1. The JACKSON ERA

2. Election of 1824
Candidates were William Crawford, Andrew Jackson, Henry Clay
No one received a majority vote, so House of Reps would decide
Clay and Adams struck a deal: Clay used his influence as Speaker of the House to defeat Jackson
Adams wins election, makes Clay Secretary of State
Adams was NOT a popular president: wanted a stronger navy, scientific expeditions supported with government funds, and direct federal involvement in economic growth

3. Election of 1828 Vicious campaign between Adams and Jackson
First campaign with:
Mudslinging: attempts to ruin the opponent with insults
Slogans, rallies, buttons, campaign events
Jackson won by a landslide: heavily supported in the frontier and in the south

4. Andrew Jackson Poor farm family, war hero of 1812, president
“equal protection” and “equal benefits” for all Americans (well, for white men, anyway)
Spoils system: employees in government were friends of the president
Changed the political system so people would elect the presidential candidates instead of being chosen by committee

5. The Tariff Debate
Southerners hated high tariffs on imports because they traded raw cotton with Europe for manufactured goods
This was their first cause for secession
Jackson defended the Union, saying it must be preserved
Jackson tried to compromise and lower the tariff, but it would only solve the problem temporarily

6. Native Americans
Pres. Jackson supported relocating Natives to west of the Mississippi
Indian Removal Act 1830 paid them to move west
Cherokee refused to give up its land in Georgia
They sued the state for not recognizing the Cherokee as a “nation”
1832 a few signed a treaty giving up their land
Eventually federal troops came and forced them to leave, became known as the “Trail of Tears”

7. Native Resistance
Black Hawk led Sauk and Fox people back to Illinois to regain land, but they were massacred by federal troops
Seminoles in Florida went to war instead of leaving their land; used guerilla tactics and eventually US government gave up and let them stay
But it was short lived and they were eventually forced west anyway
By 1842 very few Natives lived east of Miss. R. most lived on reservations, divided by nation

8. War Against the Bank
Jackson thought the national bank was elitist: run by the wealthy and common people had no control
Many people agreed with him, and he was reelected in 1832, planning to “kill” the bank
He ordered withdrawal of all government deposits from the bank and put them in smaller state banks

9. Panic of 1837 Pres. Martin van Buren is president
Land values drop, investments suddenly fell off, banks failed
Thousands of businesses closed, thousands lost jobs, prices rose so high people couldn’t afford basics
Van Buren did little to help- he thought the government should stay out of economic issues
Obviously the situation only got worse

10. The Whig Party
New political party that included the National Republicans and Jackson haters
They picked William H. Harrison as their candidate for 1840
He was a war hero, they picked a log cabin for his campaign to show that Harrison was a “man of the people”
He won, but died of pneumonia 4 weeks later
VP John Tyler becomes president
Strong supporter of states’ rights, once was a Democrat