Unit 3

Antebellum America

Antebellum: a time period before a war; specifically before the U.S. Civil War

I. The Industrial North

The Industrial Revolution is the name for the birth of modern industry and the social changes that came with industrial growth.

Occurred from the mid-1700s to the mid-1800s.

First began in England.

James Watt’s steam engine powered the I.R. in Eng. and later in the U.S.

The North Industrializes

The British made it illegal for anyone with knowledge of industrial machines to leave the country.Samuel Slater broke the law when he brought knowledge of the new industrial machines to Am.

Built a water-powered spinning mill in Rhode Island (the 1st textile mill in the US)

Most of the industrial growth took place in New England and others parts of the northeast

This region has fast-flowing streams which were used to power the factories

By 1810: More than 60 textiles miles along streams in New England

Francis Lowell created the Lowell System…every aspect of production took place under one roof and employees lived in company-owned housing

The textile industry boomed in the city of Lowell, MA

Many of his workers were women – the “Lowell girls”

This system was used for the next several decades in factories across the North

Advances in Transportation

1. Roads The National Road (Cumberland Road)

was the first major road built in the US – built from 1811 to 1838 – Maryland to Illinois

By 1840: A network of roads connected cities in the US, promoting travel and trade

2. Canals1825: Erie Canal opened – connected Great

Lakes with the Atlantic OceanBy 1840: More than 3,000 canals had been

built in the Northeast

3. Steamboats Robert Fulton developed the first

successful steamboat, the Clermont, in 1807 Steamboats, or riverboats, made shipping

faster and allowed larger amounts of goods to be shipped at one time

By 1850: over 700 steamboats travelled up and down the Miss. River and other waterways

4. The “Iron Horse” (Trains) 1830: Peter Cooper built the Tom Thumb, a

tiny but powerful train (10 mph!!) Railroads allowed producers to ship goods

across the country cheaper and faster

Other Inventions from the First Industrial Revolution:

Steel plow: invented by John Deere – helped farmers especially in the Great Plains (tough grasses)

Telegraph: perfected by Samuel Morse – sent first message in 1844…“What hath God wrought?” - benefited the North more than the South

Immigration greatly increased during the Industrial Revolution (jobs were available)The majority of immigrants struggled just to

survive in the USLow wages, long hours, and unsafe working

conditions were the norm in factories

The “Know-Nothings”:A secret, anti-immigrant organizationWhen asked about their activities, members

answered, “I know nothing”Started a new political party (the American

Party) and had 1 million members by the 1850s

The first Industrial Revolution impacted the US in several way – How??

1. New technologies made life “easier”

2. Immigration to the US increased

3. Urbanization, or the growth of cities, occurred because most of the factories were in or around urban areas

II. Cotton and the South

Cotton changed life in the South, but only after the cotton gin made large-scale cotton production possibleInvented by Eli Whitney in 1793 – removes

the seeds from the cottonSide Note…Whitney’s concept of

“interchangeable parts” (for muskets) impacted future inventions as well (ex: Henry Ford’s Model T)

The booming textile industry of the North bought cotton to weave into clothing - England also wanted and bought the South’s cotton.

The number of cotton plantations began to increase in the South due to two factors:

1. Development of the cotton gin (easier and faster)

2. The demand for cotton from the North and from England

Slavery Expands

More and larger cotton plantations meant more labor was needed1810-1840: The number of slaves in the South

doubled to nearly 2.5 million (1/3 of the South’s total population)

More slaves = More cotton = More money

So, what impact did the cotton gin have on slavery??? It actually led to more slaves in the South.

