Chapter Introduction
Section 1: Jacksonian America
Section 2: A Changing Culture
Section 3: Reforming Society
Section 4: The Abolitionist
Movement
Visual Summary
Can Average Citizens
Change Society?
In the 1830s and 1840s, reformers tried to
change American society. Some worked
to end slavery, others to give women the
vote or to give all Americans access to
public education. Some sought to reform
prisons, while others tried to reduce
alcohol abuse. The issues of the era still
shape the concerns of reformers today as
they try to improve education, reduce
social problems, and end discrimination
toward minorities and women.
• How did reforms of this era increase
the tensions between North and
South?
• What do you think is the best way to
get a society to accept reform?
Jacksonian America
How did democracy expand
in the United States during
Andrew Jackson’s
presidency?
A Changing Culture
What contributed to
changes in American
culture in the first half of
the nineteenth century?
Reforming Society
What were some of the
main areas of society
targeted for reform in the
first half of the 1800s?
The Abolitionist
Movement
What were the effects of
the abolitionist movement
on the relationship between
the North and the South?
Big Ideas
Government and Society The American political
system became more democratic during the
Jacksonian era.
Content Vocabulary
• suffrage
• caucus system
• spoils system
• secede
Academic Vocabulary
• evident
• exposure
People and Events to Identify
• Tariff of Abominations
• Daniel Webster
• Force Bill
• Indian Removal Act
• Trail of Tears
• Panic of 1837
Do you agree that exercising your
right to vote is important?
A. Agree
B. Disagree
A. A
B. B
0%
B
A
0%
A New Era in Politics
States expanded voting rights in the
late 1820s, making the nation more
democratic, which in turn helped
Andrew Jackson win election. As
president, Jackson opposed South
Carolina’s nullification vote, supported
the Indian Removal Act, and closed the
Bank of the United States.
A New Era in Politics (cont.)
• In the early 1800s, hundreds of thousands of
Americans, mostly white men, gained the
right to vote.
– Many states lowered or eliminated
property ownership as a voting
qualification.
– As cities and towns grew, the percentage
of working people who did not own
property increased.
The Election of 1828
A New Era in Politics (cont.)
– The expansion of suffrage was evident in
the turnout for the presidential election of
1828.
• Jackson had great confidence in the capability
and intelligence of average Americans.
– He believed that the majority should rule in
democracy and that ordinary citizens should
play a role in government.
– These beliefs led Jackson to support the
spoils system.
A New Era in Politics (cont.)
• Jackson’s supporters replaced the caucus
system with the national nominating
convention.
By 1840, how many Americans voted
in the presidential election?
A. 355,000
B. 1.1 million
C. 2 million
D. 4 million
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
The Nullification Crisis
Resentment about high tariffs led
Southern states to claim that states
could declare a federal law null or void.
The Nullification Crisis (cont.)
• When Congress levied another new tariff in
1828—which critics called the Tariff of
Abominations—many South Carolinians
threatened to secede from the Union.
– John C. Calhoun put forth the idea of
nullification to defuse the situation.
– Robert Hayne and Daniel Webster
confronted each other over this issue on
the floor of the Senate.
The Nullification Crisis (cont.)
• In November 1832 South Carolina adopted
an ordinance of nullification declaring the
tariffs of 1828 and 1832 to be
unconstitutional.
– In 1833 Congress passed the Force Bill,
authorizing the president to use the
military to enforce acts of Congress.
The Nullification Crisis (cont.)
– Senator Henry Clay pushed a bill through
Congress that would lower the nation’s
tariffs gradually until 1842.
– South Carolina repealed its nullification
and both sides claimed victory.
Which of the following men defended
the rights of the Union over the rights
of the states?
A. Daniel Webster
B. Robert Hayne
A. A
B. B
0%
B
A
0%
Policies Toward Native Americans
During Andrew Jackson’s
administration Native American groups
were forced to relocate onto western
reservations.
