Election of 1828 Andrew Jackson vs.
John Quincy Adams Jackson was billed
as the “common man” while Adams was portrayed as an “aristocratic elitist”
Jackson won both the popular and electoral vote in a majority
Andrew Jackson 1767 – 1845 Democrat 7th president Nicknamed “Old
Hickory,” a tribute to his background as a frontiersman
War hero from both War of 1812 and Seminole Indian War
First president to survive an assassination attempt
Jacksonian Democracy
Suffrage extended to any adult white male
Jackson was 1st president to come from background of poverty, so he was the hero of the common man
Still, Jackson hated Native Americans and supported slavery
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYh7pato4uE&feature=related
“The Spoils System” Jackson began new
tradition of dismissing what had been career government officials and replacing them with his party’s loyal followers
This still happens today – Presidents reward their supporters with important government jobs
Nat Turner 1800 – 1831 Virginia slave who
had religious “visions”
Practiced as a Baptist preacher (nicknamed “The Prophet” by other slaves)
Believed that God called on him to lead a slave rebellion
Nat Turner’s Rebellion
August 21, 1831 Slave uprising that
resulted in the deaths of 56 whites in VA
Quickly suppressed by the militia, dozens of slaves (including Turner) were executed for their roles in the rebellion
Led to harsher slave codes- bans throughout the South on educating slaves and allowing slaves to freely assemble without white supervision
South Carolina Nullification Crisis 1832: South Carolina
declared new tariffs unconstitutional and thereby nullified
John C. Calhoun resigned as Vice-President to support SC position as a senator
Jackson considered this treasonous and prepared to use military force on SC to enforce the tariffs
SC threatened to secede (leave the US) if high tariffs weren’t repealed
Compromise of 1833 Henry Clay delayed
passage of the Force Bill which would give Jackson permission to take military action against SC until he could force through a bill that would gradually reduce tariffs over the next 10 years
Once this compromise tariff was passed, SC repealed its nullification and crisis was averted
Jackson and the National Bank Jackson disliked the
Bank Congress passed a bill
extending the Bank’s charter in 1832, but Jackson vetoed; instead, Jackson withdrew all of the federal governments deposits from the Bank and moved them to state banks or “pet banks”
National Bank no longer had money to lend and closed
The Whig Party 1834: National
Republican Party changed its name to the Whig Party
“Whigs” in England were people who opposed the power of the king; American Whigs felt that Andrew Jackson had been abusive of his power as president
Election of 1836 Jackson supported his
VP Martin Van Buren as his successor
Van Buren easily won the Democratic nomination at convention (1st time national party convention used)
Whigs could not settle on one candidate to run and so their votes were split; Van Buren won
Martin Van Buren 1782 – 1862 Democrat 8th President
(1837-41) Former Vice-
President and Secretary of State under Jackson
Lost presidential elections of 1840 and 1848
Panic of 1837 State banks loaned
money freely without the National Bank to oversee them
Loaned more money than they had, leading to failure of many of the banks
Inflation soared, unemployment rose, businesses closed, many people lost everything
Ruined Van Buren’s presidency
Election of 1840 Whigs nominated
war hero William Henry Harrison after Henry Clay and Daniel Webster each proved too divisive to win majority support within the party
Harrison easily defeated Van Buren
William Henry Harrison 1773 – 1841 Whig 9th President (1841) Nicknamed “Old
Tippecanoe” from his fame as hero of Northwest Indian War
Shortest tenure in US history – president for only 32 days before dying of pneumonia
Slavery 1808: Congress
banned the importation of new slaves
1820: 1.5 million slaves in US
1850: 4 million slaves in US
Demand for slaves grew as demand for cotton grew
Slave ownership 1850: South’s white
pop = 6 million 1850: South’s slave
pop = 3.6 million 350,000 slave owners 37,000 owned 20+
slaves 8,000 owned 50+
slaves 11 owned 500+
slaves
Immigration 1825 – 1855: 5
million European immigrants arrived
Arrived poor, concentrated in ethnic neighborhoods
Created a cheap labor force for Northern factories
NYC Immigrant Central
Nativism
Many Americans began to oppose immigration and promote the rights of “Native” Americans
Resented immigrants taking jobs from American citizens
The “Know-Nothings”
1840s – 1850s Anti-Catholic nativist
group To be a member, had to
be a male Protestant of English descent over the age of 21
If questioned about the group, members would reply, “I know nothing”
Briefly became a political party, with some success in Massachusetts and Illinois
Broke apart due to divisions over slavery issue
Oddly, immigrants were pro-slavery
Didn’t want to compete with freed slaves for jobs, so supported Southern slave owners!
Many Irish, in fact, would fight for the South in the Civil War
Growth of Northern cities
Causes of growth: Urbanization:
people move from country to cities
Immigration: European immigrants arrived at northern ports, tended to stay in north or go west
North’s population growth worried the South
Number of seats in the House of Representatives is based purely on population, so North was gaining control of one house of Congress
Slaves only counted as 3/5ths of a person in the 3/ 5ths compromise
naturalized immigrants counted as a whole person for population counts
North vs. South: SectionalismKey Differences
North Economy based on the
“factory system”: manufacturing and commerce
Relied on plentiful immigrant labor
Favored high tariffs that protected US industries
Wanted a strong federal government to build transportation networks, protect trade, and regulate the economy
South Economy based on the
“plantation system”: large-scale farming of cash crops
Relied on slave labor Opposed to high tariffs –
imported many European goods, feared Europeans would retaliate by putting tariffs on Southern agricultural exports
Favored strong state government, feared a strong federal government would restrict slavery
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