The first president of the United States under the U.S. Constitution was George Washington. He soon realized he couldn't be an expert of everything required of him, so he created a group of advisors known as the Cabinet. Another precedent (idea for others to follow) set by Washington was his decision to remain neutral in foreign affairs. Washington felt the the United States needed time to develop, and so he cautioned against joining alliances or even siding with foreign countries in conflicts.
Isolationism - the belief that a country should remain focused in internal affairs (problems within its own borders), rather that foreign affairs. Liken this to the shy student who talks to few people, yet does very well in school. They have few distractions. Washington supported this idea.
Louisiana Purchase - Thomas Jefferson purchased much of the Great Plains from Napoleon of France in 1803 for $15 million. This doubled the size of the United States.
Lewis and Clark Expedition - Jefferson sent out a group of 50 men led by Merriweather Lewis and William Clark to explore the land all the way to the Pacific Ocean. Along the route, the "Corps of Discovery" were to create maps, begin peaceful relations with any Native American tribes, and take notes on plant and animal life along the way. The journey took three years to complete (1803 - 1806) and was a huge success.
President Andrew Jackson (President from 1828 - 1836) was lifted into the White House becasue of his fame resulting from th Battle of New Orleans during the War of 1812 with England. His presidency is known for two things: his policy of Indian Removal from all lands east of the Mississippi and his fight with the National Bank.
Trail of Tears - The Cherokee Indians of Tennesee and Georgia were forced to leave their homelands in the Blue Ridge Mountains to head 800 miles west to the Oklahoma Territory by Andrew Jackson. During the trip, about 20% of the Cherokee perished, mostly young children and the elderly. Their new home of Oklahoma was a dry, flat climate, forcing the Cherokee to adapt their culture. This was part of Jackson's policy of Indian Removal from all areas east of the Mississippi River.
The first Industrial Revolution began prior to the Civil War in England and the push to move from farms to factories in the United States really picked up momentum when Samuel Slater memorized the plans of a British textile mill and built one in Rhode Island using water power. Likewise, Eli Whitney created the cotton gin, resulting in a dramtic increase in the use of slaves to raise cotton in the south. Whitney also introduced the concept of interchangable parts when he showed Congress that he could use machine made parts from one gun to replace machine made parts from another. This couldn't be done with hand made items.
Manifest Destiny - The concept of Manifest Destiny is the belief that the United States should stretch from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. Part of this concept is that the citizens of the U.S. are superior to others, and that, by taking over the Native Americans and Mexicans, the U.S. would be doing these people a favor in "Americanizing" them. We see this idea in the taking of Oregon, California, and Texas.
Texas - The United States went to war briefly with Mexico over our decision to annex the independent country of Texas, an area that used to belong to Mexico. Mexico, not without reason, felt that the United States sought to take this area away and declared war on the U.S. As a result of the Mexican American War, the United States gained control of Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada and California. The U.S. now stretches from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Manifest Destiny has become reality.
Seneca Falls Convention (1848) - The first large meeting attended by both males and females to push for women's rights in American society was held in this town outside of Rochester, NY. Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, and Lucretia Mott pushed for women's suffrage and equal rights with men. Unfortunately, women would have to wait another 60 years to vote.
Gold Rush - In late 1848, gold was discovered near San Francisco. California. This discovery started a race by thousands to get to many places in the west to discover valuable minerals in the soil. However, very few of the participants in the gold rush stuck it rich. A large number of 49ers did stay in California because of the climate and beautiful geography, allowing California to become one of the first western states in the Union.
