, the goal of which was to preserve equality and spur innovation
Sherman Anti-Trust Act (1890):
• Based on Congress’s power to regulate interstate commerce
• Declared every contract, combination, or conspiracy in restraint of interstate trade to be illegal
• Corporate monopolies were exposed to federal prosecution if found to conspire in restraining trade
• Supreme Court applied the act to both labor unions and corporations
Homestead Strike (1892):
• Iron and steel workers’ strike against Carnegie Steel Company in Pittsburgh to protest salary reductions
• Henry Clay Frick hired Pinkerton security guards to protect Carnegie’s plant, but fighting began and several
deaths resulted on both sides
• Pennsylvania state militia was brought in to take control
Eugene V. Debs (1855-1926):
• Became president of the American Railway Union in 1893
• Led successful strikes against the Great Northern Railway and against the Pullman Palace Car Company
• Was a founder of the Social Democratic Party
• Ran for President as a Socialist candidate 5 times between 1900 and 1920
Frederick Winslow Taylor (1856-1915):
• Created the basis for the scientific management of business in a quest for efficiency
• Used shops and large plants as models and succeeded in spreading his ideas on efficiency to several
industries
• Wrote books on the subject for scientific management
Henry Ford (1863-1947):
• His Model-T, introduced in 1908, was the first inexpensive, mass-produced automobile
• Use of the moving assembly line strongly influenced American manufacturing
Age of Imperialism
“Seward’s Folly” (1867):
• Nickname of Secretary of State William Seward’s decision to purchase Alaska for $7.2 million from Russia
• Congress agreed to the purchase, as Russia had been pro-North during the Civil War
• Most members thought the purchase to be foolish since the land was in such a remote location
• Russia was willing to sell it because they were overextended abroad and feared losing it in a future war
William Randolph Hearst (1863-1951):
• Inherited the San Francisco Chronicle
• Built a media empire (newspapers, magazines, radio stations, and movie studios)
• “Yellow Journalism” (writing that dealt with sensational news) helped lead the US into the Spanish-AmericanCuban-Filipino War
Modern Navy (1880s):
• Construction of new steel ships led the US to take the lead in the world naval rankings
• US Naval War College was established on October 6, 1884
• Alfred Thayer Mahan (1840-1914) was a US naval officer, President of Newport War College, and author who
pushed for imperialism and growth of the US Navy
• Repair and coaling stations helped expand the Navy’s effectiveness
Hawaii (1894-republic founded):
• American sugar planters worked in Hawaii and expanded American-Hawaiian sugar trade
• Queen Liliuokalani opposed foreigners, alienating Americans
• Revolution against the queen came about in 1893 and was encouraged by American leaders
• Because most islanders did not support the revolution, Cleveland unsuccessfully attempted to restore the Queen
• Sandford Dole, son of American missionaries in Hawaii, started the annexation process
• Dole became Hawaii’s first governor when the US annexed it on July 7, 1898
The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660-1783 (1890):
• Written by Alfred Thayer Mahan (1840-1914), a naval officer/historian
• Further encouraged those in favor of American imperialism and seaward expansion
• Themes in the book were used as partial justification for the US taking of the Philippines
Teller Amendment (1898):
• Amendment promised that when the US overthrew Spanish rule in Cuba, the US would give Cubans their
independence
• Platt Amendment would override it as Cuba would come under US control after the Spanish-American war
Spanish-American-Cuban-Filipino War (1898):
• Cuba resented Spain’s control, which led to rebellion
• Spain responded with the dispatch of General Valeriano Weyler, who confined civilians to brutal camps
• US “yellow press” labeled him “Butcher Weyler” which increased American support against Spain
• US sent the battleship Maine to Havana to protect American interests; it was blown up
• US fought Spain in the Philippines and in Cuba
• Treaty of Paris allowed for Cuban independence, US gained Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines while Spain
received $20 million from the US for the Philippines
Puerto Rico and the US (1900/1917):
• 1900- Congress passed the Foraker Act, which gave Puerto Rico limited popular government
• 1917- American citizenship was granted to Puerto Ricans
Platt Amendment (1901):
• Was attached to an Army appropriations bill
• It was written into the constitution of Cuba by the US and made Cuba a protectorate of the US
• US could intervene to preserve Cuba’s “independence”; in reality, the US could act to protect its own interests
• US kept land for naval bases on Cuba; Guantanamo Bay would play a part in later Cuban-US conflicts
Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909):
• Part of the Rough Rider Regiment during the Spanish-American War, where he became a war hero
Populism and Progressivism
Sherman Anti-Trust Act (1890):
• Based on Congress’s power to regulate interstate commerce
• Declared every contract, combination, or conspiracy in restraint of interstate trade to be illegal
• Corporate monopolies were exposed to federal prosecution if found to conspire in restraining trade
• Supreme Court applied the act to both labor unions and corporations
Populist Party (1890):
• Consisted mostly of farmers
• Members who met in Nebraska wrote their “Omaha Platform”
• The demands of the platform included free and unlimited coinage of silver, a graduated income tax, and
government ownership of the telephone, telegraph, and railroad industries
• Many of these ideas were later adopted by the Progressive party
Cross of Gold Speech (1896):
• Address given by William Jennings Bryan, the Democratic presidential nominee, during the national
convention of the Democratic Party
• The speech criticized the gold standard and supported the coinage of silver
• Bryan’s beliefs were popular with debt-ridden farmers
• The last words of his speech, and the most famous, were “You shall not press down upon the brow of labor
this crown of thorns, you shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.”
Progressivism (1890-1914):
• Social, political, and economic reform that came as an American response to problems caused by
industrialism, urbanization, and immigration
• Democratic reforms were made throughout states and the national government
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• Reforms helped develop the 16 , 17 , and 19 Amendments
Teddy Roosevelt (1901-1909):
• 26th president ; served 2 terms
• Roosevelt had to deal with ill health and became an advocate for similarly disadvantaged people
• Part of the Rough Rider Regiment during the Spanish-American conflict, where he became a war hero
• As President, he became a “trust buster”; he used the Sherman Anti-Trust Act to dissolve trusts that
restrained interstate and foreign trade
• Won the anti-trust case against the Northern Securities Company
• Style of diplomacy was to “speak softly and carry a big stick”; protected US interests by ensuring the
construction of the Panama Canal and US authority in Latin America
• Served as a middleman in conflicts between Russia and Japan; wrote the Gentlemen’s Agreement of 1907
• Supported conservation (not preservation) of national resources
Muckrakers (1900-1912):
• American journalists, novelists, and critics who exposed corruption, especially in business and politics
• Teddy Roosevelt is said to have given the muckrakers their name
• Famous muckrakers included Upton Sinclair, Ida Tarbell, Lincoln Steffens, and Samuel Hopkins Adams
• Led to increased support for the progressive movement
Upton Sinclair (1878-1968):
• Novelist and socialist
• Used his writings to expose issues in US society, such as the need for food inspection laws, and the oppressive
effect of capitalism on education and culture
• The Jungle (1906) - graphic novel about the Chicago stockyards, led to food inspection reforms and the Meat
Inspection Act of 1906
• Lost his bid to become governor of California in 1934
• Won the Pulitzer Prize in 1942
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17 Amendment (1913):
• Progressive initiative that allowed for each state to elect 2 senators for 6 year terms by popular vote
• All citizens to have a more active participation in government
Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921):
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• 28 president; served 2 terms
• Before presidency and political work he served as an academic and President of Princeton University
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• Legislation lowered tariffs, created a graduated income tax (16 amendment), and established the Federal
Trade Commission to control unfair business practices
• Initiated progressive reforms that prohibited child labor and limited railroad workers to an 8 hour day
• Led the US into WWI; 14 Points- outlined the settlement of WWI
• Noted racist who segregated the federal govt. & praised Birth of a Nation, a controversial racist movie
Federal Reserve Act (1913):
• Response to the Panic of 1907 and concerns of business
• Need for a stable currency supply that could grow and shrink with business demands
• Several measures competed for designing this central reserve, each offering control to a different group
• President Wilson worked diligently to secure passage of the act
• Divided the nation into separate regions with Federal Reserve banks in each to serve as “banker’s banks”
• The Federal Reserve Board oversaw the system and regulated it by raising or lowering the interest rates that
each Federal Reserve Bank would charge
Watchful Waiting ((1913-1914) :
• Policy by Wilson of rejecting alliances with leaders who took control through force until a demonstration of
their interests could be made
• Wilson refused to accept the leadership of Victoriano Huerta who took control of Mexico through violent
revolution
• Policy ended when the US sent forces to retaliate against Mexico, which had arrested US sailors in its borders
Clayton Anti-Trust Act (1914):
• Further outlined regulations against monopolies and other unfair business practices (updated the Sherman
Anti-Trust Act of 1890)
• Price discrimination that was destructive to competition was declared illegal
• Declared interlocking board of directors of direct competitors illegal
• Established the Federal Trade Commission to investigate and prosecute instances of unfair competition
• Served as the basis for many suits against big corporations
• Exempted labor unions engaged in legal activities
Labor Acts (1915-1916):
• La Folette Seamen’s Act (1915) - safety/sanitation measures for commercial ships; regulated wages/food/
hours
• Adamson Act (1916) - employees of railroads who were engaged in interstate commerce were given an 8hour
work day and overtime pay of time and a half
Keating-Owen Child Labor Act (1916):
• Forbade shipment of products whose production had involved child labor
• Power of enforcement derived from interstate commerce; federal govt. could regulate it rather than states
• Later declared unconstitutional because it interfered with the power of states
Louis Brandeis (1916):
• Nominated by Woodrow Wilson to the Supreme Court; first Jewish justice
• Considered an advocate of social justice
• Prior to his place on the Supreme Court he was known for his “Brandeis Brief” (Muller v. Oregon)
Hammer v Dagenhart (1918):
• Stuck down the Keating-Owen Act of 1916
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• Led to “duel federalism”- Congress could not take powers reserved to states by the 10 amendment
World War One
WWI Causes and Major Players (1914):
• CAUSES: assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary by a Serbian nationalist; nationalism in
Austria-Hungary and France; colonial expansion in Africa and China; military buildup
• MAJOR PLAYERS: Allies- Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Belgium, Japan, USA; Central Powers- Germany, AustriaHungary, Turkey, Belgium
Lusitania and Neutrality I1915):
• At the start of WWI, Germany began the use of submarines and announced the blockade of the Allied forces
• Lusitania-British passenger liner attacked by German submarines; while unarmed it DID carry Allied munitions
• US citizens traveling on the ship were killed
• Wilson protested but remained neutral, in line with the 1914 Proclamation of Neutrality
• One other liner with Americans, the Sussex, was sunk- Germans gave a pledge to stop attacks on unarmed
vessels
Zimmerman Telegram (1917):
• Telegram from German Foreign Secretary Zimmerman to German minister in Mexico; intercepted by the
British
• Proposed that Mexico attack the US in the vent that America entered WWI
• Germany would return lost territories of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona to Mexico in victory
• Telegram released publicly and ensured American support for war against Germany
Unlimited Submarine Warfare (1917):
• Proclamation by Germany that it would sink ass ships, without warning, that entered a large war zone off the
coasts of Allied Nations
• Germany realized that it might draw the US into WWII
• Germany believed that cutting Allied supplies would allow Germany to win the war before a sizeable US
response
• America broke diplomatic relations with Germany
Reasons for US Entry into WWI (1917):
• Zimmerman telegram showed that Germany was untrustworthy and could come after the US
• Armed neutrality could not protect shipping
• After Russia’s revolution, a democratic Russian government made it an acceptable ally
• American could hasten the end of the war and ensure a role in designating peace
• Sinking of the Lusitania and other ships by German submarines
• The US was already backing the Allies with supplies
• In his war message, Wilson said “the world must be made safe for democracy”
Committee on Public Information (1917):
• Formed by Wilson- voluntary censorship of the press; created a propaganda campaign for the nation during
WWI
• Portrayed German’s as barbaric and urged all citizens to spy on neighbors with foreign names
• Encouraged reporting of suspicious activities to the Justice Department
• Headed by George Creel
• Fostered “100% American” jingoism
American Protective League (1917):
• Volunteer organization that claimed approval of the Justice Department for pressuring support of war
• Humiliated those accused of not buying war bonds
• Persecuted those of German descent
• Encouraged the banning of German culture in everything from product names to consumption including
pretzels and German measles
Espionage and Sedition Acts (1917-1918):
• Fines/prison for persons who made false statements which aided the enemy, hindered the draft, or incited military
rebellion
• Forbade criticism of the government, flag, or uniform
• Led to imprisonment of major figures
• Supreme Court upheld these acts, allowing the government to limit free speech when words represented “Clear and
present danger” especially during times of war
Women and Minorities and the War (1917-1919):
• Women served as clerks or in medical units
• 400,000 black men drafted or enlisted
• African Americans were kept in segregated units and generally used in labor battalions or in support activities,
though some units did see combat
Great Migration (1910s-1940s):
• The movement of African Americans from the South to the industrial centers of the Northeast and Midwest,
especially during WWI
• Causes: decreased cotton prices, lack of immigrant workers on the North, increased manufacturing as a result of the
war, growth of the KKK
• African American population in such cities as Detroit, Chicago, and NYC grew
• Led to higher wages, more educational opportunities, and better standards of life for many African Americans
US and the Home Front During WWI (1918):
• Wilson controlled raw materials, production, prices, and labor relations to ensure supplies for the war
• Appointed Herbert Hoover as head of the food administration
• Wilson oversaw the use of fuel, railroads, and maritime shipping and resolved labor disputes w/ benefits
Fourteen Points (1918):
• Specific peace plan presented by Wilson in an address to Congress
• Called for open (rather than secret) peace treaties
• Called for free trade, transportation along the seas, and arms reduction
• Wanted a general association of nations to preserve the peace (League of Nations)
• Reactions in Europe were mixed; some countries had a desire to punish Germany
• American citizens feared further involvement; growing isolationist sentiment would slow the US entry-WWII
Provisions of the Paris Peace Conference (January 1919):
• Treaty of Versailles- resulted from the conference
• Formed the League of Nations to protect territorial integrity and political independence of all members
• Germany was held responsible for the war (war guilt clause), required to pay heavily for damages (reparations),
and limited to a small defensive force
• New nations’ boundaries were drawn (Yugoslavia, Austria, Hungary, Poland)
• German colonies were made mandates of the League and under trusteeship of the Allies
Wilson’s Treaty and Henry Cabot Lodge (1919):
• Rep. Sen. Lodge led opposition against Paris Peace Treaty b/c of war entanglement with other members (Article X)
• On a national speaking tour to push for the League of Nations, Wilson collapsed after a speech
• Wilson returned to Washington DC and suffered a severe stroke that he never fully recovered from but he wrote to
