1820-1860 Numerous Reform Groups, Including

¶ … 1820-1860 numerous reform groups, including Abolitionists, Suffragists, Utopians and temperance groups organized to reform American society. Why did such groups arise in this period? Focus on one specific group and explain their mission, their means to achieve this goal, and their accomplishments or failures. What views do you personally hold today that can be traced to the actions of this group?

Among the many reform movements to emerge in the United States in the years prior to the Civil War, the Abolitionist Movement was one of the most influential and powerful. Indeed, its effects can still be felt today. The movement began in reaction to what its members saw as the evils of slavery. Slavery had been widespread in Colonial America. Slaves were to be found in each colony and territory under British Rule. Yet, the American Revolution brought in great changes in attitude. The old notions of an unequal, hierarchical society began, for the first time, to be challenged. The new nation had proclaimed its founding on the basis of "Liberty and justice for all." But did "all" include the hundreds of thousands of enslaved persons? This burning question was to occupy the best minds for generations. The argument of the Abolitionists touched to the very heart of what it meant to be human; to the notion of fundamental rights and basic human dignity.

The Abolitionists aimed to completely eliminate slavery wherever it was found. By 1820, the cause had already achieved a certain measure of success. The importation of slaves into the United States had been completely prohibited, and many Northern states had already outlawed slavery altogether. Others would soon follow. However, in the South, the institution of slavery was thriving. Eli Whitney's cotton gin had given new life to the plantation system and, with "King Cotton" slavery expanded as never before. For the Abolitionists, this renewed expansion of slavery presented a terrible problem. Fighting against America's "Peculiar Institution" on both religious and moral grounds, they sought, first, to stem its expansion. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 allowed Missouri into the nation as a slave state. At the same time, Maine was admitted as a free state. Of more far-reaching effect, was the act's creation of a dividing line between future free and slave states. The lands of the Louisiana Purchase would be evenly divided between slave and free - the balance among the states would be maintained.

Hailed as a victory for the Abolitionists, the Compromise remained in force until the Kansas-Nebraska controversy of 1854. Yet, it can hardly be said that most Abolitionists were satisfied with the way things stood. Their goal being to eliminate slavery, they continued their anti-slavery agitation, garnering significant followings in many Northern areas, and working to help Blacks escape from the South, most notably by means of the famous Underground Railroad. Nevertheless, even in the North, Abolitionist Meetings often provoked violent reactions from the public as many large Northern cities depended upon Southern cotton as a primary article of trade. Northern banks too, had invested heavily in the Southern plantations. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 was a mixed blessing for the abolitionist movement. It preserved the principle of a nation half-free, and half-slave, but at the cost of allowing the intrusion of a slave state into what was supposed to have been free land i.e. Kansas. Thus, the stage was set for a deepening of the controversy that had divided the Nation since its independence, and the way prepared for the terrible Civil War that would soon settle the question once and for all.

Ultimately, the Abolitionist Movement brought about the end of slavery in the United States. It also continued to shape the attitudes of the rapidly growing nation. While Black People were forced to wait another century before their full and equal rights as American citizens were recognized under the law, the legacy of the Abolitionist Movement was precisely that: That slavery was an abomination; an affront to human dignity. All men and women possessed the same rights, among them, the right to be free, and to control their own destinies. While many relics of old prejudices remain - leftovers from slavery days - it has now been accepted by most Americans that inequality is not to be tolerated. The Abolitionists of yesterday would be proud to see that today, as a result of their efforts, not only are all people free, but the governments of all the states, and of the Union, continue to work to make that principle a genuine reality of everyday life.

Westward expansion was achieved through a series of wars and near-wars. Explain the events that ultimately led to the U.S. claiming control over territories west of the Mississippi. How did these events reflect national policies? Describe these events from the perspective of a Native American living in this land.

At the beginning of the Nineteenth Century, the Native People were in possession of virtually all of the land west of the great river - the Mississippi. Our people had lived there since long before anyone could remember. There were many different tribes of us, speaking many different languages, and having many different customs, but we all shared a common love of the land, and lived in harmony with nature. But then the White Man came.

The first of these people we saw were fairly friendly, and not very intrusive. They came as individuals, or in small family groups, and lived as trappers and traders among us in the midst of the vast plains, forests, and deserts. We gave them the things that they wanted, and in turn, they gave us the objects that we desired. Then one day, there came an expedition sent by the Great White Father who lived far across the Great River, and away off to the East. It was headed by two men who were guided by a Native Woman. They too, were friendly to us. They told us that they were simply looking for a way to the great ocean in the West. Along the way, these men drew maps and wrote down descriptions of the land in their books. They reached the great ocean, and then returned to their own lands on the other side of the great river. Yet, they told all their people about the goodness of all these lands, reported how many places would make good farms, or good places to raise cattle, or how the mountains contained gold and silver, and other metals. And soon, the White Man became hungry for these lands - our lands.

Thousands of White Men and Women (and some Black too) began to cross our homeland. They settled down and claimed pieces of it as their own. This enraged the Native Peoples. We would have been happy to share the land with them, but they would have none of it. They tried to drive us away, and we fought back - fought back hard. These strange outsiders were always fighting, if not with us, then with others of their own kind - always stealing and hungry for more. One group of White Men, in the South, rebelled against their masters - another group of White Men. They fought against them, and drove them out, even though these masters had been in the land before them. For time, they waved their flag with its one star, and then they joined with the Great White Father in the East. Not satisfied with all these new "possessions" these White People soon made war upon the old masters, yet again. These "Mexicans" were another group of thieves who had come among us before, They too had laid claim to our lands, but had only come among us in small numbers and in only a few places. The people from beyond the great river - the Americans - they wanted to take the lands that the Mexicans claimed, and fought over it, and took it from them. It was our land, and still they claimed it as if it were their own.