Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Major Presidential Elections
1796: John Adams (Federalist) vs. Thomas Jefferson (Anti-Federalist). Jefferson is the runner up and so he
becomes the vice-president. This is the first time the office of President an Vice President are help by
members of opposing political parties.
1800: Thomas Jefferson (Anti-Federalist) vs. John Adams (Federalist): Determined by the House of
Representatives. Jefferson wins with Aaron Burr as his vice-President. The peaceful handover of power
from the Federalist party to the Anti-Federalist party is known as the Revolution of 1800.
1824: John Q. Adams (Democrat-Republican) vs. Andrew Jackson (Democrat-Republican): Vote
determined by the House of Representatives. Election of the “corrupt bargain.” Allowed Jackson to gain an
upper hand in the next election.
1828: Andrew Jackson (Democrat) vs. John Q. Adams (Democrat-Republican): Andrew Jackson emerges
victorious; he is the first president from the West.
1860: Abraham Lincoln (Republican) vs. Steven Douglas (Democrat): Lincoln wins the election, strongly
contributing to the start of the Civil War.
1864: Abraham Lincoln (Union) vs. George B. McCllelan (Democrat): Lincoln wins the election due to his
lack of political opposition, allowing him to remain in office for the end of the Civil War and the very
beginning of Reconstruction (before he is murdered).
Important Dates
1492: Columbus lands in the Bahamas.
1607: Virginia colony is founded at Jamestown.
1619: First Africans arrive in Jamestown; Virginia House of Burgesses is established.
1620: Pilgrims sail on the Mayflower to Plymouth bay.
1630: Puritans found Massachusetts Bay Colony.
1692: Salem Witch Trials in Massachusetts.
1756-1763: Seven Years’ War (French and Indian War)
1770: Boston Massacre; all Townshend Acts are repealed except the tea tax.
1775: Battles of Lexington and Concord; Second Continental Congress; King George III formally
proclaims colonies in rebellion.
1776: Paine’s Common Sense; Declaration of Independence.
1789: Constitution formally put into effect; Washington elected President; French Revolution begins.
1812: United States declares war on Britain.
1820: Missouri Compromise; Missouri and Maine admitted to Union.
1824: Gibbons v. Ogden; Russo-American Treaty
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
1846-1848: Mexican American War
1861-1865: Civil War.
1877: End of Reconstruction.
Unit One
New England Colonies
(Massachusetts Bay,
Rhode Island, Connecticut,
New Hampshire).
Middle Colonies (New
Jersey, Pennsylvania, New
York, Maryland,
Delaware)
Southern Colonies
(Virginia, North/South
Carolina, Georgia)
Massachusetts and North. Founded on Puritanism. No separation between
Church and State. Life expectancy is high: 70 years. Separatists at Plymouth
settle Massachusetts. Poor soil forges Puritan work ethic. Trade is cornerstone of
economy (fishing and shipbuilding). Lumber and fur trade. Less ethnic diversity.
More democratic: town hall meetings. Puritans seek to create perfect society on
God’s laws. Argued against slavery on moral grounds. Education is major.
Harvard College founded to train clergymen. More family oriented.
Religiously and ethnically diverse. Grow grain: breadbasket colonies. Greater
social mobility. Rivers gentle and tapped the fur trade. Thriving colonies.
Use of indentured servants then African Slaves. 100,000 indentured servants
into Virginia by 1700. Very stratified social system: Plantation owners, small
farmers, indentured servants, African Slaves. Establishment of schools is
difficult. Growth of cities is stunted. Slavery is common.
Colonies:
New England
 Massachusetts Bay
o Non-Separatist Puritans settle it. John Winthrop elected governor. Highest voting rate of
2/5 males. “Bible Common Wealth.” Not a democracy, religious leaders have huge
amount of influence.
o Towns with more than 50 families required to provide elementary education to enable
children to read the Bible.
o New Hampshire and Maine are absorbed into Massachusetts.
 Rhode Island
o The “Sewer Colony.” People who went to Rhode Island aren’t similar, just not welcome
anywhere else.
 Connecticut
o Settled by group of Puritans. Fundamental orders  basically a modern constitution.
Middle Colonies
 New Jersey
o Prospers. Fertile soil.
 Pennsylvania
o Founded by Quakers: William Penn. Philidelphia is a beautiful city. Freedom of worship
available. No restrictions on immigration, disliked slavery. Great diversity.
 New York
o New Amsterdam renamed New York. Dutch legacy remains.
Southern Colonies
 Virginia
o Virginia Company (Joint Stock). Jamestown (1619).
 John smith comes along and saves colony. Rolfe discovers “Brown Gold”
(tobacco). Grown by indentured sercants, therefore society is stratified.
Fall Semester Study Guide





AP US History
Tobacco industry founded by John Rolfe. Representative self-government:
House of Burgesses.
Maryland
o Founded by Lord Baltimore (1634). Safe haven for persecuted Catholics. Prospers with
tobacco. Act of Toleration guarantees rights to Christians but death penalty for Jews and
atheists.
South Carolina
o Originally just Carolina (1670). Close economic ties with West indies. Strict Carbados
“Slave Codes” Rice is principal crop. Indigo is also grown here. African slaves work hard
on the rice: difficult crop to cultivate.
North Carolina
o Grew out of Carolina. Mostly small farmers who grew tobacco and were independent
minded.
Georgia
o The “Buffer” colony. Buffers between British colonies and hostile Spanish settlements in
Florida and French in Louisiana.
Unit One Vocabulary
Protestant Reformation: Split of Catholic Church – King Henry VIII
Roanoke Island: One of the first colonies – mysteriously disappeared (failure).
Spanish Armada: Defeat of Spanish Armada sets stage for English imperialism.
Primogeniture: Only eldest sons inherit the land – younger sons seek fortunes elsewhere – America?
Joint Stock Company: Financial means of funding colonization – pooled investments.
Charter: Permission from King to settle a certain plot of land.
Jamestown: First English Colony on James River in Chesapeake Bay.
First Anglo-Powhatan War: War between settlers and natives lead by De la Warr.
Act of Toleration: Act passed in Maryland to secure rights of all Christian. Jews/atheists not protected.
Barbados Slave Code: Intense “slave code” which permitted virtually no slave rights. Used in Carolina.
Iroquis Confederation: League of Native tribes. Fought for supremacy with Dutch, English, and French.
Predestination: All people are predestined to go to heaven or hell – Calvinism.
Puritans: Sect of Christianity, specifically Anglican; religion of Pilgrims.
Separatists: Mega-Puritans – flee England to Holland then to America via Mayflower.
Mayflower Compact: Set of rules to obey – not a constitution, but set a standard.
Massachusetts Bay Colony: Found by Separatists. Fishing, fur, shipbuilding.
Great Migration: 1630s: 70,000 leave England.
Fundamental Orders: Connecticut – basically a modern constitution.
King Philips War: Led by Metacom (King Phillip): United Natives in last ditch attempt to stop the whites
 failed but slowed progression of Colonists.
Dominion of New England: Imposed from London, confederation of New England  Bolster defenses,
promote Navigation laws.
Navigation Laws: Colonies cant trade with anyone outside of English control.
Salutary Neglect: Period after Glorious Revolution  New Monarchs relax grip on colonial trade.
Indentured Servants: Whites brought from Europe. Masters pay their trip and they I turn work for that
person. After an agreed upon time period, they become freemen.
Bacon’s Rebellion: Lead by Nathanial Bacon. Wanted land, resentful of governor Berkley of Virginia’s
friendly policies with Natives. Attacked Indian settlements and torched capital of Virginia.
Middle Passage: Trip from Africa to Americas. Brutal with huge mortality rate.
Stono Rebellion: Slave revolt in 1739. Slaves try to march to Spanish Florida but fail.
Halfway Covenant: All people can participate in the church, even if falling short of visible saints.
Salem Witch Trials: Witch-hunt originating in Salem, Massachusetts. Twenty people and two dogs killed.
Expression of social
People
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
John Calvin: Founder of Calvinism.
William Bradford: Governor 30 times in a row of Plymouth Bay Colony.
John Winthrop: Goes to Massachusetts, focuses on enforcing and supporting religious rules.
Anne Hutchinson: Brought up Heresy of antimionism: Predestination to the max.
Roger Williams: Extreme Separatist. Wanted Massachusetts to split religiously from England.
Sir Edmond Andres: Head of Dominion of New England: Member of despised Anglicans, takes away
colonial privileges (meetings, press), taxes without consent.
Henry Hudson: Goes to New World for Netherlands (Dutch) Hudson River. Delaware/New York area.
Peter Stuyvesant: One legged man, military director, sieges Swedish fort and won; ending Swedish
colonial rule.
William Penn: English Quaker, founder of Pennsylvania.
William Berkeley: Governor of Virginia during Bacon’s Rebellion. Friendly with the Natives.
Spanish Colonization
French Colonization
British Colonization
Spread from California to Florida to tip of South America. Conquistador (Cortez,
Pizzarro). Single military men looking for the three g’s. Mission systems in Texas,
Arizona, California. Take natives, force them to convert and practice Catholicism.
Encomienda systems force Native labor. Mestizos are mixed race of Natives and
Spanish. English refuse to mix.
Have best relations with Native Americans. Traded with them and made money
off of them. Huge fur traders. Men who are explorers and traders here to make
money. Beaver hunters. French typically come as prisoners exiled.
Come in largest numbers. Virginia is the biggest colony. Chesapeake Bay area.
Original settler at Jamestown searching for gold. Charter for their joint stock
company.