Democrats to oppose treaty changes by Lodge
• Treaty was defeated and the US did not join the League of Nations; a joint resolution enacted peace instead
Major Strikes After WWI (1919-1920s):
• Boston police force attempted to unionize, and Governor Calvin Coolidge fired them to recruit a new force
• Seattle had a general strike in 1919
• AFL attempted to organize steel industry, but it was broken after violence and the use of federal troops
• United Mine Workers struck and gained minor wage increases
Results of WWI (1919-1920s):
• America emerged as the political and economic leader of the world
• European states went into decline; Germany was devastated
The 1920s
Warren G. Harding 1921-1923):
• Represented opposition to the League of Nations, low taxes, high tariffs, immigration restriction, and aid to
farmers
• “Return to Normalcy”
• Pardoned Eugene Debs; gave the US steel workers an 8 hour day
Teapot Dome Scandal (1921):
• Bribery scandal involving Harding’s Secretary of the Interior, Albert Fall
• Fall secured naval oil reserved in his jurisdiction
• He leased reserves at Teapot Dome, Wyoming to 2 major business owners in exchange for cash payouts
• The businessmen were acquitted but Fall was imprisoned for bribery, making him the first cabinet member to
go to jail
Post-WWI Economy (1920):
• High wages during WWI and European demand continued after conflict
• Demand led to inflation and a good economy
• Increase in prices prompted major strikes by workers
Industrial Changes in 1920s and Effects (1920s):
• Change from steam to electric power allowed more intricate designs, replacing human workers
• Scientific management strategies were employed, leading to more efficient uses of workers
• Major research and development projects reduced production costs and products
• Expanding industries included automobiles, electricity, chemicals, film, radio, commercial aviation, and
printing
• Led to overproduction by the late 1920s
Radio (1900s):
• First human voice was broadcast in 1906 and first musical broadcast was in 1910
• Woodrow Wilson was the first president to broadcast
• KDKA was first radio station in the US (Pittsburgh), commencing broadcast in 1920
• Broke down regionalism and provided news and entertainment
Automobile: Economic and Social Effects (1920s):
• Stimulated steel, rubber, glass, gasoline, and highway construction industries
• Created a nation of paved roads
• The new need for paved roads led to employment for many
• Led to increased freedom for young people and the loss of some parental control
• Tourism increased and rural areas became less isolated
Rise in the Standards of Living During the 1920s:
• Advances like indoor plumbing, hot water, central heating, home appliances, and fresher foods emerged
• Many did not have the money to benefit from these advances
• Availability of credit rose to allow for payments by installment periods
• Sales grew out of advertising through new media, such as radio
Fordney-McCumber Tariff (1922):
• Increased tariff schedules
• Tariffs were raised on farm produce to equalize American and foreign production
• Gave the president the power to reduce or increase tariffs by 50% based on advice from the Tariff
Commission
Five Power Treaty (1922):
• Committed the US, Britain, Japan, France, and Italy to restrict construction of new battleship class ships
• Pact gave Japan naval supremacy in the Pacific
Dawes Plan (1924):
• Debt restructuring plan for Germany after WWI
• American banks made loans to Germany, Germany paid reparations to Allies, and Allies paid back the US
government
• Cycle based on loans from American banks
• The plan would play a part in the development of the Great Depression
Shift in Popular Culture:
• Change from entertainment through home and small social groups to commercial, profit-making activities
• Movies attracted audiences, and Hollywood became the movie center of America
• Professional athletics grew in participation and popularity, especially baseball, boxing, and football
• Tabloids grew in popularity, including the New York Daily News and Reader’s Digest
Prohibition (1919):
• Temperance movement began to grow in the early 1800s
• Carry Nation, a member of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, used rocks, hammers, and hatchets to
destroy liquor stores and saloons
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• 18 amendment prohibited the manufacture, sale, transport, or import of liquor
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• Volstead Act defined alcoholic beverages and imposed criminal penalties for violations of the 18 amendment
• Prohibition led to bootlegging (illegal production/distribution of intoxicating beverages), corruption of
government officials, and speakeasies (secret bars operated by bootleggers)
• Al Capone was one of the most famous bootlegging gangsters
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• 1933- 21 amendment repealed Prohibition
Women’s Suffrage (1920):
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• 19 amendment provided for women’s suffrage which had been defeated earlier by the Senate
• Ratified by the states in 1920
Red Scare and the Palmer Raids (1919):
• US worker strikes seemed to be harbingers of revolution to many in the US
• Fear of revolution fed by anti-German hysteria and the success of the Bolshevik Revolution
• Bombs sent anonymously through the mail to prominent American leaders encouraged fear
• Attorney General Palmer was a target of a failed mail bomb
• 4,000 arrested as “Communists” and illegal aliens, but only 556 shown to be in those categories
• Palmer announced threat of large Communist riots on May Day 1920 but none materialized
• Palmer was discredited and the Red Scare passed
Sacco and Vanzetti (1920):
• Two gunmen robbed a factory and killed 2 men in Massachusetts
• Sacco and Vanzetti, Italian immigrants and anarchists, were tried for the murders
• Judge Thayer favored prosecution and pushed for execution
• Despite years of protesting that they had not received a fair trial, the men were executed in 1927, reflecting
anti-immigrant sentiments in the US
Harlem Renaissance:
• Term used to describe the growth of African-American literature and arts
• The center of this movement was Harlem, NY where many African Americans moved to during the early 1900s
• Southern African Americans brought jazz to Harlem and influenced the music scene; at the same time, writing,
sculpting, and photography grew as art forms
• Writers from this period included Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Claude McKay
• Musicians included Duke Ellington, Bessie Smith, Louis Armstrong
• Great Depression led to the decline of the renaissance
Marcus Garvey:
• Native of Jamaica who advocated racial pride and separatism rather than integration
• Pushed for a return to Africa
• Developed a following and sold stock in a steamship line to take migrants to Africa
• Convicted of fraud after the line went bankrupt
Ku Klux Klan in the Early 1900s:
• Main purpose was to intimidate African Americans, who experienced an apparent rise in status due to WWI
• Also opposed Catholics, Jews, and foreign-born
• Klan hired advertising experts to expand the organization; charged initiation fees and sold memorabilia
• KKK had membership of 5 million in 1925, which soon began to decline
Creationism and the Scopes Trial (1925):
• Fundamentalist Protestants supported Creationism as a way to prohibit the teaching of evolution in schools
• Hoped to protect belief in the literal understanding of the Bible
• Scopes, a young biology teacher, broke the law by teaching Darwinism and served as a test case for the ACLU
• Darwinism- concept of evolution created by Charles Robert Darwin and written about in Origin of the Species
• Clarence Darrow defended Scopes; William Jennings Bryan defended the State of Tennessee
• Judge refused to allow expert witness testimony
• Scopes was convicted and fined $100, which was later dropped
• Some states passed anti-evolution laws
Emergency Quota Act (1921):
• One of a series of acts by Congress that limited immigration
• Immigration limited by nationality to 3% of the number of foreign-born person from that nation that lived in
the US in 1910
• Designation restricted only certain nationalities and religious groups
• In effect, restricted Italians, Greeks, Poles, and Eastern European Jews
Calvin Coolidge (1925-1929):
• Came to office after Harding’s death and then won a landslide victory in 1926 as the Republican candidate
• Avoided responsibility for most of Harding’s cabinet scandals
• Believed in leading through inactivity (“the chief business of the American people is business”)
Kellogg-Briand Pact (1928):
• Also known as the Pact of Paris
• 15 nation pact agreed that all conflicts should be settled by peaceful means and that war was to be renounced
• Congress demanded right of self-defense& to not have to act against countries that broke the treaty
• The pact lacked effectiveness as it failed to provide enforcement measures
Herbert Hoover (1929-1933):
• Conservative economic philosophy and continuation of Prohibition won him the election
• “Rugged individualism”- called for people to succeed on their own with minimal help from the government
• Blamed for the Depression and was defeated by FDR in 1932
Stock Market Crash (October1929):
• During late October of 1929 investors began to panic, sending the NY stock market toward tremendous losses
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• October 24 - Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 50% and over 13 million shares of stock were traded
(“Black Thursday”)
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• October 29 - over 16 million shares of stock were traded (“Black Tuesday”)
• Crash led to the Depression
Foreign Economies and the Great Depression (1920s-1930s):
• Within months of Hoover’s election, the stock market crashed, leading the nation into the Great Depression
• Decline in American economy meant less money spend on loans and products from other countries
• Foreign powers were not able to pay debts back to the US
• American exports dropped and the Depression spread
Reconstruction Finance Corporation (1920s-1930s):
• Chartered by Congress and Hoover to loan money to railroads and financial institutions
• Meant to keep basic institutions in business
• Accused of being an assistance to the wealthy
“Hoovervilles” (1929-1930):
• Term used to describe makeshift shacks that housed groups of homeless people
• Used in open areas near cities during the Depression
• This term was used to mock Herbert Hoover
Hawley-Smoot Tariff (1930):
• Brought tariff to the highest level in its history
• In retaliation, foreign countries set tariffs on American goods, creating a decline in exports and further
deepening the economic depression
• This was another expression of isolationism
Hoover-Stimson Doctrine (1932):
• Henry L. Stimson, secretary of state under Hoover, sent identical notes to China and Japan, which became
known as the Hoover-Stimson Doctrine
• The notes were a reaction to Japan’s movement into Manchuria
• They stated that the US would not recognize any treaty of agreement that would impair China’s territory, US’
rights in China, the political situation in China, or the open-door policy
Bonus Army (1932):
• A group of 14,000 unemployed veterans that marched on Washington
• They sought payment of money through Congress
• Hoover had the Senate kill the bill providing additional payment, and half of the veterans took the offer of
transportation home
• The remaining vets subsisted in shacks near the Anacostia River to draw attention to their cause
• Hoover called in the Army and had the remainder of the vets removed from Washington
• Created the impression that Hoover did not care about the plight of the poor
Great Depression, the 1930s, and FDR
Stock Market Crash (October1929):
• During late October of 1929 investors began to panic, sending the NY stock market toward tremendous
losses
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• October 24 - Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 50% and over 13 million shares of stock were traded
(“Black Thursday”)
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• October 29 - over 16 million shares of stock were traded (“Black Tuesday”)
• Crash led to the Depression
Foreign Economies and the Great Depression (1920s-1930s):
• Within months of Hoover’s election, the stock market crashed, leading the nation into the Great Depression
• Decline in American economy meant less money spend on loans and products from other countries
• Foreign powers were not able to pay debts back to the US; American exports dropped and the Depression
spread
“Hoovervilles” (1929-1930):
• Term used to describe makeshift shacks that housed groups of homeless people
• Used in open areas near cities during the Depression
• This term was used to mock Herbert Hoover
Hawley-Smoot Tariff (1930):
• Brought tariff to the highest level in its history
• In retaliation, foreign countries set tariffs on American goods, creating a decline in exports and further
deepening the economic depression
• This was another expression of isolationism
Bonus Army (1932):
• A group of 14,000 unemployed veterans that marched on Washington
• They sought payment of money through Congress
• Hoover had the Senate kill the bill providing additional payment, and half of the veterans took the offer of
transportation home
• The remaining vets subsisted in shacks near the Anacostia River to draw attention to their cause
• Hoover called in the Army and had the remainder of the vets removed from Washington
• Created the impression that Hoover did not care about the plight of the poor
Dust Bowl (1930s):
• Areas of American prairie states that experienced ecological damage due to huge clouds of soil
• Mismanagement of grazing land and severe winds swept unprotected soil into dust storms
• Led to both economic and health hardships for many
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1933-1945):
• Encouraged new hope for emerging from the Great Depression
• Led Congress through the “100 Days”
• Focused on economic and agricultural recovery and support for the unemployed and elderly
• Attempted to enlarge the Supreme Court and put in place justices that would support his legislation but failed
Hundred Days (started March 9, 1933):
• FDR called a special session of Congress to deal with the weak American banking system
• Congress passed an emergency act on banking & to deal with unemployment and falling farm prices
• This special session launched the First New Deal
Banking Failures (1933):
• Banks were unable to collect on loans because of the Great Depression
• Banks could not return money to depositors, leading to bank closures
• March 5, 1933- FDR reacted by closing all banks and instituting the Emergency Banking Act, which gave him
the power to reorganize insolvent national banks
FDR’s Banking Acts, the Gold Standard, and the SEC (1933-1934):
• The Emergency Banking Relief Act- first act of FDR’s 100 Days; it provided funds to open some banks and it
combined and liquidated others
• Glass-Steagall Banking Act- insured deposits in commercial banks, created the FDIC, and separated
commercial and investment banking to reduce risk
• FDR removed gold from circulation; resulting devaluation of the dollar helped raise prices and assisted US
exports
• Securities and Exchange Commission- created as a watchdog for the stock exchange and securities
Fireside Chats (1933-1945):
• FDR’s method of addressing the nation through the radio
• Created assurance among the public in the strength of the banks he was opening; led people to deposit
money in the banks again
First New Deal (1933-1934):
• First phase of FDR’s domestic reform program
• Aimed to provide recovery and relief through public works, business and agricultural regulation, and
stabilizing prices
• Organizations such as the Agricultural Adjustment Administration, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation,
Civilian Conservation Corps, and National Recovery Administration were founded
• Economy improved to a degree as unemployment decreased
• Criticized by conservatives for going too far in the use of deficit spending and for spending on relief
• Attacked by liberals for being in favor of business
First New Deal Creations (1933):
• Civilian Conservation Corp- provided work for young men through projects such as road construction and
flood control (CCC)
• National Industrial Recovery Act- created the National Recovery Administration, which prepared codes for
fair competition; goal was to help businesses self-regulate, aiding employment; NRA codes abolished child
labor, created minimum wages, and capped hours for workers; ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court
who said that it granted the president too much leeway and that these powers should be in the hands of the
states (Schechter v US 1935) (NIRA)
• Public Works Administration- constructed roads, schools, dams, bridges, and other projects to aid the
economy through increasing jobs (PWA)
• Agricultural Adjustment Act- encourage farmer to decrease their production, thereby increasing their profits
(AAA)
• Tennessee Valley Authority- program that build a series of dams to provide electricity and flood control at
Muscle Shoals, the location of a dam and two nitrate plants built by the government during WWI; dams gave
economic and environmental boosts to an area in need of rehabilitation; FDR’s first large-scale experiment in
regional planning (TVA).
