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Progress: Francis Cabot Lowell
Francis Cabot Lowell was an American businessman for whom the city of Lowell, Massachusetts is named. He was partially responsible bringing the Industrial Revolution to the US. Lowell also pioneered the employment of women from New England farming families, as textile workers. He paid these "mill girls" lower wages than men. They lived in boarding houses and were involved in religious and educational activities. This system played a large role in the development of industrial America. -
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Conflict: Henry Clay
Henry Clay, Sr. was an American lawyer and planter, and statesman who represented Kentucky in both the United States Senate and House of Representatives. He served three non-consecutive terms as Speaker of the House of Representatives and served as Secretary of State under President John Quincy Adams from 1825 to 1829. Clay ran for the presidency in 1824, 1832 and 1844. Despite his presidential losses, Clay remained a dominant figure in the Whig Party, which he helped found in the 1830s. -
Progress: The Invention of the Cotton Gin
A cotton gin is a machine that quickly and easily separates cotton fibers from their seeds, allowing for much greater productivity than manual cotton separation. The fibers are then processed into various cotton goods such as linens and textiles including clothing. The first modern cotton gin was created by Eli Whitney in 1793. It revolutionized the cotton industry in the United States, but also led to the growth of slavery in the South as the demand for cotton workers rapidly increased. -
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The American Dream: The Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was a network of secret routes and safe houses used by African enslaved people in the US in efforts to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists and allies who were sympathetic to their cause. Various other routes led to Mexico or overseas. The Underground Railroad reached its height between 1850 and 1860. One estimate suggests that by 1850, 100,000 slaves had escaped via the "Railroad". -
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Expansion: Construction of the Erie Canal
The Erie Canal is a canal in New York that is part of the east-west, cross-state route of the New York State Canal System.It was built to create a navigable water route from New York City and the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. The canal made transport of good much easier and was the most cost effective way to do this. It connected the country in several ways and increased efficiency. -
Conflict: The Missouri Compromise
In an effort to preserve the balance of power in Congress between slave and free states, the Missouri Compromise admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state. This law also prohibited slavery in the Louisiana Territory north of the 36° 30´ latitude line, with the exception of Missouri. In 1854, the Missouri Compromise was repealed by the Kansas-Nebraska Act. -
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Conflict: The Election of 1824
The election of 1824 was the only one in history to be decided by the House of Representatives, after no candidate secured a majority of the electoral vote. It was also the only presidential election in which the candidate who received a larger amount of electoral votes, who was Andrew Jackson, did not become President. This was a source of great contempt for Jackson and his supporters, who proclaimed the election of Adams a corrupt bargain. -
Progress: Founding of the Lowell Mills
By 1840, the factories in Lowell, Massachusetts employed more than 8,000 textile workers, primarily women and children from farming backgrounds. The Lowell Mills were the first hint of the industrial revolution to come in the US. For many workers, employment brought a sense of freedom. They were able to earn their own money and live independently. Others criticized the system and fought against the harsh working conditions and long hours. -
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Progress: The Introduction of Railroads
Railroads played a large role in the development of the United States from the industrial revolution in the North-east to the settlement of the West. The American railroad craze began with the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1828 and flourished until the Panic of 1873 bankrupted many companies and temporarily ended growth. The introduction of railroads made transport of everything from goods to people easier, and connected and expanded the US in ways that it hadn't been before. -
Conflict: The Tariff of Abominations
The Tariff of Abominations was a protective tariff designed to protect industries in the North, which were being driven out of business by low-priced imported goods being taxed. The South was harmed directly by having to pay higher prices on goods the region did not produce. The reaction in the South would later lead to the Nullification Crisis. -
Conflict: Spoils System
Originating around 1830, a spoils system is a practice in which a political party, after winning an election, gives government jobs to its supporters, friends and relatives as a reward for working toward victory, and as an incentive to keep working for the party—as opposed to a merit system, where offices are awarded on the basis of some measure of merit, independent of political activity. This system is associated with Andrew Jackson, and was met with great opposition. -
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Expansion: The Invention of the Telegraph
Developed in the 1830s and 1840s by Samuel Morse and other inventors, the telegraph revolutionized long-distance communication. It worked by transmitting electrical signals over a wire laid between stations. In addition to helping invent the telegraph, Samuel Morse developed Morse code, which assigned a set of dots and dashes to each letter of the alphabet. The telegraph laid the groundwork for the communications revolution. -
Conflict: Indian Removal Act
The Indian Removal Act was signed into law by President Andrew Jackson, and authorized the president to grant unsettled lands west of the Mississippi in exchange for Indian lands within existing state borders. A few tribes went peacefully, but many resisted the relocation policy. During the fall and winter of 1838 and 1839, the Cherokees were forcibly moved west by the United States government. This forced march became known as the "Trail of Tears." -
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Conflict: The Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears was a series of forced removals, following the passage of the Indian Removal Act, of Native Americans from their homelands in the Southeastern United States to an area west of the Mississippi River. The removal included members of the Cherokee, Muscogee, Seminole, Chickasaw, and Choctaw nations.
The Cherokee removal in 1838 (the last forced removal east of the Mississippi) had approximately 2,000-6,000 of the 16,543 relocated Cherokee perish along the way. -
Conflict: Worcester v. Georgia.
Worcester v. Georgia was a case in which the United States Supreme Court chose that held that the Georgia criminal statute that prohibited non-Native Americans from being present on Native American lands without a license from the state was unconstitutional. The case stated that the federal government had the sole authority to deal with Indian nations. It is considered to have built the foundations of the doctrine of tribal sovereignty in the United States. -
Conflict: The Nullification Crisis
The Nullification Crisis started after South Carolina declared that the Tariffs of 1828 and 1832 were unconstitutional and would not be accepted within boundaries of the state. The state then passed an ordinance of nullification on November 24, 1832, and threatened to secede from the Union if the federal government attempted to collect those tariff duties. -
Progress: The Invention of the Mechanical Reaper
The mechanical reaper is a farming tool that cuts and gathers crops at harvest. The 19th century saw several inventors in the United States claim innovation in mechanical reapers.The various designs competed with each other, and were the subject of several lawsuits. The first of these was from Obed Hussey, who patented his in 1833, followed by the McCormick Reaper patented in 1837. This invention revolutionized the idea of mass-agriculture and made the system more profitable and efficient. -
Conflict: The Whig Party
The Whig Party was formally organized in 1834, bringing together groups united in their opposition to what party members viewed as the tyranny of “King Andrew” Jackson. They borrowed the name Whig from the British party opposed to royal prerogatives. -
Expansion: The Invention of the Steel Plow
Invented by John Deere, the steel plow was used for farming to break up tough soil without soil getting stuck to it. Wood plows couldn't plow the rich soil of the Middle-West without breaking.
The steel plow was the first step to making farm equipment that we know today. A single plow shank led to making a plow with more and more shanks to cover more ground. Americans were able to plant enough crops to take care of our growing nation. -
Conflict: Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was a combination of 5 different laws. California was admitted as the 16th free state. In exchange, the south was guaranteed that no federal restrictions on slavery would be placed on Utah or New Mexico. Texas lost its boundary claims in NM. Slavery was maintained in the nation's capital but the slave trade was prohibited. Finally, a fugitive slave law was passed, requiring northerners to return runaway slaves to their owners under penalty of law.