Unit III: The Family in mid-19 th Century America Robin Burke GAM 206
Unit III: The Family in mid-19 th Century America Robin Burke GAM 206.
Dec 13, 2015
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Unit III: The Family in mid-19th Century America
Robin BurkeGAM 206
Preliminarieso Antebellum (pre-Civil War)
Americao a country divided
o Slavery o gradually eliminated in the Northo becomes an economic
powerhouse in the Southo and a defining institution
o Cultural movement, politics, economic developmento cannot be divorced from this fact
Emancipation in the NorthEmancipation in the North
Missouri Compromise, 1820Missouri Compromise, 1820
Political Issueso Balance of power in House and
Senateo slave seats vs free seatso census issues (3/5 rule)
o How to handle new territorieso Status of slaves in free states
o fugitive slave lawo Dredd Scott decision
o Political parties o had northern and southern wingso had to try to satisfy botho (until 1856)
Economic Issueso Southern states
o agricultural economieso capital-intensive (in human
form)o enormously profitableo mono-cultural
o Northern stateso more diversified economyo quick adoption of mechanizationo railroad networkso largest arrival point for
immigrants
Cultural Issueso South
o original settlers were businessmeno maintained connections to England
o economic powero large-scale agriculture
o tobaccoo colonial conditions very hazardous
o tropical diseaseso organized native resistance
o Northo original settlers were religious refugees
o fleeing persecution in Englando economic power
o commercial fishing (cod)o colonial conditions difficult
o but families often survived intact
Consequenceso Southern culture
o more hedonistico more closely tied to English
class distinctions
o Northern cultureo more straight-lacedo more egalitarian
Two Trendso Religious Revival
o and reformist repercussions
o IndustrializationBoth of which contributed too Sectionalization
Religious Revivalo First "Great Awakening"
o outpouring of religious sentimento 1720-1750
o originated in New Englando spread by charismatic preachers
o emphasized personal responsibility for salvation
o taught that Americans were chosen people
o Second "Great Awakening"o another wave of religious activity
o 1790s to 1830so included North, South and Westo a reaction to "liberal" religious
notions coming from European thinkers
Revival Meeting
Denominational Growth
Offshoots of Religious Revival
o Temperanceo Abolitiono Women's Rightso Transcendentalism
Temperance Movement
Frances WillardThe Beecher Family
1826 - American Temperance Society
“Demon Rum”!
R1-6
Consumption of Alcohol
The Drunkard’s Progress
From the first glass to the grave, 1846
Abolitionist Movement
1816 American Colonization Society created (gradual, voluntary emancipation. Created a free slave state in Liberia, West Africa. No real anti-slavery sentiment in the North in the 1820s & 1830s.
The Liberator
Premiere issue January 1, 1831
R2-5
The Tree of Slavery
Frederick Douglass (1817-1895)
1845 The Narrative of the Life Of Frederick Douglass
R2-12
Anti-Slavery Alphabet
Southern Pro-Slavery PropagandaSouthern Pro-Slavery Propaganda
Industrializationo The abundant natural
resources of the United Stateso Increased labor pools
o due to immigration from Europeo labor shortages had been
common earlier
o Improved modes of transportationo canalso railroads
Price of Transportation
The Advance of Industrialization
o Home-based manufactureo common since medieval timeso distributors gave raw materials to
workers who produced at homeo "putting out" system
o Starts to be replaced by factorieso mechanization
o water, then steam powero standardization
o Eli Whitney applies interchangeable parts to firearms
o specialization of labor
Cottono Cotton textiles were the
first factory goodso plans sneaked out of England
by Samuel Slater in 1789
o Boston Manufacturing Companyo by 1836o 6,000 workerso 80% young women
Spread of Textile Mills
Farming Loses Dominance
The Process of Urbanization
o Three types of citieso Commercial centers
o New York, Philadelphia, Bostono Mill towns
o Lowell, Waltham, New Haveno Transportation hubs
o Chicagoo New Orleans
Urbanization by 1850
Class Structure in the Citieso The inequities of wealth and lifestyle
in the urban areas o reflected social fluidity and o the potential for everyone to “make it.”
o Americans believed capitalists deserved the profits from economic expansion
o The growing inequities o solidified class lines and o led to increased social agitation and labor
protests.
Middle-Class Life and Idealso The new middle class benefited
from economic growth.o Furnished houses with the latest
conveniences were the rule o compared to the inadequate housing of
the working class.
o Genteel behavior and etiquette as well as specific designations for gender and age.
Mounting Urban Tensionso Social tensions led to dramatic
increases in urban violence in the years before the Civil Waro also during the Civil War
o Large American cities were slow to establish a professional police force relying instead on volunteer constables.
Working-Class Reformo The reform movement gradually was
adapted to the conditions in factorieso trade unions began to appear.
o Skilled workers o organized to protect their crafts ando negotiated better conditions.
o The National Trades Union (1834) was the first attempt at a nation-wide labor organization
The Southo Did not experience much
industrializationo remained agrarian
o Inadequate transportationo except by water
o Poorly-developed financial system
Southern Society (1850)Southern Society (1850)
““Slavocracy”Slavocracy”[plantation owners][plantation owners]
The “Plain Folk”The “Plain Folk”[white yeoman farmers][white yeoman farmers]
6,000,0006,000,000
Black FreemenBlack Freemen
Black SlavesBlack Slaves3,200,0003,200,000
250,000250,000
Total US Population --> Total US Population --> 23,000,00023,000,000
[9,250,000 in the South = 40%][9,250,000 in the South = 40%]
Slave-Owning Families (1850)Slave-Owning Families (1850)
Changes in Cotton ProductionChanges in Cotton Production
18201820
18601860
Value of Cotton Exports Value of Cotton Exports
Includes textiles manufacturedfrom southern cotton
Westward Expansiono After the War of 1812
o movement to the Old Northwest began in earnest
o territory east of the Mississippi ceased to be "frontier" by 1840s
o Federal land policyo Homestead act
o land was free if you could make it productive
o Mistaken ideas about agriculture caused farmers to ignore prairies as arable lando until later in the century
Farming in the Easto By mid-century, fertile land in the
east began to run out.o Irresponsible farming techniques
depleted the soilo Cities encroached on farmlando Couldn't compete with western grain
farmers
o Switched cropso cattle farming for meat and milko fresh vegetable production for the urban
marketso no refrigeration meant no competition
Jackson’s Indian Policy
o Indians occupied prime land for farmingo in Georgia, Alabama, and other states
o Andrew Jackson favored o forcible removalo relocation westward on reservations.
o Supreme Court ruledo that Indians could occupy but not hold
title to land in the United States
o Military force was used o forced Indian Nations to march west to
present-day Oklahomao "trail of tears" 1835-1838
Sectionalizationo After the Mexican-American War
o new territories were addedoTexas, New Mexico, California, Utah,
o Increasingly bitter confrontationo whether new states would be free
or slaveo neither side could compromise
oNorth saw slavery increasingly as eviloSouth saw emancipation as a cultural
death sentence
Theno In 1860
o the country elects a anti-slavery Northerner as president
o Abraham Lincoln
o Most previous presidents had been o either Northerners with southern
sympathieso James Buchanan 1856o Franklin Pierce 1852
o or southernerso Zachary Taylor 1848
Civil Waro 1861-1865o Abraham Lincolno Robert E. Leeo Battleso Emancipation Proclamationo Almost 1 million dead
o 3% of the populationo 1/3 civilians
Mondayo Gameplayo Reading
o 1st chapter Huck's Raft
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