All Flashcards
Who was John Brown?
Abolitionist known for radical actions like Bleeding Kansas and Harper's Ferry.
Who was William Lloyd Garrison?
Abolitionist and publisher of The Liberator newspaper.
Who was Frederick Douglass?
Abolitionist and publisher of the North Star newspaper.
Who was John C. Calhoun?
Argued slavery was a “positive good.”
Who was William Harper?
Author of 'The Institution of Slavery as It Exists in the United States,' arguing slavery was beneficial.
Who was Catharine E. Beecher?
Author of 'An Essay on Slavery and Abolitionism,' arguing slavery was supported by the Bible.
Who was Harriet Beecher Stowe?
Author of 'Uncle Tom's Cabin,' a powerful anti-slavery novel.
Who was Hinton Rowan Helper?
Author of 'The Impending Crisis of the South,' arguing slavery was economically harmful.
Who were the Know-Nothings?
Members of the American Party, fueled by anti-immigrant sentiment.
What was the significance of Frederick Douglass?
An escaped slave who became a prominent activist, author and public speaker. He became a leader in the abolitionist movement, which sought to end the practice of slavery, before and during the Civil War.
What was the Missouri Compromise of 1820?
Attempted to address the expansion of slavery but ultimately failed.
What was the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854?
Attempted to address the expansion of slavery but ultimately failed.
What was the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850?
Required Northerners to help capture and return runaway slaves.
What was the Dred Scott Decision (1857)?
Ruled that African Americans were not citizens and had no rights.
What was Bleeding Kansas?
A series of violent civil confrontations in Kansas Territory, United States, between 1854 and 1861 which emerged from a political and ideological debate over the legality of slavery in the proposed state of Kansas.
What was the significance of Harper's Ferry?
John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry was an attempt to start an armed slave revolt and destroy the institution of slavery.
What was the impact of Uncle Tom's Cabin?
A powerful anti-slavery novel that swayed public opinion against slavery.
What was the effect of the publishing of 'The Impending Crisis of the South'?
Provided economic arguments against slavery, which was a new approach.
What was the impact of the large-scale immigration of Germans and Irish Catholics in the mid-1800s?
Changed the US demographic makeup, particularly in urban areas, and led to nativist backlash.
What was the effect of Southern states banning abolitionist literature?
Showed the South's desperation to maintain the status quo.
What is Nativism?
Belief that long-term residents needed protection from recent immigrants.
Define Abolitionism.
Movement to end slavery.
What was 'Temperance'?
Anti-alcohol movement, partly driven by anti-immigrant sentiments.
What is sectionalism?
Loyalty to regional interests rather than the nation as a whole.
Define 'paternalism' in the context of slavery.
The belief that slaveholders were like fathers to their slaves and responsible for their care.
What were Personal Liberty Laws?
Laws passed by Northern states to nullify the Fugitive Slave Act.
Who were the 'Californios'?
Mexicans living in California before it became part of the U.S.
Define 'ethnic enclaves'.
Neighborhoods where immigrants of the same ethnicity settle.
What is the Underground Railroad?
A network of secret routes and safe houses used by enslaved African Americans to escape to freedom.
Define 'popular sovereignty'.
The principle that the authority of a state and its government are created and sustained by the consent of its people, through their elected representatives, who are the source of all political power.