38 Questions
What was the approximate duration of the Era of Good Feelings in the United States?
1815-1825
Who was the wife of a French Canadian fur trapper and served as a translator during the Lewis and Clark expedition?
Sacagawea
What was the primary factor contributing to the population growth during the Era of Good Feelings?
High birth rate and low infant mortality
What invention is credited with significantly impacting the economy during the Era of Good Feelings?
Eli Whitney's cotton gin
What was the title of Thomas Jefferson's letter to Adams in response to the Missouri Compromise?
A Fire in the Night
What economic policy was emphasized during the Era of Good Feelings?
Economic Nationalism
What was the primary impact of the cotton gin on the institution of slavery in the United States?
It revitalized the institution of slavery by increasing the demand for slaves in the Western territories
What was the primary purpose of the Erie Canal?
To allow Western farmers to ship surplus crops to sell in the North and Northern manufacturers to ship finished goods to sell in the West
What was the primary goal of the temperance reform movement in the United States?
To restrict the production and consumption of alcohol in order to address social problems
What was the primary outcome of the Missouri Compromise?
The admission of Missouri and Maine as a slave and free state, respectively, with the establishment of the 36°30' parallel as the boundary between slave and free territories
What was the primary cause of the nullification crisis of 1832?
The attempt by the South to nullify the tariffs imposed by the federal government
What was the primary feature of the Auburn Penitentiary System?
Congregate system with workshops and group meals
What was the primary motivation behind the reform efforts of Dorothea Dix in the 1820s?
To treat the insane as mentally ill
What was the main goal of the American Colonization Society?
To reduce the number of enslaved people in the US
What was the significance of the Walker's Appeal?
It was a document that called for slaves to revolt against their masters
What was the main reason behind the Texas Revolution?
The Texans wanted to establish a republic based on the principles of liberty and freedom
What was the outcome of the Mexican War?
The US won the war and gained a significant amount of new territory
What was the significance of the Wilmot Proviso?
It was a proposal to prohibit slavery in new US territories
What was the main issue behind the Nullification Crisis of 1832?
The dispute over the tariff rates imposed by the federal government
What was the main goal of the Bear Flag Republic?
To establish an independent republic in California
What was the primary objective of Henry Clay's compromise for California?
To admit California as a free state and organize the remainder of the southwest without restriction on slavery
What was the significance of the 36°30' line?
It was the boundary between the North and South in the Louisiana Territory
What was the primary reason the Confederate States of America were unable to defeat the North in the American Civil War?
The combined reasons of a, b, and the strong naval block around the Confederacy
What was the main consequence of the Dred Scott Decision?
The court ruled that slaves were not citizens and had no right to sue in federal court
What was the significance of the Battle of Vicksburg in the American Civil War?
It split the Confederacy in two and gave the North control of the Mississippi River
What was the main difference between the Constitution of the Confederate States of America and the United States Constitution?
All of the above
What was the purpose of the Gadsden Purchase?
To acquire parts of present-day New Mexico and Arizona in exchange for $10 million
What was the strategy of the Union during the American Civil War, as outlined by Winfield Scott?
The Anaconda Plan, a naval block around the Confederacy to strangle its economy
Who was the presidential candidate who supported the Compromise of 1850 in the Election of 1852?
Franklin Pierce
What was the Freeport Doctrine?
A doctrine that said the exclusion of slavery in a territory could be determined by the refusal of the voters to enact laws that would protect slave property
What was the significance of the Emancipation Proclamation, issued by President Lincoln in 1863?
It gave Confederate states 100 days to come back to the Union, and if they did, they could keep their slaves
Who was the leader of the unsuccessful raid at Harper's Ferry, Virginia?
John Brown
What was the main difference between Presidential Reconstruction and Congressional Reconstruction?
Presidential Reconstruction was less harsh on southern whites, while Congressional Reconstruction was more protective of freed blacks
What was the outcome of the Lincoln-Douglas Debates?
The debates helped to establish Abraham Lincoln as a national figure
What was the purpose of the Omnibus Bill?
To contain a single document that accepted a number of amendments to various laws
Who was the Senator who authored the Kansas-Nebraska Act with Senator Stephen Douglas?
A.P. Butler
What was the result of the Sack of Lawrence?
The burning of most of the city of Lawrence and the theft of their hogs
What was the main issue of the Election of 1856?
The denouncing of the abolitionists and the noninterference by Congress with slavery in the territories
Study Notes
Era of Good Feelings (1815-1825)
- Period of peace, pride, and progress in the United States
- Characterized by economic growth, westward expansion, and nationalism
Area Growth
- Louisiana Purchase: Thomas Jefferson bought land from Napoleon for $15 million
- Lewis and Clark's expedition: 20-person crew explored the west, traveling 8,000 miles, and gathering ecological and social information
- Sacagawea: French-Canadian fur trapper's wife, translator, and guide who played a crucial role in the expedition
Population Growth
- High birth rate and low infant mortality contributed to population growth
- Inventions like the cotton gin and telegraph facilitated rapid growth
Economic Nationalism
- Emphasis on domestic control and protection of the economy
- Thomas Jefferson's "Fireball in the Night" letter: Missouri Compromise disturbed the American people, leading to a sense of national crisis
Cotton Gin and Expansion
- 3/4 of the world's cotton production came from the South
- The cotton gin, invented by Eli Whitney, sped up the rate of separating cotton 50 times
- Domestic slave trade expanded, leading to the "second middle passage" and revitalization of slavery
Transportation and Commerce
- Steamboats: enabled transportation through water and canals, increasing market access and trade
- Erie Canal: connected New York cities of Albany and Buffalo, allowing western farmers to ship surplus crops and northern manufacturers to ship finished goods
Sectionalism
- Five factors contributed to sectionalism:
- Shift in trade flow from north to south to east to west
- Missouri Crisis
- Nullification Crisis
- Antislavery reform
- The Texas Question
Missouri Compromise
- James Talmadge Jr.'s failed attempt: proposed no more enslaved people, and freedom at 25 for those born into enslaved families
- Congressmen Henry Clay's successful compromise: admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, with the Missouri Compromise line applying only to the Louisiana Purchase
Nullification Crisis
- Southerners wanted to nullify tariffs, which they believed were causing prices to rise
- John C. Calhoun proposed nullifying federal law, leading to the crisis
Antislavery Reform
- Led by churches, business owners, and women's groups
- Goals: stop people from drinking, selling, making, and transporting alcohol
- Problems: family violence, health, unemployment, and ungodly behavior
War with Mexico
- Significant because it was the first time the US invaded another country, and the first war to be covered by reporters and photographed
- US won, gaining 525,000 square miles of land
Other Key Events
- Wilmot Proviso: proposed banning slavery in new territories, but failed
- Election of 1848: Zachary Taylor won, and California applied for statehood, leading to the question of slavery
- Henry Clay's Compromise: failed, but led to Stephen Douglas' compromise, which admitted California as a free state and organized the remainder of the southwest without restrictions on slavery
Test your knowledge of the Era of Good Feelings, a period of peace and progress in the United States from 1815-1825. Learn about the Louisiana Purchase, Lewis and Clark's expedition, and the country's westward expansion.
Make Your Own Quizzes and Flashcards
Convert your notes into interactive study material.
Get started for free