Policies Toward Native Americans (cont.)
• In 1830 Andrew Jackson pushed through
Congress the Indian Removal Act, which
provided money for relocating Native
Americans to the Great Plains.
– The Cherokee hired lawyers to sue the
state of Georgia in order to challenge the
state’s attempt to extend its authority over
Cherokee lands.
Effects of the Indian Removal Act, 1831–1842
Policies Toward Native Americans (cont.)
– Chief Justice John Marshall ruled in favor
of the Cherokee, but Martin Van Buren
sent an army that forced them to march to
Oklahoma, now known as the Trail of
Tears.
Why didn’t the Cherokee of Georgia want to
move to the Great Plains?
A. They had adopted many
aspects of white culture.
B. They had no way of
moving their belongings.
0%
D
C
B
A
A. A
B.0% B0%
0%
C. The Great Plains winter
C. C
was too harsh.
D
D. The Great Plains summer was tooD.hot.
Jackson Battles the National Bank
Jackson deliberately destroyed the
national bank; his opponents formed a
new political party.
Jackson Battles the National Bank (cont.)
• Jackson regarded the Bank as a monopoly
that benefited the wealthy elite.
– Jackson took his reelection as a directive
from the people to destroy the Bank at
once, even though the charter did not run
out until 1836.
Jackson Battles the National Bank (cont.)
• Jackson’s forceful style earned him plenty of
detractors, and by the mid-1830s a new
party had emerged to oppose him.
– This group called themselves the Whigs.
• Martin Van Buren took office after Jackson,
and shortly thereafter the Panic of 1837 hit
the nation.
Jackson Battles the National Bank (cont.)
• General William Henry Harrison, a Whig,
became president after Van Buren, but died
32 days later.
– John Tyler took office next.
During Tyler’s administration, which issue
occupied the country’s attention?
A. Transportation
B. Foreign relations
C. Finances
D. Native Americans
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
Big Ideas
Group Action The Second Great Awakening
increased membership in many religious groups in the
United States.
Content Vocabulary
• nativism
• romanticism
• utopia
• transcendentalism
Academic Vocabulary
• predominantly
• philosopher
People and Events to Identify
• Know-Nothings
• Second Great Awakening
• Charles Grandison Finney
• Joseph Smith
Have you ever felt discriminated
against in any way?
A. Yes
B. No
A. A
B. B
0%
B
A
0%
The New Wave of Immigrants
In the early 1800s, millions of Irish and
Germans immigrated to the United
States. The many Catholics among
them encountered religious prejudice.
The New Wave of Immigrants (cont.)
• The largest wave of immigrants, almost 2
million, came from Ireland.
– They were fleeing a famine that began in
1845.
• Germans were the second-largest group of
immigrants to arrive.
– Violence and repression caused them to
emigrate.
The Irish Famine and Immigration to America
The New Wave of Immigrants (cont.)
• Immigrants often found a new sense of
freedom in the United States, but some
experienced nativism.
• In July 1854 the American Party was
formed—these people pledged never to vote
for a Catholic and pushed for laws banning
immigrants and Catholics from holding public
office.
– They were also referred to as the KnowNothings.
Where did most of the Germans
settle?
A. Ohio and Massachusetts
B. Pennsylvania and Ohio
0%
D
A
0%
A
B
C0%
D
C
D. Louisiana and Georgia
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
C. Rhode Island and Maine
A Religious Revival
During the Second Great Awakening,
many revivals were held, and new
religious denominations formed.
A Religious Revival (cont.)
• In the 1800s, ministers began an effort to
revive people’s commitment to religion—the
resulting movement came to be called the
Second Great Awakening.
– One of the most prominent advocates of
this message was a Presbyterian minister
named Charles Grandison Finney.
A Religious Revival (cont.)
