Question: why do you think slaveholders took their slaves with them on the journey why didn’t they just sell them before leaving?

Migrant motives – Emigrants migrated to the far west for a simple reason the wide variety of opportunity that the gold rush brought. Thousands of emigrants sought riches in the form of gold others west in order to make a fortune as shopkeepers, peddles and merchants most migrants dreamed of bettering their life by cultivating the land. The preemption acts allowed many emigrants to settle so did the homestead act and the Oregon land policy. These were helpful because it provided alluring price for land that many emigrants took advantage of. Some emigrants went west because of health issues, many were suffering from diseases and was told by their doctors that a good out- door trip would help cure them.

Question: What’s the difference between the Oregon land policy and the homestead act?

Emigrants also migrated west because of religious or cultural missions. Missionary couples would set out to find followers bring Protestantism and education west and morons went to establish societies that was in conformity with their religious belief. Though many emigrants were migrating west it doesn’t mean that this trip was free and easy to make their were many considerable expenses. Trips by sea were the most comfortable and also the most expensive while the cost of traveling over land was less comfortable but less money. Though this trip was made by many the trip was not made by the very poor because the financial cost was too great.

Question: who went on the journey west (specify as to what class)?

American citizens weren’t the only ones to make this trip west. Chinese immigrants came to America seeking a better life and some emigrants did fid a better life, that why so many more immigrants came because a few others before them came to America and achieved success. In the 1860’s the Chinese immigrants would work on the railroads for a month and earn a $30 pay.

Overland Trail – emigrants began their vigorous journey’s west at the points in Iowa and Missouri. Emigrants usually got about 15 miles a day. The trip was what most expected to encounter until the 1850’s conflict with the native Americans. While on the journey men would drive and repair the wagon if needed, while women would take care of domestic work and the young children would stay out of the wagons way and older children would lend a hand where needed. While on the trail disease struck and animals died, families had to lighten the load conditions got worse for many families. But when their destination was reached the families were happy and relieved that they were some of the few that made through the long hard trip.

Question: What effect do you think the Native Americans have on the travelers of the overland?

Important vocabulary

Preemption acts (1830’s and 1840’s) – These acts gave “squatters” the right to settle public lands before the government offered them for sale and then allowed them to purchase these lands at the minimum price once they came on the market.

Homestead act (1862) – Offered 160 acres of government land free to citizens or future citizens over 21 who lived on the property, improved it and paid a small registration fee.

Oregon’s land policy (1862) – Awarded a single man 320 acres of free land and a married man 640 acres, provided he occupied his claim for four years and made improvements.

THE LIFE OF THE MIDDLE CLASS

The life of the middle class was of great value during the 19th century industrialization era. You might be wondering why it’s of such great value? More middle class Americans income grew during this time, about 30%, more middle class families owned homes about 36%, and they also sought opportunities that they never had before such as no having to take care of household chores, the ability for them to rise their living standards and being able to desire material items and then able to go out and shop for them.

During the time of industrialization many men allowed their wives to have more independence. We can establish this because before many men believed they owned their wives and we all know they weren’t treated equally to men. Women during this time now were given more property rights, able to wear more comfortable clothing such as shirtwaist blouse and ankle-length skirt. But did they give them too much freedom, enough that will make them want more and more? Because of their new freedoms many joined organizations of all kinds. Women realized their talents and started contacting other people and problems outside of their own lives. Realizing their talents made them want more, so many set out to get jobs. Even though job opportunities were limited and didn’t pay well, many attempted to get one. By now many middle class women were accepted better in society. Education opportunities expanded ad by 1900 nearly 20% of women graduated from college. Advances in birth control fueled the fire of having fewer babies. About every 1 woman in 5 were childless which increased the man’s fear of decreasing family size and increase in divorces. Were women becoming less dependent on males? Many men despised of these new freedoms women had, many started campaigns and tried to reinforce traditional sex roles. Many men still believed women were not equal to men but where their enough women and men that believed they deserved equal rights to win the fight? I believe that men were scared of women developing all of these new freedoms and I think they were scared that one that they will over power men. Men believed they were in control because they were able to overpower women but giving women new freedoms took more control away from the men.

