Zinn Chapter 8 Summary

In 1801, Thomas Jefferson was elected our third president. Thomas was president of thirteen of the original states. In May of 1805 Thomas sent Louis and Clark on their famous expedition we know of today as the Corps of Discovery. Louis, Clark and his crew journeyed for 2 years. They came back September 23, 1806. Before Thomas made a big change in the 19th century the Mississippi river separated the eastern territory from the northern territory which was owned by the French. In the Next few paragraphs it’s going to explain three reasons why the Louisiana purchase was one of the greatest turning points in the 19th century, those reasons are it doubled the size of our nation, gave the U.S. more room to industrialize, and made exploring the unknown

Howard Zinn discussed several things in this chapter. At first, he mentioned the white frontiersmen rebellion and how the rebellion threat the government. This rebellion was bacon’s rebellion. Also, he talked about how the England government ended this rebellion. The main argument for Zinn in this chapter was the division of the community in the colonies according to social and economic status into upper class which was the wealthy people, and the lower class which consist of poor people. Also, he talked about the relationship among white, and Indians, and black slaves.

The Decisions made to buy the Louisiana Purchase were tough; however, in the end the Louisiana Purchase was the most important land purchase in American history. In 1803 the United States had seventeen states along with the Northwest Territory. America still had not reached its potential growth, even though the states were still growing with settlers, until after the Louisiana Purchase. The president at this time was Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson’s decision would soon be the birth of our nation, as well as be the largest land purchase in American history.

The war with Mexico abruptly started with the annexation of Texas. Though the land was originally Mexico’s, the U.S had taken part of the territory in the belief of Manifest Destiny. America thought of it as god’s

Chapter 10 of Zinn discusses the struggle between class systems that was going on when the North and the South conflicted in the United States. During the nineteenth century, there was a competition between class systems that resulted in strikes, killings, and the formation of unions. While reading the chapter, one thing that surprised me was The Contract Labor Law. This law gave business’ bring in foreign workers that provided a source of cheap labor and workers to fill in the spots that strikers left (Zinn, 165). This law rewards business while punishing its workers. It’s saying that industries value money and power more than the well being of their workers, which isn’t right. It amazed me that lawmaker’s valued business more than people’s safety. There were no laws that protected worker’s or their health and safety. No wonder they fought and established strikes. Workers weren’t protected at all during the nineteenth century, to business’ they were disposable and cheap.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said, in Document C, that “the United States will conquer Mexico, but it will be as the man swallows the arsenic.” This statement points out a key similarity between this war and the Civil War- both were tainted by slavery. The Mexican War would result in new slave states, making abolitionists angry, resulting in the conflicts that started the Civil War. Document D, written by David Wilmot of the Wilmot Proviso, reveals the tensions created by the Mexican cession, saying, “I ask not that slavery be abolished, I demand that this government preserve the integrity of free territory against the aggressions of slavery-against its wrongful usurpations.” Up until that point, there were an equal number of slave and free states. How would the balance be maintained? Wilmot suggested that slavery remain only in the current slave states and not spread to any new territories. However, his plan was rejected, showing that neither side would compromise, but, instead, that the Union would break apart. Therefore, the Compromise of 1850 was passed as a way to appease the north and the south. Document E shows the distinct separation of slave and free states resultant of this compromise. This reveals a major breakup of the Union over slavery. Document F points out the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, created by Stephen Douglas, which divided the newly gained Nebraska Territory into two states, Kansas and Nebraska, and

In 1846 throughout 1848, a war to conquer land from Mexico were orders held by James K. Polk. An unjust war is about to occur, In 1846 Texas becomes Independent from Mexico and the United States. To begin with, Mexico approves for the Americans to settle onto Texas with one condition to not bring slaves along with them. During this time period, slavery was one of the most important political concerns and they opposed slavery. The Americans didn’t hold the values of anti-slavery, during this time they valued Manifest Density strongly. Accepting some restrictions from Mexico placed was nothing compared to its own destiny to occur from preventing America to stretch outward towards the Pacific Ocean. The main conflict started with the annexation of Texas, a dispute on the nation’s border, the Mexicans consider the Nueces river to be the border of Texas as for Americans that wasn’t enough land so they consider, Rio Grande the border. A way to aim to

Since the United States was founded as an independent nation from Great Britain, its people had confronted many economic, political, and social problems. The United States started to expand its territory in the western part of the country. Some examples are the Louisiana purchase from1803 and the Spanish Florida annexation. One of the most significant and controversial in the antebellum years was the Texas annexation which was a result of the War between Mexico and the war of independence by Texan rebels on the late 1830’s and 1840’s. Therefore, the annexation of the Republic of Texas existed from 1836-1845 produced controversy and consequences on both sides of the border.

