Early American Final Exam Study Guide (RL III)
Draw a compass & label all eight compass directions:
Draw which way Longitude lines run & label what direction they are measured from:
Draw which way Latitude lines run & label what direction they are measured from:
Review your US map & Civil War Era Map from your folder
Geography Terms:
Western Hemisphere – North & South America
Eastern Hemisphere – Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia
Equator – center line – across - latitude
Prime Meridian – up and down, top to bottom – longitude
Branches of Government:
Executive – enforce laws - President
Legislative – make laws - Congress
Judicial – interpret laws – Supreme Court
Supreme Court Justices to Know:
John Marshall – early strong Chief Justice, developed the power of the Courts = judicial review, served for 34 years = many cases
Roger B. Taney – Chief Justice for Dred Scott Case that declared African Americans NOT citizens & kept slavery
Presidents to Know: (And ones marked with * also know what they did before becoming president. Be careful with the one marked with **)
*George Washington – Commanding General in Rev War, 1st Pres, made 1st Cabinet
*Thomas Jefferson – wrote D of I, sent out Lewis & Clark expedition, bought Louisiana
*James Madison – “father of the Constitution,” Pres for War of 1812
James Monroe – issued Monroe Doctrine
James K. Polk – “54° 40’ or Fight,” Mex War to get land, Manifest Destiny Pres
*Zachary Taylor – “Old Rough & Ready”, General in Mex War then Pres
James Buchanan – only Pres from PA, did nothing when S. states seceded
*Abraham Lincoln – debated Douglas, lost Senate race in IL, Pres for Civil War, Emancipation Proclamation, assassinated
Andrew Johnson – Lincoln’s VP, Impeached – not guilty, vetoed everything
**Jefferson Davis – Pres of the Confederacy
Americans to Know:
John Brown – Abolitionist, Bleeding Kansas, killed 5 pro-slavery people, led attackarsenal at Harper’s Ferry for guns to arm the slaves
Stephen Douglas – Sen. from IL, “Little Giant” wrote Kansas –Nebraska Act to get RR, idea of popular sovereignty, ran against Lincoln for Senator, had famous Debates, ran for Pres but lost
Ben Franklin – Albany Plan of Union, helped write the D of I & Constitution
Ulysses S. Grant – General for N. in Civil War, won the war, then Pres
Alexander Hamilton – Secretary of Treasury, decided to use capitalism, & established National Bank
Francis Scott Key – wrote “The Star Spangled Banner”
Robert E. Lee – General for the S. in the Civil War, lost war but was the best leader
Lewis & Clark – explored the Louisiana Purchase & went to Pacific Ocean, discovered lots of new plant & animals
Dolley Madison – 1st Lady, saved Washington’s portrait & important papers before the British burned White House in War of 1812
George Mason – “Father of the Bill of Rights”
Pocahontas – Native American princess, friend to Jamestown, married John Rolfe
John Rolfe – developed tobacco crop for Jamestown to = $$$
Sacagawea – Native American who helped Lewis & Clark
Winfield Scott – “Old Fuss & Feathers” – General in Mexican War & Civil War
William T. Sherman – General for N. in Civil War; led “March to the Sea” = total war
John Smith – saved colony at Jamestown with policy of “no work, no food”
Harriet Beecher Stowe – wrote “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”
Harriet Tubman – best “conductor” of the Underground Railroad
Terms/ Topics to Know:
July 4, 1776 – Date we declared Independence
Abolition movement – worked to end slavery
Albany Plan of Union – 1st proposal for the colonies to Unite – not accepted – in F & I War
Annexation – to add to the country (Texas)
Appomattox Courthouse – where S. surrendered to the N. to end Civil War
Battles of (Be careful to mark which war and what happened)
Brandywine – British won, largest of Rev War
Fort McHenry – US won, Baltimore, Star Spangled Banner – War of 1812
Gettysburg – North won, turning point, largest battle, only one in North, Civil War
Trenton & Princeton – US won, badly needed victory for Washington in Rev War
Vicksburg – North won, got control of Miss River – Civil War
Yorktown – last battle of Rev War, US won
Bill of Rights – first 10 Amendments, guaranteed freedoms & liberty
Black Codes – southern laws made by whites to keep Blacks separate
Cabinet – advisors to the President
Secretary of State – helps w/ foreign nations
Secretary of Treasury – advises about money
Secretary of Defense (old name War) – helps with military issues
Attorney General – legal advisor
Capitalism – our economic system, gov’t tries to stay out of business
Constitutional Convention – meeting in Philly, made Constitution – RI did not go
Dred Scott Case – ruled African Americans were not citizens, upheld right to have slaves, made S. happy
Elastic Clause – allows Congress to make any laws necessary – “stretches” the Const.