Second New Deal (1935-1941):
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• Like the 1 New Deal, if offered sweeping economic changes to aid in relief and recovery
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• While the 1 New Deal emphasized central planning, the 2 New Deal pushed programs to aid particular
groups, such as labor organizations
• The US tax structure was finesses through various revenue acts
• Some New Deal acts were declared unconstitutional in 1935
Second New Deal Creations (1935):
• Works Progress Administration- provided jobs and income for the unemployed; many projects were in
construction and community development and were labor-intensive to cut equipment costs (WPA)
• Wagner Act/National Labor Relations Act- clarified the right of workers and created a board of oversight on
relations between management and labor; workers were permitted to bargain collectively
• Social Security Act- created to protect older workers; funds came from tax on money earned by employees
and paid equally by the employer; this money supported unemployment programs and offered states
matching funds for social services (SSA)
Charles Evans Hughes (1930-1941):
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• 11 chief justice of the Supreme Court
• Had also served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court (1910-1916) and US Secretary of State (19211925)
• As Chief Justice he often voted to uphold FDR’s New Deal legislation, although he wrote the opinion in
Schechter v US (1935) finding the National Recovery Administration unconstitutional
FDR’s Court Packing Scheme (1937):
• Bill proposed by FDR allowing the president to appoint a new federal judge for those who did not retire by a
certain age; received overwhelming support by the voting public
• Served as FDR’s reaction to the Supreme Court, which had declared much of the New Deal unconstitutional
• Huge reaction by both Democrats and Republicans against this show of force
• FDR lost the bill and some influence over Congress
• Later FDR proposals, like Social Security, were upheld by the Supreme Court
Congress of Industrial Organizations/CIO (1937):
• Association of laborers from industries including steel and auto
• Organized in reaction to the AFL, which represented mostly craft unions
• Headed by John L. Lewis; united with the AFL in 1955
Fair Labor Standards Act (1938):
• Minimum wage law
• Establishing rising minimum wage and reduction of the work week
• Provided time-and-a-half for overtime
Critics of FDR:
• Huey “Kingfish” Long- Louisiana senator who founded the “Share Our Wealth Society” in 1934; Long criticized FDR
for not doing more to help those on the lower end of the economic scale; proposed radical taxation plans on the
wealthy to “make every man a king”; Long was assassinated and the society lost its momentum
• Father Charles Coughlin- Catholic priest who headed the National Union for Social Justice, which denounced FDR’s
New Deal policies; held a weekly radio show and discussed policies and finance; proposed to his many listeners an
ambiguous currency program, but found popularity mostly through anti-Semitic rhetoric
• Dr Townshend- California physician who proposed that the government give every American a monthly subsidy;
FDR later used his idea as the basis of the Social Security Program
Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962):
• Wife of FDR who was a strong supporter of civil rights, women’s rights, and world peace
• Resigned from the Daughters of the American Revolution after they refused to allow Marian Anderson, an
African American, to sing at Independence Hall
• Served as delegate to the United Nations from 1945-1953
Charles Lindbergh (1902-1974):
• American pilot who made the first non-stop solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean
• Flew his plan The Spirit of St. Louis from New York to Paris
• Most famous speaker for the American First Committee (1930s)- opposed US intervention in Europe (WWII)
• Was a noted Nazi sympathizer
FDR’s Good Neighbor Policy:
• Foreign policy doctrine adopted by FDR for the US
• Withdrew marines from Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and other areas
• America stayed out of the Cuban revolution
• America settled with Mexico on American properties in that country
Isolationism and the Neutrality Acts of 1935:
• America became isolationist after WWI, mainly because its citizens had felt the harsh effects of the war
• Isolationist acts included the rejection of the Treaty of Versailles and higher tariffs
• Neutrality Acts- in the event of the war, American exports of military components were to be stalled for 6
months; this was to stop ships leaving the US from transporting arms to combatants
WWII and the 1940s:
Hitler and Germany’s Actions Leading to WWII (1930s):
• Hitler’s rise to power in 1933 led to the persecution of German Jews
• Germany and Austria became unified
• Germany/ Britain signed the Munich Pact, authorizing Germany to force the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia
• Germany took over the rest of Czechoslovakia
• The Nazis systematically eliminated the civil/ human rights of Jews & other “undesirables” under their control
• Germany signed a non-aggression pact with Russia, agreeing to divide Poland
• Germany invaded Poland
• Britain and France declared war
• “Final solution of the Jewish question”- Nazis built death camps that murdered 6 million Jews/ 5 million others
FDR’s Election to a Third Term (1940):
• Broke the 2 term precedent set by Washington by agreeing to accept the Democratic nomination
• When faced by his opponent with charges of warmongering, he told voters that he would NOT enter the war
• Lost many supporters because of his choice to run again, but he won by a narrow margin over Wendell Willkie
Selective Service and Training Act (September 1940):
• First peacetime draft in the US
• Men between the age of 21 and 35 were signed into service, and a group of them was chosen for a year of
training in the military
Lend-Lease Act (March 1941):
• American proposal to aid the British, who had little cash for supplies
• Offered to give the British American supplies in exchange for payment after the war
• Payment could be made in material goods and services
• Put the US on the side of the Allies
• US also allowed for cash and carry, in which British and French ships could come into US ports and buy
anything that they could carry
Economic Measures Against Japan (1940-1941):
• Japan used the Vichy government to expand into French Indochina
• Japan wanted to build bases in the area
• America responded by holding Japanese funds and creating embargos
• Led to failed negotiations between the US and Japan over Japan’s presence in China
Pearl Harbor (December 7, 1941):
• Hawaiian base for the American Pacific fleet and site of massive sneak attack by the Japanese attack
• Carrier- based aircraft attacked American ships, meeting little defense
• The Japanese destroyed all US aircraft, major battleships, and naval crafts at the base, and killed 2,323 military
personnel
• FDR asked Congress to declare war on Japan, calling the attack “date that will live in infamy”
Japanese Interment Camps (1942):
• FDR authorized the evacuation of all Japanese from the West Coast into relocation centers
• The government interned around 120,000 Japanese-Americans, 2/3 of them native-born US citizens
• Move came under public fear of Japanese sabotage following Pearl Harbor, and in some part, due to racial
discrimination
• 1988- Congress voted to pay compensation to each surviving internee
Korematsu v US (1944):
• Korematsu was arrested and convicted after failing to comply with a military order to move to a Japanese
relocation camp
• Supreme Court upheld his conviction based on war powers (government’s need to protect against espionage
outweighed his individual rights)
American Women During WWII:
• 216,000 women served in the armed forces in non-combat duties
• WAACS (Army); WAVES (Navy); SPARS (Coast Guard) were forces made up of women
• Women also served as defense plant workers
• The women who worked in the manufacturing plants during WWII were symbolized by the icon “Rosie the
Riveter” a feminist image that represented the growth of women’s economic power
US Domestic Measures for WII (1942-1943):
• War Production Board regulated raw materials
• Prices and wages were frozen
• Income tax was extended to more people
• The US sold Liberty Bonds
• The government had the power to take over businesses closed by strikes
Braceros (1942):
• Agreement between the US/ Mexico brought thousands of Mexican agricultural workers (braceros) to the US
• Braceros were prevalent in the South and the West
• Braceros became part of the American agricultural economy after WWII
Smith-Connally Anti-Strike Act (1943):
• Congress was concerned about the loss of production due to labor strikes
• The Act authorized the federal government to seize and operate industries stopped by strikes
Battles of the Coral Sea and Midway (1942):
• Battle of the Coral Sea- American carriers sent planes against the Japanese troops, forcing them to turn back
from an invasion of Australia (May 1942)
• Battle of Midway- American plans destroyed Japanese carriers as they moved toward the American-owned
Midway Islands, becoming a defining moment in the Pacific front
Tehran Conference (Nov 28-Dec 1, 1943):
• Meeting of the Big Three: FDR, Churchill, and Stalin
• Agreement that Russia would attack Germany from the east as the Allies would attack from the west
• First time FDR met Stalin
D-Day (June 6, 1944):
• Eisenhower, Commander-in-Chief of Allied forces, ordered an invasion at Normandy, France
• The operation involved over 4500 vessels
• American troops commanded by George S. Patton weakened the German troops in France
Battle of the Bulge (Dec 1944):
• German counterattack that pushed the Allies back into Belgium
• Last stand of Hitler’s armies
• Eventually the allies returned to Germany, leading to surrender on May7, 1945
Manhattan Project (1942-1945):
• Described operations by Army engineers to design an atomic bomb
• J. Robert Oppenheimer directed the group at Los Alamos, New Mexico where the first test of the atomic bomb
was conducted
Yalta Conference (February 1945):
• Meeting of the “Big three” (FDR, Churchill, Stalin) to talk about post-WWII plans
• Germany was to be divided into American, British, French, and Soviet zones
• Poland’s boundaries would be revised, and free elections would be established
• Russia would help by attacking Japan three months after Germany’s collapse in exchange for the Sakhalin and
Kurile Islands
• Agreed to hold a conference in San Francisco to form a peacekeeping organization (United Nations)
Harry Truman (1945-1953):
• Became president after FDR died in 1945
• Decided to drop the atomic bomb on Japan
VE DAY (May 8, 1945):
• Victory in Europe Day
• The day the Allies announced Germany’s surrender in Europe
Postdam Conference (July 17-Aug 2, 1945):
• Attended by Truman, Stalin, Churchill, and Churchill’s replacement Clement Atlee
• Agreed upon a policy for the occupation of both Germany and Japan
• Decided on German reparations
• Declaration made to Japan to surrender or be destroyed
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Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki (August 6 and August 9 1945):
• Enola Gay was the plane that carried the atomic bomb into Hiroshima, Japan killing 40,000 people instantly
• A second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki three days later
• The decision to drop the bombs were controversial, as some argued that the Japanese were essentially beaten
and were willing to surrender, bit that the US insisted on an unconditional surrender
VJ DAY (August 15, 1945):
• Victory in Japan day
• The day the Allies announced Japan’s surrender to end WWII
GI Bill (1944):
• Signed by FDR- passed to give educational benefits to those who had served in the Armed Forces during WWII
• Bill was created to help members of the Armed Forces adjust to civilian life, afford a higher education, and
restore lost educational opportunities
• Promoted volunteerism for the Armed Forces and led to a better educated population
United Nations (est. summer 1945):
• Created at the San Francisco conference
• Representative body of nations that wished to resolve global issues
• Composed of a General Assembly and a Security Council
• All members sit on General Assembly and form policy
• Security Council has 11 members, 5 permanent and 6 additional that rotate
• Permanent members are the US, Britain, France, Russia, and China
Cold War and the 1950s:
Cold War (began 1946):
• War of words caused by differences in economic/political beliefs between the US and USSR
• No actual fighting took place
• Churchill- an “Iron Curtain” had been dropped between Western Europe and the Soviet’s Eastern Europe
Harry Truman (1945-1953):
• Became president after FDR died in 1945; decided to drop the atomic bomb on Japan
• Truman Doctrine- announced the policy of containment against Communism
Truman Doctrine (1947):
• Proposal that the US must bolster the deeds of free people resisting Communism
• $400 million appropriated for aid to Greece and Turkey to fight Communism’s spread
• Supported “containment” as a response to the Cold War
Taft-Hartley Act (1947):
• Purpose was to reduce management-labor disputes and to reduce unfair labor practices
• Passed over Truman’s veto
• Required 60 day notice be given by employers to terminate a contract
• Federal govt. could take legal action to delay any strike that threatened the public’s health or safety (80 days)
• Provided cooling-off period for unions and management
• Act slowed unionization throughout the country, especially in the South
• Part of the anti-Communist crusade
Fair Deal (1948):
• Proposal by Truman to extend the New Deal for the new era
• Increased the minimum wage to 75 cents an hour
• Social Security was enlarged to cover more people
• Called for lost-cost housing projects and slum cleanup
National Security Act (1947):
• Created the Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Council
• Reorganized the military under one Department of Defense head
Marshall Plan (June 1947):
• Recovery program paid by America and Allies to rebuild Europe- $15 billion in aid
• Helped support a strong European economy and stable politics to resist Communism
• Defined by Secretary of State George Marshall and signed by President Truman
Russian Spies in the US (1948 and 1950):
• Alger Hiss- former state department official who was convicted of supplying information to the Soviets;
implicated by Whittaker Chambers during testimony before the House Committee on Un-American Activities;
Richard Nixon gained national exposure during his investigation into Hiss
• Julius and Ethel Rosenberg- couple executed for giving atomic information to the Russians; some argued they
did not receive a fair trial because of the political sentiments of the time
Berlin Airlifts (June 1948):
• Allies designed Western Germany to be free from Communism
• Soviets blocked both land/ water access to West Berlin in the hopes that the Allies would abandon West Berlin
• US lifted supplies for more than 10 months into the city, forcing the Soviets to remove the blockade in 1949
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) - 1949:
• Original members included the US, Britain, France, Italy, and Portugal
• Allowed for collective self-defense against the Soviet threat in the North Atlantic region
• His influenced economic and social cooperation between member nations
• The fall of the USSR led to NATO expanding membership and moving toward peacekeeping in the world
• Headquartered in Brussels, Belgium
Korean War (1950-1953):
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• Korea was taken from Japan at the end of WWII and divided at the 38 parallel; the northern half controlled
by the USSR and the southern half be the US
• North Korea invaded South Korea and the UN sent in troops
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• General MacArthur led forces and pushed the North Koreans back across the 38 parallel
• China, recently Communist, sent in troops to fight the UN in Korea
• Truman disagreed with both MacArthur’s desire to start an all-out war against China and with his foreign
policy statements; Truman removed him
• Cease-fire called and armistice signed in July 1953
Joseph McCarthy (early 1950s):
• Rep. Sen. from Wisconsin-claimed to have detailed info. on Communists within the State Department (1950)
• Was never able to prove Communists were within the State Department or any other government agency
• 1954- the Army accused McCarthy of attempting to gain preferential treatment for a McCarthy consultant,
and McCarthy accused the Army of keeping him from finding more Communists
• Televised Army-McCarthy hearing was established, and McCarthy came off in a negative light, leading to
Congress condemning his conduct
Dwight Eisenhower (1953-1961):