Colonial Slavery
 50 million slaves are killed or taken from Africa in the 17 th and 18th centuries. 10-15 million come
to the New World. 400,000 come to North America. Birth of new slaves results in 20 million
slaves by Civil War. Up to 20% of slaves die in the Middle Passage.
o 40% die before even reaching coast of Africa to be shipped.
o New England soil and Puritanism prevents slavery from getting a strong foothold.
 Slave codes change everything: Slaves and their children will be slaves for their whole lives.
Women can not marry slaves or they themselves will become slaves.
Exploration, Discovery, and Settlement: 1492-1700






Archeologist believe first people settle North America as much as 40,000 years ago.
In 1490’s, when Columbus came, there were already from under a million to over ten million
people in the U.S.
Larger Societies were in the river valleys supported by hunting, fishing, and agriculture
Cultures of Central and South America
 A.D. 300-800: Mayas built cities on Yucatan Peninsula
 Aztecs ruled central Mexico
 Incas were in Peru
Europe Moves Towards Exploration
 Columbus was first to bring Europe and Americas in contact
 Technological Innovations made for ability to sail from Europe
Religious Conflict
o Catholic victory in Spain
o Isabella and Ferdinand defeated the Moors of Grenada resulting in Catholicism to be
allowed
o Protestant Revolt in Northern Europe- Northern European countries revolted against the
authority of the Pope in Italy.
Fall Semester Study Guide





AP US History
Expanding Trade
o Columbus was trying to discover a shorter sea trade route to Asia but found the Americas
instead.
Developing Nation States
o A nation state is a country in which the majority of the people share both a common
culture and common political loyalties towards a central government
Early Exploration
o When Columbus died in 1506, he still though he found a route to Asia
o Columbus’ legacy- Everyone in Spain thought he was a failure because he did not find a
new route, though he was a legendary navigator.
o Native Americans and Europeans would trade goods.
Dividing the New World
o Spain and Portugal were first to claim “New World”, Spain got all the land west of the
line and Portugal got the land east.
Spanish Exploration and Conquest
o Incas- Pizarro
o Aztecs- Cortez
o Encomienda system- Spain’s king giving land grants
o Jacques Cortier- French Voyager
o Ferdinand Magellan- circumnavigation
o John Cabot- English voyager
Unit Two
Benjamin Franklin
 Importance of freedom of the press
 Poor Richard’s Almanac (1732-1758)
o Shapes American character
o Emphasizes thrift, industry, morality, and common sense.
o More widely read than any book except the Bible
 Volunteer fire department, 1st lending Library, postal system, hospitals, University of
Pennsylvania, paved streets and put in lights.
o His goal is to make life better for the individual.
o First rank scientist. Experiments with electricity, Franklin stove, Boston Spectacles.
 Calls for Colonial Unity
o Snake cartoon
o Albany Plan for Union; rejected by both the colonies and Britain.
The Great Awakening
 Awakening of religious fervor. The first big cultural movement of all America.
o George Whitfield: One of the greatest preachers during this period.
 Spoke about human helplessness and God’s power.
o Jonathon Edwards: God is holding us on a thin spider web over pit of hell.
 “The road to hell is paved by the skulls of un-baptized children.”
o The whole point is that we must repent or we will go to hell.
 The old preachers (lights) did not use the emotional techniques that were employed by Edwards
and Whitfield (the new lights).
 Massachusetts, New Hampshire are Congregationalists. Middle colonies are religiously mixed.
Southern colonies are primarily Anglican.
 Many colleges were created from this. Prior to it, 3 universities exist. After this period, 9
universities existed. They were created to train ministers.
French and Indian War
Fall Semester Study Guide



AP US History
British strategy: William Pitt is sent to lead the army. He got rid of the old generals and got new
ones who were less traditional. Use of guerilla style warfare. Shift to focus on larger settlements in
Canada.
o James Wolfe – New general who leads victory at Quebec.
 Battle of Quebec – sneak up the cliffs of Quebec and onto the plains of Lincoln.
 Most decisive battle in the French and Indian War. Resulted in the fall
of Quebec and ultimately French loss in the war.
Repercussions of the War
o Loss of French claims to New World (land)
 Led to Pontiac’s Rebellion. He had sided with the French who lost. It takes 18
months to crush the rebellion; small pox infested blankets  biological warfare.
 Proclamation of 1763: No more westward movement, it is too costly
for the British to be fighting the Natives around there.
o The Americans ignored it and moved Westward anyway.
o Americans see how British fight  know how to attack later (guerilla warfare).
Americans see that British aren’t invincible.
o The Revolutionary War: The Stamp Act and other acts were created to pay for the debt of
the French and Indian War.
 The French loss of land leads to the French assistance of the U.S. in the
Revolutionary War.
Mercantilism: An economic policy that stated a country’s power was directly proportional to their
wealth. A mother country trades with a colony, mutually benefitted. Export more than we import.
Set up to help the mother country more than the colony.
**When did the colonies start to recognize their commonalties? Crevecoeur’s What is an American?
Was the American Revolution Inevitable?
 The Stamp Act is passed to raise revenue. This pisses off the Americans. They complain and it is
then repealed. The British then go back and pass the Declatory Act, stating that they can tax the
Americans whenever they want.
o Were the Americans oppressed? No
 Americans are already the “freest people in the world.” Most Americans were
economically mobile, had right to vote for local representatives, and a totally
free press. Better housing and education than their English counterparts.
Literacy rate in Massachusetts is double than Briton.
o Was the cause Taxation? No
 They may have resented it, but that taxes were very light. Average Britons paid
much more per year than the average American. The Stamp Act taxes were
never even collected.
o Was it representation? Yes
 Americans resented paying taxes when they had no representation in the House
of Commons. British however were rarely represented as well, in the major
cities of Liverpool and Manchester; there was no directly elected member of
Parliament.
o Committees of Correspondence
 Purpose is to warn neighboring colonies about incidents with Britain. They
broadened the resistance of movement.
o The Tea Act (1773)
 British Tea Company is going bankrupt. The British give the company a
monopoly on American tea. This results in the Boston Tea Party.
 Tipping Points
o Hiring of the Hessians, Common Sense, Lexington and Concord, Bunker Hill, the burning
of New English towns.
Prepping for the Revolution
Fall Semester Study Guide




Patriot
o Young. Ireland.
o Congregationalists/Methodists. Mostly just not a part of the Anglican Church.
o Lower class
o Mostly centered in New England.
o Focused a lot on spreading their ideas.
Loyalists
o Older.
o Anglican.
o Upper class/aristocracy. More wealthy/powerful families. The typical conservatives.
o Coastal.
o People with British governmental ties. Clergy
Loyalist v. Patriot Relations
o After the Declaration of Independence is declared, the Loyalists become much more
persecuted by the Patriots.
o British fighting forces include the Hessians, the British, and the Loyalists.
o Olive Branch Petition: Pleads for peace from the Americans. The English reject it saying
that the rebellion has already begun.
Battle of Bunker Hill
o The Americans kill huge amounts of British, but ultimately lose the battle. Huge booster
for American moral.
Strengths
Weaknesses


AP US History
British
 Demographically.
 50,000 professional
army.
 50,000 loyalists.
 30,000 Hessians.
 Navy
 Hard money



French want to retaliate.
Distance.
Leadership.
American
 Home turf – knew the
land and were able to
use guerilla warfare.
 Militias: Full of <3
 Believe whole heartedly
in their cause.
 Support of the French
 Leadership –
Washington, Franklin.
 No official standing
army.
 Militias: Lack of
authority.
 Huge partisanship.
 Could be broken up into
thirds: 1/3 Loyalist, 1/3
Patriots, 1/3 neutral.
 Lacking materials.
Soldiers at Valley Forge
o Huge lack of supplies and everyone is dying.
o George Washington gets up and rallies the troops by reading Thomas Paine’s Crisis.
Entrepreneurs especially are a part of the neutral category, they sell to both causes.
Unit Two Vocabulary
Great Wagon Road
The chain of Scots-Irish settlements scattered along the eastern Appalachian
foothills from Pennsylvania to Georgia.
Paxton Boys
Armed march led by Scots-Irishmen in Philadelphia protesting the Quaker’s
kind policies toward the natives.
Fall Semester Study Guide
Jayle Birds
Triangular Trade
Molasses Act
Established Church
French and Indian War
Albany Congress
Regulars
Battle of Quebec
Pontiac’s Uprising
Proclamation of 1763
William Pitt
James Wolfe
Pontiac
1754
1756-1763
Quartering Act
Stamp Act
Sons and Daughters of
Liberty
Townshend Acts
Boston Massacre (1770)
Mercantilism
Committees of
Correspondence
Boston Tea Party
Intolerable Acts
First Continental
Congress
Battles of Lexington and
Concord
Valley Forge
John Hancock
Charles Townshend
Crispus Attucks
George III
Lord North
AP US History
Penal outcasts from Europe sent to the Americas as exile. Many convicts came
to be highly respectable citizens.
Lucrative trade between the colonies, Europe, Africa, and the Caribbean
colonies.
Legislation passed in Britain with the goal of stopping North American trade
with the French West Indies.
Tax-supported churches. Churches who receive financial support through state
taxes.
British vs. French. Results in expulsion of French from America and sparks
Seven Year’s War in Europe
Intercolonial Congress.
Trained, professional soldiers. British regulars show contempt for ill-trained
colonial militia men.
British victory marking the beginning of the end of French in Canada.
Bloody Campaign from natives to drive the British out of the Ohio Valley.
Prohibits colonial settlement west of Appalachians.
British regular who led in the war and decides to attack the French in Canada.
Turns the war around.
Leads Battle of Quebec for British. Dies in battle.
Leader of Pontiac’s Rebellion.
