Early National Society & Culture

Rise of Democracy Founding Fathers saw themselves as disinterested gentlemanly elites Common people rejected this & claimed full equality Leisure now seen as aristocratic & immoral Virtue associated with productive labor Loss of personal, trust-based relationships led to disbelief in possibility of disinterestedness Long-distance trade relied on paper money & legal contracts Economic necessity forced founders to abandon ideal of elected officials serving without pay

Middle Class Culture Middle class replaced gentlemanly elite as new cultural standard in America Combined virtue & taste of aristocracy with hard work of commoners Wealthy factory & plantation owners downplayed their wealth Public opinion replaced views of educated elites as controlling source of truth Concept of “republican motherhood” gave women role as educators and guardians of morality

Restrictions on Women Legal doctrine of coverture said women were covered by their fathers or husbands Women could only own property, make contracts & sue if unmarried Only in New Jersey were property-owning widows allowed to vote, & ended in Educating women seen as impractical & potentially dangerous

Marriage & Family Sentimentalism in novels, poems & plays helped give rise to companionate marriage Fathers had less land to give to sons, so less control over whom they would marry Fathers could still sue for damages over the loss of daughter’s virginity Divorce difficult to obtain – often required special act of the legislature

Immigration & Westward Expansion Immigration increased rapidly after 1815, although dependent on economic conditions Attracted by available land and religious & political freedom “America letters” from family & friends convinced many to come Tecumseh’s Indian confederation defeated by William Henry Harrison at Tippecanoe (1811) Government sold public lands cheaply Minimum land allotment lowered to 160 acres in 1804 Lowered to 80 acres in 1820, at $1.25 an acre

Indian Land Cessions