Differences in North and SouthNorth

Free states Favored a strong

national gov’t More nationalist Urban Industrial Strong

transportation network

Dependent on immigrant labor

South Slave states Favored states’ rights

over a strong national gov’t

More sectionalist Rural Agricultural Weak transportation

network Dependent on slave

labor

Religion Sparks Reform

Second “Great Awakening” (1820s-1830s)Americans began attending revival meetings

in record numbersFollowers were told they had the

responsibility to do God’s work on earthResult: 1000s of Americans began to reform,

or reshape, American life

III. A Push For Reform

Major Reforms Included:

1. Temperance Movement: an attempt to eliminate or lessen the use of alcohol Supporters believed alcohol was linked to

sickness, poverty, and the breakup of families

2) Education Reforms: wanted more children to be educated and worked to improve education

Horace Mann: education reformer

3. Prison Reforms: Dorothea Dix campaigned for prison reform after she saw horrible conditions in a Mass. prison

She convinced states to create state-sponsored mental hospitals

4. Urban Reforms: most of the people in the cities lived in tenements (poorly made, crowed apartment buildings) – very unhealthy conditions

Sanitation rules were established in some cities, but most didn’t change until the late 1800s

Women in the Reform Era:Early 1800s: For the most part women

couldn’t vote, hold public offices, or serve on juries

Married women were not allowed to own property

But, women still played a key role in the reform movements

Seneca Falls Convention (July 1848)The first women’s rights convention held in

AmericaOrganized by Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth

Cady StantonSigned the Declaration of Sentiments –

stated that “all men and women are created equal”

Women’s suffrage, or the right to vote, was a key issue discussed

IV. The Abolition Movement

Life as a Slave:Most slaves lived on farms or plantations in

the SouthCotton farming required many workers doing

many different tasksSome slave worked in cities (factories, mills,

stores, etc.)Food, clothing, shelter, and medical care were

all inadequateSlaves had no rights under the law and were

treated as property

Anti-slavery Efforts in the SouthNot all African Americans in the South were slavesMid-1800s: about 250,000 were freedmen, or free

African AmericanFreedmen played a leading role in anti-slavery

activities1831: An uprising led by Nat Turner became the

deadliest slave revolt in American history (dozens of whites killed) – Turner and 19 others caught and hanged

Underground Railroad: a constantly changing network of escape routes (Harriet Tubman was a famous “conductor”)

Abolition Movement in the North

Abolition Movement in the NorthThe abolition movement was formed to help

abolish, or end, slaverySupporters were called abolitionistsThe Second Great Awakening helped

increase the movement (slavery went against religious beliefs)

Frederick Douglas, a former slave, was a leading abolitionists

V. Expansion Leads to Conflict

Manifest Destiny: the idea that it is the country’s destiny to expand and possess territory all they way to the Pacific OceanThis was fueled by the growing sense of

nationalism

Reasons for Migrating West1.Religious: Christians to spread the gospel

to Native Americans; Mormons to escape religious persecution (settled in Utah under the leadership of Brigham Young)

2.Financial: Gold in California; silver in Nevada (just 2 examples)

3.Land: Southerners to grow cotton; the poor to start a new life

Major western trails established by 1850:1. Santa Fe Trail: Independence, Missouri to

Santa Fe, New Mexico

2. Oregon Trail: Independence, Missouri to Oregon – 2,000 miles long

3. Mormon Trail: Illinois to Salt Lake City, Utah

As settlers moved to the West, conflict in those areas increased:

1. Texas War for IndependenceTexas was once a part of MexicoMany Americans lived in Texas and had to

agree to give up their US citizenship, swear allegiance to Mexico, adopt the Catholic religion

1836: Texas declared it’s independence from Mexico and its new President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna

After losing the Alamo, the Texans won at San Jacinto and captured Santa Anna

Forced Santa Anna to sign a treaty giving Texas its independence

Texas was now a new, independent nation…The Republic of Texas

1845: Texas was annexed (added) to the US and became a state after much debate in Congress (slavery was the issue)

2. Oregon Territory Early 1800s: US and England occupied

the Oregon Territory jointly and peacefully 1843: President James K. Polk said the

US had the right to claim the territory up to 54º40’ N

“Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!” became a common slogan

1846: US and England compromised and made the 49th parallel the border between the US and Canada

Oregon was now a US territory

3. Mexican-American War Mexico still considered Texas as Mexican

territory since Santa Anna signed the treaty as a prisoner

President Polk wanted more than just Texas; he also wanted the land between Texas and the Pacific

US offered to buy the land, but Mexico refused to even talk about it

May 1846: War began after a border dispute (Rio Grande River?)

