AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF THE USA

HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Seminar Unit 2

Topics for discussion:

1. The period of confederation.

2. Forming a union. Plan for new government.

3. Testing the new government: first presidents in office.

4. Reforming American society and industry.

5. The westward movement, the acquisition of new territories.

Reading material:

1. The people of the United States gained their political independence through the Revolution. Each of the former colonies became a state, and together, the states became a nation. Yet the future of the country was far from certain. It was still to be determined how well the states would be able to work together. Close to 3 million people, living along a coast stretching from Georgia to Maine, had to learn to govern themselves as one country.

During the war with Britain, the Second Continental Congress was the governing body for the rebelling colonies. In 1777, the congress drew up a plan for government. Known as the Articles of Confederation, the plan was put into effect in 1781. It set up a confederation among the 13 states. The Articles protected the freedom and independence of each state. It also provided a structure for governing the country as a whole.

The Articles of Confederation set up a one-house congress with representatives from the states. In this legislature, each state had one vote. The Confederation congress had the authority to make war and peace. It also ran the postal service, coined money, set standards of weight and measure, and managed affairs with the Indian peoples. All 13 states had to agree before an amendment (a change in the provisions) could be made in the Articles of Confederation. During the time that the congress was not in session, a committee of states managed the day-to-day business of the nation. One delegate from each state made up the committee.

The Articles of Confederation was the first United States constitution—a written plan of government. The government, guided by this plan, handled the problem of the western lands. Having no strong central organization, it was unable to handle other problems, however. The weaknesses of the Confederation plan of government were seen in both foreign affairs and business at home.

One of the major problems in foreign affairs was relations with Britain. The British government did not favor American trade with the British Empire. Britain tried to keep Americans from trading directly with the nearby British West Indies. Without British markets, there was a strain on the economy of the new nation.

Spain also created problems for the United States economy. Spanish leaders refused to allow Americans to use the port of New Orleans at the mouth of the Mississippi River. Without this port, western farmers could not ship their goods down the river to the Gulf of Mexico, then to European and other markets. Americans were upset that their national government could not solve these problems.

One of the most serious problems faced at home also concerned trade. The national government had no authority to control trade among the states. Each state set its own laws. One state could tax products coming in from other states. States argued over control of rivers and harbors.

In March 1785, representatives from Virginia and Maryland met to discuss problems between the two states. The Virginia legislature then invited all the states to send delegates to a larger convention on matters of trade among the states.

This conference met at Annapolis, Maryland, in September 1786. Delegates from only five states—New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Virginia—came to this convention, however. Two delegates at the meeting, Alexander Hamilton of New York and James Madison of Virginia, were eager to have the states consider a complete overhaul of the Articles of Confederation. The members of the Annapolis Convention adopted a report written by Hamilton to hold another convention in Philadelphia. This meeting was supposed to come up with ways to revise the Articles of Confederation so that the government would be able to deal more effectively with the problems of the United States.

2. The convention in Philadelphia opened May 25, 1787. The meetings were held in the State House, where the Declaration of Independence had been signed. Attending the convention were 55 delegates, elected by the legislatures of 12 states. The leaders of Rhode Island were against any move to strengthen the government, so they did not send delegates.

Most of the convention members were young and came from the landowning upper classes. More than half were college-trained, and many were lawyers. An important question faced the delegates from the beginning of the convention. They had to decide if the Articles of Confederation should be improved or if an entirely new plan of government be written. Many of the delegates had received instructions to work only to improve the Articles. Other delegates felt strongly that a new plan of government was needed.

The Convention showed clearly that many delegates were open to changing the structure of the government and not just revising the Articles of Confederation. But smaller states, like New Jersey, were against it.

The issue of representation was a difficult one. It was settled by compromise—a settlement of differences by each side giving up part of what it wants. The delegates decided to have two houses of congress: the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each state was to have two Senators which were to be selected by its legislature. Small and large states, therefore, would be equally represented in the Senate. The number of delegates in the House of Representatives would be determined by the number of people in each state. Qualified voters in each state would elect their state's Representatives. The states with the most people would have a stronger voice in the House of Representatives.

Within this so-called Great Compromise was a second compromise which resolved a conflict between slave and free states. Slave states wanted to count all slaves when deciding the population for setting the number of Representatives in the House. Free states did not want slaves figured into the count. It was agreed that three fifths of the number of slaves should be counted to determine the number of Representatives. It was also agreed that the slaves were to be counted the same way in deciding each state's share of taxes.

