Era Of Good Feelings Sectionalism Analysis

This tariff was created to protect American factories in the north and was a tax placed on imported goods. But the south was highly upset because they felt that this tariff only supported the north and they had to pay it also. Document F also sheds light on sectionalism because Jefferson talks about a geographic line that fills him with terror, also known as the 36,30 line created by Henry Clay. This line determined if the upcoming states from the Louisiana Territory would have slavery or not. The issue of slavery was a major player in the growth of sectionalism between the north and the south. Moreover, the government had problems with the states. Maryland wanted to tax the national bank which led to the case of McCulloch v. Maryland that was sent to the Supreme Court (Document D).Similarly are the revolts seen in Document G which resulted in throwing 50-60 leaders from South Carolina in jail but there were still prisoners stating that there are enough people to carry the work into execution. Overall, the America had too much problems on their hands to be going through an "Era of Good Feelings".

Politically, the “era of good feelings” was extremely off. Even before the war of 1812, there had always been a major difference in the political parties and systems of the government. A major difference in this coming from extremely opposing ideologies of the parties and the lack of unity between the two. The difference between the parties is also present in Document C, which shows two different party tents during the fourth of july. Whilst the people are generally happy, the party tents show that the difference is quite evident, and

Although the United states did expressed Nationalism in some ways, all this was forgotten when the country stated to divided it self into different sections with different believes. One of the great differences between these sections was tariffs. Hohn Randolph of congress said in 1816, "With my goodwill, sir, no one interest agriculturists bear the whole brunt of the was and taxation, and remain poor, while the others run in the ring of pleasure, and

Most importantly, with regards to sectionalism, were the many disputes involving slavery. As Anna Hayes from South Carolina asserts, in her letter to her cousin, the situation in South Carolina was just as bad “if not superior to the scenes acted in St. Domingo.” South Carolina was currently experiencing slave revolts at that time. These slave revolts brought up the question of whether or not slavery was correct which caused mush sectionalism between different regions of the United States. John Randolph, who also apposed the Tariff of 1816, mentioned that a simple geographical line – the Missouri Compromise- was not enough to completely silence the controversy of slavery.

The period of James Monroe’s presidency has gained the term used worldwide as the “Era of Good Feelings”. It was adopted by this name because of Monroe’s action in visiting the U.S military basis and because of the spirit of nationalism and optimism gained by the people from the War of 1812. Foreign affairs exemplifies why this name is partly fact. However, the perception of unity that this era defines is somewhat misleading. Throughout this period, there were various problems that contradicted the era’s name. Some of the serious issues that divided the nation were economic depression and sectionalism.

By 1817 the great American experiment was in full swing. America was developing into an effective democratic nation. However as the democracy continued to grow, two opposing political parties developed, the Jeffersonian Republicans and the Federalists. The Jeffersonian Republicans believed in strong state governments, a weak central government, and a strict interpretation of the Constitution. The Federalists saw it differently. They opted for a powerful central government with weaker state governments, and a loose interpretation of the Constitution. The seemingly solid divide between Federalist and Republican would begin to blur during the presidencies of Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. For, neither Republican president was able lead

The period after the war of 1812 was labeled “The Era of Good Feeling” by historians. Some people believe that this is an accurate label of this time period, but others disagree. Due to the emergence of sectionalism- concern with local interests, and nationalism- patriotic feelings and self pride, people had mixed feelings about this time period. Many people felt that times were high, and that nationalism and sectionalism could only bolster the union, while others thought that it was sectionalism and nationalism that caused disunion. Some of the documents used in this essay support the claim that the period after 1812 was an era of good feelings. Other documents will oppose this claim with proof from their own perspectives.

