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UNIT 8: Changing Nation
UNIT 8: Changing Nation
Lesson: Second Tennessee State Constitution
Lesson: Second Tennessee State Constitution
Tennessee State Standard:
Tennessee State Standard:
Identify that the Tennessee Constitution of 1834 expanded voting rights for non-property owners. (T.C.A. 49-6-1028)
Identify that the Tennessee Constitution of 1834 expanded voting rights for non-property owners. (T.C.A. 49-6-1028)
the Tennessee state constitution of 1834
the Tennessee state constitution of 1834
During President Andrew Jackson’s administration, lawmakers in Tennessee decided that the state needed a new state constitution.
There were several reasons for this decision. Tennessee’s population had grown rapidly since 1796, when the states first constitution had been adopted. Lawmakers wanted the new constitution to show this change.
They also wanted to form rules on how to create new counties in the western part of the state and fix what I consider flawed in the 1796 document.
THE SECOND TENNESSEE STATE CONSTITUTION
THE SECOND TENNESSEE STATE CONSTITUTION
In 1826 the state capital was moved from Knoxville to Nashville. In May 1834, 60 delegates attended the 2nd Tennessee Constitutional Convention. They met in Nashville to write a new state constitution. Voters ratified the new Tennessee State Constitution in March 1835.
Slavery was one of the issues that delegates discussed and debated. Half of the delegates petitioned the convention to end slavery in Tennessee. These petitions were then submitted to a special committee, which declared slavery and evil practice. The special committee also stated that slavery was a complex problem and then it was unsure how to end the practice. Ultimately, the convention decided that it was up to slave owners to free their slaves.
CHANGES IN VOTING RIGHTS
CHANGES IN VOTING RIGHTS
Significant differences existed between the 1796 Tennessee Constitution and the 1834 Tennessee Constitution. Several of these changes focused on voting rights. For example, the new 1834 Constitution stated that voters no longer had to own property. This change applied only to white male voters. Women still could not vote. The new Tennessee State Constitution also denied free African-American men the right to vote, and they could no longer bear arms.
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