Jacksonian Democracy
The Presidency of Andrew Jackson
1829-1841
United States
Portions adapted from:
http://www.wisd.us/whs/social_studies/acantu/apush/apush_ppts.htm
Jackson’s legacy?
Champion of
the
“Common Man”?
OR
“King”
Andrew?
Voting Qualifications
Voter Turnout
Other Reasons?
3
White male suffrage increased
3
Party nominating committees.
3
Voters chose their state’s slate of Presidential electors.
3
Spoils system.
3
Rise of Third Parties.
3
Popular campaigning (parades, rallies, floats, etc.)
3
Two-party system returned in the 1832 election:
 Dem-Reps  Natl. Reps.(1828)  Whigs
(1832)  Republicans (1854)
 Democrats (1828)
Spoils System
“To the Victor Belong the Spoils”
William Marcy, 1931
New York, NY
http://wapedia.mobi/thumb/9ac5499/en/fixed/202/254/William_Marcy_%2522Boss%2522_Tweed_%25281870%2529.jpg?format=jpg
Spoils System
If you win the election, you have the right to
give out jobs to whomever you wish.
The rise of the two-party system meant that
government employees were in their jobs
for as long as that party was in power.
As the country grew, the number of jobs, jobseekers, and appointments grew.
Spoils System
Executive
Branch
Legislative
Branch
Judicial
Branch
Federal
Government
President
Congress
U.S. Supreme
(House of
Court
Representativ Federal Courts
es & Senate)
State
Government
Governor
General
Assembly
(Assembly &
Senate)
Wisconsin
Supreme
Court
State Courts
Local
Government
Mayor
City Council
(Aldermen)
County Courts
Municipal
Courts
End of the Spoils System?
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Garfield_assassination_engraving_cropped.jpg/800px-Garfield_assassination_engraving_cropped.jpg
End of the Spoils System?
1881 – Pres. Garfield shot by Charles Guiteau
1883 – Pendleton Act sets up the Civil Service
Commission, which creates and administers
competitive tests for governmental jobs.
90% of all jobs today require a written test.
Some jobs are still able to be appointed:
ambassadors, judges, cabinet, commissioners
Jackson’s Road to the Presidency
Andrew Jackson in 1815
In Mourning for his Wife
1818 Seminole Wars
Jackson’s Many Jobs
Military Hero – Battle of New Orleans, Seminole Wars
Husband – Intensely protective of his wife before her death
Frontiersman – Attracted a devoted circle of “new men”
from the West who were long on courage and short on
manners.
Populist – Wanted to expand power of the people
“Sharp Knife” – Believed that only through removal and
distance could Indians and whites peacefully coexist.
President - "One man with courage makes a majority."
The Reign of “King Mob”
Indian Removal Act (1830)
Jackson’s Goal?
To remove all Indians from contact with the white
men, thus “solving” the problem.
In 1830, he proposed the Indian Removal Act
The response?
Five “civilized” tribes sued, in
Cherokee Nation v. GA (1831), claiming to be a
“domestic dependent nation”
Indian Removal Act (1830)
In Worcester v. GA (1832), the Indian Removal
Act was declared invalid by the Supreme Court of
the U.S., because of lack of jurisdiction (the
United States cannot pass laws that affect a
foreign nation).
Jackson’s response:
“John Marshall has made his decision, now let
him enforce it!”
Indian Removal Act (1830)
Trail of Tears (1838-9)
Trail of Tears (1838-9)
Winter of 1838-9
40,000 Cherokees were moved towards the west,
to the “Great American Desert.”
1 in 2 died on the way or at the other end, leading
to the name “Trail of Tears” by the Cherokee
Although promised Oklahoma “as long as the
grass grows and the water runs,” they stayed in it
only until 1889.
nd
2
National Bank
“Soft”
(paper) $
state bankers felt
it restrained their
banks from issuing
bank notes freely.
supported rapid
economic growth
& speculation.
“Hard”
(specie) $
felt that coin was the
only safe currency.
didn’t like any bank that
issued bank notes.
suspicious of expansion
& speculation.
nd
2
National Bank
Nicholas Biddle
“King Nicholas I”
Andrew Jackson
“King Andrew”
Director of Nat’l
Bank, instigated
the “Bank Wars” of
1832-1836
Vetoed Henry Clay’s
Bank Bill, won
popular support
Election of 1832
nd
2
National Bank
Jackson felt that the National bank was
the “pet bank” of the rich.
1832 - Jackson vetoed the extension of
the 2nd National Bank of the United
States.
1836 - the charter expired.
1841 - the bank went bankrupt!
Fall of the
nd
2 National
Bank
Fall of the
nd
2 National
Bank
Election of 1836
King
Andrew?
YES!
NO!
Land Speculation
Without a federal bank, printing of money fell on state
and local banks. Some were called “wildcat
banks” because they had no metal backing for the
paper money they printed.
People then used this new “soft money” to purchase
increasing amounts of federal land, at a cost of
$1.25 per acre. This land was resold at a profit.
Land prices and sales skyrocketed as people “flipped”
land, creating a demand for more currency.
In response, Jackson issued the Specie Circular in
1836, accepting only gold and silver as payment
for federal land. Banks soon did the same.
The Panic of 1837
This led to the “Panic of 1837,” where paper money
was devalued and people wouldn’t accept it.
People had bought land in increasingly large amounts,
confident that they would “always sell it for a
profit.” When prices went down, they went
bankrupt.
This is similar to the “housing boom” of the years
1990-2006, where people “flipped” houses to
make quick and easy money.
The results were the same – loss of jobs and wages,
hoarding of gold and silver, and banks failed.
Jackson in 1844, retired