Alamo
A Spanish mission converted into a fort,
it was besieged by Mexican troops in
1836. The Texas garrison held out for
thirteen days, but in the final battle, all of
the Texans were killed by the larger
Mexican force. Mexican forces under
Santa Anna besieged and massacred
American rebels who were fighting to
make Texas independent of Mexico.
Alien and Sedition Acts
Passed by the Federalist Congress and John
Adams in 1798. Alien Act empowered the
president to arrest and deport non-cititzens
who were deemed a threat to the
government. The Sedition Act made it illegal
to publish or say anything negative against
the U.S. government. Passed in response to
the XYZ Affair and America's fear of being
drawn into the French Revolution.
Andrew Jackson
The seventh President of the United States
(1829-1837), who as a general in the War of
1812 defeated the British at New Orleans
(1815). As president he opposed the Bank of
America, objected to the right of individual
states to nullify disagreeable federal laws,
and increased the presidential powers.
Initiated the Spoils System. Presidency
marked by the passing of the Indian Removal
Act of 1830.
Anti-Federalists
They opposed the ratification of the Constitution
because it gave more power to the federal
government and less to the states, and because it
did not ensure individual rights. Many wanted to
keep the Articles of Confederation. The Antifederalists were instrumental in obtaining passage
of the Bill of Rights as a prerequisite to ratification
of the Constitution in several states. After the
ratification of the Constitution, the Anti-federalists
regrouped as the Democratic-Republicans (or
simply Republican) party led by Thomas Jefferson
Bill of Rights
The first ten amendments of
the U.S. Constitution,
containing a list of individual
rights and liberties, such as
freedom of speech, religion,
and the press.
Burr Hamilton Duel
A duel between two prominent
American politicians, the former
Secretary of the Treasury
Alexander Hamilton and sitting
Vice President Aaron Burr, on July
11, 1804. Burr shot and mortally
wounded Hamilton.
California Gold Rush
Migration of thousands of
people to California (in 1849)
after gold was discovered
there.
Checks and Balances
A system that allows each
branch of government to limit
the powers of the other
branches in order to prevent
abuse of power
Compromise of 1850
Forestalled the Civil War by instating the
Fugitive Slave Act , banning slave trade
in DC, admitting California as a free
state, splitting up the Texas territory, and
instating popular sovereignty in the
Mexican Cession
Corps of Discovery
Team of adventurers, lead by Meriwether
Lewis and William Clark, sent by Thomas
Jefferson to explore Louisiana Territory
and find a water route to the Pacific.
Louis and Clark brought back detailed
accounts of the West's flora fauna, and
native populatrions, and their voyage
demonstrated the viability of overland
travel to the west.
Cotton Gin
Invented by Eli Whitney in 1793.
It removed seeds from cotton
fibers. Now cotton could be
processed quickly and cheaply.
Results: more cotton is grown and
more slaves are needed for more
acres of cotton fields
Election of 1800
Tie between Aaron Burr and Thomas
Jefferson which went to the House of
Representatives. Jefferson won the
presidency after 36 ballots were cast with
the help Alexander Hamilton (Federalist)
persuading three members of the House
to vote for Jefferson. Led to the passing
of the 12th amendment.
Election of 1824
No one won a majority of electoral votes,
so the House of Representatives had to
decide among Adams, Jackson, and Clay.
Clay dropped out and urged his
supporters in the House to throw their
votes behind Adams. Jackson and his
followers were furious and accused
Adams and Clay of a "corrupt bargain."
Eli Whitney
An American inventor who
developed the cotton gin. Also
contributed to the concept of
interchangeable parts that were
exactly alike and easily assembled
or exchanged
Federalism
a system in which power is
divided between the national
and state governments
Federalists
Supporters of the Constitution that were
led by Alexander Hamilton and John
Adams. They firmly believed the national
government should be strong. They didn't
want the Bill of Rights because they felt
citizens' rights were already well
protected by the Constitution.