The Great Compromise helped to settle several problems facing the delegates, but there were still others to be solved. Many northern states wanted to give the national government authority to control trade. Southern states feared that such authority might be used to end the slave trade and to create high tariffs (taxes on imported goods). The delegates reached a compromise that was acceptable to northern and southern states. The national government was given the exclusive power to regulate trade among states and with other countries, including the power to tax imports. Congress could not, however, put a tax on any export. In addition, Congress could not interfere with the slave trade for 20 years.

Other issues had to be resolved, too. For instance, the delegates decided that the national government was to have three branches or parts. In addition to the legislature, there was to be a national executive branch, headed by a president. The executive branch was to carry out the laws passed by the legislature. The third branch, a national judiciary or court system, also was set up. The majority of the delegates signed the Constitution of the United States on September 17.

The document was then sent to the Congress of the Confederation. That group submitted it to the states for their approval. Citizens elected special state conventions to consider the Constitution. Nine of the state conventions had to ratify (approve) it before the new government could be put into effect. Acceptance of the Constitution by the states was not certain. In each state, there were fierce debates over whether to approve the Constitution or to keep the Articles of Confederation. Some people feared the authority given to the national government. Many felt that their liberties and the rights of the states were more secure under the Articles of Confederation.

Two different groups emerged in the struggle to ratify the Constitution. Those in favor of ratification were called Federalists, because they wanted a strong federal (national) government. Those against the Constitution were known as Anti-Federalists.

The ranks of the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists had people from every class, area, and economic interest. Well-known figures like George Washington and Benjamin Franklin favored ratification. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay carefully worded the Federalists' ideas in a series of articles for people to read in newspapers. Later the articles were bound together into two books called The Federalist Papers.

Many of those who were active in the move toward independence in the 1770's supported the Anti-Federalists in 1787. Patrick Henry, Samuel Adams, George Mason, and George Clinton were among those opposing a change in the national government. To them, the new constitution would destroy the rights of the states and individual liberties of the people. The decision to ratify or reject the Constitution began in the state conventions in the fall months of 1787. In 1788, enough states voted in favor of ratification to put the Constitution into effect.

One of the most important objections to ratifying the Constitution in many states was that it did not include a list of definite individual rights. Laws which limited the authority of the government over the individual had been written into the Constitution. Yet there were those who felt that these personal rights should also be spelled out. Before many of the states approved the Constitution, they insisted that such a list be added to it.

Soon after the new government began, these rights were written down by Congress. Called together the Bill of Rights, they were approved by the states and added as the first ten amendments to the Constitution on December 15, 1791. Among the basic rights guaranteed to all citizens were freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, and the right to a trial by jury. Also included were the right of assembly, the right to bear arms, and protection from cruel and unusual punishments.

Review questions:

1. What were the two major accomplishments of the Congress of the Confederation?

2. How did Britain violate the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1783?

3. How was trade between states regulated?

4. What was the Great Compromise?

5. What was the three-fifths compromise?

6. Why did the Anti-Federalists oppose the new constitution?

7. What was the purpose of The Federalist Papers' ?

8. How many states were needed to approve the Constitution?

9. What was the Bill of Rights?

3. During the first few years after the Constitution was adopted, the future of the new nation was in question. The United States was not yet unified. Most people still felt they were citizens of a certain state rather than citizens of the United States.

As soon as the Constitution had been ratified, the new plan for government was set in motion. The first members of the Senate and the House of Representatives were elected. Then state legislatures chose electors whose task was to choose the President and Vice-President. In the country's first presidential election, George Washington was selected President, and John Adams was named Vice-President. Early in 1789, the new leaders of the country gathered in New York, the national capital, to begin work.

As chief executive, President Washington thought his major task was to execute or carry out the policies set by Congress. In practice, the President also became a maker of policies. He did this by setting precedents—acts that would serve as examples in later situations. One of the first things Washington did was select people to head the executive departments newly set up by Congress. Washington met with these people and asked for their advice in government matters. They became the Cabinet, or body of advisors, and every President has had one.

Washington also made policies in foreign affairs. He gained more power for his office in this field than was stated in the Constitution.

One of the most important goals of the Framers of the Constitution was to make a strong court system. It would protect the rights of the people and keep them from being harmed by governments or by other people. To do this, Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789. It set up a system of courts that is still working, although sometimes the numbers of the courts have changed.

The lowest courts in this system were district courts set up to hear cases involving federal law. Next were the circuit courts, which hear cases, sent to them on appeal—the review of a lower court's findings by a higher court. This happens when there is some question about the first court's ruling. The Supreme Court is the highest court in the country and the last court of appeal.