• Singed the truce in 1953 to end the Korean War
• Completed the integration of the military forces
• Sent troops into Little Rock, Arkansas to ensure desegregation; gave momentum to the desegregation
movement
Geneva Accords (1954):
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• The foreign ministers of 19 nations, including the US decided to divide Vietnam at the 17 parallel
• North would be Nationalist and led by Ho Chi Minh, while the South would be a Western-influenced republic
• Provided for free elections within 2 years to reunite the two Vietnams
Vietnam War-Causes (started 1954):
• The Viet Cong (communist guerillas) attempted to overthrow Saigon, South Vietnam’s capital
• South Vietnam asked President Kennedy for aid to fend off the Communists
Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO): 1954-1977:
• Created to oppose the spread of Communism in Southeast Asia after France’s withdrawal from Indochina
• Original members included the US, Britain, France, Pakistan, Thailand, and the Philippines
• meant to justify a US presence in Vietnam, though some members did not support America in this effort
• Dismantled in 1977
Suez Canal Crisis (1956):
• International waterway through the Isthmus of Panama
• Egypt was receiving aid from the Soviets, leading Eisenhower to promise money to Egypt to curtail the Soviets
• Eisenhower withdrew his offer and Egypt attempted to nationalize the Canal
• Britain, France, and Israel invaded to gain back control of the Canal
• Eisenhower forced France, Britain, and Israel to withdraw
Sputnik (Oct 4, 1957):
• Russian satellite launched into space; First unmanned spacecraft to escape Earth’s gravity
• Caused concern in the US because Americans realized they were not as technologically advanced as the
Soviets; led to an increased emphasis on science education in the US
Eisenhower Doctrine (1952):
• Created a partial reaction to the Suez Canal crisis
• Doctrine committed forces and economic aid to the Middle East to stop Communist threats
• Some nations, including Egypt and Syria, denounced the doctrine
Fidel Castro (1959):
• Communist-friendly leader of Cuba
• Took power in Cuba after overthrowing Fulgencio Batista in 1959
• Signed agreements with Soviets for trade
• US broke diplomatic and trade relations with Cuba
U-2 Spy Plane (1960):
• Russians shot down a US U-2 recon plane over Soviet airspace
• Eisenhower admitted spying on the Soviets
• The pilot, Francis Gary Powers, survived and served 18 months in a Russian jail
Interstate Highway Act of 1956 (Federal-Aid Highway Act):
• Under the act, the interstate highway system was expanded to 41,000 miles
• Signed by President Eisenhower
• Federal government would pay 90% of the cost of the expansion
• $25 billion was authorized from 1957-1969; $114 billion was eventually expended over 35 years
• Besides allowing motorists to travel easily throughout the country, the expanded highway system also allowed
for troop movement and evacuation routes
Growth of the Suburbs (1940s-1950s):
• After WWII people began to move away from cities, leading to suburban growth
• Causes-mass production of automobiles, the growth of the road system, and better living conditions
• As African-Americans began to move to northern cities, whites began to move to the suburbs (“white flight”)
• Suburban developments included Levittown, a planned community which offered inexpensive houses built by
Levitt and Sons
Television (1950s-1960s):
• Invented in the 1930s
• FDR was the first president to appear on TV; he gave a speech in 1939 at the NY World’s Fair, where TV was
being officially introduced to the mass public
• Popular shows during the 1950s and 1960s included The Honeymooners, I Love Lucy, and The Ed Sullivan Show
• By 1960 over 40 million homes had TV’s
Rock and Roll (1950s):
• Music genre that originated in the US
• Combined rhythm and blues, gospel, jazz, and country-and-western music
• Alan Freed, a Cleveland DJ, coined the phrase “rock-and-roll” and produced the first rock and roll concert
• Early artists included Elvis Presley, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Chuck Berry, and Buddy Holly
Beat Generation (1950s):
• Group of artists and writers who rejected traditional artistic and social forms
• Influences included psychedelic drugs and Eastern beliefs, such as Zen Buddhism
• Members rejected regular work and preferred communal living
• Many members were located around San Francisco
• Included Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, Lawrence Ferlinghetti
Cold War and the 1960s
Election of 1960:
• Richard Nixon (former vice president) and Senator John F. Kennedy
• Kennedy’s Catholicism was a campaign issue because of fears that Catholic leaders would influence him
• The four presidential debates were televised and watched by approximately 75 million Americans
• Nixon’s negative appearance on TV affected voters’ perception of him
John F. Kennedy (1961-1963):
• New Frontier-domestic program (tax reforms, educational aid, and an emphasize on the space program)
• Approved the Bay of Pigs invasion and successfully led American through the Cuban Missile Crisis
• Established the Peace Corps in 1961
• Assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald in 1963 in Dallas
Bay of Pigs (April 1961):
• Attempted invasion of Cuba by CIA-trained Cuban refugees; goal was to overthrow Fidel Castro
• The invasion failed after JFK refused air support; president assumed responsibility for the invasion
Berlin Wall (built 1961):
• Barrier built by the East German government to separate East and West Berlin and stop travel/defection
• East Berlin was under Communist control; West Berlin remained under Western control (US, British, French)
Alliance for Progress (1961):
• The Alliance was a “Marshall Plan” for Latin America- give economic aid to help the region resist Communism
• The results of the Alliances were disappointing to those who supported it
Cuban Missile Crisis (Oct 1962):
• American spy plane discovered Russian missile sites being placed in Cuba
• JFK blockaded Cuba and demanded that the Soviets remove the missile bases and all long-range weapons
• JFK declared that any missile attack on the US would result in retaliation against the USSR
• Khrushchev removed the missile sites; US lifted the blockade/removed its IBM missiles from Turkey
• Led to Nuclear Test Ban (1963) - US/Britain/USSR agreed not to perform nuclear tests in atmosphere/
underwater
Engel v Vitale (1962):
• Supreme Court case that ruled that state sponsored school prayer is unconstitutional
Baker v Carr (1962):
• Supreme Court cased that opened the way for numerous voting suits
Lyndon Johnson (1963-1969):
• Became president after JFK’s assassination
• Promoted JFK’s agenda through Congress, including a tax cut and the Civil Rights Act of 1964
• Great Society- Called for war against poverty and promoted social and economic welfare legislation
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963):
• Supreme Court held that all persons charged with a felony must be provided legal counsel
Escobedo v Illinois (1964):
• Supreme Court ruled that the police must honor a person’s request to have an attorney present during
interrogation
Miranda v Arizona (1966):
• Supreme Court ruled that an arrested person must be provided with the right to remain silent, the right to be
told that whatever he/she said could be used against them in court, the right to be represented by an
attorney, the right to have a lawyer even if he/she could not afford one, and the right to one phone call to
obtain a lawyer
Civil Rights Act of 1964:
• Passed by Johnson who followed JFK’s political agenda; “March on Washington” in 1963 aided passage of the Act
• It strengthened voting rights protection, prohibited discrimination in places of public accommodations (stores,
restaurants, hotels), required the federal government to withdraw support from any state or program that
discriminated, and established the Equal Employment Commission (EEOC) to watch hiring practices
Heart of Atlanta Motel v US (1964):
• A motel operator refused to serve an African American customer; Supreme Court upheld Civil Rights Act of 1964
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (1964):
• North Vietnamese supposedly fired on American ships in the Gulf of Tonkin
• Congress passed resolution allowing President Johnson to use military action in Vietnam
• Johnson retaliated against the Vietcong with bombing attacks in the North, followed by ground troops
Voting Rights Act of 1965:
• Signed into law by Johnson
• Resulted after demonstrations against the measures used to prevent African Americans from voting; these
measures included violence (voters could no longer be forced to take literacy tests; provided federal resignation of
African American voters in areas that had less than 50% of eligible voters registered)
Watts Riots (August 1965):
• 6 day riot in Watts, a depressed African American section of Los Angeles
• Causes included a drunk-driving arrest of a young African-American and claims of police brutality
• 34 deaths and over $200 million work of property damage resulted
• Sparked other riots throughout the country
Ralph Nader (1934-present):
• Political activist and advocate for consumers
• Unsafe at Any Speed (1965) shed light on poor safety standards for automobiles, leading Congress to pass auto
safety measures
• Unsuccessfully ran as a third party candidate for the US presidency in 1996, 2000, 2004
Robert F. Kennedy (1925-1968):
• Brother of JFK who served as Attorney General under JFK
• Elected as senator from NY in 1964; pushed for desegregation and election regulation
• Presidential candidate in 1968 who was assassinated in California by Sirhan Sirhan in June 1968
Cesar Chavez (1927-1993):
• Migrant farmer who founded the National Farm Workers Association
• His goal was to defeat persecution throughout the migrant worker system
• Used strikes, picketing, and marches to help protect workers
Counterculture Movement:
• Began at Berkeley with the free speech movement
• Beliefs included women’s liberation, anti-materialism, and opposition of the war in Vietnam
• Experimented with drugs and sex
• Young people who favored the counterculture were called “hippies”
• The Woodstock Music and Art Festival in NY State (1969) marked the culmination of the counterculture movement
Tet Offensive (Jan 1968):
• North Vietnam violated a truce during Tet (New Year), attacking cities throughout South Vietnam
• The attack surprised the US; proved to many that the war was not winnable
• Despite initiating the fighting, the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong were defeated, suffering heavy casualties
Moon Landing (July 20, 1969):
• Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the Earth’s moon (also Buzz Aldrin/Michael Collins)
• Armstrong made the famous statement “That’s one small step for man… one giant leap for mankind”
Civil Rights Movement (1950s/1960s)
Civil Rights Major Incidents:
• Emmit Till- a teenage African American who was killed by 2 whites after supposedly whistling at one of their
wives; the men were acquitted
• Greensboro, NC- 1960 four African American students sat at the Woolworth’s “Whites Only” lunch counter
and refused to leave until they were served, sparking sit-ins throughout the South
• Birmingham, Ala- an explosion at the Baptist Church killed four African American girls in 1963
• Mississippi- during a voter registration drive in Mississippi, 2 white college students and a local African
American were murdered; civil rights legislation resulted
• Selma, Ala- 1965 march from Selma to Birmingham for voting rights; after the 1965 Voting Rights Act was
signed
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP):
• Formed in 1910 by a group of whites and blacks, including WEB DuBois to stop racial discrimination
• Supported sit-ins as a form of protest against segregation as well as other forms of non-violent protest
• Disapproved of the more radical groups such as SNCC and the Black Panthers
• Because of its mission, methods, and organization, the NAACP remains a force in social issues and political
affairs
Jackie Robinson (1919-1972):
• Baseball player who became a symbol of civil rights when he broke the Major League’s color barrier in 1947
• Recruited from the Kansas City Monarchs, a team in the “Negro Leagues” to play with the Brooklyn Dodgers
Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968):
• Chairman of Southern Christian Leadership Conference; believed in non-violent civil disobedience
• Key member of the 1963 March on Washington, a response to a civil rights bill by JFK being stalled in Congress
• At the March King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech
• Assassinated by James Earle Ray in 1968
Brown v Board of Education of Topeka (1954):
• Supreme Court case which challenged “separate but equal” ruling established in Plessy v. Ferguson
• Court (Chief Justice Earl Warren) held that separate was inherently unequal and instructed states to integrate
• Massive southern resistance slowed the advance of integration
• Federal troops were used to help the “Little Rock Nine”; a group of 9 black students attend an all-white school
in Little Rock, Arkansas despite mobs and the Arkansas National Guard
Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955):
• African American woman who refused to give up her bus seat to a white man in Alabama
• Parks was arrested, drawing the support of Dr Martin Luther King
• Dr King organized a bus boycott in Birmingham, Alabama, leading to desegregation in the US and
strengthening support for the civil rights movement
Civil Rights Act of 1957:
• First civil rights act since Reconstruction
• Created a panel to ensure that voting rights of African-Americans were not violated
Civil Rights Act of 1964:
• Passed by Johnson, who followed JFK’s agenda
• March on Washington in 1963 helped pass the Act, which strengthened voting rights protection
• Prohibited discrimination in places of public accommodations (stores, restaurants, hotels), required the
federal government to withdraw support from any state or program that discriminated; and established the
Equal Employment Commission (EEOC) to watch hiring practices
Voting Rights Act of 1965:
• Signed into law by Johnson
• Resulted after demonstrations against the measures used to prevent African Americans from voting; these
measures included violence (voters could no longer be forced to take literacy tests); provided federal
registration of African American voters in areas that had less than 50% of eligible voters registered
Civil Rights Organizations:
• CORE- Congress of Racial Equality; founded by James Farmer in Chicago and advocated non-violence;
sponsored the 1961 Freedom Rides in the South, breaking segregation rules on buses and eventually
changing those rules
• SNCC- Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee; founded in 1961 to support sit-ins; Stokely Carmichael, a
leader of the SNCC and the Black Panther Party, called for “Black Power”, which urged African Americans to
be independent and prideful, separating himself from the civil rights movement
• Black Panthers- founded in 1966 by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale in California; called for African Americans
to become liberated through violence; provided free lunches to African-American children
James Meredith (1962):
• Obtained a federal court order to allow him to enroll at the University of Mississippi in 1962
• On several occasions, he was barred from enrolling
• Federal marshals were called in to accompany him to enroll and attend classes
Malcolm X (1925-1965):
• African-American advocate and leader who moved away from Martin Luther King’s non-violent methods of
civil disobedience
• While in prison, he became a Black Muslim and later a minister in the Nation of Islam
• The leader of the Black Muslims, Elijah Muhammad, suspended Malcolm X when he made derogatory remarks
about JFK’s assassination
• He formed a new organization, the Muslim Mosque
• After a pilgrimage to Mecca, he converted to Orthodoxy Islam and began publicly accepting the idea of
cooperation between blacks and whites
• Assassinated in NYC during a speech; assailants were said to be with the Black Muslim group, but this has
never been confirmed
Watts Riots (1965):
• 6 day riot in Watts, a depressed African American section of Los Angeles
• Causes included a drunk-driving arrest of a young African American and claims of police brutality
• 34 deaths and over $200 million worth of property damage resulted
• Sparked other riots throughout the country
Vietnam War
Causes of the Vietnam War:
• After WWII Vietnam wanted to become independent from colonial French control; US supported the French
• 1954- Vietnam was divided into the Communist North, led by Ho Chi Minh, & the South, supported by the US
• The Viet Cong (Communist guerillas) attempted to overthrow Saigon, the South Vietnamese capital
• South Vietnam asked JFK for aid to fend off the Communists