Washington battles French on frontier of Albany Congress.
Seven Years War
Required certain colonies to provide food and quarters for British troops.
Unpopular tax on array of paper goods  development of “no taxation without
representation.”
Patriotic groups who enforced the non-importation agreements in attempt to
repeal the Stamp Act.
External, or indirect, taxes on glass, white lead, paper, paint, tea; Sparks a
round of colonial protests.
Clash between Redcoats and Bostonian Protestors. Eleven are killed or
wounded.
Wealth is power.
Organized by Sam Adams. Objective is to spread the “spirit of Resistance”
Evolved into the First Continental Congress.
Bostonians dressed as Indians boarded the ships in the Massachusetts bay and
dumped massive amounts of tea into the harbor. A major act of rebellion in
response to the Tea Act of 1773.
Acts passed by Britain to whip the colonists into shape: Further pissed off the
Americans and prepped them for a revolution.
Formed in response to Intolerable Acts. Met in Philadelphia to address
Colonial grievances.
British go to Lexington to get gunpowder from colonists. Move onto Concord:
Start of the Revolutionary War.
Washington’s men go without supplies for three days. Training camp led by
Von Steuben.
Made fortune by smuggling. Patriotic extremist. Signs the Declaration of
Independence.
Convinced British Parliament to pass the Townshend Acts.
One of the first to die in the Boston Massacre; Mulatto who led the mob at the
Boston Massacre.
King of Britain. Poor leader who surrounds himself with “yes” men.
King George’s Prime Minister.
Fall Semester Study Guide
Sam Adams
Marquis De Lafayette
Baron Von Steuben
Olive Branch Petition
Hessians
Thomas Paine
Declaration of
Independence
Loyalists (Tories)
Patriots (Whigs)
Battle of Long Island
Battle of Trenton
**Battle of Saratoga
Battle of Yorktown
Treaty of Paris
Ethan Allen
Benedict Arnold
Richard Henry Lee
Lord Charles Cornwallis
William Howe
John Burgoyne
Patrick Henry
Nathanial Greene
Admiral de Grasse
AP US History
Establishes Committees of Correspondence in Massachusetts
French Nobleman, general of colonial army at age 19.
Prussian immigrant and drillmaster; organizational genius for the colonial
army. Helped to train at Valley Forge.
American petition begging George III for an end to hostilities.
European mercenaries fighting for the English. The hiring of the Hessians
angered Americans greatly.
Author of Common Sense. Convinced Americans that independence was
necessary.
Written by Thomas Jefferson. The “shout heard round the world.” Inspiration
for other documents of independence around the world. Officially declared war
on Britain.
Colonists loyal to the Crown
American Rebels
First major battle. Huge Navy of the British vs. Washington. Americans are
slaughtered.
After crossing the Delaware on Christmas, Washington surprises the Hessians
and wins the battle.
Turning point of the war. Burgoyne is forced to surrender his whole army.
Extremely decisive. This victory guarantees help from France.
Decisive loss for Cornwallis. He loses all of his troops and is forced to
surrender.
States that Britain officially recognizes U.S. as an independent nation. Gave
the U.S. a huge grant of land  all the way to the Mississippi. Americans can
keep fishing rights in Newfoundland.
Fought with Benedict Arnold. Seized Ticonderoga, recovering huge amounts
of gunpowder.
American general. Betrays the Americans and turns to the British
Put forth the motion that the colonies should be Independent states. Gave a
great speech that was written into the Declaration of Independence.
Fought against Nathanial Greene and lost at Yorktown. Major British General.
Commanded British at the Battle of Long Island, he is a bad general and could
essentially have crushed Washington effectively ending the war but failed. He
is pleasure loving and settles with his mistress in Philadelphia.
Lead the attempt to attack the Hudson River Valley.
“Give me liberty or give me death” speech.
Crushed Cornwallis at Yorktown. Major Colonial general. Strategic genius.
Clears out most of Georgia and South Carolina.
French Navy director. Helped Greene is his attack at Yorktown.
Unit Three
ARTICLES
Annapolis Convention, 1786
 Created to edit the Articles of Confederation. Only 5 states show up, Hamilton sets another date
for one year later.
Ratification debate b/t Federalists and Anti Federalists
 Federalists: Washington, Hamilton, Franklin, Madison
 Anti-Federalists: John Jay,
Treaty of Paris, 1783
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
 Spain doesn’t get the Strait of Gibraltar.
International challenges from England, Spain, France, and Barbary Pirates
 England feeding Natives supplies to fight with us.
 Spain is leaking up into the territory. They close the port of New Orleans cutting off the port to the
Gulf.
 Pirates are crushing all of our foreign interests.
Constitutional Convention, 1787
 Throw out the Articles of Confederation, very secret.
 James Madison – “Father of the Constitution”
o National government should be stronger than the states.
o Separation of Powers – Montesquieu
 Each branch had its own powers that were divided from the others.
 Legislative (Congress) – Make the Laws
 Executive (President) – Enforce the Laws
 Judicial – Interpret the Laws
o Large Republic to protect the country from a small faction (mob) from taking over.
 Federalist Papers #10 – Written to convince people to ratify the Constitution.
 The Constitution
o Elastic Clause – Congress can make any laws required to run the country.
o Supremacy Clause – The Constitution is the supreme law of the land.
Land Legislation (Land Ordinance of 1785, North West Ordinance of 1787)
 Northwest Ordinance of 1787: One a certain area reaches a population of 60,000, it can become a
state with equal status. Slavery is forbidden in these areas.
 Land Ordinance of 1785: A partitioning of the new land in a very organized manner for the use of
the people. It helps to find a way to distribute land, pay off the national debt, and increase
government sponsored education.
Economic Depression (no regulation of interstate commerce).
Shay’s Rebellion
 Massachusetts rebellion consisting primarily of Revolutionary War Veterans. Family’s are
starving, land is being taken, they still haven’t been paid for their services. March on several cities,
don’t allow courts to convene. Rebellion lasts for a long time. Strikes major fear into the people –
if such a minor rebellion could be so much trouble, anarchy can easily become a reality.
Post-Revolutionary War America
 Political
o Colonies are joined together in one nation.
o Articles of Confederation provided for a weak central government.
o Though joined together, the former colonies act independent of one another in many
areas
o All form state constitutions, some are more radical than others.
o Total number of qualified voters (white, property owning males) increase because
property ownership qualifications lower.
o Each state constitution protect basic rights, but the Articles of Confederation did not
contain a Bill of Rights.
 Social
o Many Loyalists leave the country with a void to be filled.
o Church is England is no longer supported, idea of separation of Church and State grow.
o Toleration of religious minorities increases.
 Economics
o Huge amounts of inflation. Financially worse off than before.
o American industry is stimulated, however most remain farmers.
o International trade increased.
o Westward expansion accelerates.
o Primogeniture is abolished.
 International
Fall Semester Study Guide
o
o
o
AP US History
The U.S. became on the largest nations in the world. Borders stretch to Mississippi
US is one of the few governments with a republican form of government.
French are nearly bankrupt because it had lent so much money. Taxes to pay for this
sparks the French Revolution.
The Articles of Confederation
 Weaknesses
o States are too sovereign.
o There is no executive branch.
o No federal courts.
o No central taxing power.
o No power to regulate commerce.
o Articles needed unanimous consent to be amended.
 Ultimately the Constitution will address all of these issues.
Hamilton vs. Jefferson: The Creation of Political parties and the Two Party System
 Hamilton
o Federalist. Supported a national bank for the U.S. Believed in a loose interpretation of the
government.
 Jefferson
o Democratic Republican. Supported the strength of the state governments. Believed in a
strict
Revolution of 1800
 A peaceful hand over of power from one party to another. From the Federalists to the AntiFederalists.
The Whiskey Rebellion
 The whiskey tax is placed. Farmers get very upset because whiskey was a form of currency.
 Washington sends troops there to crush the rebellion.
o Whiskey’s rebellion vs. Shay’s rebellion.
o This comparison displays the power of the central government  A minor uprising can
no longer have a major hold.
Hamilton’s Financial Plan
 Bank of the U.S. – the largest part of his plan.
o Strict vs. Loose Construction.
 Excise Tax
o Tax placed on a good to raise funds for the government.
o Placed on Whiskey in Hamilton’s plan.
 Funding at Par
o The U.S. will pay back 100% of the debts and the interest owed.
o **Domestic debts from within the states, NOT international debts.
 Assumption of the State debts by the National Government.
o National government will take on all the states’ debts and decide to pay it off as a whole.
o In order to get Virginia to agree to this, they moved the capital to D.C.
 Tariffs
o A tax on imported good. (8% tariff).
o If we tax European goods it (a.) raises revenue and (b.) promotes purchase of local goods.
Federalists vs. Democratic Republicans
 Federalists: Republicans. Hamilton’s plan is a trickle down policy. Focused on the wealthy
stimulating the country.
o Capitalistic mentality. Encouragement of manufacturing over agriculture.
 Democratic Republicans: Very little the same with modern Democrats.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
French Revolution
 The U.S. tries to stay neutral. The Franco-American alliance tilts the U.S. toward helping France
until the Reign of Terror, and then the U.S. backs out and declares neutrality.
 XYZ Affair: A bribe in order to see the French diplomat. U.S. finds out and is pissed.
o “Millions for defense, not one cent for tribute.”
o This almost leads to full blown war with France.
 Jay’s Treaty
o John Jay goes to Britain to make a treaty. The treaty is not in favor of America at all.
o The Treaty is absolutely hated. Hamilton screwed over Jay.
 Hamilton tells the British Jay’s negotiation plans.
o Effort to avert war with Britain. Ultimately, the U.S. gets shafted.