• A number of new religious groups also
emerged during the Second Great
Awakening:
– Unitarians
– Universalists
– Mormons—Joseph Smith began
preaching Mormon ideas in 1830.
A Religious Revival (cont.)
• Some Americans in the 1830s concluded
that society had corrupted human nature and
decided to form a utopia.
– The best known communities were Brook
Farm and the Oneida Community.
– Shakers were a religious group that
established utopian communities.
Which of the following is NOT a
Protestant denomination?
A. Methodist
B. Baptist
C. Unitarian
D. Presbyterian
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
Cultural Renaissance
Nationalism and sectionalism gave rise
to a creative period for American
writers and artists.
Cultural Renaissance (cont.)
• Many leading thinkers of the day adopted
the tenets of romanticism, a movement that
began in Europe in the late 1700s.
– One notable expression of American
romanticism came from New England
writers and philosophers, who were
known as the transcendentalists.
Cultural Renaissance (cont.)
• Important American writers of the time:
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
– Henry David Thoreau
– Washington Irving
– James Fennimore Cooper
– Nathaniel Hawthorne
– Herman Melville
Cultural Renaissance (cont.)
– Edgar Allan Poe
– Walt Whitman
– Emily Dickinson
• Another important development of the early
1800s was the rise of the mass distribution
newspaper—also known as a penny paper.
– General interest magazines also emerged
around this time.
Who wrote The Scarlet Letter?
A. Edgar Allan Poe
B. Walt Whitman
C. Nathaniel Hawthorne
D. Washington Irving
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
Big Ideas
Past and Present Reform movements sought to
change American society in ways that upheld American
values and ideals.
Content Vocabulary
• benevolent society
• temperance
• penitentiary
Academic Vocabulary
• institution
• imposition
People and Events to Identify
• Dorothea Dix
• Lyman Beecher
• Horace Mann
• Elizabeth Cady Stanton
• Seneca Falls Convention
Do you feel that we need to reform
any areas of our society today?
A. Yes
B. No
A. A
B. B
0%
B
A
0%
The Reform Spirit
Inspired by the Second Great
Awakening, reformers tried to tackle
many problems in society.
The Reform Spirit (cont.)
• Dorothea Dix was responsible for more than
a dozen states enacting sweeping prison
reforms that created special institutions for
the mentally ill.
• The reform movements of the mid-1800s
stemmed in large part from the revival of
religious fervor.
– Lyman Beecher, a prominent minister,
insisted that it was the nation’s citizenry,
more than its government, that should take
charge of building a better society.
The Reform Spirit (cont.)
• Under the guidance of Beecher and other
religious leaders, associations known as
benevolent societies sprang up in cities
and towns across the country.
– One striking feature of the reform effort
was the overwhelming presence of
women.
The Reform Spirit (cont.)
• Many reformers argued that no behavior
caused more crime, disorder, and poverty
than the abuse of alcohol.
– Temperance societies pushed for laws
prohibiting the sale of liquor.
– The spirit of reform also prompted some
people to try to improve the prison system.
– Underlying the prison reform movement
was the belief in rehabilitating prisoners
rather than merely locking them up.
The Reform Spirit (cont.)
– New prisons came to be known as
penitentiaries.
• In the early 1800s, many reformers sought to
establish a system of public education—
government-funded schools open to all
citizens.
– Horace Mann was a leader of the
movement for public education.
The Reform Spirit (cont.)
• Woman reformers, such as Catharine
Beecher, pushed for more educational
opportunities for girls and women.
– Emma Willard founded a girls’ school in
1814.
– Mary Lyon opened Mount Holyoke Female
Seminary.
– Elizabeth Blackwell became the first
woman to earn a medical degree.
Which state passed the first mandatory
school attendance law in 1852?
A. Massachusetts
B. Vermont
C. North Carolina
D. New York
0%
A
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
A
B
C
0%
D
C
0%
D
The Early Women’s Movement
Women were generally expected to be
homemakers and models for their
children, but some began demanding
greater rights.