Females were not the only ones who changing so were the men. As the lower-class world became more specialized the number of middle-class men jobs increased. This comes back to the “poor man’s fight but a rich man’s battle,” they weren’t fighting a war but they were industrializing which would benefit the rich but would hurt the poor. Yeah the poorer people who get jobs but the conditions of those jobs and the hell it put them through was a fight for survival. An education was now required for many new careers that were now being developed. Poor class citizens were not able to go to school this long because their families needed help just making ends meant so this gave middle class people a chance to get more education and get better jobs. This caused the expansion of school from about 160 schools to 6,000 schools. This section talks a lot about new school forming and the people who helped make it possible, so pay close attention to who goes with what. The need for many new careers helped with the expansion of aw schools, medical schools, business schools and even dental schools. As businesses expanded, so did career opportunities. Even though many ranked a person by their family background and their social rank this didn’t stop people with good characters and diligent work habits like Rockefeller and Carnegie. But equal and unlimited opportunity for upward advancement in America has never been easy as it sounds, these lower class people had to work 20 times harder than a middle class or upper class man had too.

Women at the Republican Court
Women often visited Supreme Court and sessions of Congress to listen to debates and even filled the House galleries as electoral votes. Being a part of the political scene allowed women to create friend networks for dinner parties and social gatherings to promote political alliances. They also challenged the lines of public and private sectors. Some women were more privileged than others in politics but as the political parties started to grow in numbers, the men dominated and became defining act of political participation.

A New Style of Politics
Voter turnouts greatly increased due to the growing strength of democratic beliefs and decisions due to state programs of road and canal building, bank regulation, etc. which activated people’s self interest.  States began to perfect the techniques of democratic politics making registration drives and party conventions commonplace. Politicians aimed for informing the masses about their places in government so they would vote.

Neighborhoods and Neighborhood Life pg 597

As the cities developed, the working class foreigners entered the center of the cities as the middle-class and the rich left to the suburbs. Immigrants often lived in the same streets, same neighborhoods, and in the same houses as other immigrants. During this time, they lived in unsanitary slums where the houses were divided to allow housing availability for more families. What uncomfortable conditions did the families face? To start, the houses were small, dark, and compact with people. Unlike our presently clean water source, outdoor hydrants supplied their water which women used to wash, cook, and clean. They normally would dump their waste into the unpaved alleys and courts served by inadequate sewage systems. As the outside environment became more unsanitary and unhealthy for people, the urban rate rose. The skilled workers were so fortunate that they were able to afford rent for comfortable quarters, while some had the opportunity to own their own house. Unfortunately for the unskilled workers, they were crammed into a four room tenement.

The working–class immigrants became victims of the environment, but with the help of their religious and ethnic identities, they felt right at home. Many religious participants organized their own religious church or society to help bring communities together. African Americans dealt heavily with living conditions than any other group in the cities. Blacks in the North lived in segregated areas and, in the South, they lived in poor alleys and small streets. After a certain period of time, African Americans churches grew dramatically. As a result, many blacks shifted to the middle-class society.

Streetcar Suburbs pg 599

Transportation systems gave the middle-class and the upper-class societies the ability to live on the outskirts of the cities. They made their money from big businesses, commerce and the professions, or inherited family fortunes. Many people, like Robert Work, made an enormous fortune. They bought houses in the suburbs and commuted many miles on transportation systems to go to work. These households were composed of parents, children, servants, and boarders. Unlike the poor conditions faced by working-class families, the middle and upper classes were fortunate to have hot and cold running water, indoor bathrooms, central heating, and other modern conveniences of the age. Beautifully carved furniture, rugs, draperies, and laced curtains decorated the mansions.

The Social Geography of the Cities pg 599

As more people arrived into the U.S., people were sorted out by class, income, occupation, and race. Why were the cities segregated? Everybody is human, why can’t everybody get along?  The industrial developments affected the size of the family and domestic life. The middle-class families had fewer kids, while the lower-class families had many kids. The children of the lower class were sent to work to help the families receive more income to sustain their lives. Conflicts rose between the lower-class and upper/middle classes. Lower-class families were criticized for taking their children out of schools and sending them to work. Middle-class newspaper writers described the men as “loafing” and criticized the “crowds of idlers, who, day and night, infect Main Street.” The idlers were pressured because they were unemployed. How can the higher classes judge the lower ones without knowing what their current life situation is? Thankfully, upper classes could find jobs and earn a good income. In contrast, lower classes had to struggle to find jobs and maintain their families. With extremely hard work and dedication to their families, this class was able to rise above their poor living conditions to survive.

POSTWAR SOUTHERNERS FACE THE FUTURE (574)
In this section, we look into the South’s economic struggle after the war; making an attempt to create a “New South” by relaying railroads and adjusting rolling stock to fit the northern gauges. Birmingham, Alabama was known to “symbolize” the “New South”. Do you think the text provides enough info to support that this is true?

