A More Perfect Union
Notes
Copyright © by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc
Chapter 7 Section 1
Chend
I. Thirteen Independent States (Pages 192–193)
A. Americans needed to establish their own government and gain Britain’s respect.
This brought new challenges. The British believed the new government was weak
and ineffective.
B. States organized their governments and adopted their own state constitutions. The
writers wanted to prevent abuses of power and also wanted to keep power in the
hands of the people.
C. State constitutions limited the power of the governor to avoid giving one ruler too
much power. Pennsylvania replaced the office of governor with an elected council of
twelve members.
D. States divided functions between the governor (Pennsylvania’s council) and the
legislature.
1. The legislature was the more powerful branch because of the limited powers of the
governor. Most states had a bicameral, or two-house, legislature. This further
divided the power.
2. Legislatures were popularly elected and elections were frequent. State legislatures
had many disagreements about how to make taxes fair.
E. In most states only white males who were 21 years of age could vote. They also had to
either be property owners or pay a certain amount of taxes. In some states free African
American males could vote.
II. Forming a Republic (Pages 193–195)
A. Americans agreed that the country should be a republic, which is a government with
elected representatives. What they could not agree on was the origin and powers of
the new republic.
B. At first most Americans favored a weak central government with the powers being
given to the states to function independently except for the power to wage war and
handle relations with other countries.
C. In 1777 the Articles of Confederation were adopted to provide for a central government.
At the time the country needed a central government to fight the war against
Britain. The Articles were America’s first constitution. The states, though, gave up little
of their power. Each state kept “its sovereignty, freedom, and independence.”
D. Under the Articles of Confederation, the government, which was the Confederation
Congress, had the authority to
1. conduct foreign affairs
2. maintain armed forces
3. borrow money
4. issue currency
E. The government did not have the authority to
1. regulate trade
2. force citizens to join the army
3. impose taxes
Congress needed to ask state legislatures to raise money and provide troops.
F. The government did not have a chief executive.
G. Each state had one vote in Congress. State population did not matter, although larger,
more populated states believed that they should have more votes.
H. States also argued about whether or not they claimed land in the West. Maryland
refused to ratify the Articles of Confederation until states abandoned their land
claims. Finally all 13 states approved the Articles on March 1, 1781. The Confederacy
formally became the government of the United States.
I. The Confederation government had its weaknesses, but it won Americans their independence,
expanded foreign trade, and provided for new states in the West.
1. It had limited authority.
2. It could not pass a law unless nine states voted for it.
3. To change the Articles of Confederation, all 13 states had to give consent.
It was difficult, therefore, for Congress to pass laws when there was any
opposition.
III. New Land Policies (Pages 195–197)
A. The Articles of Confederation had no provision for adding new states. Congress realized
it had to extend its authority over the frontier and bring order and stability to the
territory where western settlers reached almost 120,000 by the 1790. The Western ordinances
had a large impact on Western expansion and development of the United States.
B. In 1784 Congress divided the Western territory into self-governing districts. When the
number of people in a district reached the population of the smallest existing state,
that district could apply for statehood.
C. In 1785 the Confederation Congress established a new law that divided the Western
territories into larger townships and smaller sections. Each smaller section would be
sold at auction for at least $1 an acre. This was called the Ordinance of 1785. Land
speculators bought large pieces of land cheaply.
D. Another ordinance passed in 1787 was the Northwest Ordinance.
1. It created a Northwest Territory out of the lands north of the Ohio River and east
of the Mississippi River.
2. It divided the lands into three to five smaller territories.
3. It stated that when the population of a territory reached 60,000 citizens, that territory
could apply for statehood. Each new state would enter as an equal to the
original 13 states.
4. It included a bill of rights to protect the settlers that guaranteed freedom of religion
and trial by jury. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude were permitted in
the new territories.
IV. Trouble on Two Fronts (Pages 197–198)
A. The Confederate government had trouble with finances, and with Britain and Spain
over landholdings and trade. Many Americans felt the country needed a stronger government
to better deal with the problems.
B. The government had a large debt from fighting the war. Congress had borrowed
money from American citizens and foreign governments. It owed soldiers their wages.
But because Congress had no power to tax, it did not have a way to raise revenue and
pay off this debt.