Geneva Accords (1954):
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• The foreign ministers of 19 nations, including the US, divided Vietnam at the 17 parallel
• Provided for free elections within two years to reunite the two Vietnams
Southeast Asia Treaty Organization- SEATO (1954-1977):
• Created to oppose the spread of Communism in Southeast Asia after France’s withdrawal from Indochina
• Original members- US, Britain, France, Pakistan, Thailand, and the Philippines
• Meant to justify an American presence in Vietnam, though some members did not support the US in this effort
President Johnson (1963-1969):
• Escalated the amount of US troops sent to Vietnam following the Tonkin Gulf Incident
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (1964):
• North Vietnamese supposedly fired on American ships in the Gulf of Tonkin
• Congress passed resolution allowing Johnson to use military action in Vietnam
• Johnson retaliated against the Vietcong with bombing attacks in the North, followed by ground troops
Tet Offensive (Jan 1968):
• North Vietnam violated a truce during Tet (New Year) attacking cities in South Vietnam
• The attack surprised the US; proved to many that the war was unwinnable
• Despite initiating the fighting, the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong were defeated, suffering heavy casualties
Richard Nixon (1969-1974):
• “Vietnamization”- the training of South Vietnamese troops to assume responsibility for military actions
• Began removing US troops from S. Vietnam but extended US military action into Cambodia; ended the draft
Pentagon Papers (published 1971):
• Defense Department papers that discussed America’s involvement in Southeast Asia
• Discussed how the government had misportrayed its intentions during the Vietnam War in the 1960s
• NY Times received them from Daniel Ellsberg, who had studied defense policies; Times published in June 1971
• The US tried to stop the Times (national security); Supreme Court allowed publication (freedom of the press)
• Set a precedent for future conflicts in the press over security versus liberty
Counterculture Movement
• Began at Berkeley with the free speech movement
• Beliefs included women’s liberation, anti-materialism, and opposition to the war in Vietnam
• Experimented with drugs and sex; young people who favored the counterculture were called “hippies”
• Woodstock- music/arts festival in upstate New York (1969)-marked the culmination of the counterculture
Kent State (1970):
• Site of a university protest against the Vietnam War and the Cambodian conflict
• Ohio National Guard killed 4 students during the event and wounded many others
• Led to other uprisings on college campuses, including Jackson State
War Powers Act (1973):
• President has to report to Congress within 48 hours of the commitment of US troops or substantially
increasing troops in foreign conflicts
• Congressional approval is needed for any military commitment of troops for more than 90 days
• Requirement enacted by Congress over Nixon’s veto; passed to counter the Tonkin Gulf Resolutions
Cold War and the 1970s
Richard Nixon (1969-1974):
• Oversaw Vietnamization and began removing US troops from South Vietnam; ended the draft
• Opened China for trade for the first time since the Chinese Communist Revolution
• Reduced tension with the USSR and the SALT agreements
• Resigned following Watergate scandal, becoming the first president to do so
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26 Amendment (1971):
• Ratified in response to the Vietnam War
• Gave the right to vote to citizens 18 years and older; Nov. 1971, 11 million Americans 18 and 21 were eligible
Henry Kissinger:
• National Security Advisor and Secretary of State under Nixon
• Pursued relations with China (détente); played significant role in SALT
• Negotiated talks after 6-Day War of Arab countries against Israel
SALT I and II (1971 and 1979) - Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty:
• SALT I- agreement signed by the US and the Soviets to stop building nuclear ballistic missiles for 5 years
• SALT II- signed by Carter and Brezhnev; reduced and limited the number of missile launchers and bombers
• These treaties helped to reduce the tension between the US and the USSR (détente)
Watergate Scandal (June 17, 1972):
• CRP/CREEP (Committee for the Re-Election of the President) - attempted to spy on Democrats at their
headquarters in the Watergate Hotel
• Men with connections to CRP/CREEP were arrested; James McCord (burglar) claimed a Republican cover-up
• An investigation uncovered wire taps, presidential tapes, and further evidence of espionage
• Robert Woodward/Carl Bernstein- writers for the Washington Post, helped reveal details behind the break-in
• This deception at the highest political level caused many Americans to become disenchanted with the govt.
Sunday Night Massacre (1973):
• Followed Nixon’s refusal to give his tapes to Archibald Cox, the government’s special prosecutor
• Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire Cox from this appointment; Richardson quit instead
• Eventually, the tapes surfaced and Nixon resigned in August 1973
Gerald Ford (1974-1977):
• Took office after Nixon’s resignation; pardoned Nixon (former president had not been charged with anything)
th
• First use of the 25 amendment, which provided for action in cases of a vice-presidential vacancy
Jimmy Carter (1977-1981):
• Defeated Ford for the presidency; wanted “responsible government”; reduced unemployment/energy crisis
• Camp David Accords, (Israel returned land in the Sinai in exchange for Egyptian recognition of Israel’s rights)
• Iran’s holding of American hostages, along with inflation, led to his loss to Ronald Reagan in 1980
American Hostages in Iran (1979):
• America had supported the Shah of Iran, who lost power after a coup by the Ayatollah Khomeini
• Supporters of Khomeini were anti-American because of this support of the Shah
• Carter allowed the Shah to receive medical attention in the US, upsetting Iranians
• Iranian revolutionaries took hostages from the US embassy; Carter froze Iranian assets in the US/ sent ships
• An accord was finally signed and the revolutionaries freed the hostages on Reagan’s inauguration day
Bakke v. University of California (1978):
• Supreme Court upheld affirmative action but banned the use of racial quotas
Three Mile Island (1979):
• Nuclear power plant in Pa overheated- part of its uranium core melted; released radioactive water/gases
• Led to a slowdown in the construction of other reactors and changes in the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
• Americans became more aware of environmental concerns
Ronald Reagan and the 1980s:
Ronald Reagan (1981-1989):
• Defeated Carter after carrying a large majority
• Increased military spending, esp. w/the Strategic Defense Initiative (“Star Wars”), space-based defense system
• “Reaganomics”- huge tax cut, aiming to increase investments and improve the job market
• After first increasing the number of nuclear-weapons, Reagan worked with Gorbachev toward their reduction
• Won reelection over Democratic nominees, Walter Mondale and Geraldine Ferraro (first female VP candidate)
Mikhail Gorbachev (1985-1991):
• Russian political leader who worked with Reagan to reduce nuclear weapons; key player in the fall of the USSR
• Removed Russian troops from Afghanistan
• Liberalized repressive atmosphere of USSR with govt. policies of “glasnost” (openness) and “perestroika”
(restructuring)
Iran-Contra Affair (1986):
• Scandal involving the CIA, National Security Council, and the Reagan administration
• The US sold weapons to Iranians friendly to America in order to encourage them to free hostages
• Profits from sales of weapons funded Nicaraguan revolutionaries fighting the Sandinista government
• Congress had not approved the sale/funding; convictions of Oliver North, Robert McFarlane, John Poindexter
• American citizens became increasingly skeptical of their government
“Black Monday” Stock Market Crash (Oct 19, 1987):
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 22.6%, the largest single-day drop since 1914
• Causes: trade deficits, computerized trading, American criticism of West Germany’s economic policies
• The crash later affected the insurance industry and was a cause of the savings and loan crisis
Savings and Loan Scandal:
• The lax regulation of the savings and loan industry led to poor investments and high insolvency
• The economic environment following Black Monday worsened the savings and loan financial disaster
• As the federal government guaranteed deposits up to $100,000, a $166 billion rescue appropriation was made
• The scandal is representative of the effects of poor governmental regulation
George H.W. Bush (“papa bush”)
George Bush (1989-1993):
• Served as Reagan’s vice-president
• Sent troops to overthrow Manuel Noriega in Panama
• Led the US to success in the Gulf War, forcing Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait
START (1990):
• Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty; signed by Mikhail Gorbachev and George Bush
• Cut the nuclear weapons arsenals of both nations by 30%
• Landmark agreement in the easing of American-Russian tensions
Persian Gulf War (1991):
• Saddam Hussein, dictator and leader of Iraq, invaded Kuwait on August 2, 1990
• American interests in oil were threatened
• After Iraq failed to meet the deadline for peaceful withdrawal, the US launched Operation Desert Storm on Jan
18, 1991, led by General Norman Schwarzkopf
• Air strikes were followed by a ground war; multi-national forces defeated Iraqi troops and liberated Kuwait
nd
• Though under heavy embargos, Saddam was left in power (lead to a 2 war with Iraq under George W. Bush)
Effects of the Collapse of Soviet Union:
• Break-up of nations created new foreign policy challenges and a proliferation of weaponry
• Provided new opportunities for US trade
• Led to new foreign policy challenges in Asia
Bill Clinton and the 1990s
Bill Clinton (1993-2001):
• Former law professor, attorney general and governor of Arkansas
• Achieved gun control measures, a strong economy, act supporting time off for family leave, & welfare reform
• Led the US to join the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) lifting trade barriers between the US,
Canada, and Mexico
nd
• Became the 2 president impeached by the House of Representatives after an affair with White House intern
Monica Lewinsky
Branch Davidian Incident (1993):
• Apocalyptic Christian group founded during the 1930s
• David Koresh and his followers lived at a compound outside Waco, Texas
• A shootout occurred between the FBI, ATF, and Branch Davidians as a warrant for illegal weapons and child
abuse was attempted to be served
• 4 federal agents and 5 Branch Davidians were killed
• A 51-day standoff occurred, ending with the burning of the compound/death of the rest of his followers
Oklahoma City Bombing (1995):
• Timothy McVeigh and his accomplish Terry Nicholas destroyed the Oklahoma City Alfred A Murrah Federal
Building with a fertilizer bomb
• 168 people were killed in the destruction caused by the explosion (including 19 children from the buildings
daycare center)
• McVeigh said he was upset with the govt. about the Branch Davidian fiasco and the events at Ruby Ridge
• Nicholas is serving 161 life sentences; McVeigh was killed by lethal injection in 2001
st
21 Century and George W. Bush
George W. Bush (2001-2009):
• Former Texas governor sworn into office in 2001
• Won the 2000 election against former vice president Al Gore after a vote recount in Florida
• Passed initiatives in attempts to improve education (No Child Left Behind Act)
• His declaration against terrorism led to the liberation of Afghanistan and the invasion of Iraq
• Re-elected in 2004, he lost popularity because of the Patriot Act, the government’s handling of Hurricane
Katrina, and the extended war against terrorism
September 11, 2001:
• Day of attacks by terrorist cells connected to the Al Qaeda network, led by Osama bin Laden, a Saudi dissident
• Al Qaeda operatives hijacked 2 airliners and crashed them into NYC’s World Trade Center, destroying the
buildings and killing thousands
• Another hijacked plane hit the Pentagon in Washington DC
• A final hijacked plane was diverted from its mission, crashing in Pennsylvania
• As a result of the attacks, Congress passed the USA Patriot Act, which broadened government authority to
gather intelligence and further defined crimes that were punishable as terrorism
• Attacks led to the invasion of Afghanistan
US Presidents
George Washington (1789-1797):
st
• 1 president; unanimously elected president; Served 2 terms
• Led to a standard of a strong presidency with control of foreign policy and the power to veto Congress’s
legislation
• Declared Proclamation of Neutrality in April 1793, keeping the US neutral in the European wars
• Farewell Address (1796) - warned against entangling alliances, suggested isolationism, and political party
factions
John Adams (1797-1800):
nd
st
• 2 president; 1 vice-president; Served 1 term
• Diplomat and signer of the Declaration of Independence
• Led the country through the XYZ Affair, the Alien and Sedition Acts, and the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions
• Kept nation from war during his administration
Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809):
rd
st
• 3 President; 1 Secretary of State; Served 2 terms
• Author of the Declaration of Independence
• First president to reside in Washington DC
st
• “Revolution of 1800s” His taking of office was the 1 time America changed presidential leadership
• His embodiment of the Jeffersonian Republican Party helped increase its strength, while weak leadership in
the Federalist Party was a reason for its demise
• Responsible of the Embargo Act of 1807
• Presided over the Louisiana Purchase
• His politics were characterized by support of states’ rights
James Madison (1809-1817):
th
• 4 President; Served 2 terms
• His work before becoming president led him to be considered the “Father of the Constitution”
• He participated in the writing of The Federalist Papers
• In Congress, he wrote the Virginia Plan
• He was a Republican president in a Federalist-controlled Congress
• Faced pressure from “War Hawks” (Henry Clay/John C. Calhoun) to get involved in the Napoleonic Wars/end
embargo
• Led the US into the War of 1812 and ended the war in 1814
James Monroe (1817-1825):
th
• 5 president; Served 2 terms
• Administration was marked by the domination of his political party, the Democratic-Republicans, and the
decline of the Federalist Party
• National identity grew, mostly through the westward movement of the country and various public works
projects
• Monroe Doctrine- the US would not allow foreign powers to lead new colonies in the western hemisphere or
allow existing colonies to be influenced by outside powers
• America feared international influence because of a period of world-wide revolutionary fervor after
Napoleon’s fall
• The “era” saw the beginnings of North-South tensions over slavery
John Quincy Adams (1825-1829):
th
• 6 president; Served 1 term
• Supporters called themselves National Republicans; Jackson supporters called themselves DemocraticRepublicans
• Led an active federal government in areas like internal improvements and Native American affairs
• Policies proved unpopular amidst increasing sectional interest and conflicts over states’ rights
• After his presidency, he served in the House of Representatives, where he forced debates against slavery and
against the removal of certain Native American tribes, a Jacksonian policy
Andrew Jackson (1829-1837):
th
• 7 president; Served 2 terms
• War Hero of the Battle of New Orleans; After the War of 1812, he invaded Spanish Florida to stop Native
American rebellions
• He was a popular president due to his image as the self-made Westerner
• Implemented the spoils system approach to civil service
• Indian Removal Act- provided for fed. enforcement to remove Native Americans tribes west of the Mississippi
• Was against the BUS
Martin Van Buren (1837-1841:
th
• 8 president ; Served 1 term
• Democrat from New York who served as Jackson’s vice president after Calhoun left the position
• Established independent treasury, a system maintaining government funds independently of the national
banking systems (it existed in one form or another until 1921)
• Panic of 1837 slowed attempts to follow’ Jackson’s policies, and he was unsuccessful in reelection
William Henry Harrison (1841):
th
• 9 president; Died of pneumonia a month after inauguration
• Westerner who fought against Native Americans at the Battle of Tippecanoe
• Vice president was John Tyler (“Tippecanoe and Tyler Too”)
• Grandfather of future president Benjamin Harrison
John Tyler (1841-1845):
th
• 10 president; Served 1 term; “Accidental President”- became president after the sudden death of Harrison
• States’ rights supporter, a Southerner, and a strict constitutionalist
