LESSON TITLE WASHINGTON'S PRESIDENCY

OBJECTIVES:

1. The students will recount how Washington was elected.

2. They will follow the process of how government was
created.

3. They will cite the things Washington wanted to accomplish as president, and give reasons why these
were goals.

LESSON SUMMARY:

This lesson will look at the first year of Washington's presidency.

ASSIGNMENTS:

1. recall worksheets.

2.

NOTES

CREATED January 1994

REVISED

I. Election of Washington

A. February 1789 Electoral College picked
Washington

1. John Adams, vice president

a. geographic balance: VA & MA

2. inaugurated in Philadelphia

3. New York City, capital

B. Caution Washington's main principle

1. wanted the govt to work

2. wanted the population to support it

3. didn't want to discredit the govt

4. his caution helped him be above average

II. Creation of the Government 1789-1797

A. 4 Cabinet departments created

1. State Department

a. Thomas Jefferson

2. Treasury Department

a. Alexander Hamilton

3. Attorney General

a. Edmund Randolph

4. War Department

a. Henry Knox, friend of Washington

B. Judiciary Act of 1789

1. bill signed by Washington

2. established the Supreme Court

a. John Jay first chief justice

3. created 13 district courts and 3 circuit
courts

III. Economics

A. Major issue debated first term

1. Hamilton emerged as economic leader

2. wanted U.S. to be industrial country

3. Jefferson favored agrarian base

B. War debt hotly debated

1. Needed to be paid off

a. Hamilton wanted healthy credit

2. Hamilton wanted federal govt to assume
state war debts

a. insure they pay off

b. Southern states opposed plan

3. Compromise solution

a. debts taken over by govt

b. capital to be built in the South

c. Washington pick the site

C. Hamilton also wanted a protective tariff

1. to protect industry

2. Britain main competitor

3. Congress voted this down

D. Bank of the United States

1. Bank to handle the govts funds

2. its creation not liked by all

a. Jefferson opposed it

b. said it was unconstitutional

3. it was passed, Washington supported it

LESSON TITLE WASHINGTON'S PRESIDENCY

OBJECTIVES:

1. The students will discuss problems that occurred with
Britain and France.

2. They will analyze and debate Washington's advice to the
country.

3.

LESSON SUMMARY:

The lesson will study the problems and successes of Washington's administration.

ASSIGNMENTS:

