REFORM MOVEMENTS IN
AMERICA
SBMS U.S. HISTORY
MARCH 5-9,2012
SOCIAL REFORM
• THE IDEA OF REFORM WAS TO
IMPROVE SOCIETY WITH A
STRONG FOCUS ON THE
DISADVANTAGED, ESPECIALLY
THE ENSLAVED, POOR, CHILDREN
AND WOMEN
• REFORM MINDED AMERICANS
LIKE THOREAU AND EMERSON
WANTED TO BRING EQUALITY
AND LIBERTY TO EVERY
AMERICAN.
• FOCUS WOULD BE ON REGLION,
EDUCATION, ART, AND
LITERATURE.
• SECOND GREAT AWAKENING IN
THE 1800’s WOULD DRIVE
REFORM
TEMPERANCE REFORM
• WAR ON ALCOHOL BEGAN IN EARLY
1800’s
• PUBLIC DRUNKEDNESS WAS WORSE
AMONG URBAN WORKERS AND IN THE
WEST
• LYMAN BEECHER OF CT AND OTHERS
BLAMED ALCOHOL FOR POVERTY,
DIVORCE, CRIME, AND INSANITY
• IN 1826 AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR
PROMOTION OF TEMPERNCE FORMED
• FIRST MAJOR VICTORY FOR
TEMPERANCE WAS IN MAINE IN 1851
WHEN LAW WAS PASSED BANNING
MAKING OR SELLING BOOZE
• MANY AMERICANS WOULD PROTEST
AND LAWS WOULD BE REPEALED
• ISSUE WOULD REEMERGE IN 1900’s
WHEN PROHIBITION CAUSED A
CONSTITUTIONAL BAN ON ALCOHOL
EDUCATION REFORM
NEW ENGLAND HAD ONLY FREE SCHOOLS
IN EARLY 1800’s
Horace Mann led Mass. State Board of
Education and created first teachers college
in 1839 in America
By 1850S, MOST AMERICANS BELIEVED
SCHOOLS SHOULD BE FREE TO ALL,
SUPPORTED BY TAXES AND ATTENDANCE
MANDATORY
FEMALES NOT GIVEN SAME EDUCATION AS
MALES, LEARNING MUSIC AND
NEEDLEWORK BECAUSE THEIR ROLE WAS
TO BE WIFE AND MOTHER WHICH NEEDED
NO EDUCATION
COLLEGES GREW FROM 1820-1850 WITH
OBERLIN COLLEGE IN OHIO ADMITTING
FIRST WOMEN AND AFRICANS-AMERICANS
THOMAS GALLUDET OPENED FIRST SCHOOL
FOR DEAF IN 1817
DR. SAMUEL GRIDLEY HOWE OPENED
FIRST SCHOOL FOR THE BLIND
DOROTHEA DIX EDUCATED AMERICANS ON
POOR LIVING CONDITINS OF PRISONERS
AND MENTALLY ILL
CULTURAL TRENDS
TRANSCENDENTALISM WAS AMERICA’S
OWN REFORM MOVEMENT THAT
STRESSED CONNECTION BETWEEN
HUMANS AND NATURE AS WELL AS
INDIVIDUAL CONSCIENCE
MARGARET FULLER WROTE ABOUT
RIGHTS FOR WOMEN
RALPH WALDO EMERSON WROTE ABOUT
PEOPLE LISTENING TO THEIR INNER SELF
TO DO RIGHT AND ELIMINATE PREJUDICE
HENRY DAVID THOREAU USED CIVIL
DISOBEDIENCE TO PROTEST LAWS HE
FELT WERE UNJUST (SAT IN JAIL RATHER
THAN PAY A TAX TO VOTE BECAUSE HE
OPPOSED THE MEXICAN WAR)
AMERICAN WRITERS LIKE LONGFELLOW,
WHITMAN, AND EMILY DICKINSON
WOULD CHALLENGE CONSERVATIVE
BELIEFS OF AMERICANS
HARRIET BEECHER STOWE WOULD
WRITE UNCLE TOM’S CABIN MID-1800’s
TO SHOW THE CRUELTY OF SLAVERY
Abolitionists
WILLIAM LLOYD GARRISON (NEWSPAPER MAN)
,FREDERICK DOUGLASS (FORMER SLAVE ) AND QUAKERS
LEAD MOVEMENT TO OUTLAW SLAVERY
AMERICAN COLONIZATION SOCIETY AIMED TO RESETTLE
ALL SLAVES IN CARIBBEAN AND AFRICA IN LIBERIA
WHICH WAS PURCHASED BY SOCIETY FOR SLAVES
12,000- 20,000 FORMER SLAVES EMIGRATED TO LIBERIA
BETWEEN 1822-1865 BUT MANY WANTED TO BE FREE IN
AMERICA AND DID NOT EMIGRATE TO LIBERIA
GARRISON STARTED FIRST ABOLITIONIST NEWSPAPER
THE LIBERATOR AND STARTED NEW ENGLAND
ANTISLAVERY SOCIETY IN 1832 WHICH HAD 1000
CHAPTERS BY 1838
SARAH AND ANGELINA GRIMKE SPOKE OUT AGAINST
SLAVERY AFTER MOVING FROM SC TO PHILADELPHIA IN
1832.
