Tag: Early Republic

  • Taking the Wolf by the Ears

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    Paul Cuffe. By: Chester Harding.

    Paul Cuffe, by 1816, began making voyages across the Atlantic Ocean to Africa, transporting African-Americans who wished to make a new home in Africa. Daniel Walker Howe, What Hath God Wrought: Transformation of America, 1815-1848, 260.

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  • The First Divided Government

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    John Randolph. By: John Wesley Jarvis.

    Divided government, where one branch of government is controlled by a different political party than the other branches, is a familiar concept for most Americans. The midterm elections of 1826 and 1827 brought about the first instance in American history of divided government.

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  • Protecting the Native Americans

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    Secretary of War John Calhoun. By: Charles Bird King.

    President John Quincy Adams and his administration faced a serious challenge in dealing with the Native Americans.

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  • Quincy Adams’ Economic Agenda

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    John Quincy Adams Shakes Hands with Admiral of the Fleet James Gambier. By: Amedee Forestier.

    President John Quincy Adams, in his First Annual Message to Congress delivered on December 6, 1825, set forth his agenda for developing the American economy. Daniel Walker Howe, What Hath God Wrought: Transformation of America, 1815-1848, 251.

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  • The Conception of the Democratic Party

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    A Foot Race. Political Cartoon of the Election of 1824.

    Following the Election of 1824, newly elected President John Quincy Adams went into the White House with a great deal of hope for the future. He was a lifelong student of Cicero and “envisioned the American republic as the culmination of the history of human progress and the realization of the potential of human nature.” Daniel Walker Howe, What Hath God Wrought: Transformation of America, 1815-1848, 245. In fact, historians have remarked that Quincy Adams was the “most learned president between [Thomas] Jefferson and [Woodrow] Wilson.” Id.

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  • The Heir to the Founders

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    John Quincy Adams.

    On July 4, 1826, during America’s Golden Jubilee, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams died. Daniel Walker Howe, What Hath God Wrought: Transformation of America, 1815-1848, 243. The two political rivals were two of the last three surviving signers of the Declaration of Independence, leaving only Charles Carroll of Maryland alive. Id. President John Quincy Adams, learning of his father’s death and Jefferson’s death, remarked that it was a “‘visible and palpable mark of Divine favor,’ to the nation, and most of his countrymen agreed.” Id. quoting James Morton Smith, The Republic of Letters (New York, 1995), II, 1973-74.

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  • Infrastructure’s Fostering of Democracy

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    Michel Chevalier. By: Leon Cogniet.

    In 1833, a French engineer, Michel Chevalier, arrived in America and was fascinated by the infrastructure that surrounded him. Daniel Walker Howe, What Hath God Wrought: Transformation of America, 1815-1848, 241.

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  • The Early Political Microcosm

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    DeWitt Clinton.

    New York politics after the War of 1812 had ended “became a microcosm of the future of national politics.” Daniel Walker Howe, What Hath God Wrought: Transformation of America, 1815-1848, 237.

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  • The Communications Revolution

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    Engraving of Catharine Sedgwick. By: W. .

    Not long after the end of the War of 1812, America was undergoing a communications revolution.

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  • The Transportation Revolution

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    Depiction of the Building of the National Road.

    Following the end of the War of 1812, the United States underwent a transportation revolution. This transportation revolution came about as a result of Americans moving westward but also as more Americans moved into cities to engage in industrial work. Daniel Walker Howe, What Hath God Wrought: Transformation of America, 1815-1848, 212. (more…)