Chapter 9: The Rise of a New Nation, 1815-1836

1. The Emergence of New Expectations
   1. New Expectations in the Northeastern Economy
      1. Cut off from European manufactured goods, Americans started to make more textiles and other items for themselves.
         1. The spread of textile manufacturing during the embargo and war eras was astonishing.
      2. Factories in New England and elsewhere eventually supplied more and more of the country’s consumer goods.
         1. This changed economic roles as well as the hopes of many Americans.
   2. The Emergence of the Old South
      1. The technological and economic changes that came in the war’s wake pumped new energy into the South’s economy.
         1. But the mechanization of the British textile industry in the late eighteenth century brought dramatic changes.
         2. The production of cotton cloth rapidly increased, and the need for raw cotton fiber grew.
      2. Eli Whitney found a solution to the problem of the time and labor regeared.
         1. Whitney designed a machine that quickly combed out seeds and did not require a large number of skilled operators.
         2. The outcome of Whitney’s inventiveness was the rapid spread of short-staple cotton.
      3. With the departure of the British naval blockade, cotton growing began to spread at a staggering rate.
   3. New Opportunities in the West
      1. As the economy began to recover, many rushed to the frontier to seek their fortunes.
      2. Collaboration between the United States and Native Americans helped to prevent renewed warfare, but at enormous cost to the Native Americans.
2. Politics and Diplomacy in an "Era of Good Feelings"
   1. The "American System" and New Economic Direction
      1. The Republicans’ domestic initiatives included:
         1. Reestablishment of a national bank.
         2. Federal financing for roads and canals (vetoed by Madison).
         3. The Tariff of 1816.
      2. Republicans sought to create a national market economy.
         1. They envisioned regional economic specialization in the West, South, and Northeast.
         2. A transportation network and a strong currency would link the three.
      3. The Republicans won decisively in 1816.
         1. The popularity of their domestic plans led to sweeping victory.
   2. James Monroe and the Nationalist Agenda
      1. The Monroe administration resolved remaining differences with England.
         1. The Rush-Bagot Agreement reduced the size of American and British fleets on the Great Lakes.
         2. The Convention of 1818 settled the issues of American fishing rights in the Atlantic, the border with Canada, and the occupation of Oregon.
      2. In the Adams-Onís Treaty, the United States obtained Florida from Spain.
         1. Secretary of State Adams exploited the opportunity presented by Andrew Jackson’s unauthorized incursion into Florida to negotiate with Spain.
   3. The Monroe Doctrine
      1. Britain proposed an alliance with the United States to prevent intervention by other European nations in Latin America.
         1. Many of Spain’s colonies had declared their independence; most European powers seemed ready to assist Spain.
      2. The Monroe administration decided, instead, on unilateral action.
         1. Monroe announced that the United States would oppose intervention by Europeans in Latin America.
3. Dynamic Growth and Political Consequences
   1. The Panic of 1819
      1. Unsafe financial practices swept through the country after 1800.
         1. The Land Ordinance of 1800, liberalized by another ordinance in 1804, led to risky farm purchases.
         2. Land speculators extended credit to poor credit risks.
         3. Banks provided overly liberal credit.
      2. International developments undermined the economy.
         1. The demand for U.S. goods fell in Europe.
         2. Gold and silver ceased flowing to Europe as Latin American nations became independent.
      3. A six-year depression began in 1819.
         1. Tightened credit produced financial panic.
   2. Economic Woes and Political Sectionalism
      1. Conflict over protective tariffs divided the nation’s three major sections.
         1. Northeastern manufacturing interests wanted high protective tariffs.
         2. Southerners, who relied on imported manufactured goods, opposed protective tariffs.
         3. The West supported higher tariffs in 1824 in return for northern support for Cumberland Road expenditures.
   3. The Missouri Compromise
      1. Missouri’s application for statehood also became a sectional issue.
         1. Controversy over whether it would be a slave state or a free state was really about the political balance between the sections in Congress.