Those who were forming the new government wanted it to be strong. To keep order at home and to be on equal terms with other countries, the United States had to have a strong economy. During Washington's first term, government leaders wanted to set up an economic program that would make the country prosperous. Alexander Hamilton, the Secretary of the Treasury, drew up such a program.

Although Hamilton's economic plans were working, they had drawn strong opposition from the beginning. Perhaps the greatest disagreement was over the Bank of the United States. Thomas Jefferson thought the law setting up the Bank of the United States was unconstitutional because the Constitution did not specifically give Congress the power to set up a bank. He understood the Constitution to mean only what it actually said. His view was called a strict construction (narrow interpretation). Hamilton understood the Constitution to mean much more than it said. It gave Congress the power "to make all laws necessary and proper" to carry out its work. Hamilton felt this gave Congress the power to set up a bank. This view was called a loose construction (broad interpretation). The disagreement marked the start of two ways of understanding the Constitution.

Two political parties were formed out of these differences. One group was the Federalists, led by Hamilton. The other was Democratic-Republicans, usually called Republicans, led by Jefferson. Generally, Hamilton's followers favored a strong national government. They interpreted the Constitution broadly in order to give the federal government as much power as possible. Most Federalists believed that people of wealth and education should hold office, and the economy should be based on industry and trade as well as agriculture. Jefferson’s supporters, on the other hand, favored the rights of the states, and they interpreted the Constitution strictly. They believed that average people should lead the country. They thought the economy should be based on agriculture with industry and trade less important.

In 1796 President Washington prepared to leave office. During his two terms, he had helped establish the new government on a solid foundation.

The presidential election of 1796 was the first between political parties. John Adams ran for the Federalists and Thomas Jefferson ran for the Democratic-Republican. The vote was close but Adams received a majority and was elected President.

Differences between the Federalists and Democratic-Republicans grew stronger as the election of 1800 drew near. The Federalists worried that they might lose the election. They were alarmed at the growth of the Democratic-Republican party. Much of it came from immigrants joining that party.

When Thomas Jefferson was elected in 1800, it marked the beginning of many years of Democratic-Republican control in the United States. In an inaugural address made at his inauguration, Jefferson tried to quiet the fears of many Federalists who believed that he would make sweeping changes. He called upon all citizens to work together.

Jefferson liked to call his election the "Revolution of 1800." It showed that, in the United States, one political party could be defeated and the opposition party could take power peacefully. So far as policies were concerned, Jefferson's election was by no means a revolution. The biggest change he made was to cut government costs sharply, mostly by cutting money spent for the army and navy. He also ended the whiskey tax and raised money through customs duties and selling federal land.

When Jefferson took office, he told Secretary of State James Madison to hold the papers that would allow the new officials to start their jobs. William Marbury brought suit against Madison to make him turn over the papers on his appointment. The case came before the Supreme Court. Chief Justice John Marshall stated the opinion of the Court in 1803. He said Marbury had a right to the papers, but that the Court could not force Madison to turn them over to him. According to the Judiciary Act of 1789, the Court had the power to give such orders. Marshall said that the Court could not do so because that part of the Judiciary Act was unconstitutional.

The case of Marbury v. Madison was the first time that the Supreme Court declared an act of Congress to be unconstitutional. In later decisions over the years, the Marshall Court said that the powers of the federal government were above those of the states in cases of constitutional law. All of these decisions made the judicial branch of the government as strong as the executive and legislative branches.

Soon after he became President in 1801, Jefferson learned that Napoleon of France was taking control of Louisiana away from Spain. Louisiana was a huge area stretching from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains. The people of the West depended on the Mississippi River and New Orleans, the gateway to the sea, to get their goods to market. They were afraid that the French would close the Mississippi River and New Orleans to American use.

Napoleon had been planning to build a new French empire in North America. He had to give up those plans, however, because he knew that he could not hold Louisiana against the British. So he offered to sell Louisiana to the United States.

Very little was known about the area west of the Mississippi River. In 1804, President Jefferson sent a United States Army expedition under Captain Meriwether Lewis and Captain William Clark to explore the new territory

President Jefferson began his second term of office in March 1805. He hoped to continue the policies which had brought peace and prosperity to the country during his first term. The United States had gained much from the long war between Great Britain and France. Both European countries bought American goods. Both allowed American merchants to trade with their West Indian islands. Things began to change, however, and foreign relations again became a major concern. Between 1804 and 1806 Great Britain began to blockade the American coast to stop American ships loaded with goods on their way to France. The British acts angered people in the United States and many Americans were ready for war. Jefferson, however, wanted to avoid it.

