ABC Book of History

Alysha GreenMay 19, 2011

Period 2

Abolitionist- A person who strongly favors doing away with slavery.

Adams Onis Treaty- Spain gave East Florida to the United States and abandoned all claims to West Florida.

Appomattox Court House- Site in Central Virginia where confederate forces surrendered ending the Civil War.

American System- Policies devised by Henry Clay to stimulate the growth of industry.

Battle of the Alamo- Santa Anna marched North. When his army reached San Antonio, it found a small Texan force barricaded inside a nearby mission n which they attacked, that mission was the Alamo.

Boston Massacre- March 5,1770 redcoats marched into Boston, the killing 5 colonists. Among the dead was Crispus Attucks.

Black Codes- Laws passed in the South just after the Civil War aimed at controlling freedmen and enabling plantation owners to exploit African American workers.

Battle of Bunker Hill- June 16, 1775 British redcoats attacked the English fortifications at Bunker Hill.

Clermont- The first steamboat invented by Robert Fulton.

Civil War- Conflict between opposing groups of citizens f the same country, 1861-1868. North vs. South

Cotton Gin- A machine that removed seeds from cotton fiber, invented by Eli Whitney.

Confederate States of America- States that seceded from the Union in order to reserve slavery.

Daughters of Liberty- In towns throughout the colonies, women organized groups to support the boycott of British goods.

Declaration of Independence- Document recording the proclamation of the second Continental Congress asserting the independence of the colonies from Great Britain.

Democratic Party- The older of the two major political parties in the United States.

Discrimination- Unfair treatment of a person or group on the basis of prejudice.

Enlightenment- Movement during the 1700s that spread he idea that knowledge, reason, and science could improve society.

Embargo Act- An order prohibiting trade with another country.

Emancipation Proclamation-Freed all slaves in the Union.

Electoral College- A special group of voters selected by their states voters to vote for the president and vice president.

Free Enterprise- The freedom of private business to operate competitively for profit with minimal government regulation.

Fredrick Douglass- Run away slave whom could read and write, he worked to end slavery as an abolitionist.

Foreign Policy A policy governing international relations.

Fifteenth Amendment- Gave African Americans the right to vote.

Great Depression- A period during the 1939s when there was a worldwide economic depression and mass unemployment.

Gadsden Purchase- In 1853 paid Mexico and additional $10 million for the Gadsden Purchase, a strip of land along the southern edge of the present day states of Arizona and New Mexico.

The Battle of Gettysburg- Three day battle and turning point of the civil war.

Gettysburg Address- A two minute speech given by Abraham Lincoln expressing what the Civil War had become

Homestead Act- Congress passed a law in 1862 which gave 160 acres of land to any settler who paid a filing fee and lived on the land for five years

House of Representatives- The lower legislative house of the United States Congress.

House of Burgesses- The lower house of the legislature in colonial Virginia.

Harper’s Ferry, VA- A small town in Northeastern Virginia that was the site of a raid in 1859 by the abolitionist John Brown and his followers who captured an arsenal that was locked there.

Indian Removal Act- The act allowed federal government to pay indians to move West

Industrial Revolution- The change from an agrarian society to one based on industry. Which began in England and moved to the United States around 1800

Interchangeable Parts- Uniform pieces that can be made in large quantities to replace other identical pieces.

Intolerable Acts- After news of the Boston Tea Party reached London, parliament passed the Coercive Acts closing of the Boston Harbor until Massachusetts colonists pay for the tea, this became known as the Intolerable Acts

Jay’s Treaty- British agreed to withdraw from American soil, to pay for the damages of the ships they had seized, and to allow American ships to trade with British colonies in the Caribbean.

Jim Crow Laws- Laws passed by Southern states requiring African Americans and whites to be separated in almost every public place where they might come in contact.

Judicial Branch- The branch of government, including the federal court system, that interoperates the nations laws.