• Rejected the Whig programs of the elected Harrison, which led the Whigs to turn against him
• Settled the Webster-Ashburton Treaty between the US and Britain; helped Texas achieve statehood in 1845
James K. Polk (1845-1849):
th
• 11 president; Served 1 term
• “Dark Horse” Democratic candidate who became president
• Introduced a new independent treasury system and lowered the tariff with the Walker Tariff
th
• Settled Oregon boundary dispute with the Oregon Treaty (Treaty of Washington-1846) at the 49 parallel
• Strong supporter of Manifest Destiny who led the US into the Mexican War and acquired California
Zachary Taylor (1849-1850):
th
12 president; Served 1 term; died suddenly in 1850 and was replaced by Millard Fillmore
• Famous Whig general of the Mexican War
• Opposed the spread of slavery/encouraged territories to organize/seek admission directly as states to avoid
the issue of slavery
Millard Fillmore (1850-1853):
th
• 13 president; Served 1 term- became president after Zachary Taylor died suddenly in office
• As a congressman, he revealed his opposition to both the expansion of slavery and various abolitionist
activities, driving away supporters
• Supported the Compromise of 1850
• Failed to obtain a nomination in 1852 but was nominated by both the Whigs and the Know-Nothing
Movement in 1856 (anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic group that were also known as the Nativists)
Franklin Pierce (1852-1856):
th
• 14 president; Served 1 term
• Democratic president from New Hampshire
• Supported Manifest Destiny despite Northern concerns that it would lead to the spread of slavery
• Signed the Kansas-Nebraska Act
• Sent Commodore Matthew Perry to Japan to open the country to diplomacy/commerce (Treaty of Kanagawa)
• Opened Canada to greater trade
• His diplomats failed to purchase Cuba from Spain; lead to the drafting of the Ostend Manifesto
James Buchanan (1857-1861):
th
• 15 president; Served 1 term
• President when the Dred Scott decision was announced
• Supported the Lecompton Constitution to satisfy the South
• Buchanan, still acting as president after Lincoln’s election, denied the legal right of states to secede but
believed that the federal government cold not legally prevent them
• Before leaving office, he appointed Northerners to fed. Posts/helped prepare Fort Sumter with reinforcements
Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865):
• 16th president; Elected 2 times- served 1 full term before being assassinated by John Wilkes Booth at Ford’s
Theater in Washington DC (Booth believed he was assisting the Southern cause)
• Produced and le a Northern Army to defend the Union against secessionists
• Suspended habeas corpus during the Civil War, which was upheld by Congress
• Issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed slaves within the Confederacy only
• Developed the 10% Plan for Reconstruction
• Gave the Gettysburg Address (November 19, 1863)
Andrew Johnson (1865-1869):
th
• 17 president; Served the remainder of Lincoln’s term after Lincoln was assassinated
• He initially followed Lincoln’s policies but gradually became more conservative, giving amnesty to former
Confederate officials and opposing legislation that dealt with former slaves
• His veto of the Civil Rights Act was overridden by Congress, which decreased his political sway
• Johnson’s opposition to Radical Republicans and his violation of the Tenure of Office Act led to his
impeachment by the House of Representatives
• The Senate was organized as a court to hear the impeachment charges but it came one vote short of the
constitutional 2/3 required for removal
Ulysses S. Grant (1869-1877)
th
• 18 president ; Served 2 terms
• Fought in the Mexican War, captured Vicksburg as a Union general, and accepted General Lee’s surrender
• Appointed Secretary of War by Johnson in 1867; disagreed with Johnson’s policies/ won election through
support of Radical Republicans
• Despite his personal honesty and honor, his administration had scandals (Credit Mobilier/Whiskey Ring)
Rutherford B. Hayes (1877-1881):
th
• 19 president; Served 1 term
• Former Ohio governor who was the Republican presidential nominee in 1876
• In the election through the Compromise of 1877
• During his term, he removed federal troops from the South
• Dealt with the railroad strike in 1877
James Garfield (1881):
th
• 20 president; Assassinated during his first year in office by Charles Guiteau, a disappointed office-seeker
• Former Ohio Congressman and Union General
• His assassination spurred the passage of the Pendleton Act
Chester Arthur (1881-1885):
st
• 21 president ; Assumed the presidency after the assassination of Garfield
• Worked to outlaw polygamy in Utah and to strengthen the Navy
• Supported the Pendleton Act (est. open, competitive exams for civil service jobs) that ended Spoils System
Grover Cleveland (1885-1889 & 1893-1897):
nd
th
• 22 and 24 president; Only president elected to two nonconsecutive terms
• First Democrat elected after the Civil War
• He vetoed many private pension bills to Civil War veterans who submitted fraudulent claims
• Signed the Interstate Commerce Act
• Sent in federal troops to enforce an injunction against striking railroad workers in Chicago
Benjamin Harrison (1889-1893):
rd
• 23 president ; Served 1 term
• Former senator and lawyer who defeated Grover Cleveland, despite receiving fewer popular votes
• Submitted to the senate a treaty to annex Hawaii, although President Cleveland later withdrew it
• Signed many appropriation bills for naval improvement and internal improvements
William McKinley (1897-1901):
th
• 25 president; Served 1 term
• Former Republican congressman from Ohio
• Businesses rallied to his support against William Jennings Bryan
• McKinley’s election over Bryan influenced future political races by setting up interest groups and alliances that
lasted for over a decade
• McKinley was reelected in 1900 but only served one year; assassinated in 1901 by anarchist Leon Czolgosz
Teddy Roosevelt (1901-1909):
• 26th president; Served 2 terms
• T.R. had to deal with ill health and became an advocate for similarly disadvantaged people
• Part of the Rough Rider Regiment during the Spanish-American conflict (became a war hero)
• As President, he became a “trust buster”; he used the Sherman Anti-Trust Act to dissolve trusts that restrained
interstate and foreign trade; won the anti-trust case against the Northern Securities Company
• Style of diplomacy was to “speak softly and carry a big stick”; protected US interests by ensuring the
construction of the Panama Canal and US authority in Latin America
• Served as a middleman in conflicts between Russia and Japan; wrote the Gentlemen’s Agreement of 1907
• Supported conservation (not preservation) of national resources
William Howard Taft (1909-1913):
th
• 27 president; Served 1 term
• After serving as Secretary of war under Teddy Roosevelt, he was elected over William Jennings Bryan
• Prosecuted trusts under the Sherman Anti-Trust Act
• “Dollar Diplomacy”- called for acting in foreign affairs to achieve a financial result on behalf of one’s country
• His administration created the Department of Labor and established the parcel-post system
• Teddy Roosevelt’s relationship with Taft deteriorated, leading to TR’s opposition of Taft’s reelection
• Became Chief Justice of the Supreme Court after serving as president
Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921):
th
• 28 president; Served 2 terms
• Before presidency and political work he served as an academic and President of Princeton University
th
• Legislation lowered tariffs, created a graduated income tax (16 amendment), and established the Federal
Trade Commission to control unfair business practices
• Initiated progressive reforms that prohibited child labor and limited railroad workers to an 8 hour day
• Led the US into WWI
• 14 Points- outlined the settlement of WWI
• He was a noted racist who segregated the federal government and praised Birth of a Nation
Warren G Harding (1921-1923):
th
• 29 president; Served most of 1 term (died suddenly during cross-country tour/ succeeded by Calvin Coolidge)
• Nominated by the Republican Party as a dark horse candidate
• Represented opposition to the League of Nations, low taxes, high tariffs, immigration restriction, and aid to
farmers
• Won the election, repudiating Wilson’s domestic policies toward civil rights
• Promised a “return to normalcy” (after WWI)
• Had a lot of scandals associated with his administration
• Pardoned Eugene V. Debs
• Gave the US steel workers the 8 hour day
Calvin Coolidge (1925-1929):
th
• 30 president ; Served 2 terms (came to office first after Harding’s death and then won a landslide victory as
the Republican candidate)
• Avoided responsibility for most of Harding’s cabinet scandals
• Reputed for honesty; believed in leading through inactivity
• “The chief business of the American people is business”
Herbert Hoover (1929-1933):
st
• 31 president; Served 1 term
• Coolidge did not seek nomination in 1928 leaving Hoover to run against Catholic NY Governor Alfred E. Smith
• Became a multimillionaire in the mining industry; had served as the Secretary of Commerce and the head of
the Food Administration
• Conservative economic philosophy and continuation of Prohibition won the election of Hoover
• “Rugged individualism”- called for people to succeed on their own with minimal help from the government
• Hoover received most of the blame for the Depression and was soundly defeated by FDR in 1932
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1933-1945):
nd
• 32 president; Elected to 4 terms (served 3 before dying suddenly in 1945)
• “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”- encouraged new hope for emerging from the Great Depression
• At 39 he contracted polio; he regained use of his legs though a vigorous exercise program
• Led Congress through the “100 Days”; focused on economic/agricultural recovery/support for
elderly/unemployed
• Attempted to enlarge the Supreme Court and put in place justices that would support his legislation but failed
(“Court Packing Scheme”)
• Mobilized the US for entry into WWII
Harry S. Truman (1945-1953):
rd
• 33 president ; Became president after FDR died in 1945; reelected against Thomas Dewey in 1948
• Decided to drop atomic bombs on Japan
• Banned racial discrimination in federal hiring and armed forces
• TRUMAN DOCTRINE- instituted the policy of “containment” against Communism
Dwight Eisenhower (1953-1961):
th
• 34 president; Served 2 terms; became president after defeating Adlai Stevenson
• Became the Allied military commander during WWII and led forces in North Africa, Italy, and England
• Signed the truce in 1953 to end the Korean War
• Completed the integration of the military forces
• Sent troops to Little Rock, Arkansas to ensure desegregation
• Gave momentum to the desegregation movement
John F. Kennedy (1961-1963):
th
• 35 president; Served most of 1 term before being assassinated in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963 by Lee Harvey
Oswald
st
• Democrat and 1 Catholic president
• Domestic program (“New Frontier”) include tax reforms, educational aid, a raise in the minimum wage, and
emphasis on the space program
• Established the Peace Corps in 1961 as an agency to send American volunteers to developing countries
• Approved the Bay of Pigs invasion; successfully led America through the Cuban Missile Crisis
Lyndon Johnson (1963-1969):
th
• 36 president; Finished JFK’s term and was elected to 1 term in 1964
• Previously served as a democratic senator from Texas, where he was both the whip and floor leader
• Promoted Kennedy’s agenda through Congress, including a tax cut and the Civil Rights Act of 1964
• “Great Society”- called for war against poverty and promoted social and economic welfare legislation
• Escalated the US troops sent to Vietnam
Richard M. Nixon (1969-1974):
th
• 37 president; Elected to 2 terms
• Prior to becoming president in 1969, Nixon served as US representative, senator, and vice president
• Oversaw “Vietnamization”- called for the training of South Vietnamese troops to assume responsibility for
military actions; ended the draft
• Began to remove US troops in phases from South Vietnam and also sent US troops to Cambodia
• Opened China for trade
• Reduced tension with USSR with the SALT agreements (détente)
• Resigned following Watergate scandal, becoming the first president to do so
Gerald Ford (1974-1977):
th
• 38 president; Served the remainder of Nixon’s term after his resignation
• Became vice-president after Spiro Agnew resigned as a result of an investigation into tax evasion
• Pardoned Nixon, though the former president had not been charged with anything
• Removed the rest of the US troops from Vietnam
th
• His rise to power represented the first use of the 25 amendment, which provided for action in cases of a vicepresidential vacancy
Jimmy Carter (1977-1981):
th
• 39 president ; Served 1 term
• Defeated Gerald Ford for presidency
• Wanted to make a “responsible government”
• Reduced unemployment and eased the energy crisis
• Negotiated the Camp David Accords (Israel returned land in the Sinai Peninsula in exchange for Egyptian
recognition of Israel’s rights)
• Iran’s holding of American hostages, along with inflation, led to his loss to Ronald Reagan in 1980
• Both during his tenure in office and since his loss in 1980 he has worked for improvements in human rights
Ronald Reagan (1981-1989):
th
• 40 president; Served 2 terms
• Defeated Carter after carrying a large majority; reelected over Democratic nominees Walter Mondale and
st
Geraldine Ferraro (1 female VP candidate)
• Increased military spending, esp. the Strategic Defense Initiative (“Star Wars”)-a spaced-based defense system
• Got a tremendous tax cut aimed to increase investments and improve the job market (“Reaganomics”)
• After first increasing the number of nuclear weapons, he worked with Gorbachev toward the reduction of
nuclear weapons
George Bush (1989-1993):
• 41st president (“papa Bush”); Served 1 term
• He was a congressman, director of the CIA, UN Ambassador, vice president to Reagan
• Sent troops to overthrow Manuel Noriega in Panama
• Led the US to success in the Gulf War, forcing Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait
Bill Clinton (1993-2001):
• 42nd president; Elected to 2 terms
• Former law professor, attorney general and governor of Arkansas
• Achieved gun control measures, a strong economy, family leave act, and welfare reform
• US joined NAFT-North American Free Trade Agreement- lifted trade barriers b/w the US, Canada, and Mexico
• 2nd president to be impeached by the House of Reps after an affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky
George W. Bush (2001-2009):
• 43rd president; Served 2 terms
• Former Texas governor
• Won presidential election after the democratic nominee and former vice president Al Gore conceded following a
voting ordeal in Florida (Gore had more pop votes but fewer electoral votes)
• Passed initiatives in attempts to improve education (No Child Left behind Act)
• His declaration against terrorism after 9/11 led to the liberation of Afghanistan and the invasion of Iraq
• Lost popularity b/c of the Patriot Act, govt.’s response to Hurricane Katrina & extended War against terrorism
Art and Literature
Colonial Painting (1760-1800):
• Copied European styles, but features portraits of important Americans
• Famous artists included John Trumbell, Charles Peale, Benjamin West, and John Copley
• Gilbert Stuart painted the portrait of George Washington that is now on the one-dollar bill
Washington Irving (1783-1859):
st
• Considered the best-known native writer in the US; one of the 1 American writers to gain fame in Europe
st
• His satire is considered some of the 1 great comic literature written by an American
• Stories included Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1820)
• His writings reflected an increasing American nationalism, as the stories were based in American settings
James Fennimore Cooper (1789-1851):
• American novelist born in Burlington, NJ
• His writing was influenced by the American frontier and America’s landscapes
• Works included Last of the Mohicans (1826), The Water-Witch (1830), The American Democrat (1838)
• His work, along with that of writers like Washington Irving, helped found a distinctive American literature
Transcendentalism (1820-1850):
• Movement to transcend the bounds of the intellect and to strive for emotional unity with God
• Capable of unity without the help of the institutional church
• Saw church as reactionary and stifling to self-expression
Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862):
• Transcendentalist writer
• Walden (1854) - repudiated the repression of society and preached non-violent civil disobedience
• He protested unjust laws, slavery, and the Mexican War
• His ideology was reflected in future advocates like Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.
