1. Do Now 
Identify at least two things that you already know about Andrew Jackson

2. Jackson grew up poor in a log cabin
He enlisted in the Revolution at age 13
He studied law and was eventually elected to Congress in his 20’s
He won national fame for his achievements during the War of 1812

3. Andrew Jackson & The Growth of Democracy
Essential Question: How well did President Andrew Jackson promote democracy?
Throughout this activity, you will read background information (in your History Alive Text book) on Jackson then analyze primary sources to evaluate how well he promoted democracy throughout his presidency.
Step 1: Read background information in H.A textbook and answer questions on graphic organizer.
Step 2: Analyze primary source for that section, read caption, then discuss/answer analysis questions on graphic organizer.
Step 3:Repeat the process for the other sections.

4. Jackson’s Approach to Governing
Jackson did not rely only on his cabinet for advice. He made most of his decisions with the help of trusted friends and political supporters. Because these advisers were said to meet with him in the White House kitchen, they were called the “kitchen cabinet.”
Who made up the kitchen cabinet and how did they receive their name?
The rich men who had been used to influencing the government viewed the “kitchen cabinet” with deep suspicion. In their eyes, the men around the president were not the proper sort to be running the country.
How did rich men who influenced the government view the Kitchen Cabinet?
The practice of rewarding political supporters with government jobs. Jackson replaced many Republican office holders with loyal Democrats.
Explain the Spoils System.
Jackson’s opponents exaggerated the number of Republicans removed from office. Only about 10 percent of civil servants were replaced— and many deserved to be.
How did Jackson’s opponents exaggerate his actions?

5. Jackson’s Approach to Governing In this political cartoon, titled “Office Hunters for the Year 1834,” Andrew Jackson is a puppet master. He is pulling strings attached to people who want to be appointed to public offices. What is the cartoonist’s opinion of Jackson? The Granger Collection, New York.
Andrew Jackson as the master puppet
People who want to be elected to office
• Who are the people trying to grab the objects attached to the strings? People who want to be elected to office • What do you think is the cartoonists opinions of the people seeking political office? They are puppets of Jackson • Would the cartoonist think that Jackson’s approach to governing promoted Democracy ?Why or Why not? No, felt Jackson did not reward those worthy of the job

6. The Nullification Crisis
In 1828, Congress passed a law raising tariffs, or taxes on imported goods such as cloth and glass. The idea was to encourage the growth of manufacturing in the United States.
What law did Congress pass in 1828 and why was it passed?
Southerners opposed tariffs for several reasons. Tariffs raised the prices they paid for factory goods. High tariffs also discouraged trade among nations, and planters in the South worried that tariffs would hurt cotton sales to other countries.
Why did Southern states oppose tariffs?
He called on southern states to declare the tariff “null and void,” or illegal and not to be honored.
What did Vice President, John C. Calhoun call on southern states to do?
The state threatened to secede [To withdraw from an organization or alliance] if the national government tried to enforce the tariff laws. Jackson signed the Force Bill threatening to use the army against S.C. South Carolina backed down and the nullification crisis ended.
How did South Carolina take the idea of states’ rights even further, and what was Jackson’s response?

7. Jackson is the figure pulling on the coattails of a Calhoun supporter.
The Nullification Crisis In this cartoon, John C. Calhoun, who believed states have the right to nullify federal laws, is reaching toward a crown. The crown symbolizes his desire for power. Andrew Jackson is pulling on the coat of a Calhoun supporter. He wants to prevent Calhoun from trampling on the Constitution and destroying the Union. Library of Congress.
John C. Calhoun, Jackson’s vice president, is the figure at the top of the stairs
Despotism: a form of government in which the ruler is an absolute dictator
Jackson is the figure pulling on the coattails of a Calhoun supporter.
•What might the man at the top of the stair case be doing? Reaching for Jackson’s “crown”
What does the cartoonist imply that Calhoun wants? Calhoun wants the power for state’s
• Would the cartoonist think that Jackson’s response to the nullification crisis promoted democracy? Why or why not? Yes because in this instance Jackson is supporting the Constitution and the power of the federal government

8. The Banking Crisis
Jackson thought that the bank benefited rich eastern depositors at the expense of farmers and workers, as well as smaller state banks.
What were Jackson’s feelings towards the bank of the United States?
Jackson vetoed the re-charter bill because even though the Supreme Court had held that the bank was constitutional, Jackson called the bank an unconstitutional monopoly that existed mainly to make the rich richer..
Why did Jackson veto the bank’s renewal contract in 1836?
In 1833, he ordered the secretary of the treasury to remove all federal deposits from the bank and put the money in state banks. Abolishing the bank, he believed, was a victory for economic democracy.
How and why did Jackson plan to kill the bank?

9. • Who does the many headed monster represent? The bank directors
Jackson Battles the Bank Andrew Jackson, on the left, attacks the many-headed Bank of the United States with a veto stick. Bank president Nicholas Biddle, in the center, wears a top hat. The many heads represent the 24 state directors of the bank. Vice President Martin Van Buren, in the center, chokes Massachusetts and Delaware.
Nicholas Biddle, The President of the Bank, is pictured in a top hat.
Andrew Jackson is attacking the Bank of the U.S with a veto stick.
The monster’s heads represent the 24 state directors of the bank
Martin Van Buren, Vice President
• Who does the many headed monster represent? The bank directors
What dangers does the cartoonist think this monster will bring? Giving loans only to the wealthy
• Would the cartoonist think that the dismantling of the bank promoted U.S. democracy? How can you tell? Yes because it depicts the bankers as monsters who want to control the federal government

10. Jackson’s Indian Policy
As a frontier settler, Andrew Jackson had little sympathy for American Indians. During his presidency, it became national policy to remove Indians who remained in the East by force.
How did Andrew Jackson feel about American Indians?
This law allowed the president to make treaties in which American Indians in the East traded their lands for new territory on the Great Plains.
What was the Indian Removal Act?
The removal of Cherokee Indians from Georgia to Indian Territory in 1838 and 1839.
Explain the Trail of Tears?

11. • What do you see? Natives being forced west by the US army
The Trail of Tears This artist painted an unrealistic picture of the Trail of Tears. Most of the Cherokees had no horses or warm blankets. They were dragged from their homes and allowed to take only the clothes they had on. Many died as they walked barefoot for hundreds of miles.
• What do you see? Natives being forced west by the US army
• How do you think these people feel? How can you tell? They look sad and disrespected. They are looking down towards the ground. • Where might they be going? Why? To Oklahoma to a reservation