Jackson’s Policies

1. Jackson’s Policies

2. Secede • To withdraw (in our case it means to withdraw from the Union, or United States)

3. Assimilate • To absorb into a culture

4. Indian Removal Act • 1830 law that called for the government to negotiate treaties requiring Native Americans to relocate west.

5. Trail of Tears • Forced removal of the Cherokee from their homeland to Indian Territory. (Indian Territory was present day Oklahoma and parts of Kansas and Nebraska)

6. Jim Beckwourth • Legendary Trapper who explored the West and opened up the fur trade. • Mountain men were a group of trappers and explorers who opened up the western pioneer trails.

7. Santa Fe Trail • Trail that began in Missouri and ended in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

8. Oregon Trail • Trail that ran westward from Independence, Missouri, to the Oregon Territory.

9. Land Speculators • People who buy land in the hope that it will increase in value.

10. Adams vs. Jackson

11. Jackson Loses First Election • Jackson lost the first time he ran for President. His top competitor was John Adams. • John Adams had many plans for his presidency. He wanted to build roads and canals, aid education and science, and regulate the use of natural resources. • Congress was led by people who supported Jackson and they were bitter over his loss. They blocked Adam’s proposals to help the country. • Jackson won the second time around (1828) beating Adams in a heated election.

12. Rising Sectional Differences • The country was being pulled apart at the time of Jackson’s inauguration. • Three major issues were being disputed • 1) Sale of public lands in the West • 2) Federal spending on internal improvements, such as roads and canals • 3) Rising tariffs • Westerners wanted land to be sold at low prices, Northeasterners feared it would take people away from factory jobs • The South opposed rising tariffs, they relied on selling cotton to England and elsewhere.

13. The Nullification Crisis • Congress passed a bill that significantly raised tariffs on raw materials. • Southerners hated the new taxes. • John C. Calhoun (vice president) came up with the doctrine of nullification which allowed states to reject federal laws (the new taxes). • South Carolina threatens to secede and build its own army. • When Jackson won his reelection in 1832, he made it clear that he would use force to see that federal laws were obeyed and the Union preserved. • Henry Clay came up with another compromise that diffused the situation.

14. Native Americans Forced West • Some whites hoped that Native Americans could assimilate, or be absorbed into white culture. • Andrew Jackson supported a policy of moving Native Americans west of the Mississippi River. • Jackson viewed Native Americans as conquered subjects who lived within the borders of the United States. • Many Americans objected to Jackson’s removal proposal. The government passed the Indian Removal Act.

15. Trail of Tears • Jackson immediately set out to enforce the Indian Removal Act. He claimed his policy was “just and liberal”, his policy forever changed relations between whites and Native Americans. • Many Native Americans saw no choice but to sign the treaties that made them move. • Some Cherokees signed the treaty, but most refused to sign. U.S. soldiers took people from their homes with nothing but the clothes on their backs and forced them to make the long journey west in the cold, rain, and snow. A quarter of the Cherokees died. • The Seminoles refused to leave Florida. They were led by Osceola during the Second Seminole War. The Seminoles used surprise attacks to beat the U.S. Osceola was later tricked into surrendering and died in prison.

16. The Early Pioneers • Mountain Men were among the early pioneers who explored beyond the Rocky Mountains. • Jim Beckwourthbecame famous for his adventures and trapping furs. • Many pioneers used the South Pass, a wide valley through the Rockies in Wyoming. • Many people where lured West because they thought they could make a lot of money.

17. Settling the West • The success of early pioneers convinced thousands of families and individuals to make the dangerous journey west. • There were many trails leading west: Santa Fe Trail, Mormon Trail, Oregon Trail, California Trail, and Old Spanish Trail. • Among the first settlers to go to Oregon were missionaries, their reports of Oregon began to attract others. • Most pioneers went west in search of wealth, but one group migrated for religious reasons. Mormons led by Brigham Young moved west to escape religious intolerance. They made a new trial into the Utah area near the Great Salt Lake.

19. Questions • Describe Jackson’s policy toward Native Americans. How did he treat them? • What happened to the Native Americans when the Indian Removal Act was implemented?

20. Manifest Destiny • Belief that the U.S. was meant to expand from coast to coast

21. Zachary Taylor • U.S. general who led the battle over the disputed territory of the Rio Grande

22. Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo • Treaty that ended the War with Mexico

23. Bear Flag Revolt • Rebellion by Americans in 1846 against Mexican rule of California

24. Mexican Cession • Mexican territory surrendered to the United States at the end of the war with Mexico.

25. The War With Mexico:Americans Support Manifest Destiny • Many Americans believed that it was the United States destiny to expand across the continent from ocean to ocean. Manifest Destiny. • Oregon Country became an area of contention between the U.S. and Britain. James Polk promised to take over all of Oregon. • Polk had a good reason for not fighting the British over Oregon Country because bigger problems were rising with Mexico over Texas. • In 1845, congress admitted Texas as a slave state despite Northern objection to the spread of slavery. • Mexico still owned Texas at the time and viewed the annexation as an act of war. • Mexico said they would fight to defend its claim. Polk offered $30 million for Texas, California, and New Mexico but it failed.

26. The War With Mexico • Polk’s next strategy was force. He sent Zachary Taylor with 3,500 troops on the north bank of the Rio Grande. • Mexico ambushed an American Patrol and Congress declared war two days later. • Americans had mixed reactions to the war. Southerners wanted to extend the territory open to slavery, while Northerners feared the expansion of slavery. • General Stephen Kearny took New Mexico, California, and moved south toward Mexico. • Americans in Northern California staged a revolt known as the Bear Flag Revolt, U.S. troops joined forces with the rebels and took control of all of California within weeks. • Defeating Mexico proved difficult, but eventually Taylor defeated Santa Anna in Northern Mexico. U.S. troops went on to take Mexico City and the war was over.

27. Impact of Victory • For Mexico the war meant poor relations with the U.S. For The United States it mean the fulfillment of manifest destiny. • The war officially ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. • Mexico recognized that Texas was part of the United States • Agreed to the Rio Grande being the border between the two nations • Gave up a vast region known as the Mexican Cession (California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona) • In return, the U.S. promised to protect the 80,000 Mexicans living in Texas and the Mexican cession. • The last bit of Arizona was sold to the U.S. for $10 million (Gadsden Purchase)

28. Forty-Niner • Person who went to California to find gold in 1849

29. California Gold Rush • Migration of thousands of settlers to California in search of gold

30. Migration • Movement of people from one country or locality to another

31. Californios • Settlers of Spanish or Mexican descent who populated California

32. The California Gold Rush:Discovery Changes California • Before the forty-niners came, California was populated by as many as 150,000 Native Americans and 6,000 Californios. • James Marshall discovered gold while building a sawmill and it led to one of the greatest migrations in American history. • In 1849, people raced to the American River to seek their fortune. • About 2/3 of forty-niners were Americans, most being white men. • Foreign miners came from Europe, South America, Australia, and China. • Prices for basic supplies rose and actually acquiring gold was brutally difficult work.

33. Final Impact of the Gold Rush • The rush peaked in 1852 and about 250,000 people flooded into California. • California had enough people to apply for statehood and was admitted as a free state in 1850. • Native Americans living in California were devastated by diseases and people ruining rivers while panning for gold. • California passed a Foreign Miners Tax, which imposed a tax of $20 a month on miners from other countries. • Driven from the mines, the Chinese opened shops, restaurants, and laundries which became known as Chinatown in San Francisco.