Chapter 12 Section 3

Nationalism and Sectionalism

Chapter 12

Section 3

Nationalism and

Sectionalism

Americans celebrated the 4th of July with great joy in 1815. The War of 1812 stirred strong feelings of nationalism, or feelings of pride for

one’s country!

Sectionalism is rivalry based on the special interests of different areas of a country. In what ways are our part

of the country different from other parts?

You Know your from Wisconsin if:

•Your idea of a traffic jam is ten cars waiting to pass a tractor.•You know several people who have hit a deer more than once.•You design your kids Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.•You have gotten frostbitten and sunburned in the same week.•You know what cow-tipping is.

Henry Clay ran for president five times, and lost each time. One reason for his lack of success may have been his refusal to compromise his principles. He once declared, “I’d rather be right than be President.”

I. National Unity; The American System

A. James Monroe won the presidential election of 1816. He assumed the presidency at a time when many Americans felt strong pride and devotion to their nation. The country was prospering, and political rivalry had seemed to fade away. A Boston newspaper described the time as an “Era of Good Feelings.”

B. During this time, Speaker of the House Henry Clay proposed a nationalist program to improve the nation. It was known as the American System and aimed to improve each region’s economy and strengthen the national government. It included three main aspects;

1. Internal improvements such as roads, bridges, and canals.

2. Creation of a new national bank to create a more orderly money supply and help American businesses to grow.

3. Higher taxes on imported items to help American merchants sell more goods.

What is happening

in this picture

and where is it taking

place?

Ronald Reagan is being inaugurated on the steps of the

capitol. James Monroe was the 1st

president to be inaugurated

outdoors.

William Henry Harrison made the longest inaugural address on March 4, 1841.

The speech had 8,578 words, almost twice as

many as any other president.

Despite the cold weather, Harrison refused to wear a coat or hat while delivering his one hour and forty-five minute speech. He died of pneumonia thirty-two days later on April 4, 1841. The shortest inaugural address, with only 135 words, was given by George Washington, who was inaugurated for a second term on March 4, 1793, in Philadelphia.

Why do you think Clay’s plan was known as the American System?

It focused on improving many aspects of American life, from transportation routes to the economy.

State banks acted unwisely by making too many loans and allowing too much money into circulation. The result was

inflation-rapid rises in the prices of goods. Prices rose faster than incomes, so that Americans could buy less and less

with each dollar.

By 1818 the number of U.S. states had reached 20. Pres. Monroe signed a bill that set the basic design of the flag.

•Each newly admitted state added a star to the field of blue.

•The addition of a new star took place on the Fourth of July following the state’s year of entry.

•The 13 stripes symbolizing the original states remained unchanged.

II. Nationalism and the Supreme CourtA. The Supreme Court helped to increase the

power of the national government with three notable decisions during the early 1800’s.

B. In the case of Fletcher vs. Peck, the court ruled that acts of state government could be declared void if they violated provisions of the Constitution.

C. In McCullough vs. Maryland, the Court declared that the federal government could choose any method that was “necessary and proper” to exercise the powers the Constitution had given it.

D. In Gibbons v. Ogden, the Court decided that only Congress had the power to make laws governing interstate commerce, or trade between states.

III. A Split Into Sections; The Missouri Compromise

A. Despite growing feelings of nationalism, sectionalism also grew during the early 1800’s. Sectionalism is a rivalry based on the special interests of different areas.

B. When Congress passed higher tariffs in 1818 and 1824, some parts of the country protested. Southerners now had to buy their goods from Northern merchants, who charged more than the British did. Southerners argued that the tariffs benefited Northerners at their expense.

C. Sectional fighting also erupted in 1819, when the Missouri Territory asked to become a state. Northerners wanted Missouri admitted as a free state, and Southerners insisted that it become a slave state.

D. Legislators devised the Missouri Compromise to settle the dispute. Under the compromise, Missouri was admitted as a slave state and Maine was admitted as a free state. This kept an even balance of power in the Senate-12 slave states and 12 free states.

E. The Missouri Compromise also settled the question of slavery in the rest of the Louisiana Territory-it would be prohibited north of the parallel 36 degrees 30’.

IV. Sectionalism and the Election of 1824; New Party Politics

A. Sectional differences played a role in the presidential election of 1824. All four candidates were Republicans, yet all came from different sections of the country.

B. No candidate won a majority. As a result, the House of Representatives decided the election. Henry Clay, the Speaker of the House, helped secure enough votes to make John Quincy Adams the winner.

C. Upon becoming President, Adams made Clay his secretary of state. Critics accused the two men of a “corrupt bargain: in which Adams promised Clay the position in return for his help in the election. No proof of an arrangement ever emerged.

D. The election of 1824 ended the Era of Good Feelings. The controversy over the election split the Republican Party into Democratic-Republicans and National Republicans.

E. Democratic-Republicans, who soon became known as Democrats, favored states’ rights. Their support came mostly from the South and West. National Republicans favored s strong federal government; they found their support in the Northeast.