In 1808 James Madison became President. Soon after the election, the Non-Intercourse Act was passed. It allowed Americans to trade with any country except France and Great Britain. There was another reason why Americans were angry with Great Britain besides interference with trade and impressment. The British in Canada were helping the Indians fight American settlers along the western frontier. During this time, more and more settlers were crossing the Appalachian Mountains, forcing the Indians to move farther west. Many people in the West called for war against Great Britain. They thought that this was the way to stop the British aid to the Indians along the western frontier. Many were also convinced that Spain was giving aid to the Indians in the southeast. Great Britain and Spain were allies, and it seemed that the two countries were working against the United States.

On August 19, British forces landed on the coast of Maryland, They defeated an American army at Bladensburg, Maryland, and marched toward Washington, D.C. Several thousand American soldiers and government officers fled to Virginia. British soldiers entered Washington and burned the Capitol and the White House, home of the President. The British were acting in revenge for the burning of the Canadian city of York (Toronto) by Americans. Next the British decided to attack Baltimore. But they were not able to break down the defenses of Fort McHenry just outside the city. During the three-day shelling of the fort, Francis Scott Key, who watched the battle, wrote a poem titled "The Star-Spangled Banner." Later it was set to music and became the national anthem of the United States.

After their failure to take Baltimore, the British attacked New Orleans on January 8, 1815. But they were defeated. Many Americans felt they had won the war, but victory in the battle had no effect upon the war’s outcome. Because of the slowness of communication, the Battle of New Orleans was fought after the treaty of peace had been signed on December 24, 1814 in Ghent Belgium.

The spirit of nationalism that swept the country after the War of 1812 led to a time of political unity. Because of this, the years that James Monroe served as President were called the "Era of Good Feelings." By 1816, the Federalist party had died, and in 1820, the Democratic-Republican candidate Monroe was reelected without opposition. The political unity was short-lived, however. It had only existed on surface. New forces were at work which would soon change the American political system. In 1828, these forces put Andrew Jackson in the White House. More than any other person, Jackson stood for the growing power of the American people in government. Because he was so important to the politics of the time, the years from 1828 to 1840 are known as the "Age of Jackson."

But by 1824, the "Era of Good Feelings" was drawing to a close. Differences began to arise between groups in the party. It was during this time that new parties began to take shape.

As the country grew, different sections—the Northeast, South, and West—began to form. Often they had different ideas and concerns. This gave rise to sectionalism—rivalry based on the special interests of different areas in a country. In 1824, each area offered its own candidate for President. All of the candidates called themselves Democratic-Republicans. None of the candidates won the necessary majority of electoral votes in 1824. For cases like that, the Constitution states in the Twelfth Amendment that the House of Representatives is to choose the President from the top three. Because Jackson had received the largest number of votes his supporters expected him to be chosen. But with the help of another candidate Henry Clay, who came in fourth, Adams was chosen President. But later sectional differences led to a split in the Democratic-Republican party. In 1828, there would again be two parties in the election.

Followers of Jackson were determined that he would win the election of 1828. They worked hard to gain support for him all over the country. People in the sections of the country backed Jackson for different reasons. Those in the South thought Jackson believed in states' rights. In the West, people hoped Jackson would use federal money to build roads and canals. The new Democratic party was strong in certain states of the Northeast, such as Pennsylvania and New York. In 1828, Andrew Jackson received 178 electoral votes to 83 for John Quincy Adams. Jackson won the election with a clear majority. He was the first person from the West to become President.

Jackson became President at a time when greater numbers of people in the United States were able to take part in politics. The Constitution had allowed each state to decide which of its citizens could vote. Older state laws had limited voting to white males who owned property. Often there were also religious restrictions. Qualifications for suffrage (the right to vote) were first changed in the new states west of the Appalachian Mountains. Their laws allowed almost any white male citizen to vote or hold office. The laws of the eastern states changed more slowly.

Up to this time, the Presidency had been far-removed from control of the people. Candidates for President and Vice-President had been selected by party leaders in closed meetings, or caucuses. Then electors, picked by the state governments, selected the President and Vice-President from among the candidates. By the early 1830s, the candidates were nominated by conventions, and citizens voted directly for presidential electors.

In 1832, Jackson was reelected by a wide margin. Andrew Jackson was from a frontier state-Tennessee. He shared with many Americans at that time the view that the Indians were blocking settlements. As President, Jackson set up a plan for moving the Indian groups to lands west of the Mississippi River. During the years of Indian resettlement, more than 100,000 people were forced west across the Mississippi River.

Review questions:

1. What major problems did the United States face during the first 50 years

under the Constitution?

2. What cultural developments after the War of 1812 showed a greater emphasis of the

people on democracy?

3. .Who do you think won the War of 1812? Why do you think so?