Adams vs. Jefferson: Election of 1796
 Adams wins, Jefferson is the runner up; the runner up becomes the Vice President.
 Two political parties.
Alien and Sedition Acts
 Raised residence requirements 5  14 years. Sedition Act threatened fines or imprisonment for
those bad-mouthing the president or government officials.
 Jefferson response: Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions
o Individual states are the final judges of the Constitution and if the Federal Government is
following it. If they believe not, they can nullify the laws in those states.
 Led directly to the Civil War.
The Chesapeake Affair
 British fire on the Chesapeake killing multiple Americans. Major anti-Anglo emotions in the U.S.
The Embargo Act; Jefferson
 A disaster to the U.S. economy. Embargo was more damaging to the U.S. economy than to Britain
or France.
 Non-Intercourse Act of 1809: replaced Embargo Act. Americans can trade with all except Britain
and France.
 Reasons it failed
o U.S. overestimated British dependence.
o Embargo not in effect long enough
o Proved to be three times as costly as war.
Unit Three Vocab
Articles of Confederation
The written constitution drafted by the committee. Ratified by all states in 1781.
Loose confederation. Loose congress, no executive branch, states have their own
judicial branches.
Land Ordinance of 1785
Northwest land plot should be sold and the proceeds used to pay off national
debt.
Northwest Ordinance of
1787
These northwest territorites will be admitted to the Union as equal states when
they have 60,000 inhabitants. Slavery is forbidden.
Shay’s Rebellion
Uprising in Massachusetts primarily of Revolutionary War veterans. Its length
and strength showed the ineffectiveness of the Articles of Confederation.
Virginia Plan (Large State
Plan)
Two-house Congress based on population.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
New Jersey Plan (Small
State Plan)
Equal representation in a one house Congress.
Great Compromise
Two-House Congress. House of Representatives will be based on population,
Senate will have equal representation: 2 per state. Must pass through both before
becoming law.
Three-Fifths Compromise
Slaves count for 3/5 of a person when counting populations for the House of
Representatives.
Anti-Federalists
Supported state government.
Federalists
Supported a strong central government.
Hamilton’s Financial Plan
Tariffs, excise tax on whiskey. Assume the debts of the states and pay off
domestic debts at face value plus interest. Bank of the U.S.
Bill of Rights
First 10 Amendments. Written by James Madison. Safeguard American
Principles. By promising this, many states were convinced to agree to the passing
of the Constitution.
Judiciary Act of 1789
Organized the Supreme Court.
Bank of the United States
Major part of Hamilton’s financial plan. Print urgently needed, sound paper
money. Chartered for 20 years.
Whiskey Rebellion
Challenges the new national government. Tarring and feathering excise tax
collectors. Washington quells the rebellion using militias: government commands
a new respect.
Neutrality Proclamation
U.S. and its citizens are impartial toward armed camps. Major step toward
isolationism. Huge controversy. Jeffersonians enraged.
Battle of Fallen Timbers
Miamis lose to General “mad dog” Wayne. British refuse to shelter fleeing
natives, loss of good relations between the two.
Treaty of Greenville
Miami’s confederation give up cast tracks of old Northwest. In exchange, the
natives get money and rights to hunt the land they gave up.
Jay’s Treaty
Very unpopular. Effort to avert war with Britain: Sent John Jay to London: He
won few concessions  British promise to get rid of their forts and pay for recent
seizures of American ships. Bound the U.S. to pay for pre-revolutionary debts to
British merchants.
Pinckney’s Treaty
Treaty with Spain: Grant Americans virtually everything they wanted. Free travel
on Mississippi, warehouse rights in New Orleans, large portion of Florida.
Formed due to Spanish fear of an Ango-American alliance.
Washington’s Farewell
Address
Advised against permanent treaties. Short terms ones are ok. Also advised against
a 2 party system.
XYZ Affair
French demand $250,000 to speak and try to come to peace. Led to rapid war
preparations. Unofficial war confined to the sea (1798-1800).
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Alien and Sedition Laws
Raised residence requirements 514 years. Sedition: threatened fines or
imprisonment for those bad mouthing the President or other government officials.
VA and KY Resolutions
Jeffersonian responses to Alien and Sedition Laws. Individual states are final
judges of if the federal government is keeping to the Constitution, therefore they
nullified the laws in those states. No other states fell into line as Jefferson had
hoped.
Elastic Clause
Allows the Government of the United States to "make all laws which shall be
necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all
other powers vested by this constitution."
George Washington
Unanimously drafted as President. Took oath in 1789. Established the Cabinet.
Alexander Hamilton
Washington’s Secretary of the treasury. Bound state and national debt, shifting
attachment of wealthy to the federal government.
Edmond Genêt
Representative of French Republic. Became a Jeffersonian Republican. Didn’t
thing neutrality was right, embarked upon non-neutral activity. Eventually
dismissed when he went to far (invaded Spanish and British territories).
Little Turtle
War chief of the Miamis confederation. Led battles along frontier killing
hundreds of Americans.
“Mad Anthony” Wayne
Rose and army and crushed the Miamis at the Battle of Fallen Timbers.
John Jay
First Chief Justice of the U.S. Formed the hated Jay’s Treaty.
John Adams
Second President of the United States and Washington’s VP. Jefferson is his vice
president. Clears war with France and passes the Alien and Sedition Acts.
Revolution of 1800
Peaceful hand-over of power from the Federalists (Adams) to the Anti-Federalists
(Jefferson).
Judiciary Act of 1801
Adams signs “midnight judges” who were Federalists. Aroused bitter sentiment.
Marbury vs. Madison
Midnight Judge Marbury attempts to gain his commission. Marshall denies it.
Greatly magnified the authority of the court. Cleared controversy over who had
authority to determine the meaning of the Constitution.
Tripolitan War (1801)
Tripoli pirates unofficially declare war on U.S. Jefferson sends navy to battle.
The use of small gunboats results in an American Victory. Shows that U.S. is
willing to protect itself.
Louisiana Purchase
Bought from France. France bought from Spain. Napoleon decides to sell because
he fails to re-conquer Haiti after its slave rebellion. He decides to sell it to
America and use the money for schemes at home. Not strictly Constitutional but
easily passes through Congress. $15 million (3 cents/acre)
Impressments
Forcible enlistment into the British Navy of American merchants by the British.
Chesapeake Affair
British over haul the U.S. ship – the Chesapeake. American commander refuses
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
to hand over alleged deserters. The British fire into the Chesapeake killing 3.
Huge increase in anti-British sentiment in America.
Non-Intercourse Act
Substitute for the Embargo Act. Opens up trade with all nations except Britain
and France.
Macon’s Bill No. 2
Permits the U.S. to trade with all Nations. If Britain/France gets rid of all trade
restrictions, the U.S. will declare an embargo on the other nation.
New, young “fire leaders.” Very liberal and Jeffersonian. “On fire” for a new war
with an old enemy Yearned to wipe out renewed Indian threat and to capture
Canada from the British.
War Hawks
Battle of Tippacanoe
“The Prophets” forces attack William Harrison’s forces. Harrison crushes the
native force and burns their settlement. Drove Tehcumseh into an alliance with
the British.
Thomas Jefferson
Vice President under John Adams. Became President after, staunch AntiFederalist. Passed the hated Embargo Act to avoid war.
John Marshall
Chief Justice of Supreme Court. Federalist.
Meriwether
Lewis/William Clark
Lewis and Clark. Go down through the Louisiana Purchase and ultimately to the
Pacific. Aided by Sacajawea.
Aaron Burr
Jefferson’s first term Vice President. Federalist extremist. Plotted the succession
of N.E. and N.Y. as well as the succession of the West. Burr murders Hamilton
and flees to Europe. Demonstrated the difficulty of governing such a large
territory.
James Madison
President after Jefferson. Macon’s Bill No. 2. Embargo on Britain, began war of
1812. Level headed.
Tecumseh and the
Prophet
Natives who weld together the tribes East of the Mississippi; drove the
confederacy into the War of 1812 on the side of the British.
War of 1812
Britain vs. U.S. over issues of trade/impressments. Ended in a virtual draw bt
showed the U.S. willingness to defend its interests militarily. Earned the new
nation respect from European powers.
Results: New international respect for U.S., “Second War for American
Independence,” growing Sectionalism proved ineffective, manufacturing
prospered, heightened nationalism and patriotism.
Battle of New Orleans
Huge American Victory. Restored American confidence and fueled an
outpouring of nationalism. Final Battle of the War of 1812. Americans led by
Andrew Jackson.
Treaty of Ghent
Ended the war of 1812 in a virtual draw, restoring pre-war borders and failing
to address American Grievances,
Hartford Convention
Convention of Federalists from 5 New England states who opposed the War of
1812 and resented the strength of the Southern and Western States in the White
House and Congress.
Tariff of 1816
First protective U.S. tariff. Created to shield New England manufacturers from
the inflow of British goods after the War of 1812. Very large tariff.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
American System
Henry Clay’s three pronged system to promote American industry. Advocated
a (1) strong banking system, (2) a protective tariff, and (3) a federally funded
transportation network of roads and canals. Doesn’t actually get passed.
Era of Good Feelings
Popular name for the period of one-party, Republican, rule under James
Monroe’s Presidency. The term obscures bitter conflicts over internal
improvements, slavery, and the national bank.
Panic of 1819
Severe financial crisis brought on by the efforts of the National Bank to curb
over-speculation of Western Lands, Disproportionately affected lower classes
therefore planting the seeds of Jacksonian Democracy.