Electoral College – method to elect the President, electoral votes = number of senators & reps E = S+R
Emancipation Proclamation – freed slaves in Confederacy
Federal laws vs. state laws – fed law = go to federal courts (mail, FBI) – state laws = state courts (robbery, etc)
Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists – Fed – in favor of new Constitution (Madison) vs. Anti – Feds – opposed new Const. or wanted Bill of Rts added (Mason)
Freedmen’s Bureau – gov’t run aid organization to help freed slaves after Civil War
Gettysburg Address – Lincoln’s speech to dedicate cemetery – wanted to forgive S.
Great Compromise – to make Const, settled argument bet. Big & little states, made Senate = 2, House of Reps – based on pop
House of Burgesses – Jamestown’s legislative body, 1st one in US
Impeachment – process to remove a Pres from office, House brings charges, Senate has trial, vote to be guilty = 2/3s
Jamestown – 1st permanent Eng colony
Judicial Review – power of Supreme Court to declare laws unconstitutional
Mercantilism – belief that colony existed to benefit parent country = make $$
Missouri Compromise – MO = slave state, Maine = free state, 36° 30’ line to divide free from slave
Monroe Doctrine – told Europe to stay out of Western Hemisphere (Latin Am) – no more colonies here
Parliament – Britain’s legislative body
Political parties – groups who believe in similar ideas
Democratic Party – early party, Jefferson, many others, in both north & south
Free – Soil Party – end slavery & get land in west
Republican Party – formed after Bleeding Kansas, Lincoln, originally only in north
Popular sovereignty – allowed territory to vote whether to be a slave state or a free state
Secession – to withdraw from the Union/ leave the country
Tenure of Office Act – made to get Johnson in trouble, Pres was not allowed to fire anyone from Cabinet
Treaty of 1846 – bet. US & Br, set boundary of Oregon
Treaty of Ghent – ended War of 1812
Treaty of Guadalupe – Hidalgo – ended Mexican War, US got Mexican Cession
Treaty of Paris, 1783 – ended Rev War, US independent, set our boundaries
Underground Railroad – secret network that helped slaves escape
Valley Forge – where Washington spent winter, troops were trained by Von Steuben
Veto / Override veto – President’s rejection of a Bill / 2/3 vote of Congress would pass bill anyway
Amendments to Know:
13th – abolished slavery
14th – civil rights for all, made African Americans citizens
15th – all men right to vote
Process to ratify an amendment – 2/3 Congress, ¾ of states
Term/ Job Requirements:
House of Reps – 2 year term, 25 yrs old, citizen for 7 yrs, live in state
Senate – 6 year term, 30 yrs old, citizen for 9 yrs, live in state
President – 4 year term/ two term limit, 35 yrs old, natural born citizen, live in US 14 yrs before running
Supreme Court Justice – life or retirement, appointed by Pres, confirmed by Senate
Powers of:
President – Commander-in-Chief, foreign relations/ treaties, pardons, reprieves, suggest laws, spokesperson for US
Congress – makes laws, handles the $$, declares war, elastic clause to do “other stuff”
Supreme Court – rules on legality of laws (judicial review), hears cases on appeal
Wars:
French & Indian – French & Indians vs. British & Americans – over Ohio River Valley
Rev War – US vs. British – over US independence – no Pres yet
War of 1812 – US vs. British – over giving Indians guns in NW & messing w/ US ships in Atlantic – Madison…just ended – status quo
Mexican War – US vs. Mexico – over Texas – Polk
Civil War – North vs. South – South seceded / preserve the Union - Lincoln