Andrew Jackson

U.S. History/Napp Name: ______

Do Now:

“In George Washington’s time, most state laws required that voters own a certain amount of property. Those lacking sufficient property were barred from voting. But in the new century, between 1800 and 1830, state after state removed property requirements for voting. By the time Jackson was elected president in 1828, virtually all white males aged 21 and older were permitted to vote. Indeed President Jackson adopted as his motto: ‘Let the people rule.” As the victor in the election of 1828, Jackson dismissed from federal employment some officials who were not Democrats and replaced them with his own Democratic supporters. The rewarding of political supporters with government jobs is known as the spoils system. Later presidents followed Jackson’s example. Those who supported the spoils system considered it democratic at the time, because it meant that government jobs would go to ordinary people (‘the common man’), not to a specially educated and privileged group.

Another conflict in the Age of Jackson pitted merchants of the Northeast against farmers of the West. The dispute involved the second Bank of the United States. The bank’s 1816 charter was up for renewal. Jackson accused the bank of serving only the interests of wealthy easterners. At the same time, he thought the bank discriminated against ordinary people – especially western farmers. He accused the bank of readily granting loans to merchants and manufacturers while denying loans to western farmers. In 1832 Jackson vetoed an act of Congress that would have renewed the bank’s charter.

Jackson was a champion of democracy for people of his own social class and thus favored western farmers and pioneers. However, he had little sympathy for people who were nonwhite. Jackson reasoned that a policy of Indian removal would put an end to conflict between whites and Native Americans. This explains, in part, his decision concerning the Indian Resettlement Act (1830) and the forced removal of Native Americans from their lands east of the Mississippi River. The most tragic of the forced removals occurred in 1838, when some 15,000 Cherokees from Georgia trekked westward for 800 miles through cold and rain. On this Trail of Tears, many died from starvation. Earlier, in the Supreme Court case Worcester v. Georgia (1832), Chief Justice John Marshall had ruled that the state of Georgia had no jurisdiction over the Cherokees’ lands and thus could not force them to leave. But President Jackson ignored the Court’s ruling and supposedly said, ‘Marshall made his decision, now let him enforce it.’” ~ U.S. History and Government

1-How did voting rights change from Washington’s presidency to Jackson’s? ______

2-What was the Spoils System? ______

3-Why did Jackson veto an act of Congress to renew the National Bank’s charter? ______

4-What was the Indian Removal or Resettlement Act? ______

5-What was the Trail of Tears? ______

1. President Andrew Jackson used the spoils system to
(1) attack the Tariff of Abominations
(2) reward supporters with United States government jobs
(3) win support for construction of the Erie Canal
(4) gain passage of the Indian Removal Act
2. Starting with the election of President Andrew Jackson (1828), voter participation increased due to the
(1) passage of an amendment ending religious qualifications for voting
(2) extension of suffrage to Native American
Indians
(3) end of property requirements for voting by many states
(4) arrival of more immigrants from nations with democratic governments
3. Which Supreme Court decision is most closely associated with the Trail of Tears?
(1) McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
(2) Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)
(3) Worcester v. Georgia (1832)
(4) Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857)
4. President Andrew Jackson used the spoils system to
(1) veto bills he disliked
(2) enforce Supreme Court decisions
(3) move Native American Indians off their
traditional lands
(4) provide jobs to political party supporters
5. In an effort to resolve conflicts with the frontier settlers in the 1870s, the federal government forced Native American Indians to
(1) move west of the Mississippi River
(2) live on reservations with definite boundaries
(3) relocate to urban industrial centers
(4) help build the transcontinental railroad / 6. During the presidency of Andrew Jackson, the spoils system resulted in
(1) federal laws being nullified by the states
(2) elected officials rewarding their supporters with government jobs
(3) all free males being given the right to vote
(4) the end of political corruption in the federal government
7. As a result of President Andrew Jackson’s policies, Native American Indians were
(1) relocated to reservations in Mexico
(2) forcibly removed to areas west of the
Mississippi River
(3) gradually allowed to return to their ancestral lands
(4) given United States citizenship
8. President Andrew Jackson claimed that use of the spoils system increased democracy in the federal government because it
(1) removed property-holding qualifications for voting
(2) limited the role of the electoral college in
presidential elections
(3) allowed larger numbers of citizens to hold office
(4) used nominating conventions to pick political party candidates
9. The Indian Wars that occurred between 1860 and 1890 were mainly the result of
(1) Disputes over the spread of slavery
(2) Conflict with Mexico over Texas and California
(3) The search for gold in California
(4) The movement of settlers onto the Great Plains

Reading:

“Several geographic factors were important in the events surrounding the Trail of Tears. The Cherokee homelands in the southeastern United States included fertile farmland, and many Americans wanted to settle there. When gold was found in the region in 1830, Americans put even more pressure on the U.S. government to open these lands to white settlement. That same year the U.S. government passed the Indian Removal Act. This act called for Native Americans living east of the Mississippi River to be relocated to lands in the West.