Sept. 1846: War was over – US captured NM, CA, and Mexico City

Treaty of Guadalupe Hildalgo: ended the war

1. Mexico gave up its claim to TX2. Mexico gave up a huge tract of land to US

(Mexican Cession) in exchange for $15 million US received all or parts of NM, CA, NV,

AZ, UT, CO, WY

California Gold Rush (1849)1848: A carpenter discovered gold at John

Sutter’s sawmill in northern CATried to keep it a secret, but word soon

spreadPeople as far away as Asia, South America,

and Europe heard the news and headed to CA to strike it rich

80,000 moved to CA in 1849 alone (49ers)By 1854: 300,000 had migrated to CA

Gadsden Purchase (1854)Southern NM and AZ bought from Mexico for

$10 millionUS wanted the land for a southern railroad

line

VI. Slavery Divides the Nation

The issue of whether or not slavery would be allowed in the West divided the nationSoutherners supported expanding slavery to

the WestNortherners, for the most part, opposed this

ideaAlso, feelings of sectionalism, or pride in

one’s region, began to emerge

Major Issues Regarding Slavery

1. Missouri Compromise (1820) In 1819 there were 22 states in the Union –

11 were slave states, 11 were free states Missouri wanted to be admitted to the

Union as a slave state Northerners opposed it because it would

give slave states a majority in the Senate

The solution was called the Missouri Compromise

a. Missouri was admitted as a slave state

b. Maine (once a part of Massachusetts) was admitted as a free state

c. Slavery was banned north of Missouri’s southern border

This kept the balance between slave and free states, but feelings of sectionalism emerged

2) Compromise of 1850The Mexican Cession added more than

500,000 square miles of territory to the USNew states would eventually be formed –

Would they allow slavery?March 1850: California applied to become

a state and the territory had already banned slavery

Henry Clay (“The Great Compromiser”) introduced the Compromise of 1850 to keep the balance of power:

a. Admitted California as a free stateb. Gave popular sovereignty (the right of the

residents to choose) to NM and UT territories

c. Fugitive Slave Law – all citizens must help catch or turn-in runaway slaves (outraged northerners)

d. Outlawed the buying and selling of slaves, but not slavery itself, in Washington DC

3) “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”A novel written by Harriet Beecher Stowe in

response to the Fugitive Slave LawWrote about a cruel southern slave ownerAdded to the tension between the North

and South – southerners were outraged in how they were described

4) Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854) Illinois Senator Stephen Douglas

proposed organizing western lands into two territories – Kansas and Nebraska

To win southern support, he suggested dropping the Missouri Compromise’s ban on slavery

The Kansas-Nebraska Act became law in May 1854:

a. Organized Kansas and Nebraska Territories

b. Popular sovereignty was to decide the issue of slavery in each territory

Northerners were outraged again

5) “Bleeding Kansas”Pro-slavery and anti-slavery supporters

began to fight for control in KansasSeveral “battles” took placeAbolitionist John Brown killed 5 pro-slavery

settlersThis struggle became known as “Bleeding

Kansas”After years of struggle, Kansas was

admitted as a free state

6) Dred Scott Decision (1857)Dred Scott, a slave, had lived on free soil for

many yearsHe sued for his freedom after his master

died, arguing that living on free soil made him free

In Dred Scott vs. Sandford the US Supreme Court ruled against him

The Court said Scott “had no rights which the white man was bound to respect”

Slaves were still considered “property”

7) John Brown’s RaidBrown raided the US arsenal at Harper’s

Ferry, VA in an attempt to get guns for a slave revolt

US military, led by Robert E. Lee, captured Brown and his followers

They were tried for murder and treason against VA and sentenced to death

Brown was executed in December 1859Some questioned his sanity, but many

northerners viewed him as a heroSoutherners viewed the attack as a threat to

the institution of slavery

VII. Lincoln’s Path to the PresidencyA Frontier UpbringingLincoln was born in 1809 in a one-room cabin

in KentuckyHis parents were poor, and like many white

southerners, they held no slavesTheir opposition to slavery was one of the

reasons they moved to Indiana Territory in 1816

1828: Lincoln took a job on a riverboat moving produce to New Orleans and saw a slave auction for the first time

