American History

1) Presidency of Andrew Jackson 

Andrew Jackson ruled from the year 1829 up to the year 1837and was born on March 15, 1767, in South Carolina. He became the 7^th president of the United States being the first from the West of Appalachia, indicating a shift of power from the East to the West. When he was 13 years old, he joined the local militia as a patriot courier and was caught in 1781 by the British. He hated Britain owing to the fact that the deaths of his family members were affiliated with the British. He was chosen major general of the Tennessee militia and subsequently won the battle of Horseshow Bend in 1814, securing the US acres of territory from the Creek Indians. In 1815, he also defeated the British at the Battle of New Orleans. (Bradley, 2022). He served for a short time in the senate and was the first man elected to the house of the representative from Tennessee. He gained the presidency by mass appealing to the voters having been a war hero with an aim of directly representing the common man.             

Jackson was nominated to the presidency in 1825 by the House following their reaction to the “Corrupt Bargain” of Quincy Adams having named Henry Clay as his secretary. He won the elections in 1828. During his administration, he faced several challenges as opposition developed in his government. During his tenure as national politics polarized, two parties emerged out of the old Republic Party. The Democratic-Republicans supported him while he received opposition from the National Republicans who were referred to as Whigs. The Whigs led by Henry Clay and Daniel Webster among others accused Jackson of not deferring to Congress when making policies but rather using his Veto powers as well as party leadership to assume command. The major disagreement was concerning the government-sponsored monopoly of the U.S Second Bank. His opponents Clay and Webster fought for the recharter of the bank but the president used his Veto powers and charged the Bank with undue economic privilege.             

Under his Administration, he signed the Indian Removal Act which initiated the forceful removal of the Cherokee, Creeks as well as other South American Natives to the west of the Mississippi River (Feller,2020). He argued that the land which they used for hunting was diminishing and they needed to be resettled on vacant to avoid their gradual extinction. Some people opposed these plans as they were concerned about the sovereignty of the Native Americans. During their forceful removal, a quarter of them died along the way, and was later called the “The Trail of Tear”. He also vetoed the Mayville Road bill in 1830, a move that his opponents interpreted as an abuse of power. He issued the Nullification Proclamation which restricted municipalities and states from nullifying federal Law as he believed the Federal government had supreme power and was willing to use the military to enforce its supremacy. This led to the Nullification crisis as South Carolina farmers felt the protectionist tariffs were too high.             

During his presidency, he was able to pay off all the debts freeing the United States from his national debts. He also fired most of the people in the government and employed those people that helped him win the election, a system referred to as a spoilt system. In order to protect the federal revenue from loss, in July 1836, Jackson issued the Specie Circular, which mandated that all payments for public land be made in gold and silver. This led to a financial panic as most banks failed due to failure to meet the demand of this specie. Jackson had a significant impact on American politics as he was elected as the representation of the local people and political struggles in his administration led to the revival of the two-party system. He is also responsible for the destruction of the U.S Second Bank and the signing of the Indian Removal Act, which compelled Native Americans to migrate. 

2) The Diary of Susan Magoffin             

Susan Magoffin was born in Danville, Kentucky in the year 1827, on July 30^th to a wealthy family. She was then married by a trader from Santa Fe, Samuel Magoffin in 1845 and they left Missouri in June 1846 on a trip down Santa Fe and into Mexico, soon after the US had declared war against Mexico following the disputes over the border of Texas. During her journey, she made detailed records of the people she interacted with, the distance they covered, the wildlife as well as the Landscape in her journal. Her journal was written between the year 1846 to 1847 and it gave a detailed description of the trade on the Santa Fe trail and the Mexican-American War. 

Susan Magoffin’s status impacted the diary and her observation as she had the best comfort one could have at the time while traveling.  She had several wagons, slaves, and protection from soldiers as they also traveled on the established trail which was different from the pioneer travelers.  She was also the granddaughter of Isaac Shelby who was the first governor of Kentucky. She was properly raised growing up with servants and she was also able to receive a proper education. This enabled her to give detailed information in her journal which has been very essential in providing the history of the Santa Fe trade, her earlier interactions with Mexicans, and the Mexican-American War. 

Magoffin changed on her journey from an energetic young lady who is excited by the idea of recording her journey in her diary to a hopelessly sick and sad woman at the end of the diary. At the beginning of the diary, she says her journey tells a story tonight which is distinct from her earlier experiences (Magoffin, 2003). She further says that from New York to the Plains of Mexico is a stride that she herself can scarcely realize showing her use of heroic words and how high-spirited she was at the beginning of the journey. Despite the comfort, the journey was very intense both mentally and physically.  She suffered a miscarriage at Bent’s Fort in Colorado and treated it lightly in her diary. This shows a shift in her character. She also contracted yellow fever in Matamoros and her second child died after birth while she was ill. 