Ralph Waldo Emerson: (1803-1882):
• Transcendentalist essayist and lecturer
• Self-Reliance (1841) - promoted independence
• Strongly influenced American thought/culture through his writings/lifestyle
Romanticism (1800s):
• A belief in the innate goodness of man, nature, and traditional values, rooted in turn-of-the-century Europe
• Emphasized emotions and feelings over reason
• Reaction against the excesses of the Enlightenment led to a growing push for social reform
Hudson River School (1825-1875):
• Group of American landscape painters
• Part of increasing American nationalism following the War of 1812
• The influence of the European Romantic Movement led many American artists to paint their homeland
• Depicted important landscapes such as Niagara Falls, the Catskills, the Rockies, and the Hudson River Valley
• Artists included Thomas Doughty, Thomas Cole, George Inness, and SFB Morse
John James Audubon (1785-1851):
• Romantic-Era artist
• Member of the Hudson River School, a group of landscape painters
• Demonstrated the emotion of nature, especially birds and animals
• 1886- a nature organization took his name
Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849):
• Southern Romantic Era writer
• Wrote The Raven (1845) and many tales of terror and darkness
• Explored the world of the spirit and the emotions
Walt Whitman (1819-1892):
• Northern Romantic era poet
• Wrote a volume of poems Leaves of Grass (1855)
• Celebrated the importance of individualism
• “Poet of American democracy”
Harriet Beecher Stowe- Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1811-1896):
• Worked with the Grimke sisters, Elizabeth Stanton, and other leaders to pursue activist goals
• Early activist in the feminist movement and author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1851), a novel about slavery
• Book was denounced in the South and praised in the North; it turned many toward active opposition to
slavery and helped increase sympathy for abolition by Europeans who read it
Mark Twain- aka Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835-1910):
• American novelist who grew up in Hannibal, Missouri
• Early jobs as both a printer’s apprentice and a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi River
• Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876), Huckleberry Finn (1885), A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court (1889)
• His writings portrayed the essence of life and speech during the era; his use of a distinctly American vernacular
influenced future fiction writers
Ashcan School (early 1900s):
• Group of artists who painted realistic scenes
• Focused on subjects of everyday life; titles such as The Wrestlers and Sixth Avenue
• George Luks, George Bellows, John Sloan, Robert Henri, Everett Shinn, Arthur B. Davies
Rachel Carson (1907-1964):
• American writer and marine biologist
• Wrote Silent Spring (1962) - a study on dangerous insecticides
• Helped initiate the environmental movement
Supreme Court Decisions
Marbury v. Madison (1803):
• William Marbury- appointed justice of the peace in DC by President Jon Adams as part of the “midnight judge”
• His commission was not delivered, so he sued President Jefferson’s Secretary of State, James Madison
• Chief Justice John Marshall held that while Marbury was entitled to the commission, the statute which allowed
Marbury’s remedy was unconstitutional (granted the Supreme Court powers beyond what the Constitution
permitted)
• Decision paved the way for judicial review, which gave courts the power to declare statutes unconstitutional
Fletcher v. Peck (1810):
• Marshall Court decision
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• The 1 time state law was voided on grounds that it violated a principle of the US Constitution
• The Georgia legislature had issued extensive land grants in a corrupt deal; legislative session repealed the
action
• The Supreme Court decided that the original contract was valid, regardless of the corruption
• Reaffirmed the sanctity of contracts
McCullough v. Maryland (1819):
• Marshall Court decision
• Determined that no state can control an agency of the federal government
• Maryland tried to levy a tax on a local branch of the BUS to protect its own state banks
• Supreme Court said such state action violated Congress’s “implied powers” to operate a national bank
• Use of judicial review over state law made this a division of powers case
Dartmouth College v. Woodward (1819):
• Marshall Court decision
• Severely limited the power of state govts .to control corporations, which were the emerging form of business
• New Hampshire legislature tried to change Dartmouth from a private to a public institution by revoking its
charter
• The Court ruled that the charter issued during colonial days still constituted a contract and could not be
arbitrarily changed without consent of both parties
• Reaffirmed the sanctity of contracts
Gibbons v. Ogden (1824):
• Marshall Court decision
• Determined that only Congress may regulate interstate commerce, including navigation
• Gibbons received a monopoly by NY to operate a steamboat between NY and NJ
• Ogden received the same rights through Congress
• Supreme Court decided that the state monopoly was void
• Use of judicial review over state law made this a division of powers case
Charles River Bridge Case (1837):
• Demonstrated that a contract could be broken to benefit the general welfare
• Jackson’s chief justice Roger Taney suggested that a state could cancel grant money if the grant ceased to be
in the interests of the community
• Served as a reversal of Dartmouth v. Woodward
Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857):
• A slave, Scott, who was taken by his master from Missouri, a slave state, to Illinois, a free state
• After he returned to Missouri, he sued for his freedom- by residing in a free state he had ended his slavery
• President Buchanan meant for the case’s decision to serve as the basis for the slavery issue
• Pro-Southern Judge Taney ruled that Scott did NOT have the right of citizenship, which he would need to be
able to bring forth a suit
• The Court further ruled that the Missouri Compromise itself was unconstitutional because Congress had no
power to prohibit slavery in the territories, as slaves were property
Wabash case (1886):
• Case challenged legislation made by the state of Illinois against railroads; the state was trying to appease the
demands of farmers for lower railroad rates
• Supreme Court determined that states had no power to regulate interstate commerce
• Case undid an earlier victory for states est. in the Munn v. Illinois case (1877) which had allowed for regulation
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896):
• Homer Plessy refused to leave a railroad car restricted only to whites
• Supreme Court upheld the Louisiana state law that required “separate but equal” facilities
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• The majority stated that the 14 amendment protected only political equality, not social equality
• Justice Harlan’s dissent argued that “… all citizens are equal before the law” laying the foundation for Brown v.
BOE of Topeka, which overturned “separate but equal”
Insular Cases (1901-1904):
• A series of court cases held to determine if the “Constitution followed the flag”
• At stake- whether people in areas controlled by the US were given rights as citizens
• Court determined that those living in new territories were not automatically granted the rights of US citizens
Muller v Oregon (1908):
• Oregon established a law that limited women to 10 hours of work in factories and laundries
• Muller, a laundry owner, challenged the legality of the law, arguing that it violated the “liberty of contract”
• Louis Brandeis, one of the attorneys arguing the case, used extensive sociological evidence in his brief
(Brandeis Brief) which served as a model for later social reformers
• Supreme Court held that the law was unconstitutional
Hammer v. Dagenhart (1918):
• Struck down the Keating-Owen Act of 1916, which excluded products produced by child labor from interstate
commerce
• Dagenhart sued, as he wanted his 2 sons to work and bring income in for the family
• Supreme Court held that Congress, with the Keating-Owen Act, had overstepped its bounds
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• Led to “dual federalism”- belief that Congress could not take powers given to states by the 10 amendment
US v Schenck (1919):
• During WWI, Charles Schenck created a pamphlet opposing the military draft; he was convicted of attempting
to obstruct the military under the Espionage Act
• Supreme Court determined that speech MAY be limited if it creates a “clear and present danger” (ex- can’t yell
fire in a crowd)
• Later years the “clear and present danger” clause was limited to violent actions not just support of these ideas
Korematsu v US (1944):
• Korematsu was arrested/convicted after failing to comply with military order to go to a Japanese relocation
center
• Supreme Court upheld the conviction based on war powers- government’s need to protect against espionage
outweighed Korematsu’s individual rights
• Dissenting opinion (Frank Murphy) - decision was the “legalization of racism”
Brown v Board of Education of Topeka (1954):
• Supreme Court case which challenged “separate but equal” ruling established in Plessy v Ferguson
• Court (led by Chief Earl Warren) held that separate was inherently unequal and instructed states to integrate
• Massive Southern resistance slowed the advance of integration
• Federal troops were used to help 9 black students attend an all-white school in Little Rock, Arkansas despite
mobs and the Arkansas National Guard (“Little Rock 9”)
Engle v Vitale (1962):
• Supreme Court held that a prayer created by the NY State Board of Regents was unconstitutional
• Even though this prayer was “non-denominational” the Court held that state-sponsored prayer of any type
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violated the 1 amendment’s establishment of religion
Baker v. Carr (1962):
• Tennessee had failed to reapportion its state legislature for 60 years despite growth/population movement
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• Charles Baker (Tennessee voter) sued the state arguing a violation of the equal protection clause of the 14
amendment (claimed that his vote had been diluted)
• Supreme Court held that the political question would be heard, opening the way for numerous voting suits
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963):
• All persons charged with a felony (and later expanded to other charges) must be provided legal counsel
Escobedo v. Illinois (1964):
• The police must fulfill a person’s request to have an attorney present during questioning
Miranda v. Arizona (1966):
• An arrested person has the right to remain silent, the right to be told that whatever they said could be used
against them, the right to be represented by an attorney, the right to have a lawyer even if they could not
afford one, and the right to one phone call to obtain a lawyer
Heart of Atlanta Motel v US (1964):
• A motel operator refused to serve an African American customer
• Supreme Court upheld the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (outlawed discrimination in schools, places of work, voting
sites, public accommodations, and public areas)
Furman v Georgia (1972):
• Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was unconstitutional unless fairly applied
• Subsequent Supreme Court decisions allowed the death penalty in certain circumstances only
Roe v Wade (1973):
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• Supreme Court decision that ruled 1 trimester abortions were to be allowed
• All state laws prohibiting such abortions were made unconstitutional
• Decision was based on a woman’s right to privacy
• Led to criticism from the Roman Catholic Church and right-to-life groups
Bakke v. Regents of the University of California (1978):
• Supreme Court upheld the university’s use of race in its admission decisions (upheld Affirmative Action)
• Court also found that Bakke, a white man, should have been admitted to the university’s medical school
• This holding banned the use of racial quotas
Native American Issues
Tecumseh (1811):
• Native American chief encouraged by British to fight against pressured removal from Western territories
• William Henry Harrison destroyed the united Native American Confederacy at Tippecanoe
Bacon’s Rebellion:
• VA’s Royal governor, William Berkeley, received strict instructions to run the colony for the benefit of Britain
• Nathaniel Bacon was a leader of colonial Virginia frontiersmen who objected to the rights granted to Virginia’s
wealthy inner circle/angered by Governor Berkeley’s inability to protect Virginia from Native American attacks
• Bacon commanded 2 unauthorized raids on Native American tribes, Berkeley had him arrested
• Bacon gathered his forces, opposed the Royal governor, set fire to Jamestown to defend his forces’ position
• With British military, Berkeley ended the rebellion
• After the rebellion, American colonists turned increasingly away from indentured servants and toward slaves
French and Indian War (1748-1763):
• Competition between France, Britain, and various Native American tribes over land in the Ohio region
• One of a series of wars fought between France and England throughout the world at the time
• Battles continued on European and American fronts until Britain gained control of Canada
Dawes Severalty Act (1887):
• Law encouraging the breakup of Native American tribes in hopes of assimilating them into American society
• Distributed Native American reservation lands to individual members of the tribe to form a system of
agriculture more similar to the white man’s
• Gave each head of a Native American family 160 acres of farmland or 320 acres of grazing land
• Effect was to nearly destroy the reservation system, as the remaining tribal lands were opened up for whites
Battle of Wounded Knee (1890):
• Sioux natives wished to practice a dance that they believed would free their lands, rid them of whites, and
lead to prosperity; this frightened white settlers
• The army believed Chief Sitting Bull was planning a rebellion so the army captured the chief
• In a sudden exchange of gunfire Chief Sitting Bull and others were killed; remainder of the tribe fled to a camp
near Wounded Knee Creek where the army killed 200 men/women/children (last battle of the Indian Wars)
Indian Reorganization Act (1934):
• Reserved the Dawes Severalty Act
• Attempted to restore the tribal basis of Native American life; tribal life was recognized as “normal”
Bureau of Indian Affairs (1934):
• Led by Commissioner John Collier
• Returned ownership of certain lands to tribes, established tribal governments, and provided economic relief
• Created a program of work projects for reservations
American Indian Movement (1968):
• Supported Native American civil rights and recognition of past treaties within the US
• Militants associated with the organization staged an occupation of the town of Wounded Knee, South Dakota
arguing that treaties had been ignored
African-Americans and Slavery
Northern African Americans (1850):
• Organized churches and groups
• 200,000 free blacks lived in the North and West, although their lives were restricted by prejudicial laws
• Immigration and new sources of labor for employers threatened the economic security of northern blacks
Four Classes in the South:
• Yeoman- largest group; worked land independently, sometimes along with slaves, to produce their own foods,
like corn
• Planters- owned large farms and groups of slaves; exercised political and economic control with cotton
exports
• Poor Whites- lived in squalor, often worse than the slaves
• Slaves- worked land; ¾ of whites in the South did NOT own any slaves
Slave Labor System:
• Large Farms: white overseers directed black drivers, who supervised groups in the fields as they performed
gang labor
• Smaller Farms: a slave was assigned specific tasks, then given the remainder of the day to himself
• House Servants: spared physical labor, but they enjoyed less privacy and had direct responsibility to the
master
Slaves in Southern Urban Areas:
• Slaves served as factory workers or in construction
• Some purchased their freedom with their savings or disappeared into society
• As sectional troubles rose, fewer salves were able to buy freedom or work in urban areas