First National Bank
First bank of the U.S. government(1791),
set up by Alexander Hamilton. Aimed at
alleviating states debts and national debt
incurred from the Revolutionary War.
Controversial as Jefferson opposed this
arguing the Constitution did provide the
authority to create such a thing.
Francis Cabot Lowell
Boston merchant who combined
the process of spinning and
weaving into one factory.
Established the first factory town
and one of the first to hire women
to work in his textile factories.
Fugitive Slave Act
a law that made it a crime to help
runaway slaves; allowed for the
arrest of escaped slaves in areas
where slavery was illegal and
required their return to
slaveholders. Part of the terms of
the Compromise of 1850.
George Washington
Military commander of the
American Revolution. He was
the first elected president of
the United States (17891799).
Great Compromise
At the Constitutional Convention, larger states
wanted to follow the Virginia Plan, which based
each state's representation in Congress on state
population. Smaller states wanted to follow the
New Jersey Plan, which gave every state the same
number of representatives. The convention
compromised by creating the House and the
Senate, and using both of the two separate plans
as the method for electing members of each. Roger
Sherman of CT is given credit for helping reach
this compromise.
Indian Removal Act of 1830
Passed by Congress under the
Jackson administration, this act
removed all Indians east of the
Mississippi River to an "Indian
Territory" (Oklahoma) where they
would be "permanently" housed on
reservations.
Industrial Revolution
First American Industrial Revolution,
1790-1820: Industrialization came to the
US during this time and it was when
merchants and manufacturers reorganized
work routines and built factories. Canals,
Turnpikes, and Railroads were rapidly
constructed by the state gov. and private
entrepreneurs. Unintentionally made
slavery a profitable institution again.
James Madison
The fourth President of the United States
(1809-1817). A member of the Continental
Congress (1780-1783) and the Constitutional
Convention (1787), he strongly supported
ratification of the Constitution and was a
contributor to The Federalist Papers (17871788), which argued the effectiveness of the
proposed constitution. His presidency was
marked by the War of 1812.
James Monroe
He was the fifth President of the United
States. He is the author of the Monroe
Doctrine. Proclaimed that the Americas
should be closed to future European
colonization and free from European
interference in sovereign countries'
affairs. It further stated the United
States' intention to stay neutral in
European wars.
John Adams
He was the second president of the
United States and a Federalist. He was
responsible for passing the Alien and
Sedition Acts. Prevented all out war with
France after the XYZ Affair. His passing
of the Alien and Sedition Acts severely
hurt the popularity of the Federalist party
and himself
John Deere
American blacksmith that was
responsible for inventing the steel
plow. This new plow was much
stronger than the old iron version;
therefore, it made plowing
farmland in the west easier,
making expansion faster.
Legislative Branch
A branch of the United States
government that has the power of
legislating, or making laws. Consists of
the House of Representatives whose
membership is based upon state
population totals and the Senate based on
an equal representation with 2 Senators
from every state.
Louisiana Purchase
territory in western United States
purchased from France in 1803 for
$15 million. Extends roughly from
the Mississippi River to the Rocky
Mountains and from the Gulf of
Mexico to Canada
Manifest Destiny
Popular 1840's belief that the
United States was destined to
expand across the continent
from the Atlantic Ocean to
the Pacific Ocean.
Marbury v Madison
The 1803 case in which Chief Justice
John Marshall and his associates first
asserted the right of the Supreme Court
to determine the meaning of the U.S.
Constitution. The decision established the
Court's power of judicial review over acts
of Congress, (the Judiciary Act of 1789).
Mexican American War
The Mexican-American War was an armed
conflict between the United States and
Mexico from 1846 to 1848 in the wake of the
1845 U.S. annexation of Texas. Mexico
claimed ownership of Texas as a breakaway
province and refused to recognize the
secession and subsequent military victory by
Texas in 1836. Ended by the Treaty of
Guadalupe Hidalgo.