The Early Women’s Movement (cont.)
• As the nature of work changed, many
Americans began to divide life into two spheres
of activity—the home and the workplace.
– The idea that women should be homemakers
and should take responsibility for developing
their children’s characters evolved into a set
of ideas known as “true womanhood.”
The Early Women’s Movement (cont.)
• As women became involved in the great moral
crusades of the era, some began to argue that
they needed greater political rights to promote
their ideas.
– An advocate of this idea was Margaret Fuller.
– In 1848 Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady
Stanton organized the Seneca Falls
Convention.
– This marked the beginning of an organized
women’s movement.
By 1860, 15 states passed laws permitting
women to have which right?
A. To vote
0%
D
0%
A
D. To open a business
A
B
C0%
D
C
C. To own firearms
A.
B.
C.
0%
D.
B
B. To retain property
if their husbands died
Big Ideas
Individual Action Abolitionists challenged the morality
and legality of slavery in the United States.
Content Vocabulary
• gradualism
• emancipation
• abolition
Academic Vocabulary
• compensate
• demonstration
People and Events to Identify
• American Colonization Society
• William Lloyd Garrison
• American Anti-Slavery Society
• Frederick Douglass
• Sojourner Truth
Have you ever defended an
unpopular cause?
A. Yes
B. No
A. A
B. B
0%
B
A
0%
The New Abolitionists
In the early years of the United States,
some religious groups proposed
ending slavery gradually, but by the
1830s, a new generation of abolitionists
demanded an immediate end to slavery.
The New Abolitionists (cont.)
• In the 1830s a growing number of Americans
had begun to demand an immediate end to
slavery in the South.
• Early antislavery societies generally
supported an approach known as
gradualism.
– Supporters of gradualism believed it would
give the South’s economy time to adjust to
the loss of enslaved labor.
The New Abolitionists (cont.)
• In December 1816, antislavery reformers
founded the American Colonization
Society (ACS) to move African Americans to
Africa.
– African Americans established a colony
that eventually became the country of
Liberia.
– However, colonization was not a realistic
solution to racism.
The New Abolitionists (cont.)
• Abolitionists argued that enslaved African
Americans should be freed immediately,
without gradual measures or compensation
to former slaveholders.
– The first well-known advocate of abolition
was David Walker.
The New Abolitionists (cont.)
• Most of the movement was largely due to the
efforts of William Lloyd Garrison.
– He believed the only option was immediate
and complete emancipation.
– He founded the American Anti-Slavery
Society.
The New Abolitionists (cont.)
• Other abolitionist leaders:
– Theodore Weld
– Arthur and Lewis Tappan
– Wendell Phillips
– John Greenleaf Whittier
– Prudence Crandall
– Lucretia Mott
– Sarah and Angelina Grimké
The New Abolitionists (cont.)
• Free African Americans played a prominent
role in the abolitionist movement.
– Frederick Douglass was one of the most
prominent African Americans in the
abolitionist movement.
– Sojourner Truth was another important
African American abolitionist.
What was the name of William Lloyd
Garrison’s antislavery newspaper?
A. The North Star
B. Bondage
C. Liberator
D. Free at Last
0%
A
A.
B.
0%
C.
D.
B
A
B
0%
C
D
C
0%
D
The Response to Abolitionism
Many people in both the North
and the South opposed
abolitionism for economic,
political, and cultural reasons.
The Response to Abolitionism (cont.)
• While many Northerners disapproved of
slavery, some opposed abolitionism even
more.
• They feared the end of slavery for many
reasons:
– They viewed the movement as a threat to
the existing social system.
– They believed it would lead to a war
between the North and South.
The Response to Abolitionism (cont.)
– They feared it would lead to an influx of
freed African Americans to the North.
– They didn’t want to see the South’s
economy crumble.
