America’s Economic Revolution
Major Questions:
· What did the American economy look like in 1800?
· How did the War of 1812 help catalyze America’s economic transformation?
· How did modernization transform American society?
American economy in 1800:
· Fundamentally agricultural
· Most trade between cities went by sea
· Overland travel little more than dirt paths
· Inland water travel limited
· Subsistence farming, not farming for market
· Why changing so slowly?
· Jeffersonians had the brakes on. Why?
War of 1812 - Causes
· Britain’s violation of US maritime rights
· What happened to Jay Treaty/Quasi-War?
· Rise of American merchant marine
· Napoleon
· Searches, seizures, and impressment
· Embargo
· Madison’s War Message
· Other reasons?
· British activities in west?
· American territorial ambitions?
War of 1812 - Timeline
· 1812 Americans sucker-punch Britain
· 1813 Tecumseh sucker-punches Americans
· 1814 Napoleon defeated; British launch three-pronged attack….
Brits Attack!
· From the North!
· Up the middle!
· From the South!
Battle of New Orleans
· Battle of New Orleans, the myth
· Battle of New Orleans, the reality
· Results:
· Brits, 2000 casualties, 300 dead, incl. 3 maj. Generals
· US, 71 casualties, only 19 dead
War of 1812 - Significance
· Growth of American nationalism
· Strengthening of inward turn
· Especially western turn
· Disappearance of the Federalist party
· Stimulus to manufacturing
· Convinced many Americans that economic diversification led not to decay but power
America’s Economic Revolution
· When brakes removed, American economy began to modernize:
· Modernization = process that transforms localized subsistence economy into nationally integrated market
· Characterized by technological innovation, urbanization, mass communications, and impersonal, meritocratic society
Why America modernized so quickly:
· Shortage of skilled labor
· Abundant resources
· Calvinist values
· Worldly success a sign of God’s favor
· Concept of “calling”
· Injunction against waste
· literacy
· Openness to change
Effects of Modernization:
· Technological revolution
· Communications revolution
· Transportation revolution
· Social revolutions
· Urbanization
· Demographic flow
· Labor/Gender/Market relations