Joint Occupation- The possession and settling of an area shared by two or more countries.

Kansas Nebraska Act- Let the two states vote on whether they were to be free or slave states.

Henry Knox- Served as the United States first secretary of war.

Bleeding Kansas- Small outburst between proslavery and antislavery people in Laurence, Kansas.

Abraham Lincoln- 16th president, gave the Gettysburg Address, helped to officially put an end to slavery.

Louisiana Purchase- Purchase of the Louisiana Territory made by the U.S. from France.

Loyalists- American colonist who stayed loyal to Britain and opposed war for independence.

Legislative Branch- The branch of government that makes the nations laws.

Mayflower Compact- Pledged the pilgrims loyalty to Britain

Magna carta- Limited the kings power over the colonists.

Manifest Destiny- The idea popular in the U.S. during the 1800s that the country must expand to the Pacific Ocean.

James Madison- Father of the constitution

National Debt- The amount of money a national government owes to other governments or its people.

Nationalism- Loyalty to a nation and promotion of its interests above all others.

Northwest Passage- A water route to Asia through North America sought by European explorers.

Neutral Rights- The right to sail the seas and not takes sides in war.

Olive Branch Petition- Assured the king of the colonists desire for peace.

Ordinance- A law or regulation.

Oregon Trail- Trail that led from the Oregon Country to Louisiana Territory, taken during the Great Migration.

Oregon Country- Large area of land between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains North of California.

Patent- Document that gives an inventor the sole legal rights to an invention for a period of time.

Poll Tax- A tax of fixed amount per person that had to be paid before the person could vote.

Preamble- Introduction to a formal document, especially the constitution.

Pilgrimage- A journey to a holy place.

Quakers- Group that believed every individual had an inner light that could guide them to salvation.

Ratify- To give official approval to.

Rebel- Confederate soldier, so called because of opposition to the established government.

Repeal- To cancel an act or law.

Relocate- To force a person or group of people to move.

Segregation- The separation or isolation of a race, class, or group.

Second Amendment- Gave people the right to bear arms.

Seneca Falls Convention- July 1848 Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucritia Mott organized the women’s rights convention in Seneca Falls, NY.

Sixth Amendment- The right to a speedy fair trial.

Thirteenth Amendment- Officially abolishing slavery for good, backing up the Emancipation Proclamation.

Treaty of Paris- France was permitted to keep some of its sugar producing island in the West Indies, but was forced to give up Canada to England.

Tariff- A tax on imported or exported goods.

Tea Act- Tax put on all tea.

Underground Railroad- A system that helped enslaved African Americans follow a network of escape routes out of the South and to freedom in the North.

Unalienable Rights- Rights that can not be surrendered.

Utopia- Community based on a vision of a perfect society sought by reformers.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin- A book written by Harriet Beecher Stowe, talking about the wrong in slavery.

Vigilantes- People who take the law into their own hands.

Virginia Company of London- A group of merchants that started the colony in Jamestown, the first permanent settlement.

Virginia Plan- Plan which called for a two house legislature, a chief executive chosen by the legislature, and a court system.

Virginia- Present day state in which Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement, was colonized.

Whiskey Rebellion- Southern farmers rebelled against Alexander Hamilton and his tax on whiskey, that most of them could not afford.

Writ of Assistance- Legal document that enabled officers to search homes and warehouses for goods that might be smuggled.

War Hawks- Republicans during James Madison’s presidency who pressed for war with Britain.

War of 1812- War between the colonies and Britain for their independence from Britain.

XYZ Affair- During John Adams presidency he, not wanting to start a war with France, sent a delegation to Paris. French Minister Charles De Talleyrand didn’t want to meet with Americans, so he sent 3 agents who demanded a bribe. Adams was outraged and told Congress to prepare for war.

Yeomen- Southern owner of a small farm who did not own slaves.

Yankee- Union soldier.

Yellow Journalism- A type of sensational, biased, and often false reporting.