U.S. War with Mexico had many effects on both countries. Even though American’s gained a considerable amount of land, it leads to a great deal of sectional tension. The two governments agreed to the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which confirmed the annexation of Texas and ceded California and present day México, Arizona, Nevada, and Utah to the United States (Foner,474). With this huge land acquisition, the issue of slavery in the new territories was raised. The new land caused a great deal of conflict, and created great political sectionalism in America. Gaining this much land at a time seemed like a good idea until Americans had to deal with the political issues that went along with it. Residents from both the North and the South wanted

When Texas was annexed into to the U.S. in 1845, approximately 77,000 Mexicans were living in the state, who had the choice of either becoming citizens or moving back Mexico. Those who stayed maintained peace with the Anglo families and leaders for over 50 years after the annexation. However, there soon came a large rush of new Anglos from all over the country. These new residents created rivalries and competition between them and the older residents. With the Mexican Civil War going on in Mexico more Mexicans immigrated to the U.S. mostly settling in Texas, for jobs in the mining and railroad industries. The nearby civil war made many people believe that a civil war was going to happen in Texas between the two groups of residents. This created, as stated in the book No Mexicans,

While often thought of as a small and insignificant war fought by the Americans, the Mexican-American War serves a lot of importance to the foundation and history of our country. This war determined whether or not the United States would become a dominant power on the continent and it, more importantly, established the size of the nation. The Mexican-American War lasted from 1846-1848, but by the time President James Polk took office in 1845, United States-Mexico relations were already off to a bad start. While the Mexican-American War was mainly caused by the idea of ‘Manifest Destiny’ and the Texas War for Independence/Annexation, it was also a major turning point in the debate over slavery in the United States because of the Missouri Compromise, Compromise of 1850, and the Wilmot Proviso.

After the U.S. secured vast new land holdings in the Mexican War, the South and North

Why did the annexation of Texas cause political, military, economic, cultural, and moral controversy in the United States?

The Louisiana Purchase was an acquisition of a significant portion of North America; larger than the size of fifteen current states in the U.S. according to Encyclopedia Britannica, the deal was, “at less than three cents per acre… the greatest land bargain in American history.” The United States purchased this territory from Napoleon, and thus doubled the size of the republic. This newly acquired territory went from the Mississippi River, all the way east to the Rocky Mountains, and then into the Gulf in Mexico. The United States came to the realization that the land was an absolutely essential necessity if they were to later form a trading post. The city of New Orleans, which began in this new land began growing rapidly in population. As the population and job market grew, New Orleans opened as an important seaport that “served as a distinctive cultural gateway to North America, where peoples from Europe and Africa initially intertwined their lives and customs with those of the native inhabitants of the New World.” America was flourishing, but the tension was rising in other nations. Great Britain, for instance, battled France and defeated Napoleon in Europe, and then decided to pursue the U.S. The rooted cause of the War of 1812 began when Britain launched a series of three invasions on the U.S. “The War of 1812 is often called the Second War for Independence, for despite granting the United States its independence in 1783, the British continued to station British forces

While Polk and Great Britain discussed claims to Oregon, the United States and Mexico were entering war. The Mexican-American War was a result of Manifest Destiny and the annexation of Texas in 1845. Texas had been in a border dispute with Mexico at the time of the annexation, leading to the of the U.S. Mexico claims to the border. In 1848, the Treaty of Guadelupe Hidalgo ended the Mexican War and added more than 1 million square miles to the United States. The entry of this land led many Americans to ponder on whether slavery would be accepted in new