C. Money was almost worthless. The paper money printed during the Revolutionary
War had fallen in value, while the prices of food and other goods soared. In Boston,
for example, high prices led to food riots. Because Congress had no power to tax, it
and the states issued paper money. Because there were so many bills in circulation,
the value of the money fell. No gold or silver backed these bills.
D. To help solve the financial problems, the Confederacy created a department of finance.
Robert Morris, a financier, headed the department.
E. Robert Morris proposed a plan that called for collecting a 5-percent tax on imported
goods to help pay off the debt. Because of Rhode Island’s opposition, the measure did
not pass. A second effort also failed five years later. The country’s financial situation
worsened.
F. The problems with Britain concerned landholdings and trade.
1. British troops remained in several strategic forts in the Great Lakes Region even
though Britain had promised to withdraw all troops under the Treaty of Paris.
2. British merchants closed Americans out of the West Indies and other profitable
British markets.
3. John Adams went to London in 1784 to discuss these issues. The British claimed
that because Americans had not paid Loyalists for the property taken from them
during the war, as agreed to under the Treaty of Paris, they were not willing to
talk. Congress recommended payment, but the states refused.turn
G. The problems with Spain were worse than those with England.
1. Spain closed the lower Mississippi River to American shipping in 1784 in hopes of
halting American expansion into their territory of Spanish Florida and lands west
of the Mississippi River.
2. A compromise was reached with an agreement in 1786 that limited American shipping
on the Mississippi. In return for this, Spain promised to accept the border
between Georgia and Spanish Florida proposed by the Americans. The people of
the South rejected the agreement because it did not include the right to use the
Mississippi River.
Copyright © by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc
Chapter 7 Section 2
d
I. Economic Depression (Pages 199–201)
A. The United States went through a depression, or a time when economic activity
slowed and unemployment increased, after the Revolutionary War.
1. Because Southern plantations were damaged during the war, they could not produce
as much rice as prior to the war. As a result, rice exports dropped.
2. Farmers could not sell the goods they grew and therefore did not have money to
pay state taxes. As a result, farmers lost their lands when state officials took their
farms to pay the debt they owed. Some farmers were even jailed.
3. American trade fell off when Britain closed the West Indies to American merchants.
As a result, currency was in short supply, and whatever was around was
used to pay the war debt.
B. The Shays Rebellion occurred as a result of the problems farmers suffered. In 1787
Daniel Shays led a group of more than 1,000 angry farmers in forcing courts in western
Massachusetts to close so judges could not seize farmers’ lands.
C. Shays led the farmers toward the federal arsenal in Springfield, Massachusetts, for
arms and ammunition. The farmers did not stop, even when the state militia fired
over their heads and then directly at them, killing four. The uprising was over when
Shays and his followers scattered.
D. Americans felt the impact of the Shays uprising. Many were scared that future uprisings
could occur.
E. Slavery was a difficult issue that many people and groups began to work toward
ending.
1. Quakers organized the first American Antislavery Society in 1775.
2. In 1780 Pennsylvania passed a law that provided for freeing enslaved people gradually.
3. In 1783 a Massachusetts court ruled slavery was illegal.
4. Between 1784 and 1804, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York,
and New Jersey abolished slavery.
5. In 1787 the Free African Society in Philadelphia was formed.turn
F. Some states clung to slavery, especially those south of Pennsylvania. The plantations
system relied on slavery to survive. Yet a number of slaveholders did begin to free
slaves after the war.
G. Virginia passed a law encouraging manumission, or freeing individual enslaved persons.
H. The abolition of slavery divided the country. In 1787, when state representatives met
to plan a new government because they realized the Articles of Confederation were
weak, they compromised on the issue of slavery. It would take another war to resolve
this issue.
II. A Call for Change (Page 201)
A. Political leaders were divided on the issue of the type of government the country
should have.
1. One group wanted to remain with a system of independent state governments.
2. The other group wanted to create a strong national government. This group called
for reform of the Articles of Confederation. James Madison and Alexander
Hamilton were proponents of a strong central government.
B. In September 1787, Hamilton proposed calling a meeting in Philadelphia to discuss
trade issues and possible changes to the Articles of Confederation so that the union
would become a nation.
C. George Washington finally agreed to attend the convention although at first he was
not enthusiastic about revising the Articles of Confederation. His presence lent greater
significance to the meeting.
