Henretta • Brody • Dumenil
America’s History
Sixth Edition
CHAPTER 10
A Democratic Revolution,
1820-1844
Copyright © 2009 by Bedford/St. Martin’s and
Matthew Ellington, Ruben S. Ayala High School
Chapter 10: A Democratic Revolution, 1820-1844
1. The Rise of Popular Politics, 1820–1829
A. The Decline of the Notables and the Rise of Parties
B. The Election of 1824
C. The Last Notable President: John Quincy Adams
D. “The Democracy” and the Election of 1828
2. The Jacksonian Presidency, 1829–1837
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Jackson’s Agenda: Rotation and Decentralization
The Tariff and Nullification
The Bank War
Indian Removal
The Jacksonian Impact
3. Class, Culture, and the Second Party System
A. The Whig Worldview
B. Labor Politics and the Depression of 1837–1843
C. “Tippecanoe and Tyler Too!”
Part 1: The Rise of Popular Politics, 1820-1829
1A: The Decline of the Notables & the Rise of Parties
• In the late 1700s, notables
dominated local politics
• During the early 1800s states
expanded voting rights to most
white men and reapportioned their
legislative districts by population
• State parties grew through the use
of patronage, spoils, party
discipline and political machines
Thomas Nast portrayal of Jackson and the spoils system
Part 1: The Rise of Popular Politics, 1820-1829
1B: The Election of 1824
• Refusal of candidates to
accept the choice of the
Republican caucus led
to a five way
presidential race
• The House was forced
to decide since no one
received a majority of
the electoral votes
• Jacksonians charged
that Adams won through
a “corrupt bargain” with
Henry Clay
Part 1: The Rise of Popular Politics, 1820-1829
1C: The Last Notable President: John Quincy Adams
• Adams strongly supported Clay’s American System of protective
tariffs, federally subsidized roads and canals, and a strong
national bank
• Adams’ support for the high tariff of 1828, fairness to the
Indians, unwillingness to use patronage and “notable” style
made him increasingly unpopular
John Quincy Adams
Andrew Jackson
Part 1: The Rise of Popular Politics, 1820-1829
1D: “The Democracy” and the Election of 1828
• The Democrats ran first modern presidential campaign
• Democrats: coalition of northern farmers and artisans and
southern slaveholders and some smallholders
• Jackson won in 1828 due to the expansion of voting and his
hostility to the American System and Indians
Part 2: The Jacksonian Presidency, 1829-1837
2A: Jackson’s Agenda: Rotation & Decentralization
• Jackson used patronage and
rotation in office to create a
disciplined national political
party
• Jackson’s vetoes killed the
American System, BUS, and
strengthened the Presidency
Jackson fighting the Bank of US
Part 2: The Jacksonian Presidency, 1829-1837
2B: The Tariff and Nullification
• Anger over the high
tariffs of 1828 and
1832 led S. Carolina
to nullify both tariffs
and threaten
secession
• Congress passed
the Force Bill and
the Compromise
Tariff of 1833 which
ended the crisis
Webster-Hayne Debate, 1830
Part 2: The Jacksonian Presidency, 1829-1837
2C: The Bank War
• Many Americans disliked the National Bank because it could close
state banks, made loans more difficult, and seemed to favor the rich
• Clay’s failed attempt to force an early re-charter of the bank helped
Jackson win reelection against him in 1832
• Jackson
began to
place
federal
deposits in
state “pet
banks” to
ensure the
death of
the 2nd
national
bank
Part 2: The Jacksonian Presidency, 1829-1837
2D: Indian Removal
• Indian Removal Act of 1830 gave money and land in OK and KA to all
Indians who gave up ancestral lands
• States and federal government ignored Supreme Court rulings and
prior treaties, and took Indian lands
• 3,000 of 14,000 Cherokees forced to relocate 1200 miles away died
on the “Trail of Tears”
Part 2: The Jacksonian Presidency, 1829-1837
2E: The Jacksonian Impact
• Jackson expanded the power
of the Presidency while also
limiting the government’s
reach
• The Taney Court (1835-1864)
decisions endorsed states’
rights and free enterprise
• Many states also rewrote their
constitutions to be more
democratic and end the
commonwealth system
Part 3: Class, Culture, and the Second Party System
3A: The Whig Worldview
• Whig Party
appealed to the
Northern middle
class, evangelical
Protestants, and
some Southerners
• Whigs supported
benevolent
reforms and the
American System
and opposed the
Masons
• Whigs lost election
of 1836 but polled
fairly well
1836 Political Cartoon predicting Van Buren’s defeat
Part 3: Class, Culture, and the Second Party System
3B: Labor Politics and the Depression of 1837-1843
• Panic of 1837 led to 20% unemployment, many bankruptcies and
cost Democrats election of 1840
• Van Buren signed 10 hour federal work day in 1840
• Unions won
recognition
from the
Supreme
Court but
were
devastated
by harsh
tactics and
the Panic
of 1837
Part 3: Class, Culture, and the Second Party System
3C: “Tippecanoe and Tyler Too!”
• Jackson’s Specie Circular and Van Buren’s Independent Treasury
worsened the depression
• Whigs “log cabin” campaign elected Harrison in 1840
• Tyler fully assumed the presidency after Harrison’s death and his
Democratic leanings split the Whigs