Bell Ringer

Please explain what role you think a national bank
plays in stabilizing an economy. If you don’t know,
make an educated guess.
Varieties of
American
Nationalism
CHAPTER 8
Building a National Market


The War of 1812 led us into economic and
territorial expansion again

That same boom led us to a bust in 1819

We needed stability
Banking and shipping were in chaos and the
inadequacies of our transportation and financial
systems were exposed


Because no national bank existed after 1811 many
local banks issued their own notes (currency) which
lead to very unstable money
Our response was to create the Second Bank of
the United States
Building a National Market

The Second Bank of the United States

Was similar to Hamilton’s First Bank of the United
States

Could not prevent state banks from issuing currency


It could however threaten to compete with the local
bank which typically convinced the smaller bank to
stay in check
Manufacturing was just waiting for someone to
start producing again…

Hard to get manufactured stuff during the war
which people didn’t like
Building a National Market

The textile industry
began to grow

Everything had been
hand woven

Francis Cabot Lowell
put a factory together
where textiles could be
produced under one
roof

His mill set the pace for
American cities to
develop
Building a National Market


England—in an attempt to recover losses from the
war—dropped tons of manufactured goods into
our market

Most were priced below their value

This had a horrible impact on our economy
Little did many realize how this issue was become
the basis for the Civil War

America wanted to protect it’s “infant industries”

It created protective tariffs which charged a tax on
all imports of goods coming into the country that
would compete with these industries
Transportation

Should the federal government pay for internal
improvements like roads?



The American Plan suggested that “yes” it should
A system of canals and highways paved the way for
manufactures to get raw materials and for finished
goods to easily get from one part of the country to
another

Cumberland Road was our first National Road

Using steam ships were they way to navigate hard to
reach areas by water
They created better versions of these after the War
of 1812 because they realized how defenseless they
were when the British began blockading
Transportation

James Madison vetoed the internal improvements
bill

He believed that building roads/canals was great
but he said Congress lacked the authority to fund
improvements without a constitutional amendment

The states/local governments as well as private
enterprise built the basis for the transportation
system we have today
Westward Expansion

By 1820 Americans have moved beyond the
Mississippi River in large numbers

Reasons for expansion:

Pressures of the East—growing population strained
city resources and made living conditions rough

Attractiveness of the West—Natives were pushed
out of the way


Factor System was established as agents who supplied
Natives with necessities
Fertile lands and easy river navigation made
moving West more feasible
Plantation System in the
Southwest

Cotton had become the principle crop in the
South

Farmers regularly sought new soil—MS, and AL
were perfect areas called the “Black Belt” for their
fertile lands


These expansions led to four new states: MS, AL, IN,
and IL
Most who moved to the wilderness to clear new
lands were wealthy but it didn’t guarantee
success

Very few people were able to move out and
maintain those areas as plantations
Trade and Trapping in the
Far West

Most Americans knew little of the far West

Trapping and trade did grow significantly for
those who moved out there

When Mexico became independent in 1821 they
immediately opened up trade with the U.S.

Many traveled the Santa Fe Trail to participate in
trade in the region
Trade and Trapping in the
Far West


Fur trappers/traders predominantly settled in the
Great Lakes region and then further into UT and NM

Mountain men (those who were isolated as trappers)
had no companionship

They relied on the people of the East to ship goods to
them
They would often have rendezvous points to
exchange furs for food/goods


Many lived peacefully with local tribes, some even
intermarried
Stephen Long documented his trip westward, calling
the Great Plains the “Great American Desert”
Bell Ringer

What would America have to look like today for
you to call it “the Era of Good Feelings?”
The “Era of Good Feelings”

American experienced a rising sense of nationalism
after the war of 1812

Perhaps most notably in national politics


Monroe would be the last of the Virginia Dynasty

He was Secretary of State under Madison—which had
become the stepping stone to the presidency
Monroe served during a time in which no
international threats existed


He was able to focus on uniting the country which he
did on a “goodwill tour” in which he traveled the
country meeting people
He would run in 1820 unopposed due to the
dissemblance of the Federalist Party
The “Era of Good Feelings”

Monroe chose a very diverse cabinet with
Southerners, Northerners, Westerners, and
Easterners


John Quincy Adams became his Secretary of State
while John C. Calhoun was the Secretary of War
J. Q. Adams was a firm believer in expansionism

Florida was his first target as he negotiated with Luis
de Onís for its annexation

Andrew Jackson, using orders from Calhoun as an
excuse, invaded Florida

Calhoun had requested that Jackson “adopt
necessary measures” to stop Seminole raids in the US
The “Era of Good Feelings”

