1. Unit 9: Westward Expansion
Lesson 2: The Missouri Compromise & Indian Removal

2. Different regions of the country had maintained different interests & priorities since colonial times
In the early 1800s, 3 distinct sections developed in the U.S.:
The North, the South, & the West

3. Geography, economics, & history all contributed to the distinct ways of life in these sections
As divisions grew deeper, many people started to wonder if sectionalism would divide the country
Sectionalism: rivalry based on the special interests of different areas

4. How does this all connect to Westward Expansion?
Movement westward led to a serious clash between sectional interests in 1819
That was when the Missouri Territory asked Congress to make them a state

5. So this is a problem because???
Most Missouri settlers had come from Kentucky & Tennessee, where slavery was allowed
They therefore believed that slavery
should be legal in the new state of Missouri

6. The North had 105 representatives in the House, while the South had 81
At the time, the population of the North was slightly larger than the population of the South
The North had 105 representatives in the House, while the South had 81
Thus, the majority in the House of Reps disagreed with Missouri’s proposal that it be admitted as a slave state

7. Despite greater Northern representation in the House, representation in the Senate was balanced
There were 12 free states & 12 slave states, each with 2 senators
Whichever way Missouri was admitted, this balance would swing in favor of one side or the other

8. Henry Clay proposed the Missouri Compromise, the purpose of which was
Bitter debates in Congress perpetuated many people’s fear that these sectional differences might split the country in 2
Henry Clay proposed the Missouri Compromise, the purpose of which was
to prevent the US from splitting into 2 countries
The Compromise passed by a very narrow margin, and only because Maine also requested to become a state

9. What was the Missouri Compromise?
Clay proposed that Maine enter the Union as a free state
Missouri could then enter as a slave state,
and power would still be balanced in the Senate
 Now that’s balance!

10. The Compromise also settled the question of slavery in the rest of the Louisiana Territory
Slavery would not be allowed north of the 36 30’ parallel, which was a line of latitude that ran west from the southern border of Missouri

11. It all sounds good! But the Missouri Compromise was only a temporary fix
Why is that?
Americans would continue to move west,
bringing their different ways of life with them
Could we really remain one united country when half of the people believed in slavery, and the other half in free or hired labor?

12. Another issue that arose as a result of Westward Expansion involved the Native Americans
When Andrew Jackson became President in 1828, the gov’t already had a long-standing policy of
supporting white settlers who moved onto Native American lands

13. “Why?” you ask
The gov’t wanted the fertile farmlands of the Southeast

14. Jackson agreed with this policy, believing very strongly that Natives should give up their lands to settlers and move west of the Mississippi River, into Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma)

15. When Jackson became President, only about 120,000 Native Americans remained east of the Mississippi River
Still, Southern cotton planters wanted those lands
and pressured Native American leaders to move west

16. In 1830, Jackson convinced his supporters in Congress to pass the Indian Removal Act:
provided federal gov’t funds to remove Native Americans from the eastern U.S.

17. More specifically, the act…
authorized the President to negotiate treaties to buy tribal lands in the east in exchange for lands in the west, outside the existing U.S. borders
President Jackson said:
Most of the Native American tribes, though they did so reluctantly,
moved west in response to this 1830 Act

18. One exception:
The Cherokee Nation was the one group of Native Americans that was able to hold off signing the treaties until 1838
In that year, they too agreed to move west

19. That fall, Cherokee leader John Ross led his people on a forced march to Indian Territory
Thousands died as a result of severe weather on the Great Plains

20. One observer wrote:
“Even aged females…were traveling with heavy burdens attached to their backs, sometimes on frozen ground with no covering on their feet.”

22. By the time John Ross arrived in Indian Territory, about 1/8 of his people had died, including his wife
The Cherokee called this journey, “The Trail Where They Cried,” which history now knows as
“The Trail of Tears”

23. The Trail of Tears was a controversial part of Andrew Jackson’s otherwise respected presidency
Jackson is actually seen as one of our “greatest presidents”

24. Why? He was the first “citizen-president”
He represented the common man, & won the 1828 election by a landslide
A lot of his support came from farmers in the South & people from the new Western states

25. What did Jackson believe in?
One strong belief of his was that the wealthy should not have too much power in gov’t
(makes sense if he represented & supported the common man)
He was also a major supporter of preserving the union
Huh?

26. Preserving the Union
His belief in this was made very clear through the “Nullification Crisis” of
Long story short, South Carolina didn’t like a Federal law that put
high tariffs/taxes on goods imported from Europe

27. any Federal law that went against the state’s interests
South Carolina believed that a state had the right to nullify (declare void)
any Federal law that went against the state’s interests
Why would Jackson disagree with this?
He said:
Ultimately, he denied South Carolina their request

28. What else did Jackson do?
He significantly reduced the national debt
He tried to abolish the Electoral College
The first attempt to do bodily harm to a president was against him
What is believed to be the first attempt to kill a sitting president was against him