Missouri Compromise
Allowed Missouri to enter as a slave state but preserved the balance between
North and South by carving non-slavery Maine out of Massachusetts and
prohibiting slavery in the Northern Louisiana Territory (north of 36’30’’)
McCulloch v. Maryland
Supreme Court case that strengthened federal authority and upheld the
Constitutionality of the Bank of the US. by establishing that they could not tax
the bank.
Loose vs. Strict
Construction of
Constitution
Loose: Federal government can use powers not specifically granted or
permitted by the Constitution.
Strict: Federal government may only use powers specifically granted or
permitted by the Constitution.
Gibbons v. Ogden
Suit over whether New York state could grant a monopoly to a ferry operating
on interstate waters. Ruling reasserted that Congress had the sole power to
regulate interstate commerce.
Fletcher v. Peck
Established firmer protection for private property and asserted the right of the
Supreme Court to invalidate state laws in conflict with the Federal
Constitution.
Dartmouth University v.
Woodward
Supreme Court case that sustained Dartmouth’s original charter against
changes proposed by New Hampshire’s State Legislature, thereby protecting
corporations from dominion by state governments.
Marbury v. Madison
Adams-Onis Treaty
Spain cedes Florida in exchange for America’s abandonment of murky claims
in Texas.
Monroe Doctrine
Statement from President James Monroe, warning Europeans to stay out of the
Western Hemisphere. The British, who sought unbothered access to Latin
American markets, backed it militarily. Stressed (1) non-colonization and (2)
non-intervention.
Oliver Hazard Perry
Helped control the Great Lakes during the War of 1812. Built a small rag-tag
fleet and managed to capture a British fleet infusing new life into the American
cause.
Francis Scott Key
Wrote words to the “Star Spangled Banner” about the War of 1812 while
imprisoned on a British ship.
Fall Semester Study Guide
James Monroe
AP US History
Nominated for Presidency by Republicans. Experienced, levelheaded
executive. Era of Good Feelings. Elected for two terms.
Unit Four
Reforms
Second Great
Awakening
Charles Finney. From the late 1790s through the 1830s another era of religious
zeal wept the USA in many areas. Historians call this Second Great Awakening.
Many religious groups held countless revivals in upstate NY – Became referred
to as the “Burned Over District.” Credited as source of activism and reformminded initiatives seeking to address social problems. New Christian
denominations.
Mormons:
 Started by Joseph Smith in 1830. Third testament is the Book of
Mormon. View Jesus as a prophet. Established a religious oligarchy
and encouraged polygamy. Brigham Young took over after Smith. He
brings them to Utah, which is owned by Indians.
Temperance Movement
At the time, Americans drank 7 gallons of pure alcohol a year, compared to the
2.6 gallons today. Identified drinking with crime, poverty, and inefficient
unprodctive employees. 222 groups, and 2 million Americans took “pledge” to
abstain. Went from 7 gallons to 3 gallons per year.
Immigration
The influx of Irish and German immigrants (1830s-1840s) led to an increase of
alcohol consumption in America, specifically New York. Many immigrants
move Westward. Irish are Catholics. Irish are hated by Americans – they are
poor, Catholic, and drink a lot. Major tension between free blacks and Irish.
Utopian Communities
1820s-1840s believed in perfectibility of social and political order. Tried to
provide blueprints for an ideal society.
 Shakers: Mother Ann Lee. End is coming, people must renounce sin.
Regards male and females as equals. Adopted communal ownership of
property. Emphasized simplicity. Known for their dancing and
celibacy.
 New Harmony: Purchased land in Indiana and establishes common
ownership. Abolished religion.
 Integrated Commune: Integrated cooperative community where blacks
and white are equal.
 Oneida Community: Most successful utopian society. Communal
ownership of property and complex marriage. Everybody is married to
everybody. Practice of eugenics and birth-control.
Other Reform
Movements
Dorthea Dix: discovered how the mentally ill were being treated in jail.
Persuaded people to increase the conditions of the mentally ill. Debtors prisons
are also eliminated.
Education Reform
Our obligation to offer public education to the fullest capacity we can. Led by
Horace Mann of Massachusetts: doubles the amount state is spending on
education. Teacher training, creation of curriculum, grading of pupils by age,
lengthen the school year, and stop the use of corporal punishment.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Cult of Domesticity
Women living (1830s-1890s) within the “cult of domesticity,” a social view
that women’s place was in the home in a subordinate and supportive role.
Women train young men to be good citizens, therefore they are important.
Power of women within the home rose.
Women’s Rights
Come out of this period. Women have next to no rights. Had no access to higher
education, excluded from professional occupations, no legal identity apart from
her husband, could not deal with any legal suits and could not own property.
 Seneca Falls Convention: Beginning of the women’s rights
movement. Drew up a Declaration of Sentiments; “All Men and
Women are created equally.” Lucretia Mott and Cady Stanton led it.
No decision on whether women should be able to vote.
Abolitionism
Movement that demanded immediate end to slavery.
 First wave believe in colonization. Quakers (Rev. Era). Creation of
Liberia for freed blacks since whites and blacks can not live together.
 Frederick Douglass: Published the North Star. Escaped slavery at age
21.
 William Lloyd Garrison – Published the Liberator, a militant
antislavery newspaper in Boston in 1831.
 Sojourner Truth – Freed black woman; pro-emancipation & women’s
rights.
 Harriet Tubman (“Moses”). Ex-slave from Maryland who escaped
Setting the Borders of the U.S.
 Arstook War: Settling the borders of Maine (Lumber-jacking dispute).
 Mexican American War: Texas Independence (under Andrew Jackson).
o 1836: Texan Independence is established.
o Pre-independence: The Austin Colony: Spanish invite settlers into the territory.
 Three conditions: Convert to Catholicism, no slavery, swears allegiance to
Spanish throne. Largely ignored.
 Stephen Austin goes to ask to become a Mexican state, he is thrown in jail.
o Key Players in Independence
 Sam Houston
 Steve Austin
 David Crockett: Not educated, but very bright. Dies at the Alamo. He and
Jackson were close, but they separate upon the Indian Removal Act.
 Battle of the Alamo
 Jim Bowie: Dies of tuberculosis at the Alamo.
 Santa Anna: Napoleon of the West.
 He is conquered at the Battle of San Jacinto
o John Tyler annexes Texas on the last day of his presidency. Polk’s goals were to get
Oregon and annex Texas. He was a lame duck president. Sends John Slidell on a Mission
southward to get Texas from Mexico. Mission is a failure.
o Three Major Parts of the War
 Stephen Kearney takes over Santa Fe which at this time has closer commercial
ties to the United States – they give up without a fight.
 California Bear Flag Revolt – Fremont leads revolt. Lasts 1 day, all of Northern
California Falls.
 Get control of Mexico City (Winfield Scott).
 *Soldiers of the Mexican War become major players in the Civil War.
o Treaty of Guadalupe
 Treaty forced on Mexico.
 Gave up claims to Texas above Rio Grande.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History


o
o

Mexico gave the U.S. California and New Mexico.
U.S. gave Mexico 15 million and agreed to pay the claims of American Citizens
against Mexico.
Wilmot Proviso
 No slavery should exist in any new territories gained from Mexico. Never
actually becomes a law.
Results
 Lives and money.
 New territories brought into Union, forces slavery into an issue.
 Brought in 1 million sq. miles.
 Territories upset the balance between North and South.
 Created two popular Whig generals who ran for President (Taylor and Fremont)
 Manifest Destiny partially realized.
The Oregon Dispute: 5440’
o Joint British-U.S. occupation of Oregon ends in 1846. We decide we want the 54 40 line
and are willing to go to war for it. Polk ends up saying never mind, it isn’t worth it.
Instead we settle at the 49th parallel.
Unit Four Vocabulary
Chapter 13
Corrupt Bargain: Alleged deal between Henry Clay and Quincy Adams to throw the election in Adam’s
favor (after going to a vote in the House of Representatives). Was a rally cry for Jackson’s supporters.
Spoils System: Policy of rewarding political supporters with public office, first widely employed at a
federal level by Andrew Jackson. Practice was widely abused but helped to cement party loyalty.
Tariff of Abominations (1832): Noteworthy for its unprecedentedly high duties on imports. Fiercely
opposed by southern farmers. Deeper issues; anxiety regarding federal interference with slavery. Passed
under Jackson.
Nullification Crisis: Showdown between Andrew Jackson and the South Carolina legislature, which
declared the 1832 tariff null and void in the state and threatened succession if the federal government tried
to collect duties.
Force Bill: Passed by Congress  Authorized the President to use the military to collect federal tariff
duties.
Indian Removal Act of 1830: Ordered removal of Indian tribes residing east of the Mississippi to new
Indian lands west of Arkansas and Missouri. American forces forcibly removed tribes resisting eviction,
often after prolonged legal or military battles.
Trail of Tears: Forced march of 15,000 Cherokees to the new western territory. Some 4,000 died on the
journey.
Black Hawk War: Series of clashes in Illinois and Wisconsin between American forces and Indian Chief
Black Hawk of the Sauk and Fox tribes, who unsuccessfully tried to reclaim territory lost in the Indian
Removal Act of 1830.
Pet Banks: Popular name for Pro-Jackson state banks that received the bulk of Federal deposits when
Andrew Jackson moved to dismantle the Bank of the United States in 1833.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Specie Circular: U.S. Treasury decree requiring that all public lands be purchased with metallic currency.
Issued after small state banks flooded the market with unreliable paper currency, fueling land speculation in
the West.
Panic of 1837: Economic crisis due to bank failures, elevated grain prices, Jackson’s efforts to curb over
speculation on Western lands, and transportation improvements. Therefore Van Buren proposes the
“Divorce Bill,” which pulled treasury funds out of banking altogether.
Alamo: Fortress in Texas were 400 American volunteers were killed by Santa Anna in 1836. "Remember
the Alamo" became a rally cry for Texan independence.
