2. Significant Events
• -1842 commonwealth v Hunt gave the right to
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negotiate labor contracts with employers.
-Northwest Ordinance 1787, procedure for turning
old Northwest territories into States
-Slave revolts in 1820's and 1830's had a lasting
impact
-1860 around 250,000 African Americans weren't
slaves.
-1800s immigration was increasing.
-1848 a million germans seek refuge in America
because of hardships.
3. Important people
• -John Deere invented the steel plow.
• -McCormick invented mechanical reaper.
• -Eli Whitney invented cotton gin.
• -Nat Turner led slave revolt in 1831.
• -Denmark Vesey led slave revolt in 1822.
• -"poor white trash","hillbillies" supported slavery.
• -Aristocracy, had to own 100 slaves and 1,000
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acres of land.
farmers had around 20 slaves per several hundred
acres of land.
Native Americans were original settlers of the
4. Issues
• -North Vs. South on slavery
• -Nativists reacted strongly against foreigners
• opposition to immigrants led to sporadic
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rioting in big cities and organization of a
secret and foreign society, The Supreme
order of the Star Spangled Banner.
-Slaves were the reason most farmers were
able to produce what they did at cheap costs.
5. Religious Issues
• -Methodist and Baptist churches gained in
membership in the South while splitting in the
1840's with their northern brethren.
unitarians who fought slavery saw huge
decline in memberships.
6. Agricultural/industrial changes
• -the steel plow and mechanical reaper made
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farming more efficient and reduced the
amount of effort needed.
-industrial development increased, which
meant people turned to factories and stopped
farming.
-cotton became more affordable once textile
mills and cotton gin became available.
7. Scandals
• -African American families could be
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separated at anytime and this was justified by
historical and religious arguments.
In the south the “white trash” supported
slavery because they wanted to be superior
to someone and believed that they would one
day would own slaves