History Chapter 10 The Jacksonian Era This Focuses Andrew Jacksons Outlook The Controversies

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CHAPTER 10

The Jacksonian Era

1828–1840

This chapter focuses on Andrew Jackson’s outlook, the controversies of his presidency, and the

emergence of a new political party system. It narrates and explains Jackson’s views and how they differed

CORE OBJECTIVES

1. Describe Andrew Jackson’s major beliefs regarding democracy, the presidency, and the proper role of

government in the nation’s economy.

2. Evaluate Jackson’s response to the nullification crisis.

3. Analyze Jackson’s legacy regarding the status of Indians in American society.

4. Explain the causes of the economic depression of the late 1830s and the emergence of the Whig party.

5. Assess the strengths and weaknesses of Jackson’s transformational presidency.

CHAPTER OUTLINE

1. Jacksonian Democracy

A. The Spoils System and Presidential Conventions

B. The Eaton Affair

C. Internal Improvements

D. The Bank War

E. The Recharter Effort

2. Nullification

A. Calhoun and the Tariff

B. The Webster-Hayne Debate

C. Jackson versus Calhoun

D. The South Carolina Nullification Ordinance

E. Jackson’s Firm Response

F. Clay’s Compromise

3. Jackson’s Indian Policy

A. Indian Removal

B. The Trail of Tears

4. Political Battles

A. A Third Party

B. The 1832 Election

C. The Removal of Government Deposits

D. The Money Question

E. Censoring the Mail

F. The Whig Coalition

G. The Election of 1836

H. The Eighth President

I. The Panic of 1837

J. An Independent Treasury

K. The “Log Cabin and Hard Cider” Campaign

5. Jackson’s Legacy

A. A New Political Landscape

LECTURE IDEAS

1. A general overview of the nature and character of Andrew Jackson will develop the theme for the rest

of this chapter. See the following:

• Robert V. Remini’s Andrew Jackson: The Course of American Empire, 1767–1821, vol. 1

2. A lecture on the Peggy Eaton affair will not only illuminate political intrigue during Jackson’s first

term but will also cast valuable light on the status of women in Jacksonian America and what befell

women like Mrs. Eaton, who were politically outspoken and therefore not deemed sufficiently

submissive. In this lecture, explain how the affair divided Jackson’s cabinet. In addition, discuss the

events in question, paying particular attention to Jackson’s handling of various situations. An excellent

3. Lecture on the split between the Democratic and Whig parties and the realignment of the political party

system in America during the Jacksonian Era. See the following:

4. Many people—western Americans, especially—felt that banks favored the rich and powerful. These

ideas led to the Bank Wars in the 1830s between Jackson and Nicholas Biddle. Did these banks have

too much control? Were they using money for their own interest? Relevant sources include:

5. One of the most interesting ways to illustrate the rise of the second party system is to give a lecture on

Davy Crockett’s career in national politics in the early 1830s, as he was recruited by the Whigs to

provide a Western alternative to Andrew Jackson. William Davis’s Three Roads to the Alamo: The

Lives and Fortunes of David Crockett, James Bowie, and William Barrett Travis (1998) is an excellent

IN-CLASS ACTIVITIES / FLIPPED CLASSROOM SUGGESTIONS

1. Give each group in your class a specific issue related to the Jackson administration—for example: the

nullification crisis, the bank, or Native American relations—and ask them to research and present the

issue to the class. See the following:

2. Thomas Jefferson’s election was considered a revolution, and Andrew Jackson’s was considered

similarly. Why? Because the term democracy is the key to understanding both Jefferson and Jackson, it

would be helpful to read Sean Wilentz’s The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln

(2005). Have the class conduct a group investigation into the terms revolution and democracy and find

3. When South Carolina declared a federal law to be null and void, Jackson responded strongly. Examine

his response to the nullification controversy and how South Carolina reacted to his position. See

William Freehling’s Prelude to Civil War: The Nullification Controversy in South Carolina, 1816–

4. Divide the class into small groups and have them research the presidency of Martin Van Buren.

Discussion topics could include his domestic agenda, foreign policy, and the Panic of 1837. Ask

students to contrast his administration with that of our current presidential administration and to draw

on current events. Relevant sources include:

5. Why did a new party system of Democrats and Whigs emerge out of Jackson’s election to the

presidency? Richard P. McCormick’s The Second American Party System: Party Formation in the

Jacksonian Era (1966) covers the system’s development. Michael F. Holt’s The Rise and Fall of the

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. How did Jackson’s early life shape his development into adulthood?

2. Discuss who was to blame for the Trail of Tears. Include the limitations and short comings of the U.S.

Army.

3. Andrew Jackson paid off the national debt and had the country living within its means. Discuss ways

in which the United States has since strayed from both of these items.

PRACTICING CITIZENSHIP

This chapter details the dramatic upsurge in voting that was symptomatic of what scholars have

traditionally termed “Jacksonian democracy.” Do some work that increases political participation in your