Goliad: Texas outpost where American volunteers, having lay down their arms in surrender, or massacred
by Mexican forces in 1836. Fueled American support for Mexican independence (along with the Alamo).
Battle of San Jacinto: Resulted in the capture of Mexican dictator Santa Anna, who was forced to withdraw
troops and recognized Texas as an independent state.
Andrew Jackson: Part of the four-way election of 1824 (corrupt bargain). Republican. Grew up without
parental restrictions. First president from the west (1828). Introduced the spoils system. Veto the rechartering of the bank of United States. Crushes Clay in the 1832 election.
John Quincy Adams: "Republican". Part of the four way 1824 election. Failed to win electoral votes.
Corrupt bargain, nationalistic, urged construction of roads and canals, bitter reelection versus Jackson.
“Mudslinging” tactics.
Denmark Vessey: Freed black slave. Led an ominous slave rebellion in Charleston. Led to a tightened
control over slaves.
John C. Calhoun: Wealthy New Englander who was against the Tariff of Abomination.
Nicolas Biddle: Lent U.S. funds to friends, often used the money of the Bank of the United States to bribe
people, like the press.
Daniel Webster: Influential New Englander  gave up traditional defense of free trade to support higher
tariffs.
Henry Clay: Part of the four way election of 1824. Corrupt Bargain. Wrote the Compromise Tariff that
solved the Nullification Crisis. Lost to Jackson in 1832  later joins the newly established Whig Party.
Martin Can Buren: President; proposed the Divorce Bill which pulled federal funding from the banking
system all together. One of Jackson’s “yes” men.
Stephen Austin: Made agreement with Mexican government to bring roughly 300 families into a huge tract
of granted land. Three requirements: (1) Must become Mexican citizens, (2) must convert to Catholicism,
(3) no slaves were allowed. Largely ignored rules.
Sam Houston: Fight for Texan independence is largely led by him. Fought at the Alamo. Ex-governor of
Tennessee.
Santa Anna: Slay 400 American soldiers at the Alamo. Mexican dictator. Tried to crush the Texan call for
Independence.
William Henry Harrison: Ran for president and won in 1840, blew Van Buren out of the water. Two major
changes: (1) first triumph of a populist, democratic style; aristocracy is bad, democracy is good. (2)
Formation of a vigorous two-party system. Democrats vs. Whigs.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Chapter 14
Know-Nothing Party: Nativist political party, also known as the American party, which emerged in
response to an influx of immigrants, particularly Irish Catholics.
Cotton Gin: Eli Whitney’s invention that sped up the process of harvesting cotton. The gin mad cotton
cultivation more profitable, revitalizing the Southern economy and increasing the importance of slavery in
the South.
Cult of Domesticity: Pervasive 19th century cultural creed that venerated the domestic role of women. It
gave married women greater authority to shape home life but limited opportunities outside the domestic
sphere.
McCormick’s Reaper: Mechanized the harvest of grains, such as wheat, allowing farmers cultivate larger
plots. The introduction of the reaper in the 1830s fueled the establishment of large-scale commercial
agriculture in the Midwest.
Erie Canal: New York State canal that leads from Lake Erie to the Hudson River. It dramatically lowered
shipping costs, fueling an economic boom in upstate New York and increasing the profitability of farming
in the old Northwest.
Eli Whitney: Built the cotton gin. This allowed the South to flourish in cotton. He also invented
interchangeable parts, which was the base of the assembly line in the North.
Samuel Morse: Inventor of the telegraph. The telegraph allowed for quick communication throughout the
U.S. and eventually throughout the world.
John Deere: Invented the steel plow that that cut through hard soil and could be pulled by horses.
Chapter 15
Second Great Awakening: Religious revival characterized by emotional mass "camp meetings" and
widespread conversation. Brought about a Democratization of religion as a multiplicity of denominations
vied for members.
Burned-Over District: Popular name for western New York, a region particularly swept up in the religious
fervor of the Second Great Awakening
Mormons: Religious followers of Joseph Smith, who founded a communal, oligarchic religious order in
1830s, officially known as the Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day saints. Mormons, facing deep hostility
from their non-Mormon neighbors, eventually migrated west and established a flourishing settlement any
Utah desert.
American Temperance Society: Founded in Boston in 1826 as part of a growing effort of 19 th century
reformers to limit alcohol consumption
Seneca Falls Convention: Major women’s rights convention held in New York in 1848. Was a major
landmark in women’s rights.
New Harmony: Communal society of around 1000 members, established in New Harmony, Indiana by
Robert Owen. The community attracted a hodgepodge of individuals, from scholars to crooks, and fell
apart due to infighting and confusion after just two years.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Brook Farm: Transcendentalist commune found by a group of intellectuals, who emphasized living plainly
while pursuing the life of the mind. The community fell into debt and dissolved when their communal
home burned to the ground in 1846.
Oneida Community: One of the more radical utopian communities established in the 19 th century, it
advocated “free love,” birth control, and eugenics. Utopian communities reflected a reformist spirit of the
age.
Shakers: Called “shakers” for their lively dance worship, they emphasized simple, communal living and
were all expected to practice celibacy. First transplanted to America from England by Mother Ann Lee, the
shakers counted 6000 members by 1840, but by the 1940s the movement had largely die out.
Hudson River School: American artistic movement that produce romantic renditions of local landscapes.
Transcendentalism: Literary and intellectual movement that emphasized individualism and self-reliance,
predicted upon the belief that each person possesses an inner light that can point the way to truth in direct
contact with God
Charles Grandison Finney: the greatest revival preacher who led massive revivals in Rochester, NY.
Joseph Smith: Claimed to have found golden tablets in NY with the Book of Mormon inscribed on them.
He came up with the Mormon faith, officially called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
Seceded by Brigham Young.
Brigham Young: Follows Joseph Smith and takes over the Mormon religion. Leads the march into Utah.
Horace Mann: Fought for better schools and is the “Father of Public Education.”
Dorothea Dix: Fought for reform of the mentally insane in her classic petition of 1843.
Lucretia Mott: Led the Women’s Rights movement, most notably playing a major role at the Seneca Falls
Convention.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton: Led the Women’s Rights movement, most notably playing a major role at the
Seneca Falls Convention.
Robert Owen: founded the utopian society, New Harmony, IN (1825) though it failed in confusion.
Community ownership of land.
James Fenimore Cooper: 1st US novelist, The Leatherstocking Tales (which included The Last of the
Mohicans which was popular in Europe).
Ralph Waldo Emerson: was popular since the ideal of the essay reflected the spirit of the U.S. He lectured
the Phi Beta Kappa Address “The American Scholar” and urged U.S. writers throw off European tradition.
Most famous for his writing Self-Reliance.
Henry David Thoreau: He condemned slavery and wrote Walden: Or life in the Woods. He also wrote On
the Duty of Civil Disobedience, which was idealistic in thought, and a forerunner of Gandhi and then
Martin Luther King Jr., saying it is not wrong to disobey a wrong law.
Walt Whitman: Wrote Leaves of Grass (poetry) and was “Poet Laureate of Democracy”
Nathanial Hawthorne: The Scarlet Letter (psychological effect of sin)
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Edgar Allan Poe: wrote “The Raven” and many short stories. Invented modern detective novel and
“psychological thriller.” He was fascinated by the supernatural and reflected a morbid sensibility (more
prized by Europe)
Chapter 17
Manifest Destiny: Belief that the U.S. was destined by God to spread its “empire of liberty” across North
America. Served as justification for mid 1800s expansion.
“Fifty-Four, Forty, or Fight”: Slogan adopted by mid 1800s expansionists who advocated the occupation of
Oregon territory, jointly held by Britain and U.S. Though President Polk pledged to get all of Oregon: to
5440’, he compromised on the 49th parallel with Britain.
Spot Resolution: Measure introduced by Abraham Lincoln, questioning President Polk’s justification for
war with Mexico. Lincoln requested that Polk clarify precisely where Mexican forces had attacked
American troops.
California Bear Flag Republic: Short lived California republic established by local American settlers who
revolted against Mexico. Once news of the war with Mexico reached they, they abandoned the Republic in
favor of joining the U.S.
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848): Ended the War with Mexico. Mexico agreed to cede territory
reaching northwest from Texas to Oregon in exchange for 18.25 million dollars and assumed debts.
Wilmot Proviso (1846): Amendment that sought to prohibit slavery from territories acquired from Mexico.
Introduced by David Wilmot, the failed amendment raised tensions between the North and the South over
the issue of slavery.
John Tyler: Took office after Harrison died. He rejects the Whig Party once in office. Vetoed the new Bank
of the U.S. bill. Also vetoed a proposed Whig tariff. Signs it after it is edited. His secretary of state is
Daniel Webster. Largely a democrat at heart got Texas into the Union.
James Polk: Wins presidency in 1844. His “Manifest Destiny” ideas won him the spot. Beats Clay for
presidency. Four goals: lower tariff, restore independent treasury, get Oregon, get California.
Stephen Kearney: Led U.S. operations in the Southwest during the Mexican American war. Lead the
famous invasion of Santa Fe.
John C. Fremont: Leader of the “Bear Flag Republic”; with Kearney, led against Mexican forces in the
Southwest.
Winfield Scott: Led American troops into Mexico City; war hero from War of 1812: Most distinguished
general in America between Revolutionary and Civil War eras.
William Henry Harrison: Died of pneumonia after being in office for two months  Tyler takes his place.
Unit Five
Mrs: Missouri Compromise of 1820: North of 3630’, no slavery.
Nully: Nullification Controversy of 1832: Same as the Nullification Crisis (South Carolina).