4. What evidence can you give for the growth of nationalism and sectionalism in the country at the same time?

5. Washington, Jefferson, and Jackson are among the great American Presidents.

What did each do that had a major influence on the government of the United States?

6. Why was Washington, D.C., made the capital of the country? How did it

differ from the other cities which had served as the national capital?

7. What political parties existed in the first 50 years of the United States?

Why did each develop?

8. Why did President Jackson, a strong nationalist, not support the position of the federal

courts in the case of the Cherokee Indians against the state of Georgia?

4. A move toward reform began in the early 1800's and lasted through the first half of the century. These same years saw a flowering of American culture. During the early 1800's, reformers tried to improve almost every area of American life.

Slavery had become more and more rooted in American life since the country's beginning. Some people wanted to abolish, or put an end to, it. Known as abolitionists, they spoke out against slavery at a time most Americans accepted it. Many free blacks also worked against slavery. For many years, abolitionists were unpopular in both the North and South. Slowly, however, more and more people came to agree with the views of these people.

During the early years of America's history, women had few legal or political rights. They could not vote or hold public office. When a woman married, any property she held belonged to her husband. There were few educational opportunities, and most professions were closed to women. In the 1840's, some people began to work to improve the position of women. Lucretia Mott and several other women had gone to London to attend an antislavery conference. They were not allowed into the meeting because they were women. So they decided to begin working for equal rights for women. In 1848, the first women's rights convention met in Seneca Falls, New York. Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton had done most of the organizing for this meeting. Those attending wanted equal political, social, and economic rights for women. They wrote a statement modeled on the Declaration of Independence.

Ideas about schools were also changing by the middle of the 1800's. Most schools before then were only for white children. In the South, general education for blacks was not allowed, although some slaves learned to read and write. There were also some independent schools for free black children. Elementary schools for whites were most often church schools. There children learned to read and write about their religions. Private schools were mostly for training young men as church, government, and business leaders. Those private schools and colleges often cost too much for most people.

By the 1830's, this situation was changing. Many Americans began to agree that schools should be free to all children. Citizens needed to be able to read, write, and understand issues in order to vote. Farmers in the West, workers in eastern cities, and newly-arrived immigrants wanted their children to have the chance to improve their lives. There was an increase in the demand for public, tax-supported schools.

In the first half of the 1800's, efforts were made to give women more opportunities for education. Up to this time, women had generally not been allowed to enter schools of higher learning.

The books used by teachers and students during this period were also changing. Noah Webster, sometimes called the "schoolmaster to America," tried to develop a uniform American speech. In 1828, he wrote a dictionary and a speller. Thousands of these books were sold all over the country. Webster and others, like William McGuffey, published readers that contained stories praising American life. Improving the lives of persons with handicaps began to receive more attention during the 1830's and 1840's. In 1817, the Reverend Thomas Gallaudet founded a school for people with hearing and speech difficulties in Hartford, Connecticut.

The growth of democracy and the spirit of perfection influenced society and culture during the first half of the 1800's. Reformers worked to improve their society and shape American social institutions. These years were also important in the development of an American culture. The writers of the time created a national literature and set a standard which served to inspire later writers. These social and cultural forces helped to strengthen the bonds of national unity. However, disagreements over such problems as slavery were beginning, at the same time, to divide the nation.

In the years after the American Revolution, the United States imported most of its manufactured goods. Many Americans agreed with Thomas Jefferson's statement: "Let our workshops remain in Europe." Jefferson and others wanted the United States to stay a country of individually-owned farms. During these years, some manufacturing was done in homes or small workshops. Manufacturing became more important to the American economy with the coming of the Industrial Revolution. This was a series of great changes that took place in industry—the making and selling of goods—starting in the 1700's. It began in Great Britain with new power-driven machines. It later spread to other countries around the world.

As machines began to be used, products were made in factories instead of by one person at home or in a small shop. In the past, the people of the United States had mainly produced raw materials such as cotton, lumber, iron, and wheat. And until the 1800's, artisans like blacksmiths used hand tools to make their products. Shoes, saddles, hats, wagons, nails, flour, and books were all made by hand. People in England had carefully guarded their knowledge of manufacturing. Machinery or plans for it were not allowed to be taken out of the country.

During the early 1800's, the country moved steadily away from the system of home manufacture. More and more work was done in the new textile mills. The factory system brought great change into the lives of a people used to farming their own land and making their own decisions.

In America, the need for new ways to do things produced a large number of inventions. The rapidly growing manufacturing in the 1800's was aided by the larger number of new machines. In 1793, Eli Whitney developed a machine to remove the seeds from cotton. This discovery made mass production possible.