III. The Constitutional Convention (Pages 202–203)
A. The Constitutional Convention met in Philadelphia beginning in May 1787 and consisted
of 55 delegates, none of whom were Native American, African American, or
women. None of these groups were included in the political process.
B. Several leaders stood out––George Washington, Ben Franklin, James Wilson,
Gouverneur Morris, who wrote the final draft of the Constitution, Edmund Randolph,
and James Madison, who became known as “Father of the Constitution” because he
authored the basic plan of government that was adopted.
C. George Washington presided. The basic rules were:
1. each state had one vote on all issues
2. a majority vote was needed to finalize decisions
3. delegates from at least 7 of the 13 states were required for meetings to be held
4. delegates met behind closed doors so they could talk freely
D. Two plans of government were proposed––the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan.
E. The Virginia Plan, proposed by Edmund Randolph from Virginia, called for a twohouse
legislature, a chief executive chosen by the legislature, and a court system.
1. The people would elect members of the lower house.
2. The lower house would choose members of the upper house.
3. In both houses, the number of representatives would be proportional to the population
of each state. A state with a smaller population would have fewer
representatives than a state with a larger population.
F. The New Jersey Plan, proposed by William Paterson, modified the Articles of
Confederation.
1. It kept the one-house legislature with one vote for each state.
2. Congress would now have the powers to set taxes and regulate trade.
3. Congress would elect a weak executive branch with more than one person.
IV. Compromise Wins Out (Pages 203–205)
A. The delegates decided that simply revising the Articles of Confederation would not
solve the problems. They voted to plan a national government based on the Virginia
Plan, but they had to work out several issues:
1. how the members of Congress were to be elected
2. how state representation would be determined in both houses
3. whether or not enslaved people were to be counted as part of the population,
which would affect the number of representatives for some states
4. whether or not to ban slavery
B. The Great Compromise was the agreement used to resolve the representation issues.
Roger Sherman of Connecticut proposed the plan. It said that:
1. There would be a two-house legislature. In the lower house, or House of
Representatives, the number of seats for each state would vary according to the
state’s population. In the upper house, or Senate, each state would have two members.
2. The way to count enslaved people would be determined by the Three-Fifths
Compromise. Each enslaved person was to count as three-fifths of a free person
for taxation and representation. So every five enslaved people would equal three
free people. This broke the great debate that divided large and small states.
C. Another compromise plan to resolve the issue of slavery said that Congress would not
interfere with the slave trade for 20 years. After that, Congress could limit the slave
trade if it chose to. The Northerners, who wanted to abolish slavery throughout the
nation and had already banned the slave trade in their states, compromised with the
Southern states that considered slavery and the slave trade essential to their
economies.
D. The Bill of Rights was proposed to protect the new government from abusing its
power. George Mason of Virginia proposed a bill of rights, but it was defeated. Most
of the delegates felt that the Constitution already provided adequate protection
of the people’s rights.turn
E. On September 17, 1787, after four months of discussion and planning, the delegates
met to sign the document. All but three delegates signed. The convention sent the
approved draft for state approval. Nine of the thirteen states were needed for the
Constitution to be approved.
Copyright © by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc
Chapter 7 Section 3
I. Roots of the Constitution (Pages 207–208)
A. The framers of the Constitution had studied government, history, and politics. Many
ideas in the Constitution came from the study of European political institutions and
political writers. The Enlightenment also influenced the delegates.
B. The British system of government and British ideas and institutions influenced the
framers of the Constitution. The English found ways to limit the power of the
monarch beginning in the 1200s. The English Parliament controlled funds. The English
bill of rights guaranteed individual rights, and the judicial system oversaw that these
rights were protected. These ideas were included in the original Constitution except
for the Bill of Rights, which was added a few years later.
C. The framers took ideas about people and government from European writers of the
Enlightenment. The Enlightenment promoted knowledge, reason, and science as the
way to improve society.
1. Ideas of John Locke, an English philosopher, included the belief that all people
have natural rights, including life, liberty, and property and that government is an
agreement, or contract, between the people and the ruler.
2. The Constitution was a contract between the American people and their government,
and it protected the people’s natural rights by limiting the power of the
government.