Jackson seized St. Marks and Pensacola forts and
hanged two British subjects for supplying and inciting
Natives



This became known as the Seminole War
Adams urged the government to take responsibility
for Jackson’s actions

The US had right to defend itself from border threats

Adams implied that it will be easy for the US to simply
take Florida
Realizing that it would lose FL either way, Spain
ceded all of it to the US in the Adams-Onís Treaty

America gave up all claims on Texas in return—we’d
come back for that later…
The “Era of Good Feelings”

For all the success Monroe had in politics, he could
not find that same luck in economics

The economy went into a panic in 1819


The Panic of 1819 was created by a change in loans
and bank failures

The banks had loaned lots of money out to people, but
the Second Bank of the United States started making
loans harder to get as well as foreclosing on defaulted
loans

This, coupled with the land speculation of the previous
decade, and banks closing lead to an economic
disaster
The depression lasted 6 years—long enough to get
people to question the 2nd B.U.S.
Sectionalism and
Nationalism

For a brief moment it appeared that the “Era of
Good Feelings” was to be interrupted by civil
unrest between the North and South

Missouri applied for statehood

The Tallmadge Amendment was designed to go
with their statehood request saying that no new
slaves could be brought into the state and that
gradual emancipation would be expected

Admission of MO as a slave state would disturb the
11:11 ratio of slave:free states
Sectionalism and
Nationalism

Henry Clay (The Great
Pacifier) introduced the
Missouri Compromise

Since Maine (a free
territory) wanted to be
admitted as well, he
suggested tying the bills
together and admitting
MO as slave and ME as
free


This kept the balance
The MO Compromise
also called for all new
lands that were above
the 36°30´ parallel would
be free, meanwhile lands
below would be slave
Sectionalism and
Nationalism

Chief Justice John Marshall was committed to
strengthening the federal government

He strengthened the judicial branch over the other
two, the federal government over the states, as well as
the interests of business/propertied

Fletcher v. Peck: Court ruled that a land grant could
not be repealed even if corruption was involved

Dartmouth College v. Woodward: Court ruled that
the state could not convert Dartmouth into a public
school since it was a land grant contract granted by
the King of England in 1769

Cohens v. Virginia: federal court has the right to
review state court’s decisions
Sectionalism and
Nationalism

While Marbury v. Madison is the most famous
Supreme Court case there are two others that
also deserve honorable mention

McCulloch v. Maryland: Upheld the constitutionality
of the Bank of the United States—therefore
upholding “implied powers”

Gibbons v. Ogden: Court ruled that the federal
government’s right to regulate interstate trade was
“complete in itself”
Sectionalism and
Nationalism


Marshall also ruled in the controversial Worcester
v. Georgia

Native Americans (Cherokees at least) learned how
to assimilate and yet the state was trying to force
them off their lands

Marshall ruled that the Natives had property rights,
and were sovereign
We will discuss this later…
Sectionalism and
Nationalism


In 1815 America claimed neutrality while Spain
fought to keep its colonies under control

America wasn’t THAT neutral…we sold ships to the
revolutionaries

We were also the first country to recognize Chile,
Peru, Columbia, and Mexico
The Monroe Doctrine (written by J.Q. Adams)
declared that “the American continents are
henceforth not to be considered as subjects for
future colonization by any European powers.”

We didn’t have much to enforce this—thankfully no
one really tested it during the Monroe President
The “Corrupt Bargain”

While the election of 1820 saw no contest against
Monroe, the election of 1824 brought 4
candidates (2 of which were in a dead heat)

J. Q. Adams, being Secretary of State, felt he was
a shoe-in


Jackson, with little political experience managed to
take the popular vote
No one won the electoral college with a majority

This caused the election to go into the House of
Representatives
The “Corrupt Bargain”


Henry Clay was the Speaker of the House—
therefore he carried a lot of influence over them

The appearance that was given (and acceptance
of the story is widespread) that Clay would endorse
Adams in exchange for a chance at Secretary of
State

Adams won, Clay become Sec. of State
Jackson and his followers cried foul calling this the
“corrupt bargain”
Adams as President

Not much on the foreign front occurred during
Adams’ presidency

He did however manage to ruin our economy
with the Tariff of 1828


Southerners nicknamed this the “Tariff of
Abominations”
Adams would not get a second shot at making a
lasting impression

After one term the people were eagerly awaiting
the next president—this time Andrew Jackson
would not have to fear a tie