In 1839, Charles Goodyear discovered a way to cure rubber that made it able to stand great heat or cold. This process, vulcanization,made rubber practical for industrial use.

In 1844, Samuel F. B. Morse finished his experiments with an electric telegraph by sending a message from Baltimore to Washington, D.C. The telegraph made it possible to send and receive news quickly.

Elias Howe invented a machine in 1846 which could sew cloth faster than a person could by hand. Isaac Singer improved the sewing machine in 1851. This speeded up the manufacture of clothing.

Machines had an effect on farming as well as manufacturing. Many of the new inventions made it easier to farm on a large scale. One of the most important was a mechanical reaper for harvesting grain invented by McCormick, who later set up a factory to manufacture reapers.

With more and more machines being used in farming and manufacturing, the need for iron grew. The United States had been producing iron in small mills for many years. The Lehigh, Susquehanna, and Delaware river valleys were early iron centers. Furnaces were set up near sources of wood, which was used in making charcoal.

The rise of manufacturing and greater farming added to the need for better transportation. The United States had begun to improve transportation by building a system of roads. The National Road and similar projects were finished in the years from 1810 to 1860. Road transportation was slow and costly, however. Farmers and manufacturers began to demand cheaper means of transportation. This led to a time of canal building, as boats or barges could carry larger loads at less cost.

By the 1830's, canals were being dug all around the country, though mostly in the North. Pennsylvania developed a system of waterways connecting Philadelphia with other areas of the state. Ohio and Indiana had canals linking the Great Lakes and the Ohio River. New Jersey linked the Delaware and Raritan rivers. Both Virginia and Maryland built canals reaching from the Atlantic coast to farm areas in the western parts of those states. There were few important canals in the South. Generally, these rivers served the needs of the South.

Neither the improvement of roads nor the building of canals solved the problem of slow transportation. The early 1800's, however, different inventors began to develop new means of transportation which were also faster. The steam engine was invented and by 1860, there were nearly 1,000 steamboats in service on the river. The steam engine was applied to land transportation at about the same time as it was being used in steamboats. By 1850, New England had a system of railroads which connected nearly every city in the area. In 1852, the first railroad linking Detroit and Chicago was finished. However, there were not nearly as many miles of track in the South as in the North and Middle West.

With the growing number of railroads came a rise in related industries. There was a greater need for iron, timber, and coal. A communications system also developed along with the railroads. Telegraph lines were set up along the tracks, and the use of the telegraph improved railroad service. Messages could be sent from station to station giving the arrival and departure times of trains.

By 1850, New England had a system of railroads which connected nearly every city in the area. In 1852, the first railroad linking Detroit and Chicago was finished. The Rock Island Line built the first bridge over the Mississippi River in 1856. In the South, lines ran from Charleston and Savannah to Atlanta. However, there were not nearly as many miles of track in the South as in the North and Middle West.

The factory system and the new industries in the middle 1800's led to a growing number of cities. Towns were built near factories because people had to live close to their work. Older cities grew, and new cities were started as the factories were built. There was a tremendous growth in the number and size of cities before I860. In 1790, about 5 percent of the population lived in urban areas. By 1860, the number of people living in these areas had reached nearly 20 percent.

One of the major problems facing people who lived in cities was having enough water. City governments began building waterworks and dams to form reservoirs—places where water is collected and stored for use. The problem of water supply also became serious in New York City. In 1842, the Croton Dam was built to form a reservoir for the city.

Many changes were taking place in the United States as the country industrialized. More people took jobs in factories and lived in cities. The population of the country was growing rapidly. There was also an increase in immigration to the United States from other areas of the world. When George Washington became President of the United States in 1789, the nation had nearly 4 million people. By 1810, the population had reached 7 million and by 1850, 23 million. Part of this growth came from a heavy flow of immigration beginning in the 1820's.

During the years from 1820 to 1840, over 700,000 immigrants landed on the shores of the United States. Nearly 60 percent of these people were German or Irish. A second large movement of immigrants to the United States began in the 1840's. Altogether, well over 4 million people came to the United States in the years from 1840 to 1860.

The experiences of the immigrants when they arrived in the United States followed certain patterns. For the most part, people from Germany arrived with some money. Many were able to move to areas where land was available, such as the Middle West.

When Irish immigrants landed in the United States, they generally did not have the money to buy farms or land. They often settled in eastern seaports, such as New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. In 1855, there were more than 50,000 Irish living in Boston. Nearly two thirds of the Irish immigrants to America settled in the northeast section of the country. Irish workers were important sources of labor around the country for the factories and for canal and railroad building.