• To most Southerners, slavery was a
“peculiar institution” vital to Southern life.
Many people thought which of the following
sparked the revolt led by Nat Turner?
A. Frederick Douglass’s book
0%
D
C
D. The abolitionist movement
in general
B
C. Sojourner Truth’s speeches
A. A
B. B
0% C.
0% C0%
D. D
A
B. William Garrison’s
newspaper
Causes of Social Change and Reform in
the 1830s and 1840s
Political Change
• States expand voting rights
for white males by lowering
or eliminating property
qualifications.
• Andrew Jackson wins the
presidency in the 1828
election.
Causes of Social Change and Reform in
the 1830s and 1840s (cont.)
Social Change
• Large numbers of Irish and
German immigrants enter
the United States.
• A religious revival—the
Second Great Awakening—
sweeps the country.
• New religious ideas and
philosophies, such as romanticism, transcendentalism, and
utopianism, gain support.
• Newspapers become cheap and are widely read, helping
create a common popular culture.
Effects of Social Change and Reform in
the 1830s and 1840s
Political Effects
• Andrew Jackson wins the
presidency and supports the
spoils system.
• Political parties begin using
the convention to nominate
candidates instead of the
caucus system.
• Government becomes more
responsive to public opinion.
Effects of Social Change and Reform in
the 1830s and 1840s (cont.)
Political Effects
• Jackson blocks South Carolina’s
attempts at nullification, pulls
funds from the unpopular Bank
of the United States, and
supports the Indian Removal Act.
• Women begin demanding more
political rights. Susan B. Anthony,
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and
others organize the woman
suffrage movement and issue the
Declaration of Sentiments and
Resolutions.
Effects of Social Change and Reform in
the 1830s and 1840s (cont.)
Social Effects
• Nativism gains support, leading to the
creation of the anti-immigrant American
Party—the “Know-Nothings.”
• New American literature is written,
including works by Emerson, Thoreau,
Irving, Hawthorne, Melville, Poe,
Whitman, and Dickinson.
• Religious enthusiasm helps trigger a
series of new reform movements,
including efforts to reform prisons,
mental institutions, and schools, and to
reduce the consumption of alcohol.
Effects of Social Change and Reform in
the 1830s and 1840s (cont.)
Social Effects
• Efforts to end slavery gradually and
through colonization give way to a rising
abolition movement led by William
Lloyd Garrison, Frederick Douglass,
and others.
Chapter Transparencies Menu
Why It Matters
Cause-and-Effect Transparency
Unit Time Line Transparency
Select a transparency to view.
suffrage
the right to vote
spoils system
practice of handing out government
jobs to supporters; replacing
government employees with the
winning candidate’s supporters
caucus system
a system in which members of a
political party meet to choose their
party’s candidate for president or
decide policy
secede
to leave or withdraw
evident
clearly visible or understood
exposure
the condition of being unprotected,
especially from severe weather
nativism
hostility toward immigrants
utopia
community based on a vision of a
perfect society sought by reformers
romanticism
a literary, artistic, and philosophical
movement in the 1700s emphasizing
the imagination and the emotions,
advocating feeling over reason, inner
spirituality over external rules, the
individual above society, and nature
over environments created by
humans
transcendentalism
a philosophy stressing the
relationship between human beings
and nature, spiritual things over
material things, and the importance of
the individual conscience
predominant
being most frequent or common
philosopher
person who seeks wisdom or
enlightenment
benevolent society
an association focusing on spreading
the word of God and combating social
problems
temperance
moderation in or abstinence from
alcohol
penitentiary
prison whose purpose is to reform
prisoners
institution
an established organization or
corporation
imposition
something established or brought
about as if by force
gradualism
theory that slavery should be ended
gradually
abolition
the immediate ending of slavery
emancipation
the act or process of freeing enslaved
persons
compensate
to offset an error, defect, or undesired
effect
demonstration
an outward expression or display
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