Chapter
18: An Era of
Reform
Name: ____________________________________________
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Chapter 18 Vocab
abolitionists—people who favored abolition, the ending of slavery
Declaration of Sentiments—a formal statement of injustices suffered by women, written
by the organizers of the Seneca Falls Convention
public schools—schools paid for by taxes & managed by local government for the
benefit of the general public
reformers—people who work to correct failings or injustices
Second Great Awakening—a revival of religious feeling & belief in the 1820s & 1830s;
people started to believe that doing good things on Earth would secure them a place in
heaven after life
Chapter 18 Important People
Frederick Douglass— believed African Americans should enjoy the same rights as white
people
Elizabeth Cady Stanton— biggest women's rights activist; wrote the Declaration of
Sentiments
Lucretia Mott— worked with Stanton at the Seneca Falls Convention to fight for women's
rights
Dorothea Dix— fought for better treatment of the mentally ill
Soujourner Truth— former slave who gave speeches throughout the North against
slavery & for women's rights
Elizabeth Blackwell— graduated as the country's first female doctor & advocated for
women's rights
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Movement & People
Involved
Restatement of the
Problem or Issue
Changes Made
The Second Great Awakening Christian ministers said
People (groups) involved:
people didn’t have control
over their fates.
Christians
Therefore there was little
reason to perform good
deeds.
Crime & Punishment
People Involved: Calvinists,
Congregationalists, &
Presbyterians
Early 1800s, preachers began
telling followers that
everyone could gain
forgiveness…one way was to
do good works for others.
public whipping, placement in individual cells in jail;
public stocks or branding,
prisoners worked in large,
execution; punishment
open workshops
should be swift, punitive, & of
little cost to the public;
prisoners were chained with
leg irons
Crusade for the Mentally Ill
nobody understood the
People Involved: Dorothea mentally ill so they were
treated harshly & unfairly
made asylums with clean
environments outside of
major cities; they put them in
hospitals instead of prisons
Dix
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Historical
Comprehension &
Interpretation
What were the effects of the 2nd
Great Awakening?
Gave both men and women a
reason to work to improve
society.
Which of the Bill of Rights
amendments did many
punishments conflict with & why?
8th amendment should have
protected inmates from cruel
& unusual punishment
Label each with  or 
cage for the mentally ill ____
hospital to replace prison _____
chair to “calm” patients _
spinning contraption to “balance”
mental problems _____
restraints for mentally ill ____
Historical
Comprehension &
Interpretation
Movement & People
Involved
Restatement of the
Problem or Issue
Education in America
People Involved: Christians &
Horace Mann
students had to pay a
nominal tuition; expected
students to know how to read
before attending school; few
textbooks; put together in
huge class regardless of age
Sunday school; teachers
received training; statewide
curriculum; schools funded
through property taxes;
mostly European boys
attended free public schools
What are three reforms to
education that affect how you go
to school today? Trained teachers,
grades for age & skill levels,
statewide curriculum
Fighting Slavery
People Involved:
Africans were enslaved
against their will.
Abolitionists helped change
the northerners’ attitudes
toward slavery.
Frederick Douglas started a
newspaper called?
Helped pave the way for the
struggle for women’s rights.
What was the newspaper’s motto?
Changes Made
Frederick Douglass
William Lloyd Garrison
Sojourner Truth
North Star
Right is of no sex-Truth
is of no color
Who would read this newspaper?
Ex- abolitionist
Who would not read this
newspaper?
Ex- plantation owner
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Movement & People
Involved
Restatement of the
Problem or Issue
Changes Made
Historical
Comprehension &
Interpretation
Women’s Rights
People Involved:
Catherine Beecher, Sarah J.
Hale, Elizabeth Cady Stanton,
Susan B. Anthony
women could not vote in
local, state, or national
elections, nor could they
qualify to hold public office;
some jobs were closed to
women
opportunities for education
became more available; more
jobs available; men & women
became viewed as equal
What were some of the more
important inequalities which
women campaigned against?
Being unable to vote, having no
legal status apart from their
husbands, couldn’t own land
Seneca Falls/Right to Vote
People Involved:
Cady Stanton
Lucretia Mott
Women did not have equal
rights in the United States
Created an organized
campaign for women’s rights
The S.F. Declaration of Sentiments
was modeled after what important
document? Declaration
of
Independence
List 3 advances achieved at the S.F.
Convention:
NY gave women control over
property/wages
Mass. & Indiana passed more
liberal divorce laws
Blackwell started her own
hospital
Women were eventually
given the right to vote
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Chapter 18:
An Era of
Reform
Across
3. former slave who gave speeches throughout the North against slavery & for women’s rights
7. a revival of religious feeling and belief in the 1820s & 1830s
9. reformer of prisons and treatment of the mentally ill
10. people who work to correct failings or injustices
12. graduated as the country’s first female doctor, but no males would agree to work with her
13. argued that black men & women should have the right to vote, & so should all women
14. encouraged to write a speech for Oberlin College, but not permitted to speak in public
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15. a formal statement of the injustices suffered by women
16. thought that aiming for women’s right to vote was not realistic
17. William Lloyd Garrison’s fiery abolitionist newspaper
18. the conference for the women’s rights movement, taking place in New York
Down
1. wanted to give slaveholders time to develop farming methods that didn’t
rely on slave labor
2. schools that are paid for by taxes and managed by local government for
the benefit of the general public
4. reformer of education who spoke out for better public schools
5. tried to inspire slaves to rise up in revolt
6. a mental institution which took care of people declared “insane”
8. sisters who had formerly owned slaves, but spoke out about the pain of
slavery
11. a person who favored the ending of slavery
Follow the directions to complete the item below.
Choose one of the following topics from Chapter 18:
 abolition movement
 education reform
 prison reform/treatment of the mentally ill
 women’s rights movement
After choosing your topic, select one of the reformers that played a key role in changing the conditions for that
group of people. Write a letter to this person to tell them about their lasting impact, which should include the
following information:



what conditions were like for this group of people before this reformer got involved (3+ facts)
how this reformer made a difference (2-3 specific ways)
what conditions are like for this group of people today (2+ facts)
Dear _________________________________________,
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Sincerely,
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