Elements of Slavery (1700s-1800s):
• Slaves suffered varying degrees of repression, although most received adequate housing and diet
• Slaves did commit some violent uprisings
• Many slaves tried to run away into bordering free states
• Injustice created quiet revolt as slaves sabotaged their facilities, found ways to become unproductive for their
masters, and ridiculed their masters
• Despite their repression, slaves created their own common culture
Southern Response to Slavery (1790-1860s):
• Defense of slavery shifted from an early view (1790) that slavery was a “necessary evil” to being a “positive
good” (after 1840)
• Used scientific arguments, biblical texts, and historical examples to justify slavery
• Both this defensive position and abolitionist movements increased
• Some Southerners (VA lawyer George Fitzhugh) defended slavery by condemning Northern “wage slavery”; he
used the idea of African-American inferiority to suggest that whites were protecting slaves from a world of
fierce competition in which they could not survive on their own (paternalism)
Slave Codes (1650s-1860s):
• A series of laws that limited slave rights
• Slave owners were given authority to impose harsh physical punishment and to control their slaves in any
fashion they sought, without court intervention
• Prohibited slaves from owning weapons, becoming educated, meeting with other African-Americans without
permission, and testifying against whites in court
• Severely limited the rights of slaves
Denmark Vesey (1767?-1822):
• As a slave, he won enough money in a lottery to buy his own freedom
• Gained wealth and influence in South Carolina
• Accused of using church get-togethers to plan a violent slave revolt
• Vesey and 24 other slaves were hanged
Nat Turner (1800-1831):
• Slave who led insurrection in Southampton, Virginia in 1831
• Influential among local slaves as a preacher
• Believed it was his destiny to lead slaves to freedom
• Led approximately 60 in revolt, killing the family of his owner and running rampant through the nearby
neighborhood, killing 55 whites
• The revolt was put down and Turner, some of his conspirators, and several free blacks were executed
• Led to stricter slave laws in the South and an end to the Southern organizations advocating abolition
Gag Rule (1836-1844):
• Forbade discussion of the slavery question in the House of Representatives
• Stemmed from Southern members’ fear of slave emancipation
• Led to increased discussion by Southern conventions of ways to escape Northern economic and political
hegemony
Wilmot Proviso (1846):
• Amendment to a Mexican War Appropriations Bill
• Proposed that slavery could not exist in any territory to be acquired from Mexico
• The amendment was defeated several times in Congress
• Represented the question of slavery’s future, which would be decided in the Civil War
Abolitionism (1830s-Civil War):
• Began with the idea of purchasing/transporting slaves to free African states, which had little success
• Anti-slavery societies were founded (some faced violent opposition)
• The movement split into two- radical followers and those who petitioned Congress
• Entered politics through the Liberty Party, calling for non-expansion of slavery into new western territories
• Liberty Party would later combine with the larger Free Soil Party
William Lloyd Garrison (1805-1879):
• The Liberator- newspaper that printed his views those slaves should be immediately emancipated
• Many other anti-slavery advocates of the 1830s and 1840s recommended a gradualist approach
• Because of his strict view of emancipation and the fiery language he used in his paper, opposition to his policy
developed within abolitionist groups
• Garrison also supported equal rights for women
• After the Civil War, he promoted free trade, suffrage for women, and fair treatment of Native Americans
Frederick Douglass (1817?-1895):
• An escaped slave from Maryland and outspoken abolitionist who published his own newspaper North Star
• Favored the use of political methods of reform
• In the Civil War, he helped put together regiments of African Americans from Massachusetts and encouraged
others to join the Union army
• “Father of the American civil rights movement”
Underground Railroad and Harriet Tubman (1840s-1860s):
• Method used to move slaves to free territory in the USA and Canada
• Harriet Tubman, a freed slave, was a slave smuggler and “conductor” on the Underground Railroad who led
over 300 slaves to freedom
• Underground Railroad led to tension between states
Mexican Cession and Slavery (1848):
• Argument existed about slavery in the new-acquired Mexican Cession
• States-righters believed that the territory was the property of all states and that the federal government had
no right to prohibit property ownership in territories
• Many anti-slavery and federal government supporters contended that Congress had the power to make laws
for the territories
• Argument in favor of federal power was based on the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 and the Missouri
Compromise of 1820
Popular Sovereignty (1840s):
• Doctrine under which the status of slavery in the territories was to be determined by the settlers themselves
• Doctrine was first put forward by General Lewis Cass and was promoted by Stephen Douglas
• It was intended as a resolution to the impending crisis of the slavery question
Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854):
• Legislation introduced by Stephen Douglas to organize the area west of Missouri and Iowa
• One goal was to facilitate the building of a transcontinental railroad that ran west from Chicago
• Called for two territories to be created (Kansas and Nebraska) and the issue of slavery to be decided by
popular sovereignty
• Kansas’ status was impacted by fighting between pro and anti slavery groups who moved to the area, where
the conflict was termed “Bleeding Kansas”
Creation of Lincoln’s Republican Party (1854):
• Democratic Party divided along North-South lines
• Whig Party disintegrated, with its members joining the Known-Nothings or the newly-created Republican
Party
• The Republican Party’s unifying principle was that slavery should be banned from all the nation’s territories
and not permitted to spread any further to established states
Compromises
Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise) - 1787:
• Constitutional Convention
• Called for a bicameral legislative system in which the House of Representatives would be based on population
and the Senate would have equal representation in Congress
• Combined pieces of the NJ and Virginia plans and other proposals at the constitutional convention
3/5 Compromise (1787):
• Constitutional Convention
• Part of the Great Compromise
• Counted slaves as 3/5 of a person for representation and called for direct taxation on the states
Missouri Compromise (1820):
• Henry Clay’s solution to deadlock over the issue of the acceptance of the proposed new state, Missouri
• At the time, the Senate was evenly divided between slave and free states
• A slave state of Missouri would tip the balance of power
• John Tallmadge added an antislavery amendment meant to prohibit the growth of slavery into Missouri and to
free slaves already in Missouri when they had reached a certain age
• The Tallmadge Amendment caused the Senate to block the Missouri Compromise; it sparked heated debate
about the future of slavery
• To settle the dispute, northern Massachusetts became a new free state (Maine)
• The legislative section prohibiting slavery in Missouri was replaced by a clause stating that all Louisiana
Purchase land north of the 36’30 parallel would prohibit slavery
Compromise of 1850 (Omnibus Bill):
• Proposed by Henry Clay and handled by Stephen Douglas to assure passage by both Northerners and
Southerners
• Douglas broke the legislation into various pieces, which helped assure that each of its parts would pass
• The Compromise led to a sectional harmony for several years
• California was admitted as a free state
• New Mexico and Utah territories would be decided by popular sovereignty
• Slave trade was abolished in the District of Columbia
• Tough Fugitive Slave Act passed
• Federal payment to Texas ($10 million) for lost New Mexico territory
Compromise of 1877:
• Compromise came after the disputed presidential election of 1876 between Hayes and Tilden
• Tilden won the popular vote but neither candidate won the electoral vote; 3 states’ electoral votes were in
dispute
• The Democrats agreed to give Hayes the presidency
• Hayes promised to show consideration for Southern interests, end Reconstruction, aid Southern industrialism,
and withdraw remaining forces from the South
• This settlement left the freed Southern blacks without support from the Republican Party
Population Changes and Immigration Patterns
Population Growth and Change (Early 1800s):
• Labor shortage meant more opportunity for work
• Influx of immigration included German skilled labor and Irish Catholics, who faced discrimination
• Growth of population in the West and in rural areas
• Urbanization outgrew public services, leading to inadequate security and clean water for city livers
• Race riots, religious riots, and street crime became part of city society
Chinese Exclusion Act (1882):
• Only legislation passed to limit immigration of any one group of people
• Passed in response to the Chinese who settled in California after building the railroads
Jane Addams (1860-1935):
• American social reformer
• Provided the services of the Hull House in Chicago (1889) to help poor immigrants to settle
• Member of the “Social Gospel” movement, which applied lessons from the Bible to help solve problems of
immigration and urbanization (won the 1931 Nobel Peace Prize)
Economy, Industry, and Labor Changes
Industry by 1850:
• Pre-1850 mostly located in the North
• Industry’s value surpassed agriculture
• US technology exceeded Europe in such areas as rubber, coal power, mass production, and the telegraph
• Cheap immigrant labor threatened the established worker’s jobs
Agriculture by 1850:
• Pre-1850 agricultural technology increased harvest sizes, saved on labor, and made selling farm goods to
international markets possible
• Demand for agricultural land grew; railroad was used to help transport goods
• John Deere pioneered the steel-plow industry; Cyrus McCormick invented the mechanical reaper
Causes of the Panic of 1857:
• Failure of the Ohio Life Insurance and Trust Co in NY
• Overspeculation in railroads and lands
• Decrease in flow of European capital for US investments because of Europe’s own wars
• Surplus of wheat hurt Northern farmers
• Panic spread to Europe, South America, and the Far East
• Fueled sectional tensions (Northerners blamed it on the low tariff policies of the Southern-dominated Congress)
Panic of 1873:
• Economic depression during Grant’s second term
• Overexpansion, unregulated business during the post-Civil War years, the failure of American investment banking
firms, and economic downturns in Europe all contributed to the panic
• Led to the retirement of greenbacks and a return to the gold standard
Knights of Labor (1869):
• Militant organization seeking solutions to labor problems
• Allowed skilled and unskilled workers (along with women and blacks) to join
• Wanted an 8-hour work day, termination of child labor, equal pay for equal work, elimination of private banks
• Under Terrence Powderly’s leadership, the Knights reached membership of over 700,000
• Downfall caused by emergence of the AFL, mismanagement, and financial losses from unsuccessful strikes
Railroad Strike (1877):
• Pay cuts caused labor strikes to spread through the country
• Workers of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad went on strike over a 2nd pay cut
• President Hayes used federal troops to restore order after workers were killed
Women
Women in the Early 1800s:
• Women participated in limited political activity that was mostly religious and reform in nature, such as
abolition
• Employment was limited mostly to school-teaching
• Still lived in a “cult of domesticity” in which a woman’s role in marriage was to maintain the home for the
husband and to raise the children
• A woman’s property became her husband’s
• In future years, the women’s rights movement would rise to confront this “cult of domesticity”
Seneca Falls Convention (1848):
• Start of the women’s suffrage movement
• Meeting in upstate New York in 1848
• Organized by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott after they had been denied entrance to an abolitionist
convention in England because they were women
• Drafted the Declaration of Sentiments in which they stated their desire for social, economic, and political
equality including the right to vote
Women’s Suffrage (1920):
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• 19 amendment provided for women’s suffrage, which had been defeated earlier by the Senate
• Ratified by the states in 1920
• Feminists who supported suffrage since the 1860s included Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Carrie
Chapman Catt
Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962):
• Wife of FDR
• Stronger supporter of civil rights, women’s rights, and world peace
• Resigned from the Daughters of the American Revolution after they refused to allow Marian Anderson, an
African American, to sing at Independence Hall
• Served as delegate to the United Nations from 1945-1953
American Women During WWII (1940s):
• 216,000 women served in the armed forces in non-combat duties
• WAACS (Army), WAVES (Navy), and SPARS (Coast Guard) were forces made up of women
• Women also served as defense plant workers
• The women who worked in the manufacturing plants during WWII were symbolized by the icon “Rosie the
Riveter” a feminist image that represented the growth of women’s economic power
Women’s Movement (1960s):
• Spurred by increasing employment opportunities and increasing numbers of educated women
• The Movement questioned “tradition” definitions of women’s roles
• There became increased opportunities for women in work, education, and business
• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited discrimination by employers on the basis of gender
• National Organization of Women (NOW) was founded in 1966 to create equality between the sexes
Betty Friedan (1963):
• Author and activist
• Published The Feminine Mystique in 1963, which attacked the belief that a woman’s sole satisfaction comes
through homemaking
• Friedan was one of the founders of the National Organization of Women (NOW) to advance women’s rights
and causes
Roe v Fade (1973):
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• Supreme Court decision that ruled 1 trimester abortions were to be allowed;
• All state laws prohibiting such abortions were made unconstitutional
• Decision was based on a women’s right to privacy; Led to criticism from religious organizations
Evolution of Major Political Parties
Pre-Civil War (1787-1854):
• Key Moment- debate over the adoption of a federal constitution
• Parties: Federalists and Anti-Federalists (disagreed about the women and influence of the central
government)
• Evolutionary Point- after the Constitution was adopted, the Jeffersonian Republicans absorbed the AntiFederalist Party and by 1800 the Federalist Party declined
•
•
•
Key Moment- disagreement over John Q. Adams’ defeat of Andrew Jackson
Parties- Whig Party (combination of those who opposed President Jackson’s policies and those who had
supported John Q. Adams) and Democratic-Republicans
Evolutionary Point- after death of Whig President William Henry Harrison, issues became more about
sectional unrest
Civil War to Modern Day (1854-now):
• Key Moment- passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act
• Parties- Republican (extension of slavery into the territories was the main concern of Lincoln’s party) and
Democrat (voting split North-South along the issue of slavery)
• Evolutionary Point- after a Northern victory in the Civil War, the South became anti-Republican and antiNorth; the North maintained political control and became increasingly industrial and wealthy
•
•
Key Moment- though Democratic candidates had been elected since the Civil War, Franklin Roosevelt’s
presidency helped to redefine the party
Parties- modern-day Republican and Democratic parties (business and tariffs used to support the state vs.
policies that support broad social programs)