ANGELINA AND HER HUSBAND THEODORE WELD WROTE
AMERICAN SLAVERY AS IT IS IN 1839 SHINING A LIGHT ON
FIRSTHAND ACCOUNTS OF SLAVERY IN AMERICA
AFRICAN-AMERICAN
ABOLITIONISTS
IN 1830 AFRICAN-AMERICAN LEADERS HELD
FIRST CONVENTION IN PHILADELPHIA
FREDERICK DOUGLASS WAS A SLAVE IN MD
AND RAN AWAY TO MA THEN TO NYC
DOUGLASS RAN NORTH STAR NEWSPAPER
TO PREACH AGAINST SLAVERY: BELIEVED
AFRICAN-AMERICANS DESERVED THEIR
FREEDOM AND FULL EQUALITY WITH
WHITE AMERICANS
FRIENDS PURCHASED DOUGLASS’
FREEDOM IN 1847
SOJOURNER TRUTH BORN A SLAVE IN NY
STATE, ESCAPED IN 1826 AND GAINED HER
FREEDOM IN 1827 WHEN NY OUTLAWED
SLAVERY. WORKED TO OUTLAW SLAVERY
AND WOMEN’S RIGHTS
HARRIET TUBMAN ESCAPED SLAVERY AND
RAN THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD TO
HELP ESCAPED SLAVES FIND THEIR WAY TO
FREEDOM IN THE NORTH
CLASHES OVER
ABOLITION
-SOUTHERN SLAVEHOLDERS AND NON
SLAVEHOLDERS OPPOSED ABOLITION BECAUSE IT
WOULD CRUSH THE SOUTHERN ECONOMY.
-NORTHERNERS OPPOSED ABOLITION AS A
THREAT TO SOCIAL ORDER BY NOT BEING ABLE
TO BLEND WITH WHITES AND WOULD TAKE
WHITE JOBS
-ABOLITIONISTS AND ANTI-ABOLITIONISTS
WOULD RIOT AS IN 1830 IN PHILADELPHIA
-ANTI-ABOLITIONISTS WOULD BURN THE
NEWSPAPER BUILDING OF ABOOLITIONIST
ELIJAH LOVEJOY AND ALSO SHOOT AND KILL
LOVEJOY
-SOUTH WOULD DEFEND SLAVERY BY SHOWING
HOW OUTLAWING IT WOULD CRUSH THEIR WAY
OF LIFE, SHOWED HOW WELL SLAVES WERE
CARED FOR AND CLAIMED SLAVES NEEDED
WHITES BECAUSE THEY WERE NOT ABLE TO
PROVIDE FOR THEMSELVES
WOMEN’S RIGHTS
REFORM MOVEMENT
MANY WOMEN SUPPORTING ABOLITION ALSO SUPPORTED
GREATER EQUALITY FOR WOMEN
LUCRETIA MOTT WAS A QUAKER FOCUSED ON REFORM
THROUGH TEMPERACE, PEACE, WORKERS’ RIGHTS, AND
ABOLITION
SENECA FALLS CONVENTION OF 1848 ORGANIZED BY
MOT,SUSAN B. ANTHONY AND ELIZABETH CADY STANTON TO
WRITE A PLATFORM OF THEIR DEMANDS FOR WOMEN SUCH AS
SUFFRAGE
SUSAN B. ANTHONY WORKED FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE,
TEMPERANCE, EQUAL PAY AND EDUCATION FOR WOMEN.
CATHERINE BEECHER AND EMMA HART WILLARD CALLED FOR
EDUCATION OF WOMEN FOR THEIR TRADITIONAL ROLES IN LIFE
WILLARD STARTED TROY FEMALE SEMINARY TO TRAIN
WOMEN IN MATH, SCIENCE, HISTORY , GEOGRAPHY, AND
PHYSICS
MARY LYON STARTED MOUNT HOLYOKE SEMINARY IN 1837 TO
EDUCATE WOMEN IN ROLES TRADTIONALLY HELD FOR MEN.
DURING 1800s, PA, NY, IN, WI, and MS GAVE WOMEN RIGHT TO
OWN PROPERTY AFTER MARRIAGE.
ELIZABETH BLACKWELL WAS FIRST WOMEN TO GRADUATE
HARVARD MED SCHOOL AFTER BEING TURNED DOWN BY 20
SCHOOLS.