Almost: Abolitionism
Gagged: Gag Rule: Slavery will not even be discussed.
When: Wilmot Proviso: Tried to say that slavery will not exist in any territory gained from Mexico.
Clay’s: Compromise of 1850 (PopFACT)
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Popular Sovereignty: If you are in a state, you vote whether slavery exists in that state.
Fugitive Slave Law
Abolition of slave trade in Washington DC
California admitted as a state
Texas given $10 million for disputed Mexican territory.
Kangaroo: Kansas-Nebraska Act: Steven Douglas – Kansas and Nebraska use popular sovereignty.
Bit: “Bleeding Kansas”
John’s: John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry
Ear: Election of 1860: Lincoln wins and comes into the office of Presidency.
Civil War
Both sides thought it would end quickly.
 Northern Advantages
o Union states had 22.5 million people vs. Confederate 9 million.
o Had a larger navy.
o A more developed railroad system.
o A stronger manufacturing base.
o Northern factories are far more efficient.
 Southern Advantages
o Only have to wage a defensive war.
o Superior army – better officers and trained better.
o More had experience with firearms.
o Most nations fighting for their independence won their struggle – the South wanted to be
its own country.
The Confederacy
 Drafted a constitution that was in many ways identical to that of a Union.
o Fatal flaw: Confederacy was created by secession, it could not deny future secession if a
couther slave state sought to go its own way.
 Jefferson Davis’ idea of a strong central government was bitterly opposed.
o Some states didn’t want their troops to fight outside the borders.
 Davis often at odds with his Congress: in danger of being impeached at one point.
 The poor supported the war because if slavery was kept around, then there was still someone
beneath them on the social hierarchy.
 Army relied initially on volunteers. Conscription is put into law for all men between 17 & 50.
 Battle of Ironclads – wooden ships are totally archaic after this battle.
 The Peninsula Campaign: McClellan’s epic failure. This results in him being fired.
 Second Battle of Bull Run: Union loss.
 Battle of Antietam: Lee invades Maryland hoping to take it and encourage foreign intervention on
behalf of the South. Lincoln passes the Emancipation Proclamation after this battle. Considered
one of the bloodiest battles of the War.
o Civil War now became more of a moral crusade; a “higher purpose.”
o All slaves in areas in rebellion are now declared free. Slaves in Border States not
included nor those in specific areas of conquered South.
 Battle of Gettysburg marks the last time that the South will ever try to invade the North.
The Union
 Army is primarily composed of volunteers. Congress passes the first ever Conscription Law.
Policy unfair as wealthier youth could hire substitutes to enter the war in their place. Many
African American soldiers serve. Need for soldiers and emancipation opened the door to black
slaves.
Fall Semester Study Guide



AP US History
George B. McClellan was the first Union General. He is over cautious.
Sherman’s March to the Sea
o Determined to inflict the horrors of war on the South to break its will. He decimated
everything in his path.
Grant throws massive amounts of troops at the South  ultimately successful. Wilderness
Campaign results in ultimate victory for the Union.
o Terms of surrender were very generous.
Post-War
Economic Problems of the South
 Wild spending, heavy taxes, great public debt and war debt. Lose their biggest export: cotton.
Much farmland was destroyed; they can no longer be self-sustaining. North passes tariffs to hurt
the South to keep the public in power.
Programs of Johnson’s Reconstruction Policy

Fighting Congress. Supports the 10% Plan.
Congressional Reconstruction Policies
 Five military districts, former leaders disenfranchised, had to ratify 15 th amendment, Civil Rights
Act. 50% must swear allegiance to the Union.
o 13 Amendment: Freed Slavs
o 14 Amendment: Civil Rights – make them citizens
o 15 Amendment: Black suffrage.
Identify Differences in the Republican Party
 Blacks, those looking to make a quick buck or gain political advancement (scalawags).
 Extremist Republican Congress.
The Civil War
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Causes
The War
Effects
Tensions over slavery – the
South’s growing concern over the
possibility of Federal intervention
with the institution of slavery.
Anaconda Plan – Blockade, split
the South in two by capturing the
Mississippi, capture Richmond.
In 1860, cotton is a massive
export. By the end of the war, the
South is no longer “King Cotton.”
Bull Run – Families bring picnics
to watch, they think it will be end
so easily. Stonewall Jackson gets
his name. Confederate victory,
major morale boost. Wakes up
the North to how difficult the
War will be.
620,000 soldiers dead.
Fort Sumter: Lincoln sends
supplies down to the fort. The
Confederacy bombs the fort and
takes it over. This is the catalyst
for the War.
Lincoln election into office.
North puts the first income tax
ever to raise funds for the war.
Pacific Railway Act passed to
create railroad form North to
California.
Slavery abolished.
Total cost of war $15 billion
Nullification and secession died
with the Confederacy
War economy laid foundation for
the 2nd industrial revolution.
Union led by Ulysses Grant.
Confederacy led by Robert Lee.
Lincoln suspends Habeas Corpus.
Seized much of media to prevent
dissent.
Abolition of slavery (13th)
Pacific Railway Act
Homestead Act
Morrill Tariff
Morrill Land Grant
National Banking Act
Unit Five Vocab
Chapter 18
Popular Sovereignty: Notion that the sovereign people of a given territory should decide whether to allow
slavery. Seemingly a compromise, it was large opposed by Northern abolitionists who feared it would
allow spread of slavery.
Free Soil Party: Anti-slavery party in the 1848 and 1852 elections that opposed the extension of slavery
into the territories, arguing that the presence of slavery would limit opportunities for free laborers.
California Gold Rush: Inflow of thousands of miners to Northern California after new reports of the
discovery of gold at Sutter’s mill in January 1848 had spread around the world. The onslaught of migrants
prompted California to form government and apply for statehood.
Underground Railroad: Informal network of volunteers that helped runaway slaves escape from the South
and reach free-soil Canada. Seeking to halt the flow of runaway slaves, Southern planters pushed for a
stronger fugitive slave law.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Compromise of 1850: Admits California as a free state, opened New Mexico and Utah to popular
sovereignty, ended slave trade in D.C., introduced stronger fugitive slave laws. Widely opposed in the
North and the South.
Fugitive Slave Law: Passed as part of the Compromise of 1850, set high penalties for those who help
runaway slaves. Compelled all law enforcement officials to participate in retrieving runaway slaves.
Strengthened anti-slavery cause in the North.
Gadsden Purchase (1853): Acquired additional land from Mexico for $10 to facilitate construction of a
transcontinental railroad.
Kansas Nebraska Act: Proposed that issue slavery be decided by popular sovereignty in Kansas and
Nebraska, thus revoking Missouri Compromise of 1820. Introduced by Stephen Douglas: effort to bring
Nebraska into the Union and build a northern trans-continental railroad.
Lewis Cass: Ran in 1848 election under Democrats. War hero of the War of 1812. Came up with Popular
Sovereignty.
Harriet Tubman: Freed more than 300 slaves using the Underground Railroad.
Millard Fillmore: Took over office after Zachary Taylor (Whig) dies after winning the 1848 election.
Signed the Compromise of 1850.
Franklin Pierce: Won the 1852 election for The Democrats. Symbolized the death of the Whig Party.
“Southerner’s Tool.”  slavocracy: the South is trying to find any land to make a slave state.
Chapter 19
Uncle Tom’s Cabin - Harriet Beecher Stowe: Stowe’s widely read novel that dramatized the horrors of
slavery. Heightened Northern support for abolition and increased sectional tension.
Lecompton Constitution: Proposed Kansas Constitution, whose ratification was unfairly rigged so as to
guarantee slavery in the territory. Initially ratified by proslavery forces, it was later vetoed down when
Congress required that the entire constitution be put up for a vote.
Bleeding Kansas: Civil war in Kansas over slavery, fought intermittently until 1861, when it merged with
the wider National Civil War.
Dred Scott v. Stanford: Supreme Court decision that extended federal protection to slavery by ruling that
Congress did not have the power to prohibit slavery in any territory. Also declared that slaves, as property,
were not citizens.
Lincoln Douglas Debates: Series of debates between Lincoln and Stephen Douglas during U.S. senate race.
Douglas won the election, but Lincoln gained national prominence and emerged as the 1860 Republican
Candidate.
Freeport Doctrine: Declared that since slavery could not exist without laws to protect it, territorial
legislatures, not the Supreme Court, would have the final say on the slavery issue.
Harper’s Ferry: Federal arsenal in Virginia seized by abolitionist John Brown in 1859. Though Brown was
later captured and executed, his raid alarmed Southerners who believed Northerners shared Brown’s zeal.
Confederate States of America: Government established after 7 Southern States seceded from the Union.
Later joined by four more states from the upper South.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Crittenden Amendments: Proposed in attempt to appease the South; the failed Constitutional Amendments
would have given Federal Protection for slavery in all territories south of 3630’ where slavery was
supported by popular sovereignty.
James Buchanan: Succeeded Pierce, was pro-South.
Charles Sumner: A vocal anti-slavery Congressman. Condemned all slavery supporters.
Preston Brooks: Beat Sumner with a cane until it broke: Senators stood and watched while Southerners
cheered.
Roger Taney: Chief Justice during the Dred Scott v. Stanford case.
Stephen Douglas: Nominated by Northern Democrats for the election of 1860. Attributed to the split of the
Democratic Party.
Abraham Lincoln: Illinois man, challenged Douglas to debates – held his own. This screws Douglas out of
the 1860 election for the Presidency.
John Brown: Crazy bro; hanged after he incited violence for abolitionist cause – he became a martyr for the
cause.
John Breckenridge: Chosen by Southern Democrats for the election of 1860. Attributed to the split of the
Democratic Party.