      2. The Missouri Compromise sought to please both North and South:
         1. Missouri and Maine - one slave, one free - would become states.
         2. No slavery would be allowed above 36' 30" in the Louisiana Purchase except in Missouri.
      3. A second compromise approved Missouri’s constitution, but not its restrictions on free blacks.
   4. New Politics and the End of Good Feelings
      1. The election of 1824 reflected sectional divisions.
         1. Clay, Adams, and Crawford were each supported by different regions.
         2. Jackson, alone, attracted support in all regions.
      2. The House of Representatives determined the election.
         1. Jackson won the popular vote but did not win a majority in the Electoral College.
         2. The House chose Adams after Clay threw his support to him.
      3. The outcome ended the single-party system.
         1. Adams made Clay secretary of state.
         2. Jackson withdrew from the Republican party, charging that Adams had won corruptly.
4. The "New Man" in Politics
   1. Adams’s Troubled Administration
      1. Adams did not prove to be popular as president.
         1. He refused to use political patronage to build support.
         2. His policies did not appear to have the interests of the common man at heart.
         3. The Tariff of Abominations established tariff rates that were unpopular with almost everyone.
   2. Democratic Styles and Political Structure
      1. Political participation became more democratic between 1800 and 1830.
         1. Property requirements to vote and to serve in office were gradually eliminated.
         2. Nearly every state by 1828 adopted popular election for the members of the Electoral College.
      2. Political organizations multiplied.
         1. In New York, Martin Van Buren pioneered in the organization of disciplined and local organizations.
         2. Others in New York organized the Antimasonic party.
   3. The Rise of King Andrew
      1. By 1826, Van Buren organized the Democratic party.
         1. He assembled a coalition of political leaders from all sections.
         2. The new party threw its support to Andrew Jackson.
      2. Jackson trounced Adams in the election of 1828.
5. The Presidency of Andrew Jackson
   1. Launching Jacksonian Politics
      1. Jackson introduced the popular step of appointing officeholders for only four years.
         1. Use of patronage consolidated the Democratic party’s control of power.
      2. Jackson expanded the power of the presidency.
   2. Jackson and the Indians
      1. Americans viewed Native Americans east of the Mississippi as hindering westward expansion.
      2. After the War of 1812, the government pressured Native Americans to move west of the Mississippi.
         1. This produced factionalism and conflict within the tribes.
      3. Adams at times protected the Native Americans.
         1. He refused to go along with the proposed 1825 treaty marked by fraud.
         2. But he supported settlers who illegally sought to take control of Winnebago lands in 1827.
      4. Jackson’s policy emphasized aggressively moving all Native Americans west of the Mississippi.
         1. The Indian Removal Act gave him authority to force Native American tribes to relocate.
         2. He employed military force against the Sauks.
         3. He refused to take action in behalf of Georgia’s Cherokees, despite the Supreme Court’s decision in Worcester v. Georgia.
         4. Jackson’s administration negotiated with a minority faction of the Cherokees to obtain title to all remaining Cherokee land east of the Mississippi (Treaty of New Echota).
         5. The government forcibly moved most of the Five Civilized Tribes west of the Mississippi.
         6. Part of the Seminole tribe went to war and successfully resisted forcible relocation.
   3. Jackson and the West
      1. Political calculation guided Jackson on the issue of federal support for internal improvements.
         1. He vetoed the Maysville Road bill to block Clay, benefit his own state, and retain support in the East.
      2. He backed very low prices for public land.
   4. The Nullification Crisis
      1. South Carolina led the South’s opposition to protective tariffs after passage of the Tariff of Abominations.
         1. Calhoun’s South Carolina Exposition and Protestargued for the right of a state to nullify federal acts.
      2. Jackson opposed the doctrine of nullification.
         1. Following South Carolina’s decision to nullify the tariff, he sent warships and reinforced federal forts there.
         2. He asked Congress to enact the Force Bill.
      3. Resolution of the crisis:
         1. Congress passed a lower tariff, and South Carolina rescinded its nullification of the previous tariff.
         2. South Carolina nullified the Force Bill, but Jackson did not respond to this provocation.
   5. Jackson and the Bank War
      1. Many Americans disliked the Second Bank of the United States.
         1. Many saw it as benefiting the wealthy only.
         2. State bankers believed it exerted excessively restrictive control.
         3. Speculators and debtors preferred instability to the financial stability it brought.
      2. Congress approved its recharter in 1832, rather than wait until 1836.
         1. Clay and Webster hoped thereby to embarrass Jackson.
      3. Jackson went to war against the bank.
         1. His recharter veto was immensely popular. v
         2. To weaken the bank, he ordered all federal funds withdrawn (and fired two Treasury secretaries who refused to do so).
         3. Treasury Secretary Taney withdrew funds to pay current bills and deposited new funds in "pet" banks.
      4. The bank fought back.
         1. Its president, Nicholas Biddle, called in loans from state banks and raised interest rates.
         2. Economic instability increased as a result.