Magoffin’s view of the Hispanic and Indian people at the time, at first was stereotypical but she later changed her view after interacting with them on a personal level. When Magoffin arrived in Mora, New Mexico, on August 25, 1846, her first impression was based on a common stereotype as she described the houses she saw as genteel pigsty in the States (Magoffin, 2003). She then further states that within the misery of the houses they lived, there dwells a “peace of Mind” and contentment that royalties have always longed for never to find. Magoffin thought that the Mexicans did not have any culture or judgment but she changes her view when one of them calls a pretty girl. She states that they are certainly very good and intelligent people. She was also greatly impressed when they reached El Paso del Norte with the civilized manner as well as the learning of her Mexican hosts. A little girl greatly impressed her as she described her to be carrying the dignity of an American eighteen-year-old while she was only six. 

3) Identify and give the significance of the following: 

The Nullification Crisis 

The Nullification Crisis was a result of South Carolina declaring federal law Signed by President Andrew Jackson unconstitutional in 1832. Jackson’s response was submitting a Force Bill to the senate which permitted the Federal government to use federal soldiers in collecting tariff duties. The nullification crisis was significant as it provides evidence of President Jackson Political and constitutional thoughts (Bradley,2022) He believed that the federal government had to be supreme, the constitution having delegated power to it. The crisis revealed the depth of alienation between the Federal government and the cotton planters of the south and the fear that the government would interfere with the institution of slavery which provided them with labor. It was a rehearsal for the constitutional and political crisis of the 1850s that would later result in civil war. 

The Bank War 

The Bank war resulted from President Andrew Jackson’s measures to destroy the U.S Second Bank which was met with opposition from Nicholas Biddle who was managing the bank and his political opponents such as Henry Clay and Quincy Adams. He wanted to destroy the bank due to the mismanagement of the bank, the bank was unregulated and it was growing powerful and most of the managers and stockholders were his opponents. A request to renew the bank charter four years before its expiry was submitted to congress in 1832 but Jackson vetoed the bill on July 1832 making it one of the issues during the election of 1832 (Trapani,2021). The bank war was significant as it resulted in the destruction of the U.S Second Bank, led to the formation of the Whig Party in opposition to Jackson’s policy, the federal government was able to pay off its debt by 1835, and finally, it also led to the Specie order which led to the Panic of 1837. 

The Panic of 1837 

The Panic of 1837 was a financial crisis that lasted for several years and led to the high unemployment rate throughout the United States. The panic was caused by the passing of an executive order which barred the federal gorvenemnet from accepting any payment apart from silver or gold. The bank War led to the destruction of the U.S  Second Bank by the reluctance of President Jackson to renew its charter and redirected the government revenue to pet banks. The pet banks were unregulated and gave too many loans as well as printed too much of their own money devaluing the American dollar. 

Second Great Awakening 

America was still a young country having received its independence in 1776 from Britain, there was therefore an intense period of socio-political reforms which caused pressure on the people as well as the politicians. The rate of drug abuse, immorality, and tension between abolitionists and slave-owners was also on the rise. The Second Great Awakening was therefore an essential religious revival that took eased the tension around the people as it swept through America in the 19^th century (Kelly,2021). The revival was led by Christian Protestants and it emphasized social change and salvation for everyone. It was mainly experienced around the states of Tennessee and Kentucky as it spread throughout the Nation. 

Grimke Sisters             

The Grimke sisters referred to Sarah Grimke born on 1792, November 26^th, and Angelina Grimke who was born thirteen years later on February 20^th, 1805. They were activists for Women’s rights and abolitionism having interacted closely with slaves in the field since their father required them to work with the slaves in picking cotton and shell corn. Sarah witnessed the horrors and effects of slavery and decided to convert to Quakerism after interacting with them in Philadelphia when she traveled with her father. she learned that the Quakers were against slavery and women were allowed to become leaders and preachers within the church, while she was there (McNamara,2019). Angelina wrote an appeal to Christian Women in South West State persuading them to petition for slavery abolition. The sisters played a major role in the abolition of slavery and Human rights using their writings and privileges.   

References

Bradley, H. Whitman (2022, June 4). Andrew Jackson. Encyclopedia Britannica.      https://www.britannica.com/biography/Andrew-Jackson 

Feller, D. (2020, October 26). Andrew Jackson: Impact and legacy. Miller Center. https://millercenter.org/president/jackson/impact-and-legacy 

Kelly, M. (2021, April 24). A brief summary of the Second Great Awakening.     ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/the-second-great-awakening-104220 

Magoffin, S. S. (2003). Down the Santa Fe Trail and into Mexico: The diary of Susan Shelby      Magoffin 1846. 

McNamara, R. (2019, July 21). South Carolina ladies turned fierce abolitionists, the Grimké        sisters. ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/the-grimke-sisters-1773551 

Trapani, M. (2021, April 12). Bank war. The Economic Historian. https://economic-   historian.com/2021/03/bank-war/