An Era of Reform

Chapter 18

I. The Spirit of Reform

A. Second Great Awakening1. Revival of religious feeling 1820-1830s2. Told that everyone could gain forgiveness for

their sinsB. Optimistic Ideas

1. Ralph Waldo Emerson & Transcendentalisma) Every human being had unlimited potential b) To realize godlike nature, need to go beyond

logical thinkingc) Urged to question society’s rules and institutions

II. Reforming the Treatment of Prisoners & the Mentally Ill

A. Dorothea Dix Teaches in Prison1. Inmates bound in chains and locked in cages2. Children jailed with adult criminals3. Thousands in debtors prison for owing less than $20

B. Plight of the Mentally Ill1. Dirty, crowded prison cells2. Whipped if misbehaved

C. Campaigning for Better Conditions1. Massachusetts first to vote to create public asylums

for mentally ill2. By 1887, states no longer put debtors in prison, had

special justice system for children, and outlawed cruel punishments

III. Improving Education

A. Need for Public Schools1. Limited Schooling

a) Wealthy children to private schools, others didn’t go

b) Few areas had public schools paid for by taxes

2. Horace Manna) Massachusetts’ Supervisor of Educationb) Massachusetts voted to pay taxes to build better

schools, pay teachers higher salaries, establish training schools for teachers

III. Improving Education

B. Unfinished Reform1. 1850 – States changed but not for everyone

a) High schools and colleges did not admit girlsb) Laws passed to keep African Americans out

2. 1837 – Ohio’s Oberlin College first to accept women

3. African Americans had fewer optionsa) Prudence Crandall admitted African American girl

to her schoolb) White parents removed their childrenc) Crandall had all African American studentsd) White parents had her jailed, and was forced to

close school

IV. Fighting Slavery

A. Struggle Begins1. Quakers stopped owning slaves in 17762. 1792 – every state as far south as Virginia

had anti-slavery societies3. 1808 – end of slave trade and northern

interest in slaves

B. Frederick Douglas Speaks Out1. An escaped slave, a leader in abolitionist

movement2. Started own newspaper, The North Star

BrainPOP

IV. Fighting Slavery

C. Women Get Involved1. Angelina Grimke

a) Spoke out against poverty and pain of slavery

b) Led way for other women to speak in public

2. Sojourner Trutha) A former slaveb) Argued that God would end slavery

peacefully

V. Equal Rights for Women

A. Struggle Begins1. Lucretia Mott & Elizabeth Cady Stanton

a) Met at World Anti-Slavery Convention (1840)b) Women were not allowed to speak at meeting.

Made to sit in balcony, behind a curtain

B. Unequal Treatment of Women1. A Fine Education

a) Lucy Stone invited to write graduation speech at Oberlin College, but a man would give the speech because women were not allowed to speak in public

b) Elizabeth Blackwell was rejected from 29 medical schools before being accepted. Graduated at top of her class, yet no hospital or doctor would work with her

VI. Seneca Falls Convention & the Declaration of Sentiments

A. Declaration of Sentiments1. 1848 – 300 people (including 40 men)

arrived for convention2. Modeled after Declaration of Independence

listing acts of tyranny by men over women

B. Debate About the Right to Vote1. Resolutions passed to correct injustices2. Stanton proposed women demand the right

to vote3. Frederick Douglas argued that everyone who

believed black men should have the right to vote, must also favor black women having the right

VI. Seneca Falls Convention & the Declaration of Sentiments

C. Legacy of Seneca Falls1. Created an organized campaign for

women’s rights2. New York gave women more control

over their property and wages3. Massachusetts and Indiana passed

more liberal divorce laws4. Elizabeth Blackwell started her own

hospital

Women’s Suffrage