Chapter Study Outline

  • I. Transportation and the national economy
    • A. Opening new roads
    • B. Water transport
      • 1. Steamboats
      • 2. The Erie Canal
    • C. Development of railroads
      • 1. Early rail lines
      • 2. Advantages of rail service
      • 3. Negative aspects
    • D. Ocean transport
      • 1. Clipper ships
    • E. Role of government
      • 1. State and private funding
      • 2. Federal land grants
    • F. Communications revolution
      • 1. Impact of new modes of transportation
      • 2. Delivery of mail
    • G. Advances in technology
      • 1. Practical application of science
      • 2. Impact of inventions
      • 3. First telegraph
    • H. Transportation and communications advances transform the nation
  • II. Agriculture and the national economy
    • A. The importance of cotton to the economy
      • 1. Invention of the cotton gin
      • 2. Revolutionary impact of the gin
      • 3. Impact on slavery
      • 4. Encouragement of westward migration
      • 5. Cotton became an important export
    • B. The westward movement
      • 1. Changes in land laws
        • a. Land law of 1820
        • b. Preemption Act of 1830
        • c. Graduation Act of 1854
      • 2. Development of improved iron plows
      • 3. Cyrus McCormick’s mechanical reaper
  • III. Industrialization
    • A. The growth of industry
      • 1. Britain’s lead in industrial production
      • 2. Samuel Slater’s mill
      • 3. Impact of War of 1812 on early textile manufacturing
    • B. Emergence of the factory system
      • 1. The Lowell system
        • a. Raw material to production of finished cloth
        • b. Use of young women
        • c. Failure of Lowell idea
      • 2. Labor unrest in textile industry
      • 3. Rhode Island or Fall River system
    • C. Industrialization and the environment
  • IV. Urbanization
    • A. Leading cities of the antebellum period
    • B. Interaction of manufacturing with urbanization
  • V. Popular culture
    • A. Urban recreation
      • 1. Colonial amusements
      • 2. Alcohol consumption
      • 3. Taverns as social centers
      • 4. Popularity of blood sports
      • 5. Performing arts
        • a. Theater
        • b. Minstrel shows
  • VI. Immigration
    • A. Continuing need for labor
    • B. Ebb and flow of immigration
    • C. Characteristics of ethnic groups
      • 1. Irish
        • a. Reasons for immigration
        • b. Irish immigrant life
        • c. Political behavior
        • d. Led to growth of Catholic Church
      • 2. Germans
      • 3. British
      • 4. Scandinavians
      • 5. Chinese
    • D. Nativist reaction to immigrants
      • 1. Reasons for antagonism toward immigrants
      • 2. Examples of nativist activity
      • 3. Nativist organizations
        • a. Early associations
        • b. Know-Nothing party formed in 1854
          • (1) Political gains
          • (2) Specific demands
  • VII. Labor organization
    • A. Daily life of the skilled urban working class
    • B. Importance of Commonwealth v. Hunt decision, 1842
    • C. Efforts to create national trade unions
    • D. Urban labor politics
      • 1. Workingmen’s parties
      • 2. Locofocos in New York
      • 3. Impact of labor parties
    • E. Continuing activities of unions
  • VIII. The rise of professions
    • A. Growing sophistication of American life
    • B. Growth of professions
      • 1. Teaching
      • 2. Law
      • 3. Medicine
      • 4. Engineering
    • C. Changing role of women
  • IX. Jacksonian inequality
    • A. Examples of self-made men
    • B. Distribution of wealth
    • C. Growing inequality—possible reasons