Cultural Shifts

1. Cultural Shifts 1828-1845

2. The United States experienced a massive influx of immigrants between 1815 and 1860 The largest groups of immigrants, almost 2 million, came from Ireland They were driven out because of widespread famine in 1845, when a fungus destroyed the potato crop Immigration

3. The Know-Nothings • The presence of people from different cultures, languages, and religions brought about feelings of nativism, or hostility toward foreigners, among many Americans • Nativist groups pushed for laws banning immigrants and Catholics from holding public office • Delegates from the nativist groups formed the American Party - Membership in the party was secret. When questioned, members were obliged to answer, “I know nothing.” As a result, the party was nicknamed the Know-Nothings

5. Second Great Awakening • Religious leaders organized to revive the nation’s commitment to religion in a movement known as the Second Great Awakening • This movement promoted the belief that all people could attain grace by readmitting God and Christ into their lives

6. Joseph Smith, a New Englander, founded the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose followers are known as Mormons After being harassed in New England, the Mormons moved west and settled in Illinois Brigham Young became the leader of the church after Smith was murdered. The Mormons then moved to the Utah territory The Mormons

7. Transcendentalism • Transcendentalism was an expression of romanticism • The philosophy urged people to transcend the limits of their mind and let their souls embrace the beauty of the universe • The writers created works that were uniquely American, focusing on the nation’s people, history, and natural beauty

8. Utopian Communities • Utopian communities were characterized by cooperative living and the absence of private property • Examples include: Brook Farm in Massachusetts and small communities established throughout the country by a religious group called the Shakers

10. In 1848 Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton organized the Seneca Falls Convention, a meeting to focus on equal rights for women and one that marked the beginning of the women’s movement Throughout the 1850s, women organized more conventions to promote greater rights for women Women’s Movement

11. Opposition to Slavery • Many Americans opposed slavery, but they differed on ways to end it • The American Colonization Society (ACS) was formed to move African Americans to Africa • The ACS acquired land in West Africa, chartered ships, and moved some free African Americans to a colony that eventually became the nation of Liberia

12. The Abolitionists • In the 1830s, Abolitionists argued that enslaved Africans should be freed immediately • William Lloyd Garrison founded the Liberator, an antislavery newspaper that advocated emancipation • He also founded the American Antislavery Society in 1833

13. In 1831 Nat Turner led a revolt by enslaved people that killed more than 50 Virginians Southerners suppressed the circulation of the Liberator, and other abolitionist publications Southern postal workers refused to deliver such publications, and the House of Representatives, under pressure from the South, shelved all abolitionist petitions Nat Turner’s Rebellion