[6.f.1] Support for the War of 1812 came from the South and West

When war came in June 1812, congressmen from the west and south wanting war with England were called the “War Hawks of 1812.”  They wanted to invade Canada to eliminate the vestiges of British colonialism—and expel British agents continuing to arm Indians for raids on the American frontier.

[6.f.9] Hell in Alabama

In Mississippi Territory, the Red Sticks (Muscogee Creeks) went on the warpath.  To defend themselves, white settlers and mixed-bloods built Fort Mims (Alabama).  .  .

[6.g.5] Significance of Ghent

The Treaty of Ghent signed Christmas day 1814 simply ended the war without addressing any of its causes. [103]  Importantly, however, the treaty marked a new era of Anglo-American cooperation, setting the stage for alliances against common enemies in the 20th and 21st century. 

[6.h.2] The Long Line Between Canada and the U.S.

The Convention of 1818 drew the boundary between the U.S. and Canada along the 49th parallel to the Rocky Mountains. 

[6.k.1] The North's Economy 

The North became part of the world market economy—capitalist and free labor.  It supplied manufactured products, banking, and insurance as well as agricultural products.  Cities and midsized town dotted the landscape linked by transportation improvements to create a true continental market system. 

[6.k.2] The South's Economy 

export

[6.m.2] The Bitter Campaign of 1828

The 1828 rematch for president was ugly.  The National Republicans cataloged Jackson’s horse racing and dueling.  The press slandered Rachel Donelson Jackson, the president’s wife who was technically still married.  Jackson was also depicted as the son of a British solider and prostitute.  

[6.m.3]

The Jackson men painted Adams as a stuck-up aristocrat who disdained the people. His success on a mission to Russia during the Monroe administration was explained by the falsehood that he had promised the Czar an American girl as a sex slave in exchange for a diplomatic favor. 

[6.m.6] A Bachelor President

died and political.

[6.p.2] A Vote For Jackson was a vote to Repeal the Bank's Charter

Jackson’s 10 July 1382 veto of Congress’s re-chartering of BUS set the stage for a battle between the president and the bank’s supporters.  In November, 54% of the people re-elected Jackson, which meant that if something wasn’t done to revive the bank, its charter would expire in 1836. 

[6.p.3] Jackson speeds up the Bank's Death

Jackson ordered the Treasury Secretary to withdraw Federal funds from BUS and deposit them in "Pet Banks."  These were state banks favored to hold Federal deposits.  Biddle retaliated by demanding that all loans payable to BUS be tendered in specie (coin), which caused a scramble for hard-money to meet BUS payment.  Friends of Jackson urged him to easier on BUS.  Jackson didn't budge: "Go to Nicholas Biddle," he said. "He has all the gold.  I will now bow to the Golden Calf."

[6.p.5] The Whig Party forms in opposition to Jackson's Democrat Party

The Whig Party formed in 1834.  Named after the British party that opposed monarchy, Whigs opposed Jackson’s anti-bank and anti-internal improvement policies.  Southern Whigs had been offended by Jackson’s attitude toward South Carolina nullifiers. 

[6.q.2] Election of 1840

(1) Both parties drew strenght from north, south, and west.  (2) For the first time in a presidential election, the West mattered.  (3) Voter turn-out was high as electioneering techinques like catchy slogans ("Keep the Ball Rolling!") and rallies drew people to their favorite candidate.

[6.q.3] A Sentimental Story

President Harrison lived only three months after inauguration.  The former slave-holding president died in the arms of his free black valet, George  DeBaptiste (1815-75), who later in life conveyed run-away slaves from Kentucky into Indiana. 

[6.r.3] The Two-Party System held Together

The two-party system resulted in compromises that Democrats and Whigs could live with.  The Democrats had blocked national implementation of the American System (such as defeating BUS), but the Whig penchant for nationally guided economic development found expression at the state and local level.