Lincoln’s Early Political CareerMoved to New Salem, a village near Springfield,

IL as a young manTook a job as a store clerk and then ran for a seat

in the state legislature1834: Began the first of four terms in the IL

General Assembly and began to study law1842: Married Mary Todd, the daughter of a KY

slaveholder1846: Elected to Congress and proposed

compensated emancipation, or paying slaveholders to free their slaves (rejected)

Lincoln also believed that only the states had the right to end slavery within their borders

1849: Resigned from Congress and returned to IL to practice law

The Lincoln-Douglas DebatesLincoln returned to politics after the passage

of the Kansas-Nebraska ActSaid he was “thunderstruck and stunned” by

its passage1858: Decided to run against Stephen

Douglas for a US Senate seatQuoting from the Bible, Lincoln said in a

speech, “A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure, permanently half slave and half free…It will become all one thing or all the other.” (southerners saw this as a threat to slavery)

Lincoln-Douglas Debates took place across IL from August to October 1858

Douglas continued to support popular sovereignty

Lincoln spoke about the immorality of slaveryDouglas defeated Lincoln, but they would

meet again

Election of 1860 Slavery was the major issue The Democrats were so divided over slavery

that the party split and 3 candidates were nominated:

1. Stephen Douglas of IL – nominated by the Democratic Party (northern democrats)

2. John Breckenridge of KY – nominated by southern Democrats

3. John Bell of TN – nominated by the Constitutional Union Party

Lincoln was nominated by the new Republican Party

The vote was almost completely split along sectional lines

Lincoln carried (won) the more populous North and won the presidency

Southerners were shocked – How could a man be elected President and not win one single southern state?

The South Secedes Following Lincoln’s election, states in the

lower South began to secede (a formal separation) from the Union

These states feared a northern-controlled government would act to end slavery

1. South Carolina (1st) 5. Mississippi

2. Georgia 6. Louisiana

3. Florida 7. Texas

4. Alabama

Reactions to Secession

Many southerners opposed secession because the decision was made by politicians not voters

Some northerners felt the US would be better off without the slave states, so they should let them go

Other northerners, including Lincoln, questioned whether secession was even legal

Forming the ConfederacyFeb. 1861: The 7 seceded states met in Montgomery, AL to form a new nation and to write a new constitution that guaranteed slavery

Created the Confederate States of America, or the “Confederacy”

Each state governed themselves but would come together and fight for a common goal (independence)

Chose Jefferson Davis, a former US senator from Mississippi, as president

Problems: no currency, no buildings for gov’t officials, no established military

Attempts at Compromise Fail

Crittenden Compromise: proposed by Sen. John Crittenden from KY

1. Would guarantee slavery where it already existed

2. Would reinstate the Missouri Compromise line and extend it to the CA border

3. Slaveholders would be compensated for runaway slaves

Powerful leaders in both the North and the South opposed this compromise

For many southerners, no compromise could undo their main reason for secession…Lincoln’s election

Lincoln privately opposed any plan that allowed for the extension of slavery to the Western territories

March 1861: Lincoln becomes President and promised again that he would not interfere with slavery where it currently existed

Would this promised save the Union?

The Civil War Begins

April 1861: The first shots of the Civil War were fired at Fort Sumter – off the coast of Charleston, SC

This was a Union fort on Confederate soil – not acceptable for the Confederacy

Confederate troops captured the fortLincoln’s call for volunteer troops forced the

slave states still in the Union to choose a side

4 more states chose not the fight against their fellow southerners and seceded from the Union:

8) Virginia 10) Tennessee

9) North Carolina 11) Arkansas Leaders on both sides wondered what the

slaveholding border states of Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, and Missouri would do (All chose to stay in the Union)

The battle lines were drawn, the bloodiest war in the history of the United States had begun!