Election of 1824 A Clash of Personal Ambitions • Transition – Election of electors • Rivals sought to embarrass each other • First election to tabulate a popular vote
Dec 16, 2015
Election of 1824
A Clash of Personal Ambitions
• Transition – Election of electors• Rivals sought to embarrass each other• First election to tabulate a popular vote
Adams For President
Clay gave Adams his votes for President
Clay became
Secretary of State
The Corrupt Bargain
Transportation Revolution
The Great Migration• Who should pay for improvements
• The National Road
• River Travel
• Erie Canal
• Consequences of the
Transportation Revolution
The Administration of John Quincy Adams
– Best prepared US President– Personality– Physical appearance– Politics
• “Corrupt Bargain”• First Annual Message to
Congress (State of the Union)• Showed Federalist roots
John McLean
• Postmaster General
• The postal network– Stagecoach lines– Transportation and communication
Election of 1828
• National Republicans• Democrats• Dirtiest in US History!• Personal attacks
– ADAMS – A pimp for the Russian Tsar– JACKSON – Adulterer– Corrupt Bargain
• Jackson Wins• Rise of the Political Machinery
Murder: Jackson was famed for his incendiary temper and had led a life filled with violence and controversy. He had taken part in several duels, killing a man in a notorious one in 1806.
Adultery: Jackson was accused of adultery and vilified for running off with another man’s wife. And his wife was accused of bigamy.
Attacks on Jackson
Jackson had ordered 6 militiamen, who had fought in the Battle of New Orleans, executed for desertion.
October 18, 1828. We lay this far-famed handbill before our readers today. We have two reasons for doing so. Many of them have never yet seen it-this is one reason. The other is, that the Jacksonites call it an infamous bill, and pronounce all its statements false. It is neither infamous nor false. If there be any infamy connected with it, that infamy should attach to General Jackson-for, however black-however appalling this bill may appear, it presents but an inadequate representation of the still blacker and still more appalling acts of this violent and vindictive man. . .
Attacks on AdamsElitist: The son of founding father and second president John Adams, began his career in public service by working as the secretary to the American envoy to Russia when he was still a teenager. He had an illustrious career as a diplomat, which formed the basis for his later career in politics.
Pimp The supporters of Andrew Jackson began spreading a rumor that Adams, while serving as American ambassador to Russia, had procured an American girl for the sexual services of the Russian czar. The attack was no doubt baseless, but the Jacksonians delighted in it, even calling Adams a “pimp” and claiming that procuring women explained his great success as a diplomat.
Spendthrift: Adams was also attacked for having a billiard table in the White House and allegedly charging the government for it. It was true that Adams played billiards in the White House, but he paid for the table with his own funds.
How the Candidates Reacted to the AttacksJohn Quincy Adams reacted by refusing to get involved with the campaign tactics. He was so offended by what was happening that he even refused to write in the pages of his diary from August 1828 until after the election. Jackson, on the other hand, was so furious about the attacks on himself and his wife that he got more involved. He wrote to newspaper editors giving them guidelines on how attacks should be countered and how their own attacks should proceed.
The Jackson Journal Article:
You are sitting in a restaurant in 1828 and overhear a heated conversation in the booth next to you. The two men are arguing about their support of the presidential candidates. One is a Adams supporter and the other supports Jackson.
Write the conversation. One Full Page
1828 CAMPAIGN NEWSPAPER
You have just invested an enormous amount of money on a printing press to publish a newspaper and must now sell papers to the local townsfolk. The best way for you to sell them is to support a presidential candidate in 1828 and appeal to their supporters.
1 - Select a candidate to support2 – Choose an election issue or two and write a headline then support it in your newspaper.
You can include images, drawings, and political cartoons.
Spoils System•To the victor go the spoils•Jackson gave cushy government Jobs and contracts to his politicalFriends and supporters
Nullification Crisis1828•High tariff on imported goods•South Carolina is angry and Threatens to secede•Jackson threatened to invade•Crisis resolved by Henry Clay (lowered the tariff)
Veto of the National Bank1832
•McCullough v Maryland – Congress could create a national bank to deposit US funds•Jackson hated the bank and Vetoed•Federal $ moved to state banks
IntoleranceTo not accept the opinions or rights of a group of people.
In the case of Indian removal, Andrew Jackson was intolerant of the rights of the various Indian Nations to occupy their own lands because they were considered savages who were in the way of progress.
StereotypeAn assumed and often wrong impression of a group of people
In the case of Indian removal, Indians were considered savages who were incapable of becoming civilized.
Indian Removal Act
Law signed by President Jackson which forced the Indian Nations to surrender their homelands and relocate to Indian Territory (Present day Oklahoma)
Jackson “Hero or Villain” Essay Assignment
You must now decide whether you believe Andrew Jackson was a hero or villain based upon what you have learned about the Jacksonian Era..
This assignment is about your character. Imagine your character is writing a letter to Andrew Jackson. You must explain to the resident why you support or despise him based on the facts taught in class.
This assignment is a RAFT assignment (Role, Audience, Format, Topic) and should be written in letter format.
Role: Your Journal character
Audience: President Andrew Jackson
Format: A letter
Topic: Explain to the President whether you think he is a hero or villain