Some Native American groups moved voluntarily, but others resisted. Beginning in 1838, the U.S. Army forced more than 15,000 Cherokee to move from their homelands to Indian Territory in what is now Oklahoma. It was a journey of more than 1,000 miles. Much of this journey took place in winter. The Cherokee did not have enough food or clothing, and during the trip thousands died from exhaustion, disease, and exposure. This event became known as the Trail of Tears.

Notice how far the Cherokee were forced to travel. The Cherokee were forced to cross at least two major rivers, including the Mississippi River.”~ TAKS

Questions:

1-Why were Native American Indians removed from their homelands? ______

2-What was the Indian Removal Act? ______

3-What happened to more than 15,000 Cherokees? ______

4-Describe the journey of the Cherokees. ______

5-Why was this journey called the Trail of Tears? ______

6-How did geography add to the hardships faced by the Cherokee as they traveled from their homelands to Indian Territory? ______

7-Using the two readings thus far, what can you conclude about the treatment of Native Americans Indians in U.S. history? ______

8-Think Point of View:

a)What was the settlers’ point of view regarding the land? ______

b)What was the Native American Indians’ point of view regarding the land? ______

c)What is your point of view regarding the land? ______

9-Do Native American Indians view U.S. History differently than other individuals? Explain your answer. ______

Political Cartoon Analysis:

Questions:

1-Which president is represented in the political cartoon? ______

2-What was the spoils system? ______

3-How does the cartoonist feel about the spoils system? ______

4-Prove that the cartoonist feels this way. ______

Chart Analysis:

“One of the nation’s strongest leaders was President Andrew Jackson. A hero in the war of 1812, Jackson was elected President in 1828. A native of Tennessee, Jackson was the first President not born to wealth and not from an Eastern state. His main supporters were the common people, especially laborers and Western frontiersmen.” ~ The Key to Understanding U.S. History and Government

Examine the chart carefully!

The Presidency of Andrew Jackson
Democratic Reforms:

After Jackson’s election, the states eliminated property qualifications, so that most white adult males could vote.
Selection of Presidential candidates by party leaders was replaced by nominating conventions where popularly elected members of each political party chose the candidates.

The Spoils System:

Jackson believed the President should act as the voice of the common people.
To make government more responsive to popular needs, Jackson used the “spoils system.”
Supporters who helped in his election were appointed to government posts in place of existing officials.
Jackson believed in changing office-holders so that more people had experience in government.
He felt that circulating government posts was less likely to lead to corruption than permanent government officials.

The War on the National Bank:

Jackson disliked the National Bank believing it gave an unfair advantage to Eastern investors and bankers.
Farmers resented the Bank because it made it hard to borrow money.
The Bank’s Constitutionality was upheld by the Supreme Court, but in 1836, Jackson refused to renew the Bank’s charter and the Bank ended.

The Native American Indians:

Jackson believed Native American Indians were blocking the nation’s westward expansion.
Under Jackson, Congress moved all remaining Native American Indians to territories west of the Mississippi River.
Jackson refused to help the Cherokees of Georgia, even though the Supreme Court had declared their forcible removal unconstitutional.

The Federal Union:

In 1832, South Carolina threatened to secede [to formally withdraw from the Union] from the nation because it opposed tariffs on imports.
Jackson threatened to use force and the crisis was avoided.
He became a symbol for national unity over sectional interests.

Complete the following chart with evidence from The Presidency of Andrew Jackson chart:

Assessing the Presidency of Andrew Jackson

Andrew Jackson: Positive / Andrew Jackson: Negative

Andrew Jackson Quotes:

“Without union our independence and liberty would never have been achieved; without union they never can be maintained.”

Explain the meaning of the quote:

______

“The moment we engage in confederations, or alliances with any nation we may from that time date the downfall of our republic.”

Explain the meaning of the quote:

______