Chapter 20
Fort Sumter: South Carolina location where Confederate forces fired the first shots of the Civil War in
April of 1861, after Union forces attempted to provision the fort.
Trent Affair: Diplomatic row that threatened to bring the British into the Civil War on the side of the
Confederacy, after a Union warship stopped a British steamer and arrested two Confederate diplomats on
board.
Writ of Habeas Corpus: Petition requiring law enforcement officers to present detained individuals the
reasons for their arrest. Protects individuals from arbitrary state action. Suspended by Lincoln during the
Civil War.
New York Draft Riot: Uprising, mostly of working-class Irish-Americans, in protest of the draft. Rioters
were particularly incensed by the ability of the rich to hire substitutes or purchase exemptions.
Morrill Tariff Act: Increased duties back up to 1846 levels to raise revenue for the Civil War.
Homestead Act: A federal law that gave settlers 160 acres of land for about $30 if they lived on it for five
years and improved on it. The act helped make land accessible to hundreds of thousands of westwardmoving settlers, but many people also found disappointment when their land was infertile or they saw
speculators grabbing up the best land.
Chapter 21
Battle of Bull Run: First major battle of the Civil War and a victory for the South. Dispelled Northern
illusions of a swift victory. Ill trained Northern soldiers. The second battle propelled Lee up into the North,
but he is stopped at the Battle of Antietam.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Peninsula Campaign: Union general George McClellan’s failed effort to seize Richmond, the Confederate
Capital.
Merrimack and Monitor: Confederate and Union ironclads, whose successes against wooden ships signaled
an end to wooden warships,
Battle of Antietam: Landmark battle that ended in a draw. Demonstrated the prowess of the Union Army,
forestalling foreign intervention and giving Lincoln the “victory” he needed in order to issue the
Emancipation Proclamation. Stopped Lee’s push North after his victory in the second Battle of Bull Run.
Emancipation Proclamation: Declared all slaves in repelling states to be free but didn’t affect slavery in
border states. Closed the door on possible compromise with South and encouraged Southern slaves to flee
to the Union.
Thirteenth Amendment: Constitutional Amendment prohibiting all forms of slavery and involuntary
servitude. Former Confederate states were required to ratify before they re-entered the Union.
Battle of Fredericksburg: Defensive Confederate victory under Robert E. Lee, who successfully repelled a
Union attack on his lines.
Battle of Gettysburg: Battle in Pennsylvania ending in Union Victory, spelling doom for the Confederacy,
who never again tried to invade the North. Sight of General Pickett’s daring but doomed charge on Union
lines.
Gettysburg Address: Lincoln’s speech delivered at the dedication of the cemetery at Gettysburg battlefield.
Lincoln framed the war as a means to uphold the values of liberty.
Battle of Shiloh: Bloody Civil War battle on the Tennessee-Mississippi border that resulted in the deaths of
more than 23,000 soldiers and ended in a marginal Union victory.
Siege of Vicksburg: Two and a half month siege of a Confederate fort on the Mississippi River in
Tennessee. Vicksburg finally fell in 1863, giving the Union control of the Mississippi and splitting the
South in half. This loss removed Southern hope for foreign intervention.
Copperheads: Northern democrats who obstructed the war effort and attacked Lincoln, the draft, and the
Emancipation Proclamation.
Union Party: A coalition party of pro-war Democrats and Republicans during the 1864 election to defeat
anti-war Northern Democrats.
Wilderness Campaign: A series of brutal clashes between Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee’s armies in
Virginia, leading up to Grant’s capture of Richmond in April of 1865. Having lost Richmond, Lee decided
to surrender in the Appomattox Court House.
Appomattox Courthouse: Site where Robert E. Lee surrendered in April of 1865 after almost a year of
brutal fighting in Virginia called the “Wilderness Campaign.”
Stonewall Jackson: Confederate leader at the first Battle of Bull Run. Won his nickname because the troops
he was leading held their line like a “stone wall.”
George McClellan: Union General. Launched the Peninsula Campaign – failure. Put in command of the
entire Union Army.
Robert E. Lee: Southern General: countered McClellan’s Peninsula Campaign with brutal ferocity.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
A.E. Burnside: Took over Union army after McClellan. Led a foolish campaign at Vicksburg.
Joseph Hooker: Union leader. Loses badly when Lee divides his troops.
George Meade: Union General at the Battle of Gettysburg.
George Pickett: Confederate General at Gettysburg. He ran Confederate troops into a slaughter.
Ulysses S. Grant: New Union General. He was much better than the previous ones. Led the successful siege
of Vicksburg.
William Tecumseh Sherman: Union leader who marches through Georgia waging “total war” – his men cut
a trail of destruction 1 mile wide, cutting train tracks, burning fields and crops, and destroying anything in
their way.
John Wilkes Booth: Murdered Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln’s sudden and dramatic death made people
remember him as a hero.
Chapter 22
Freedmen’s Bureau: Created to aid newly emancipated slaves. Provided food, clothing, medical care,
education, and legal support. Achievements overall depended on the quality of the local distributors.
Ten Percent Plan: Reconstruction plan that was introduced by Lincoln. Proposed that a state be re-admitted
to the Union once 10% of its voters pledged loyalty to the U.S. and to honor emancipation of the slaves.
Wade-Davis Bill: Reconstruction plan passed by Congressional Republicans; 50% of voters must pledge
allegiance and provided stronger safeguards for emancipation. Reflected divisions between Congress and
the President over how to treat the South.
Black Codes: Laws passed in the South to restrict rights of emancipated slaves, particularly with respect to
laboring contracts. Increased Northern opposition to President Johnson’s lenient Reconstruction policies.
Civil Rights Bill: Passed over Johnson’s veto. Aimed to counteract the black codes by conferring
citizenship on blacks and making it a crime to deprive blacks of their rights to sue, testify in court, or hold
property.
Pacific Railroad Act: Helped fund the construction of the Union Pacific transcontinental railroad with the
use of land grants and government bonds.
Fourteenth Amendment: Extended Civil Rights to freedmen and prohibited states from taking such rights
away without due process.
Reconstruction Act: Passed by newly Republican Congress: Divides the south into 5 military districts,
disenfranchised former Confederate leaders, requires Southern states to ratify the 14 th Amendment and
write state constitutions that guarantee freedmen the franchise. All of these are required before states are
allowed to re-enter the Union.
Fifteenth Amendment: Prohibited states from denying citizens the franchise on account of race.
Disappointed Feminists who wanted it to include guarantees for women’s suffrage.
Scalawags: Derogatory term for pro-Union Southerners. Hated by Southern Democrats who saw them as in
conjunction with the Republican Congress.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
Carpet Baggers: Name used by Southern whites to describe Northerners who came to the South to work on
Reconstruction products. Abused the condition of the South and Southern economy to profit.
Ku Klux Klan: Extremist right wing secret society founded in 1850s. Pro-Anglo Saxon and Protestant.
Terrorized freedmen and sympathizers after the Civil War. By the 1890s, KKK violence and Democratic
legislation succeeded in disenfranchising almost all Southern blacks.
Tenure of Office Act: Required President to seek approval from Senate before removing appointees.
Johnson removes secretary of war in violation of the act  his is impeached by the House but the Senate
votes to keep him in office by a single vote.
Seward’s Folly: Term used to describe Secretary of State William Seward’s purchase of Alaska from
Russia. Reflected the anti-expansionist sentiments immediately following the Civil War.
Compromise of 1877: Resolved the 1876 election (Rutherford Hayes wins for the North) and officially
ended reconstruction. In exchange for the Presidency, Hayes promises to remove federal troops from the
formally Confederate states. Completed the Southern return to white-only Democratic policies.
Sharecroppers: Whites/blacks who rent land and residencies from a plantation owner for a “share” of each
year’s crop. Dominant form of agriculture following the Civil War. Land owners often kept tenant in debt
and unable to leave the plantation.
Andrew Johnson: Takes over after Lincoln is killed. Reconstruction Plan: leading Confederates
disenfranchised, Confederate debt repudiated, states have to ratify the 13 th Amendment.
Thaddeus Stevens: Radical Republican leader in the House of Representatives; wanted to keep the South
out of the Union for as long as possible.
Hiram Revels: Black man who represented Mississippi in Congress.
Edwin Stanton: A Republican spy in Johnson’s cabinet. To keep him in office, Republicans passed the
Tenure of Office Act.
Major Presidential Elections
1796: John Adams (Federalist) vs. Thomas Jefferson (Anti-Federalist). Jefferson is the runner up and so he
becomes the vice-president. This is the first time the office of President an Vice President are help by
members of opposing political parties.
1800: Thomas Jefferson (Anti-Federalist) vs. John Adams (Federalist): Determined by the House of
Representatives. Jefferson wins with Aaron Burr as his vice-President. The peaceful handover of power
from the Federalist party to the Anti-Federalist party is known as the Revolution of 1800.
1824: John Q. Adams (Democrat-Republican) vs. Andrew Jackson (Democrat-Republican): Vote
determined by the House of Representatives. Election of the “corrupt bargain.” Allowed Jackson to gain an
upper hand in the next election.
1828: Andrew Jackson (Democrat) vs. John Q. Adams (Democrat-Republican): Andrew Jackson emerges
victorious; he is the first president from the West.
1860: Abraham Lincoln (Republican) vs. Steven Douglas (Democrat): Lincoln wins the election, strongly
contributing to the start of the Civil War.
Fall Semester Study Guide
AP US History
1864: Abraham Lincoln (Union) vs. George B. McCllelan (Democrat): Lincoln wins the election due to his
lack of political opposition, allowing him to remain in office for the end of the Civil War and the very
beginning of Reconstruction (before he is murdered).