Overview of U.S. History (Jackson to Gilded Age)

Overview

This lecture covers the Age of Jackson through the end of Reconstruction and the Gilded Age, highlighting political changes, social reforms, westward expansion, Civil War events, and early labor struggles in the U.S.

Age of Jackson and Indian Removal

• Jackson disregarded Native American rights and passed the Indian Removal Act of 1830, forcing thousands west to "Indian Territory."
• Brutal removal continued after Jackson, resulting in thousands of Native deaths.
• Military force was used against tribes who resisted removal.
• The 1838 Trail of Tears saw over 5,000 Cherokee die during forced relocation.

Jacksonian Politics and Economic Policy

• Jackson used the spoils system, rewarding loyal supporters with government jobs, often leading to unqualified workers.
• He vetoed the National Bank’s recharter, arguing it favored the wealthy and Northern interests.
• The Tariff of Abominations (1828) angered the South, leading to the Nullification Crisis.
• South Carolina declared tariffs "null and void"; Jackson responded with the Force Bill to enforce federal law.

Reform Movements

• Abolitionists sought to end slavery and promote rights for African Americans; key figures included Frederick Douglass and Harriet Beecher Stowe.
• Early women’s rights began at Seneca Falls, led by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott.
• Horace Mann advanced public education reform; Dorothea Dix led prison and asylum reform.
• Transcendentalists like Thoreau and Emerson promoted individualism and spiritual transcendence.

Westward Expansion and Sectional Conflict

• Manifest Destiny encouraged U.S. expansion; the Oregon Trail and Gold Rush spurred westward migration.
• Texas gained independence from Mexico, with battles like the Alamo and eventual U.S. annexation.
• The Mexican-American War ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo.
• The Underground Railroad aided slave escapes; Harriet Tubman was a major figure.
• Nat Turner led a notable slave rebellion in Virginia.

Pre-Civil War Tensions and Civil War

• The Free Soil Party opposed expansion of slavery; the Compromise of 1850 appeased North and South but enforced strict Fugitive Slave Laws.
• Kansas-Nebraska Act and "Bleeding Kansas" resulted in violent struggle over slavery.
• Dred Scott v. Sanford declared slaves were property and limited congressional power over slavery.
• Lincoln-Douglas Debates highlighted national divisions on slavery.
• Lincoln’s election in 1860 prompted Southern secession.

Civil War Major Events

• Union advantages: population, railroads, industry, organized government, navy.
• Confederate advantages: military leadership, defensive war, morale.
• Early battles: Fort Sumter (start of war), First Bull Run (Confederate victory), Antietam (bloodiest day), Gettysburg (turning point), Vicksburg (Union controls Mississippi).
• Sherman’s March to the Sea used total war tactics.
• Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox, ending the Civil War.

Reconstruction Era

• Radical Republicans pushed for rights for freed slaves.
• "Scalawags" and "carpetbaggers" influenced Southern politics.
• Freedmen’s Bureau aided former slaves but faced funding issues.
• Black Codes restricted African American freedom.
• 13th (abolition), 14th (citizenship/equal protection), and 15th (voting rights) Amendments passed.
• KKK and white supremacist violence resisted Reconstruction.
• Sharecropping dominated Southern agriculture and trapped many in poverty.
• Reconstruction ended with the Compromise of 1877 and Hayes’s presidency.

Gilded Age: Monopolies, Labor, and Key Figures

• Monopolies formed when one company dominated an industry.
• Railroads transformed towns, economy, and created time zones.
• Industrialists like Carnegie, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt, and Morgan amassed great wealth ("robber barons").
• Labor unions fought for better pay and conditions; major strikes included Great Upheaval, Haymarket, Homestead, Pullman, and Ludlow.
• Government often used troops to end strikes.

Key Terms & Definitions

• Indian Removal Act — Law forcing Native Americans to relocate west of the Mississippi.
• Trail of Tears — Deadly forced migration of Cherokee Indians.
• Spoils System — Practice of giving government jobs to political supporters.
• Nullification Crisis — Conflict over state power to nullify federal laws.
• Abolition — Movement to end slavery.
• Manifest Destiny — Belief in U.S. expansion across the continent.
• Compromise of 1850 — Package of laws to ease North-South tensions over slavery.
• Bleeding Kansas — Violent conflict over slavery in Kansas Territory.
• Total War — Military strategy targeting civilians and resources.
• Reconstruction Amendments — 13th, 14th, 15th amendments granting rights to former slaves.
• Monopoly — Single company control over an entire industry.
• Sharecropping — Farming system where tenants work land for a share of the crops.

Action Items / Next Steps

• Review all highlighted reform movements and Civil War battles.
• Study key Supreme Court decisions and amendments.
• Complete assigned readings on the Great Upheaval strike and Reconstruction.