Lecture 17: Revivalism & Reform (19th Century)

Lecture 17: Revivalism and Reform I. Revivalism & Reform: a. Second Great Awakening: religious revivals across the nation i. Protestant denominations, like Baptists & Methodist, sent preachers to minister to those in backcountry. ii. Outdoors- camp meetin...

Lecture 17: Revivalism and Reform I. Revivalism & Reform: a. Second Great Awakening: religious revivals across the nation i. Protestant denominations, like Baptists & Methodist, sent preachers to minister to those in backcountry. ii. Outdoors- camp meetings: 1. Last for days- people would “camp out” 2. Cane Ridge, Kentucky- 1801: 10,000 people 3. Simple Message of Salvation: a. Individuals could win salvation b. People drawn from all walks of life: i. Men & Women ii. White, African-American, Native American iii. Result of the Second Great Awakening: 1. Growth of religion in America a. Especially evangelical Protestantism: i. Baptists ii. Presbyterians iii. Congregationalists iv. Methodists- the largest v. 1840- ½ of Americans were going to church b. Temperance Movement: i. Americans consumed a huge amount of alcohol 1. 1825- 7 gallons per year per adult (3 times the present-day level) ii. Problems from alcohol abuse: 1. Abuse: 2. Poverty 3. Violence iii. Temperance Movement Organized: 1. Pastors urged congregation to abstain from alcohol a. Preached that alcohol use would damn their souls to hell 2. American Temperance Society formed- 1826: a. By 1836: 5,000 local temperance societies b. Pushed for abstinence in communities 3. Very Successful: a. By 1845- Americans only consuming less than 2 gallons per year c. Family Life: i. “Cult of Domesticity”- first half of the 19th century: 1. Idea that women were masters of the household- in charge of home life. a. Taking care of family b. Caregivers  c. Instructing children and husbands in morality i. Thought to be more moral than men ii. Beliefs about Sexuality: 1. Premarital Sex or Adultery condemned for males and females 2. Double Standard: a. Men not permanently tarnished by engaging in premarital or adulterous sex b. Women’s images were tarnished for the rest of their lives iii. Doctrine of Separate Spheres: 1. Industrialization had led to the separation of home life from business life- at least in the North 2. Sphere of business/politics- dominated by men. 3. Sphere of home and family- dominated by women: a. Nurturers, caregivers, teachers of morality 4. Decline of Women’s Careers- as a result of industrialization: a. Cottage industries were melting away b. Only career left to women- run the home d. Abolitionism: i. Early Abolitionism- prior to 1830: 1. Gradual Emancipation: 2. Colonization: Wanted to settle freed slaves in colonies in Africa 3. Compensation: Compensate owners for their loss ii. New Abolition Movement- 1830’s: More radical 1. William Lloyd Garrison: a. The Liberator- 1831: abolitionist newspaper founded in Baltimore b. Beliefs: i. Immediatism: slavery abolished immediately c. Anti-Colonization: colonization was racist i. Promoted racial equality- wanted freed slaves to remain in America d. Anti-Compensation: 2. Abolitionist Beliefs: Arguments against slavery a. Morally Wrong: b. Went against American Revolution Ideals: c. Hardships brought about by slavery: i. Broke up families: ii. Whipping: iii. Sexual abuse of female slaves: d. Religion and Slavery: argued against slavery on religious grounds 3. Black and White Movement:  a. Frederick Douglass: Black abolitionist leader. Was a slave in Maryland but escaped to the North. iii. Underground Railway:Helped slaves escape to the North. 1. “Conductors”: people who traveled into the south and brought slaves out. 2. “Stations”: homes of abolitionists who gave slaves food and shelter and hid them from the authorities. Slaves would be conducted from station to station 3. Famous Conductor- Harriet Tubman: a. helped over 200 slaves to escape. e. Women’s Rights: Well, another reform movement grew out of the abolition movement. i. Grew out of abolitionist movement. Women not allowed to take on a full role within the abolitionist movement. ii. Elizabeth Cady Stanton & Lucretia Mott- mistreated at a London abolitionist convention iii. Seneca Falls Convention- 1848: Advocated: a. Women’s Education: b. Able to control property c. Equal treatment during divorce d. Right to vote: Controversial iv. Achievements: Put women’s rights on the radar- set the agenda for the rest of the century.