The Jacksonian and Antebellum Eras

Including documents from the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government as well as sentiments expressed by opinion leaders of the day, this book provides concisely edited primary sources that cover the Jackson period from March 1829 through the inauguration of Abraham Lincoln. The presidency of Andrew Jackson is typically associated with the American expansionism that furthered our democracy, but often at a high cost to Native American cultures. Could similar outcomes have been achieved differently? Historians debate whether the Civil War could have been avoided, why attempts to avert war failed, and which individuals had the greatest potential ability to divert the nation's path away from violent conflict. This book examines these historical questions regarding the unfolding of American history through an introduction to carefully edited primary documents relevant to the period, from the inauguration of President Andrew Jackson through that of Abraham Lincoln. These documents include not only major state papers from the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, but also primary sources that directly communicate the concerns of African Americans, women, and Native Americans of the period. Important themes include the rising controversy over slavery, American expansionism, and attempts to avert crises through compromise. High school and college students and patrons of public libraries seeking to better understand American history will profit from the introductions and annotations that accompany the primary documents in this book-invaluable resources that put the information into context and explain terms and language that have become outdated.

John R. Vile, PhD, is professor of political science and dean of the University Honors College at Middle Tennessee State University.

Introduction to the Antebellum Period
SECTION 1: THE JACKSON YEARS
A Strict and Faithful Economy
Andrew Jackson's First Inaugural Address (March 4, 1829)
Benevolence or Humanity
Catharine Beecher's Circular Letter (December 1, 1829)
The South Carolina Doctrine
Robert Hayne's Second Speech on Foot's Resolution (January 21, 1830)
Liberty and Union
Daniel Webster's Second Speech on Foot's Resolution (January 26-27, 1830)
Our Federal Union
Jackson and Calhoun Exchange Toasts (April 13, 1830)
Doubtless It Will Be Painful
Andrew Jackson's Speech to Congress on Indian Removal (December 6, 1830)
Domestic Dependent Nations
Cherokee Nation v. Georgia (1831)
Harsh as Truth, and Uncompromising as Justice
William Lloyd Garrison's Editorial in the Liberator (1831)
Mere Precedent
Andrew Jackson's Veto of the National Bank Renewal (July 10, 1832)
Null, Void, and No Law
South Carolina's Ordinance of Nullification (November 24, 1832)
Unlawful Obstructions, Combinations, or Assemblages
The Force Bill (March 2, 1833)
Not for the Government of the Individual States
Barron v. Baltimore (1833)
Power Not Conferred by the Constitution
Senate Resolution Censuring Andrew Jackson (March 28, 1834)
The Union of the States
James Madison's Advice to My Country (1834)
A Free, Sovereign, and Independent Republic
Texas Declaration of Independence (March 1836)
This People Have Become Civilized
Memorial and Protest of the Cherokee Nation (June 22, 1836)
Shall . . . Be Laid Upon the Table
Gag Rule Adopted by the House of Representatives (Pinckney Resolution) (1836)
SECTION 2 YEARS OF EXPANSION, NASCENT REFORM, AND MANIFEST DESTINY
The Power and Influence of the Republic
Martin Van Buren's Inaugural Address (March 4, 1837)
There Is No Exclusive Privilege
Charles River Bridge Co. v. Warren Bridge Company (1837)
Reverence for the Laws
Abraham Lincoln's Address Before the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield (January 27, 1838)
Let My People Go!
"Go Down Moses" Folk Song (1840s)
An Army of Officeholders
John Tyler's Initial Presidential Speech (April 9, 1841)
The Just Rights of the Owner to Reclaim His Slave
Prigg v. Pennsylvania (1842)
One Law for All Souls
Margaret Fuller's The Great Lawsuit (July 1843)
The Fulfillment of Our Manifest Destiny
John O'Sullivan's "Annexation" (July-August 1845)
The Fatal Poison of Irresponsible Power
Frederick Douglass's Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (1845)
To Provide for the Defense
James K. Polk's Call for a Declaration of War Against Mexico (May 11, 1846)
Neither Slavery nor Involuntary Servitude
The Wilmot Proviso (1846)
Being in the Wrong
Lincoln's Speech in Congress Against the War with Mexico (January 12, 1848)
All Men and Women Are Created Equal
Declaration of Sentiments, Seneca Falls Convention (July 19-20, 1848)
Why Has Every Man a Conscience, Then?
Henry David Thoreau's Civil Disobedience (1849)
SECTION 3 PRELUDE TO IRREPRESSIBLE CONFLICT
The Peace, Concord, and Harmony of the Union
Compromise of 1850 (January 29, 1850)
The Concurrent, or Constitutional Majority
John C. Calhoun's A Disquisition on Government (1850)
Slavery Exists . . . Independent of the Constitution
Resolutions of the Nashville Convention (1850)
The Power to Regulate Commerce, Embraces a Vast Field
Cooley v. Board of Wardens of Port of Philadelphia (1851)
Ain't I a Woman?
Sojourner Truth's Speech at a Women's Convention (1851)
The Immeasurable Distance between Us
Frederick Douglass's "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?" (1852)
To Be Sold Separately, or in Lots
Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852)
As Their Constitution May Prescribe
The Kansas-Nebraska Act (May 30, 1854)
He Is But a Grown Up Child
George Fitzhugh's Sociology for the South (1854)
Degrading Classes of White People
Abraham Lincoln's Letter on the Know-Nothing Party (August 24, 1855)
Regulating Immigration
Know-Nothing Party Platform (1855)
[Not] Acknowledged as Part of the People
Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)
No Co-operation with Slaveholders in Politics
Hinton Rowan Helper's The Impending Crisis of the South (1857)
A House Divided Against Itself
Abraham Lincoln's Speech at the Republican Convention (June 16, 1858)
The Exclusive Right of a Free People
Stephen A. Douglas's Response to Lincoln (July 9, 1858)
Prior to the Formation of a State Constitution
The Second Lincoln/Douglas Debate (August 27, 1858)
The Principles Promulgated in the Declaration of Independence
Republican Party Platform of 1860 (May 17, 1860)
Equal Justice to All Sections
The Crittenden Compromise (December 18, 1860)
Not Enemies, but Friends
Lincoln's First Inaugural Address (March 4, 1861)
These Ideas [of Human Equality] Were Fundamentally Wrong
Alexander H. Stephens's Cornerstone Speech (March 21, 1861)
The Domestic Institutions
The Proposed Corwin Amendment (March 1861)
Timeline of Events
Further Reading
Index