During the 1830's and 1840's, a movement against the immigrants began in America. Members of the group were known as Nativists because they were native to, or born in, the United States. Most were Protestants of British background. Nativists feared competition for jobs from immigrants who worked for low wages. Nativists also believed that the country was in danger from the large numbers of Catholics coming there to live. Because most Irish immigrants were Catholics, the movement was largely directed against them. There were violent clashes in several cities between Nativist groups and Irish immigrants.

Review questions:

1. Who were the abolitionists?

2. What came out of the women's rights convention of 1848?

3. What were the steps taken to improve education?

4. What were the major inventions of the middle 1800's?

5. Which development made mass production possible?

6. How did inventions influence industry?

7. What new methods of transportation were developed?

8. Which actions were taken to improve life in the cities?

9. What groups of people came to America from 1820 to 1860?

10. Why did Nativists oppose immigrants?

5. Americans had begun to explore the lands west of the Mississippi River before many areas to the east of it were settled. The Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804 to 1806 gave people in the United States their first information about the Louisiana Territory. Soon other Americans were exploring and settling lands in the West. Moving across the Mississippi River into the huge area of the West presented exciting challenges and new problems to Americans and the United States. The United States followed up the Lewis and Clark expedition with others.

Americans moved into the lands west of the Mississippi River for the same reason that they had always moved west—for cheap and plentiful land. Large numbers of settlers started farms in Iowa, Arkansas, and Missouri in the 1820's and 1830's. By the 1840's, much of the Mississippi River Valley was settled, and interest began to grow in lands farther west. In 1845, a magazine editor first used the term manifest destiny. He wrote that it was the manifest destiny, or certain fate, of the United States to stretch from ocean to ocean. Many people in all parts of the country agreed with him.

Oregon was one of the areas in the West which attracted Americans. In the early 1800's, Oregon was claimed by four different countries—Great Britain, the United States, Russia, and Spain. Beginning in the 1840's, "Oregon fever" gripped many Americans. In 1841, the first wagon train made the trip overland from Independence, Missouri, to Oregon. Soon other larger trains were making the 2,000-mile (3,200-kilometer) journey. These pioneers followed a path which came to be called the Oregon Trail. Many of these pioneers started farms there.

The journey to Oregon took from four to six months. The people who made it faced dust, rainstorms, and sickness along the trail. Indians sometimes attacked, trying to stop the settlers moving through their lands. Snow was a danger once the wagon trains reached the Rocky Mountains. Often wagon wheels broke or metal tires fell off from the changes in temperatures. Despite the hardships, there were soon 5,000 Americans living in the Oregon country. All of them lived south of the Columbia River, but they far outnumbered British people in the area. In 1843, they set up a temporary government. These settlers wanted the United States to stop sharing control of the area with Great Britain.

Americans had become more interested in the land of Oregon in the 1840's. At the same time, they were looking to the lands south and west of the Louisiana Territory. These lands belonged to Spain until 1821, when Mexico declared its independence. By the 1820's, Americans were trading and sometimes settling in Texas, New Mexico, and California. In the 1840's, people from the United States and Europe came to live in California. In a few years, several hundred Americans were living in California. There was talk of adding California to the United States.

Texas interested the people in the United States chiefly because of its rich soil. In the early 1800's, southern cotton growers had begun migrating west from Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia. The soil in these states had become worn out. The farmers looked for better land in the Gulf regions. Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama became important cotton-growing states. In the 1820's, planters were looking to Texas as a real source of rich land on which to grow cotton, using slave labor. By the early 1830's, there were 30,000 settlers from the United States living in Texas. Most were from the South, and many owned slaves. Slavery and other troubles soon led to quarrels between the Americans in Texas and the Mexican government. Mexico had ended slavery and objected to the holding of slaves by Americans living in Texas. At the same time, Mexicans began to wonder whether loyalty of the Texas settlers was to the United States or to Mexico. They tried to stop more Americans from entering Texas.

In 1834, General Antonio L6pez de Santa Anna became president of Mexico. He wanted the government to control all of Mexico, including Texas, at a time when Texas wanted more freedom in local affairs. When the Texans rebelled in 1835, Santa Anna took steps to stop them. He crossed the Rio Grande with 6,000 soldiers. The main Mexican army under Santa Anna marched toward San Antonio. At the Alamo, a deserted mission in San Antonio, 187 Texans held out for several days against nearly 4,000 Mexican soldiers. The Mexican army finally took the Alamo. In the attack, the defenders, including the famous frontier fighters Jim Bowie and Davy Crockett, were killed. A second Mexican force defeated a Texas army at the town of Goliad and killed over 300 prisoners. "Remember the Alamo" and "Remember Goliad" became important battle cries for Texans.