While the United States worked hard to set up a working government, a heavily debated topic was states’ rights. “When high protective tariffs were passed by Congress in 1828 and 1832, South Carolina, led by John Calhoun, threatened to nullify them, making them null and void within that state” (What Caused the Civil War). Nullifying the law means that the state would ignore it. The Southern states were angered by the tariffs because they benefited the North and made it more difficult for the South. Hinston Helper states, “It is a fact well known to every intelligent Southerner that we are compelled to go to the North for almost every article of utility and adornment, from matches, shoepegs and paintings up to cotton-mills, steamships and …; that almost everything produced at the North meets with ready sale, while at the same time, there is no demand, even among our own citizens, for the productions of

During Monroe’s two terms, sectionalism, an excessive regard for sectional or local interest, increased greatly. This increase in sectionalism is due to acts like the Tariff of 1816. A tell tale sign that the Tariff of 1816 was going to cause sectionalism was that in the U.S. House of Representatives, the

a. Increased security and self-confidence after the war produced a heightened sense of “nationalism” people associating themselves with the nation first and their respective states second. A national literature developed in the works of Washington Irving and James Fennimore Cooper and in the construction of a new capitol building in Washington A revived Second Bank of the United States was established in 1816 this time with the (support or opposition) of the Jeffersonian Republicans. (Note: Modern students can be excused for finding a discussion about tariff policy a bit boring. This section covers the first of many tariff battles throughout the 1800s. Tariffs today are not a big deal because there is a worldwide trend to reduce duties on imports and because the government gets most of its revenue through income taxes. However, there was no income taxation until 1913 and the government therefore depended almost exclusively on tariff duties for its revenue. So it’s important to have a general understanding.)

The south began to rely on agriculture as their basis of economic growth. For this to be success, slavery was an almost a natural need for the people of the south. Cotton began to grow as a cash crop for the South. Cotton was dependent on many workers needed for it to exist, thus the need for such a large amount of work force. Slavery in the late 1700’s was beginning to die down and cotton was paying the biggest price for it. Not until Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin did the issue of slavery spark up again and cotton begins to thrive. In 1820 Missouri wished to be part of the Union as a slave state. With there already being an equality of Slave states and Free states it caused tension and sectionalism within the country; because of the edition of Missouri would cause an unbalance of free and slave states. In hopes to resolve this conflict a compromise was reached known as the Missouri Compromise. Through the Missouri Compromise Missouri was able to enter as a slave state, while Maine was able to enter as a free state. However, as pointed out, it created a line between slave states and Free states. Any state below Missouri was able to practice slavery, and any state above was to be a Free State. Even John Quincy Adams led to the sectionalism, with his supportive views of the Compromise. (Document F) He expressed views in the emancipation of slavery as a

During the Era of Good Feeling, while westward expansion was booming, a sense of unity and nationalism emerged as a result of the post-war reconstruction period as well as the decline of the federalist party; however, the Panic of 1819 caused a severe economic depression making this period not an Era of Good Feelings. Although the one party system was somewhat beneficial during the Era of Good Feelings, creating a false sense of political unity between the people, poor economic decisions lead to a depression. Sectionalism also increased between the northern and southern states over slavery, adding to political tensions between states and the federal government.

The  Era  of  Good  Feeling  was  a  time  where  only  one  political  party  reigned,  sense  of

For example, there was a high tariff placed on foreign goods. This was beneficial for the north because it increased the chances of Americans purchasing the goods produced in their factories. However, this was disadvantageous for the south. Since slaves were viewed as objects, imported slaves were considered imported goods and were sold with high tariffs attached to them. The three regions were becoming more sectionalist because they were becoming increasing concerned with problems facing their own area, and not the country as a whole. The sectionalism that emerged during this time period did so within a short period of time. This is easy to see in the election maps of 1820 and 1824. Within these four years, the United States went from being uniformly supportive of one candidate (Monroe in 1820), to having support for several candidates. While much of the south was in support of Andrew Jackson, the first president who did not have a formal education and supported the “common man”, much of the north backed John Q. Adams, the eventual winner. These maps illustrate the regional differences that eventually led to the lack of a majority vote. Sectionalism became quite prominent with the emergence of different factions within the Republican Party and eventually the creation of new parties. Each region was sectionalist in that they voted for the candidate who would be the best advocate for their area, rather than leader for their country.

After the war of 1812, there was a strong sense of nationalism since the young United States had won a war against the powerful British Army. However, the loss of thousands of southern slaves and the British embargo led both the north and the south to lament over the cost of the war. The time period from 1815 – 1825 that some historians call the era of good feelings was not as positive a time period as the title implies; factions ran rampant on the verge of causing an implosion for our country’s political system.