Highlights From The Age Of Jackson

Front 1

Corrupt Bargain

Back 1

Agreement between presidential candidates Henry Clay and John Quincy Adams during the disputed election of 1824. Clay threw his support to Adams in the House of Representatives, which decided the election, and in return, Adams appointed Clay secretary of states. Andrew Jackson, who had a plurality (but not a majority) of the popular and electoral votes, believed he had been cheated out of the presidency.

Front 2

Daniel Webster

Back 2

Noted orator, constitutional lawyer, senator, secretary of state, and major spokesman for nationalism and the union in the 1830s, 1804s, and 1850s

Front 3

Democratic Party

Back 3

The modern-day, major political party whose antecedents can be traced to the Democratic Republican Party of the 1790s and early 1800s. It as born after the disputed election of 1824, in which the candidates -- all Democratic REpublicans -- divided on issues and by sections. Supporters of Andrew Jackson, outraged by the election's outcome, organized around Jackson to prepare for the election of 1828. After that election, this organization became known as the Democratic Party.

Front 4

Exposition and Protest

Back 4

A document secretly written by Vice PResident John Calhoun in support of nullification. Calling on compact theory, he argued the tariff of 1828 was unconstitutional and that South Carolina could lawfully refuse to collect it.

Front 5

"His Accidency"

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A nickname givn to John Tyler in 1841 by his opponents when he assumed the presidency upon the death of WIlliam Henry Harrison. The first vice presidecy to succeed to the presidency, his nickname reflected his conflict with the Whig party leaders over rechartering the National Bank, raising the tariff, and supporting internal improvements at government expense.

Front 6

Indian Removal Act (1830)

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Gave the president authority to negotiate treaties with southeastern tribes and to trade their land in the east for territory in the west. It also provided money for land transfer and relocation of the tribes.

Front 7

John C. Calhoun

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Vice president under both John Quincy Adams and Andrew Jackson. He wrote Exposition and Protest and led the nullification fight in 1832 and 1833. As senator and vice president, he was the leading voice for southern states' rights from 1828 to 1850.

Front 8

John Quincy Adams

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Son of President John Adams and secretary of state who helped purchase Florida and formulate the Monroe Doctrine and president who supported an activist government and economic nationalism. After Jackson defeated his bid for a second term in 1828, he continued to serve America as a member of Congress.

Front 9

Market Revolution

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The process that took place in nineteenth-century America in which an economy dominated by small farms and workshops was transformed into an economy in which farmers and manufacturers produced for a distant cash market. It was also characterized by the emergence of a permanent "working class". These changes had significant consequences for American social institutions, religious practices, political idealogy, and cultural patterns.

Front 10

Martin Van Buren

Back 10

Senatory, vice president, and president of the United States. The Panic of 1837 ruined his presidency, and he was voted out of office in 1840. He later supported the Free Soil Party.

Front 11

Nullification

Back 11

Theory that the states created the Constitution as a compact among them and that they were the final judge of constitutionality of federal law. The doctrine held that states could refuse to obey or enforce federal laws with which they disagreed. The theory was first presented in the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions (1798) and reappeared in Exposition and Protest (1828).

Front 12

Panic of 1837

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A major depression that lasted from 1837 to 1844. Crop failures, European financial troubles, and the Specie Circular all contributed to the crash, which helped ruin the presidency of Martin Van Buren.

Front 13

Pet banks

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Financial institutions friendly to Andrew Jackson's administration that received federal funds when he vetoed the Second National Bank's recharter in 1832 and removed all government deposits from it.

Front 14

Specie Circular (1836)

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A federal government action to dampen inflation brought on by land speculation following the closure of the Second National Bank. Jackson issued an order requiring payment for public lands only in gold or silver. This action contracted credit, caused overextended banks to fail, and precipitated the Panic of 1837.

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Spoils system

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Practice of appointing people to government positions as a reward for their loyalty and political support. Jackson was accused of abusing this power, yet he only removed about 20% of office holders during his tenure.

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Tariff of Abominations

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Name given to a high tariff passed in 1828. After years of steadily rising duties, this tariff raised rates on certain goods to an all-time high, leading to the nullification crisis of 1832.

Front 17

Trail of Tears (1838)

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The removal of some 18,000 Cherokees, evicted from lands in southeastern United States and marched to Indian Territoy (Oklahoma). Nearly 25% of the people perished from disease and exhaustion during the trip.

Front 18

Whigs

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Political party formed in 1832 in opposition to Andrew Jackson. Led by Henry Clay, it opposed executive usurpation (a strong president) and advocated recharting the National Bank, distributing western lands, raising the tariff, and funding internal improvements. It broke apart over the slavery issue in the early 1850s.