Midnight Judges
Sixteen judges that were added by the
Judiciary Act of 1801 that were called
this because John Adams signed their
appointments late on the last day of his
administration. Will eventually result in
the Marbury v Madison court case in
1803.
Missouri Compromise of
1820
Allowed Missouri to enter the
union as a slave state, Maine to
enter the union as a free state,
prohibited slavery north of latitude
36˚ 30' within the Louisiana
Territory (1820)
Oregon Territory
This territory was at on time jointly
occupied by England, the U;.S., Russia, and
Spain. Later on, only Britain and the U.S.
occupied this territory. A treaty between
England and the U.S. in 1846, under the
administration of James K. Polk, split the
territory at the 49th parallel. Known today
as Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, as well
as parts of Wyoming and Montana.
Rise of Political Parties
differences in Hamilton's and Jefferson's
views
Hamilton (Federalist)- distrusted
masses, strong central gov., lifetime
presidency
Jefferson(Anti-Federalist/ DemocraticRepublican)- trusted educated and
informed masses, limited central gov.,
rotation of political offices
Samuel Slater
He was a British mechanic that
moved to America and in 1791
invented the first American
machine for spinning cotton
known as the cotton spindle. He is
known as "the Father of the
Factory System."
Slavery
Condition of being owned by,
and forced to work for
someone else.
Spoils System
The practice of rewarding
friends/supporters with
government jobs. Jackson
made this practice famous for
the way he did it on a wide
scale.
Texas
A region that caused controversy after it
won independence from Mexico.
Remained an independent nation from
1836-1845. Northerners feared it would
be admitted as a slave state and upset the
balance of power. It finally became a
slave state in 1845.
Thomas Jefferson
3rd President of the United States. Chief
drafter of the Declaration of
Independence; made the Louisiana
Purchase in 1803 and sent out the Lewis
and Clark Expedition to explore it (17431826). A Democratic-Republican who
believed in a smaller and limited
government.
Trade Unions
early labor organizations that
brought together workers in
the same trade, or job, to
fight for better wages and
working conditions
Transportation Revolution
Improvements in: roads-enabled settlers
and merchants to reach the west, boatssteamboat made commercial agriculture
feasible in the West, canals (eerie canal)connected large cities to each other and
made it easier to trade, railroadsconnected burgeoning cities to rivers and
canals
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
Treaty that ended the
Mexican War, granting the
U.S. control of Texas, New
Mexico, and California in
exchange for $15 million.
Veto
The constitutional power of
the president to send a bill
back to Congress with
reasons for rejecting it. A
two-thirds vote in each house
can override a veto.
Virginia and Kentucky
Resolutions
Written anonymously by Jefferson
and Madison in response to the
Alien and Sedition Acts, they
declared that states could nullify
federal laws that the states
considered unconstitutional.
War of 1812
War between the U.S. and Great Britain
which lasted until 1814. Resulted from
Britain's support of Indian hostilities
along the frontier, interference with
American trade, and impressment of
American sailors into the British army
(1812 - 1815) Ending with the Treaty of
Ghent and a renewed sense of American
nationalism.
Whig Party
An American political party
formed in the 1830s to oppose
President Andrew Jackson and the
Democrats, stood for protective
tariffs, national banking, and
federal aid for internal
improvements
Whiskey Rebellion
XYZ Affair
In 1794, farmers in Pennsylvania rebelled against
Hamilton's excise tax on whiskey, and several federal
officers were killed in the riots caused by their
attempts to serve arrest warrants on the offenders. In
October, 1794, the army, led by Washington, put
down the rebellion. The incident showed that the new
government under the Constitution could react
swiftly and effectively to such a problem and would
enforce federal laws, in contrast to the inability of the
government under the Articles of Confederation to
deal with Shay's Rebellion.
An insult to the American delegation
when they were supposed to be meeting
French foreign minister, Talleyrand, but
instead they were sent 3 officials Adams
called "X,Y, and Z" that demanded
$250,000 as a bribe to see Talleyrand.