On March 2, 1836, Texans declared their independence. Sam Houston was placed in charge of the army. On April 21, 1836, Texas troops under his command won a victory that ended the war. They attacked and defeated the larger Mexican army near the San Jacinto River. Santa Anna was captured. He agreed to leave Texas with his army. Texans set up their own government like that of the United States. They chose Sam Houston as their first president.

Many Americans expected that Texas would be annexed, or added, to the United States after winning its independence. Over the next several years, however, the American government avoided the issue. Leaders feared war with Mexico since Mexico had not recognized the independence of Texas. They also did not want to stir up trouble over slavery.

In the election of 1844, James K. Polk became President of the United States. During the campaign, he had called for the annexation of both Texas and Oregon. Since most people living in Texas were Americans, they wanted Texas to be a part of the United States. On March 1, 1845, Texas became a state.

President Polk sent an agent to Mexico to talk about the border dispute and to try to buy California and New Mexico. When Polk heard that Mexican officials would not meet with this agent, he sent the troops to the north bank of the Rio Grande. Mexico saw this as an invasion of its land. Polk began preparing a message asking Congress to declare war on Mexico for refusing to meet with his representative. On May 13, 1846, Congress declared war on Mexico. As the war went on, some Americans began to demand more territory. A few even wanted to annex all of Mexico. Most Americans at least wanted to get California and New Mexico. The government also wanted Mexico to agree that Texas was part of the United States.

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed early in 1848. The United States paid Mexico $15 million for all the land north of the Rio Grande and the Gila River. This area included the present states of California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and parts of Colorado and Wyoming. Several years later, the United States found that the best southern railroad route to the Pacific coast was south of the Gila River. In 1853, the United States paid Mexico $10 million for the strip of land that now forms the southern part of Arizona and New Mexico. This deal was known as the Gadsden Purchase. Including Texas, the United States had gained a huge area of over 1 million square miles. It had good soil, many natural resources, and ports on the coast of California.

Once the United States gained control over large areas of the West, Americans began moving into these new lands. One event which drew people to the West was the discovery of gold. In 1848, James Marshall found gold on the property of John Sutler in California. Word spread rapidly. By 1849, large numbers of people were making their way from the East to California by ship or overland. This movement was called the gold rush. During 1849, more than 80,000 people came to California from Europe, Mexico, China, and the United States. They were known as "forty-niners" because of the year in which most of them came. Gold mining camps were quickly set up in the mountain valleys of central California. San Francisco grew up as an important trading center and source of supplies.

At first, there seemed to be a great deal of gold. Miners often found it near the surface of the earth where it was easy to mine. Only a few people, however, became rich mining for gold. Many were disappointed and returned home. Some left to try their luck in other gold or silver booms in Nevada, Colorado, and later in Montana. Others settled down to farming or business. As a result of the gold rush, the population of California increased rapidly. It became a state in 1850.

As more and more settlers entered western lands, the government pushed the Indians into ever smaller areas. As land was taken by settlers, many of those Indians who had already been sent from the East to areas of the West were made to move again. Some groups of Indians in more remote areas of Arizona, Montana, and other parts of the West, were not affected much in the years before 1860. However, conflicts continued in the years after 1860 that would affect Indians in all areas.

Review questions:

1. What was the role of explorers and trappers in the westward movement?

2. Why did merchants, settlers, and political leaders want to expand the United States to the Pacific Ocean?

3. Which route did Americans follow in traveling to Oregon?

4. What happened to the Spanish missions in California when Mexico gained

its independence from Spain?

5. What did the Mexican government ask of Americans who settled in Texas?

6. How did Texas become independent? How did it become part of the United

States?

7. Which discovery in California attracted many Americans to that area?

HISTORY MAPS:

Supplementory material:

Moving West.

Bryn O'Callaghan

AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF THE USA

Seventeenth impression 2004

Reference (available in the library):

1. G.D. Tomakhin. Across the USA.

2. American Life and Institutions (D.K. Stevenson).

3. R. Morris. Encyclopedia of American History.

4. C. Chesterton. A History of The United States.

5. B. Kennedy. The American Spirit.

6. B. Kennedy. The American Pageant.

7. A. Brinkley. The Unfinished Nation.

8. J.M. Blum. The National Experience.

9. W. LaFeber. The American Age.

10. S.I. Kutler. Looking for America.

11. P. Marshal. The Light and the Glory.

12. Интернет версия англо-русского лингвострановедческого словаря «Американа». http://www/americana/ru

13. Understanding American History and Culture.Учебное пособие. Часть 1.

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