THE OTHER SIDE OF PROGRESS (574)
This section highlights the growth of Industrialization in the South. One writer had in fact boasted that the South was “throbbing with Industrial and Railroad activity” Based on the text, do you believe this quote to be true? At this point, share cropping was now being pushed aside. And many now said hello to factory life-low skilled jobs; low wage jobs. What classes of people were taking these jobs? Did gender, race, and age determine and/or affect ones hours and pay in factory jobs?

COTTON STILL KING (575)
The South dreamed of an agricultural revolution! What factors made that “dream” nonexistent? After the war, cotton prices rose, and then plummeted, then rose again etc. Farmers struggled to keep up with the changes in cotton prices. They were constantly caught in a cycle of debt and poverty! How did this factor affect the South’s food production?

THE NADIR OF BLACK LIFE (576)
The Race Issue. Had slavery really become nonexistent after the war? Think about how large of an impact the end of slavery must have had on the South’s economy. Therefore, blacks had agreed that racial cooperation was crucial in order to help the South. Based on the text, do you find that if blacks had not found themselves inferior to whites, that the informal system of segregation would have been introduced? Railroads, schools, libraries, restaurants, etc. were segregated- “Jim Crow” law. In this section, really think about the approach in Plessey vs. Ferguson, on how “separate but equal” facilities did NOT violate the 14th amendment. What were these different types of discrimination going on in this period?

DIVIDING BLACK RESPONSES (578)
Blacks were calling were separation! Black Nationalism! They were now fighting for equality and social justice! Looking at society today, can you see how Fredrick Douglas was right in how for generations blacks would have to fight for their equal rights in this country?

Competing for Kansas
After the Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854) many people migrated into Kansas. David Atchison was a Democrat who wanted to protect slavery in the territories, and under his leadership, many societies formed in Missouri to challenge the Free Soilers entering Kansas. Voting ballots doubled while only 20 of 600 voters were legal due to intimidation. In Topeka, a free-soil government was formed banning blacks form the state. Despite these events, President Peirce did nothing when he could have easily nullified illegal elections. Why would he choose to not interfere with the slavery debate residing in Kansas?

“Bleeding Kansas”
A poet named Walt Whitman, wrote about his faith in American Democracy, however in 1850 his faith faded when he realized the issues within America would bring on the “red blood of civil war.” On May 1856 a mob of anti free-soilers destroyed the town of Lawrence. A few days later John Brown led a small band of men and killed five men with swords, claiming he was doing God’s will. Abolitionist Charles Sumner, a senator, was attacked by Congressman Preston Brooks with a cane after Sumner insulted Brooks nephew, Andrew Butler. Despite Brooks senseless beating of Sumner, he was praised by pro-slavery citizens. What could peaceful citizens living in Kansas do against such violence?

Northern Views and Visions
The North viewed themselves as self-made men and women who believed in values such as respect for rights, rule of law, and morality based from religion. They valued a government which guaranteed rights to free men and promoted industrial growth, expansion of railroads and immigration. Northerners believed that slavery was “the root of all evil” because it removed freedom from men. Many people in the North hated proslavery southerners.

The Southern Perspective
Unlike Northerners who valued economic growth, Southerners valued social pursuits. “The South saw itself as an ordered society guided by the planters’ genteel code.” The south believed in a democratic view was best.

- WAR IN THE EAST
This section talks about some of the batles that were fought on the east half of the coutnry between this time period. Some of the battles they talked about were Bull Run, battles fought in northern Virgina, and souhtern Maryland. They also tlak about the soliders trainng and how they arrived at the battle feild and how they reacted once in battle. Do u find the context in this section goes to depth enough about some of the battles in the East during the beggign fo the war? It shows Lincolin pursuit of a general that could win. It talks about the person who lincion chose. Gen. Geroge Mcclean and how he trained the Union troops and his military stragies. Do you feel Mcclean was a good leader?

- WAR IN THE WEST
The section talks about how the Cilvil War was fought in the west. The west was the Aplication and Mississippi River layed the western theater. The union command wanted the port of New Orleans. Why did Union generals want the port of new orleans so bad? Future general of the union army Ulusus S. Grant rose to populairty by fighting in the west durin the civil war. In the West what confederate states the the union caputre? It talks about the background fo the military stargery of gen. grant. What were some challenges union troops had to face while fighting in the West.

-NAVAL WARFARE
Licolin decied to strangle the south with a naval blockade. Why did Lincolin want a blockade of the south? Wy did the Union have such a high adavantage un the navy? Unions most major naval victoy was at the port of New Orleans. what was the importance of the Iron clad ships? Two of the mso tcommon ironclads were the Monitor and the merimack.

