US History: Key Events and Policies

Missouri Compromise

• Compromise of 1820 admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state.
• Maintained a balance between slave and free states in the Senate.
• Established a line (36°30′) dividing future territories into slave and free.

Causes of the Texas Revolution

• Disagreement over the Texas territory's relationship with Mexico.
• Cultural differences between settlers and Mexican government.
• Issues of slavery and land ownership.

Battle of Fort Sumter

• First military engagement of the American Civil War.
• Confederate forces attacked Union forces at Fort Sumter, South Carolina.
• April 12, 1861.

Oregon Territory

• Disputed territory claimed by both the US and Great Britain.
• Settled peacefully through diplomacy and the Oregon Treaty of 1846.
• Expanded US territory westward.

Manifest Destiny - Definition; Causes

• Belief that it was the right and duty of the US to expand its territory across the North American continent.
• Motivations included economic expansion, religious zeal, and nationalist fervor.
• Contributing factors were population growth, economic opportunity, and technological advancements.

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

• Ended the Mexican-American War.
• Mexico ceded vast territories to the US, including California, Nevada, Utah, and parts of Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, and Wyoming.

Gadsden Purchase

• 1853 purchase of land from Mexico.
• Provided land for the southern transcontinental railroad.

Compromise of 1850

• Series of measures intended to resolve the issue of slavery.
• Included California's admission as a free state, a stronger Fugitive Slave Act, and popular sovereignty in Utah and New Mexico.

Brooks-Sumner Affair

• Violent confrontation in the Senate between Congressman Preston Brooks and Senator Charles Sumner over slavery.
• Highlighted the intense divisions over slavery in the United States.

Wilmot Proviso

• Proposed amendment to prohibit slavery in any territory acquired from Mexico.
• Failed to pass, but further complicated the debate over slavery.

Popular Sovereignty

• Concept of allowing residents of a territory to decide the issue of slavery.
• Used in the Kansas-Nebraska Act, further escalating the division.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

• 1854 law that allowed popular sovereignty in Kansas and Nebraska.
• Repealed the Missouri Compromise.
• Led to violence in Kansas (Bleeding Kansas).

Bleeding Kansas

• Period of violent conflict in Kansas over the issue of slavery.
• Highlighted the extreme polarization over slavery.

Republican Party

• Political party formed in opposition to the expansion of slavery.
• Became a significant force in national politics.

Lincoln-Douglas Debates

• Series of debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas during the 1858 Illinois senatorial campaign.
• Focused on the issue of slavery and popular sovereignty.

Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe

• Anti-slavery novel that increased abolitionist sentiment against southern proslavery arguments.

Dred Scott Decision

• Supreme Court ruling in 1857 that declared slaves were not citizens and had no right to sue.
• Declared the Missouri Compromise unconstitutional.
• Enraged abolitionists and further polarized the nation.

John Brown

• Radical abolitionist who advocated for violent action against slavery.
• Led raid on Harpers Ferry.

Election of 1860

• Abraham Lincoln's victory as President.
• Immediate trigger for Southern secession.

Confederate Economy

• Relied heavily on agriculture, particularly cotton.
• Limited industrial capacity.

Battle of Antietam

• Crucial Union victory in 1862.
• Significant battle in the Civil War, marking a turning point.

Emancipation Proclamation

• 1863 executive order by President Lincoln that declared slaves in Confederate territory free.

Battle of Gettysburg

• Union victory and turning point in the Civil War.

Gettysburg Address

• Speech by President Lincoln at the dedication of the Gettysburg National Cemetery.

Ulysses S. Grant

• Union General who led the Union to victory in the Civil War.

George McClellan

• Union General known for his cautious approach during the Civil War.

Reconstruction

• Period after the Civil War when the Confederate states were readmitted to the Union.

Lincoln's 10% Plan

• President Lincoln's lenient plan for Reconstruction.
• Required 10% of a Confederate state's voters to pledge allegiance to the Union.

Andrew Johnson

• President who succeeded Abraham Lincoln.
• Implemented his own reconstruction plan, which was more lenient to the South.

Wade-Davis Bill

• Congressional reconstruction plan.
• More stringent than Lincoln's 10% plan.

Military Reconstruction

• Period of rebuilding during Reconstruction with military control of the South.
• Enforced policies of federal government.

13th Amendment

• Abolished slavery in the United States.

14th Amendment (Citizenship)

• Granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States.

15th Amendment

• Guaranteed voting rights regardless of race.

Black Codes

• Laws passed in the Southern states that restricted the rights of African Americans.

This quiz covers significant events and policies in US history, including the Missouri Compromise, causes of the Texas Revolution, the Battle of Fort Sumter, and the Oregon Territory. Test your knowledge of the pivotal moments that shaped America's expansion and civil conflicts in the 19th century.