3. The French writer Baron de Montesquieu believed that a separation and balance of
powers should exist. Also, the powers of government should be clearly defined
and limited.
4. The framers provided for a specification and a division of powers. They also provided
for a system of checks and balances to make sure that no one part would
gain too much power.
II. The Federal System (Pages 208–209)
A. The Federal System divided powers between the national (federal) government and the
states. It created shared powers, a distinctive feature of the United Stated government.
1. The federal government had the powers to tax, regulate trade, control the currency,
raise an army, and declare war.
2. The state governments had the power to pass and enforce laws and regulate trade
within their borders. They could also establish local governments, schools, and
other institutions affecting the welfare of its citizens.
3. Shared powers by the federal and states included the power to tax and to build
roads.
B. The Constitution became the supreme law of the land, the final authority. No state could
make laws or take actions that went against the Constitution. Federal courts based on
the Constitution would settle disputes between the federal government and states.
III. The Organization of Government (Pages 209–211)
A. The federal government is divided into three branches: legislative, executive, and
judicial.
B. The legislative, or lawmaking, branch is made of the House of Representatives and the
Senate. Powers include collecting taxes, coining money and regulating trade, declaring
war, raising and supporting armies, and making all laws needed to fulfill its functions
given to it by the Constitution.turn
C. Headed by the president the executive branch carries out the nation’s laws and policies.
The duties of the president include being commander in chief of the armed forces
and conducting foreign policy.
1. The Electoral College elects the president and vice president.
2. The president and vice president serve a four-year term.
D. The judicial branch, or court system, consists of the Supreme Court and lower courts.
The courts hear cases involving the Constitution, laws passed by Congress, and disputes
between states.
E. The system of checks and balances, a distinctive feature of the United States government,
maintains a balance of power. It is a system that keeps one branch from
becoming more powerful than another. Each branch has roles that limit the others.
1. Both houses of the legislature must pass a bill for it to become a law.
2. The president can check Congress by vetoing a bill. The judicial branch checks the
Congress by making sure the laws they pass do not conflict with the Constitution.
3. Congress can check the president by overriding the veto, but two-thirds of both
houses must vote for the bill. The judicial branch checks the president by making
sure his decisions and actions are legal.
4. The judicial branch decides whether or not decisions or actions by the legislative
and administrative branches are legal.
5. The president appoints Supreme Court justices, but the Senate checks by approving
the appointments.
F. The Constitution created a nation in which the people could choose their officials and
the officials answered to the people, not the states.turn
IV. The Constitutional Debate (Pages 211–212)
A. Before the Constitution could go into effect, 9 of the 13 states had to ratify it. A
great debate took place, with Americans discussing arguments for and against the
Constitution. State legislatures set up special ratifying conventions. Rhode Island
was the only state that did not call a convention because its leaders opposed the
Constitution from the beginning.
B. Federalists supported the Constitution. George Washington, Ben Franklin, James
Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay supported the Constitution. Madison,
Hamilton, and Jay wrote the Federalist Papers, a collection of essays explaining and
defending the Constitution.
C. The Antifederalists opposed ratification. They wrote a series of essays known as the
Antifederalist Papers. They believed that the new Constitution would take away the liberties
Americans had fought to win, create a strong central government, and ignore
the will of the states and the people. They wanted a bill of rights.
D. The debate exposed each group’s fears. The Federalists feared disorder without a
strong federal government and looked to the court to create a national government
capable of maintaining order. The Antifederalists feared oppression more than disorder.
They worried that the government would be run by a small educated group of
people that would hold the power.
V. Adopting the Constitution (Page 213)
A. The Constitution was ratified by all states, despite opposition. Delaware was the first
to ratify on December 7, 1787. New Hampshire was the ninth state to ratify on June
21, 1788. New York and Virginia, the two largest states, had not yet ratified. Both
states had strong Antifederalist groups, and their support was necessary to promote
the future of the new government.
B. Virginia ratified at the end of June 1788 after being told the Constitution would have a
bill of rights added to it.
C. New York narrowly ratified in July 1788, North Carolina in November 1789, and
Rhode Island in May 1790.turn
D. Celebrations took place in hundreds of American towns and cities. The Constitution
was finally ratified, and the new nation had a new government. A bill of rights was
added in 1791.