- Strengthening American Nationalism
As we know rituals of patriotic celebration suck as 4th or July and Washington ’s Birthday helps unify our country. National unity was also strengthened through Supreme Court cases such as Marbury v. Madison, Martin v. Hunter Lessee, and McCulloch v. Maryland.

- The Specter of Sectionalism
After the War of 1812 the Nation tried unite themselves through rituals and celebrations. There was talk of disunion which comes to show that the attempt to strengthen American Nationalism did not work. Slavery was one of the main concerns. Because of the Norhtwest ordinance slavery was prohibited north of the Ohio River but allowed expansion in the south. Before entering the Union Senator Rufus said that Missouri must prohibit slavery. His proposal led to a debate about the regulation of slavery. In the end Missouri was able to enter the union as a slave state while Maine a free state. The line was drawn at latitude 36 degrees 309 to the Rocky Mountains and lands south of this line would be open to slavery and areas north would not. How much of an effect do you think this would have leading up to the civil war?

- United States and the America
After the war the president and congress proposed new policies for Latin America. Europe talked of helping Spain build an empire which alarmed Great Britain and the US. The British foreign secretary proposed the idea of Anglo- American cooperation to prevent Spain’s intentions and John Quincy Adams opposed the idea. A new Latin American Policy was now proposed. The Doctrine stated that the American continents were closed to the New European Colonization, Political systems were separated from Europe, US would consider Europe as dangerous, and the US would not interfere with existing colonies.

Finney and the Second Great Awakening

Religion, namely Protestantism, was spread like wildfire through out the U.S. and becoming more democratic. Rochester, New York transformed from a “sleepy village” to a “bustling” commercial center. The town was undergoing many social changes at the time, saloons were popping up, workers were not as loyal to their masters, etc. This phenomena was new to the towns residents, who seemed to prefer the old ways. Blaming the current up rise of absenteeism and poverty, the citizens of Rochester turned, as many have done before and as many still do now, to religion and called in the famous revival preacher Charles Finney. He was known for his successes in converting many, bringing them back to observe religious values. With the help of his wife, he converted the city’s elite, as well as the workers. He was very theatrical in his preaching, which was a big part of his success. He would have people so into his speeches, when he would throw an imaginary brick representing the devil, people would actually duck. He would also threaten eternal damnation, so convincingly that those sitting in the back row would stand up and look for the dissension into the fiery depths. This dramatic style of preaching is still used today in many baptist churches. Examples of these tactics, which appeal to emotion and logic (pathos and logos if you’re in AP English 11 ) can be seen still today, for example, the documentary Jesus Camp (http://www.jesuscampthemovie.com/) can show to what dramatic lengths preachers could go.

One of Finney’s main ideas was that humans were not “passive objects of God’s plan” who were helpless in the grander scheme of things, but were “moral free agents” free to make their own decisions concerning their eternal fate. Whether or not he was right can never really be decided though his ideas bring up many deeper, philosophical questions such as, “If we were actually passive agents of God’s will, would he plan for people’s devotion to wavier only to come back to him (or her ) during the revival?” or “If we are all moral free agents, why would God give us this ability if he knew that we would make wrong decisions? Would he/she be forgiving if humans made the wrong decisions?”

The Transcendentalists

Ralph Waldo Emerson was a pretty cool guy. He authored many works which had profound effects on the reform movements. Those who followed him believed that the absolute truth would be found beyond the institution of society. They would transcend this institution and look towards nature to find true “self-knowledge, self-reliance, and the spark of divinity burning within them.” An example of this would be Henry David Thoreau’s (a known transcendentalist) work “Walden”. Emerson saw his purpose in life to be inspiring others to find these things. He influenced many important figure in history including Margret Fuller, Herman Melville, and Nathan Hawthorne, to name a few. His values of the self reliance, self knowledge, anti materialism, and concern for the evils in society (during this time, it was slavery) still are popular today. [In Janet Tashjian's young adult novel, "The Gospel According to Larry," the main character finds his inspiration from the Emerson's principles. He strives to only own 75 posessions at any time, organizes protests, and meditates at Walden Pond. It's a wicked good book if you're interested in looking at how these principles can be applied today. Here's the link.   Tashjian illustrates Thoreau's commitment to living on a principle in her main character's actions. ] Questions that could be discussed: “Thoreau lived on his principle by refusing to support the government he didn’t believe in through not paying taxes. Was this the best way to support his belief (Especially because Emerson paid the tax anyway)? Can one be devoutly religious and a transcendalist at the same time? (Religon looks to a higher power while Transcendentalists look within.)