1. essays

2. small group research

NOTES

CREATED January 1994

REVISED

I. Formation of Political Parties

A. Came about for several reasons

1. economic policy

a. agriculture v. manufacturing

2. struggle between Hamilton & Jefferson

a. Washington tended to side with
Hamilton

b. Hamilton was like a stepson

3. interpretation of the constitution

a. strict constructionists

b. loose constructionist

B. Federalists

1. formed around Alexander Hamilton

2. favored a strong central govt

3. favored manufacturing

a. supported BUS

b. wanted a protective tariff

4. loosely interpreted the constitution

C. Democratic-Republicans

1. formed around Thomas Jefferson

2. feared concentrations of power

a. more democratic of the two

3. favored state rights

4. put agriculture over industry

5. more strictly interpreted the constitution

D. 1792 Washington reelected

1. foreign affairs biggest problem

2. 1793 Jefferson would resign

a. leave politics

II. French Revolution 1789-1815

A. France bankrupted from a century of war

1. Upper class didn't want to help pay off
debt

2. 1789 crisis occurred

3. National Assembly was called

a. supposed to address debt problem

b. Louis XVI constitutional monarch

c. beheaded in 1793

B. France was U.S. ally

1. helped U.S. win independence

2. insisted alliance still held

3. put U.S. between France and England

C. England viewed French Revolution with alarm

1. King and Queen executed

2. social turmoil in France

a. England had many of same problems

3. policy to check French radicalism

4. especially when France exported revolution

D. Washington caught in the middle

1. France's ally

2. U.S. major trading partner Britain

3. tried to steer a neutral course

III. Problems with Britain

A. British forts still on American soil

1. in new region of the West

2. supposed to have been removed

B. Britain seizing ships

1. taking cargo bound for France

2. declared most things to be contraband

a. U.S. didn't recognize this power

C. Issue of Impressment

1. British navy major problem with desertion

2. kidnapping American sailors off ships

a. some legitimate deserters

b. many were innocent victims

3. issue nearly led to war

D. Jay's Treaty with Britain 1794

1. somewhat unpopular treaty

a. avoided open conflict with Britain

b. compromise on both sides

2. British troops leave American soil

3. boundary of Maine was settled

4. U.S. would pay off its debts to Britain

5. Set up commission for ship seizures

a. arbitration

6. Impressment nothing settled

IV. Farewell Address

A. Washington fed up after 2 terms

1. didn't like some of the criticism

2. decided against 3rd term

a. set a precedent for other presidents

B. Wrote his farewell address

1. not given as a speech

2. retired to Mount Vernon

C. Warned against sectionalism

1. force threatened to divide the country

2. visionary on this one

D. Warned against political parties

1. believed in unity

2. thought parties caused disunity

3. wrong on this one

E. Warned against foreign alliances

1. feared being drawn into European wars

2. isolation self-interest of U.S.

3. basic policy followed until 20th century

F. Warned against foreign interference domestic
affairs

1. Citizen Genet, French Ambassador 1793

a. tried to recruit American soldiers

b. proved an embarrassment

2. never been a big problem

V. Other Washington Facts

A. One of our most respected leaders

1. fought French & Indian War

2. Secured victory in American Revolution

B. Called Father of his country

1. Constitutional Convention

2. first president

C. Married Martha Dandridge Custis in 1759

1. she was wealthy widow

2. made Washington financially secure

3. had no children

D. Washington was one of the country’s richest

citizens

1. Much of his fortune came from Martha

2. Owned 10,000 acres of Virginia land

3. 60,000 acres west of the Appalachians

a. strong motivation for colonial

control

b. risky investment

E. December 1799

1. took ill at Mount Vernon

2. poor treatment by doctors probably killed
him

a. leeches

3. died on December 14, 1799

LESSON TITLE JOHN ADAMS

OBJECTIVES:

1. The students will assess the difficulties of Adams'
presidency.

2. They will describe how open war was avoided with France.

3. They will explain political repression that went on.

LESSON SUMMARY:

This lesson will look at the major events that took place during the presidency of John Adams.

ASSIGNMENTS:

1. small group research. combine with previous or next.

2. recall worksheets.

NOTES

CREATED January 1994

REVISED

I. Election of 1796

A. first contested election

B. Federalists - John Adams

1. Alexander Hamilton leader of party

2. ineligible for presidency

a. foreign birth

C. Democratic-Republicans

1. Thomas Jefferson

a. political return

2. narrowly defeated by Adams

D. Constitutional Problem

1. second highest vote getter becomes VP

2. Jefferson becomes VP

II. French Revolution proved his biggest challenge

A. Jay's Treaty antagonized France

1. felt it was a betrayal

2. begin seizing American ships at sea too

B. Much pressure on Adams to go to war with France

1. Federalists especially pushed for it

a. angered his party

2. correctly refused this course of action

a. U.S. too weak to fight a major power

b. our country would have suffered more

3. Adams received little consideration for
this unpopular decision

a. criticized doing right thing

C. Instead undeclared naval war with France

1. occasional clashes between flagged ships

2. lasted 1798-1800

III. XYZ Affair

A. U.S. representatives sent to France

1. Elbridge Gerry, Charles Pinckney, John

Marshall

a. Gerry famous for gerrymandering

b. Marshall become supreme court justice

2. sent to negotiate end of naval problems

3. Talleyrand demanded huge bribes first

a. common practice in Europe

b. angered Americans

4. temporarily hurt Democratic-Republicans

a. supporters of France

B. Affair provoked anti-foreign sentiment at home

1. Federalists quickly passed exploitive
laws

2. come back to hurt them in 1800

C. Alien Act 1798

1. government could arrest dangerous aliens

2. govt could deport dangerous aliens

3. not much due process though

4. reluctantly signed by Adams

a. did it for his party

D. Sedition Act 1798

1. went against first amendment

a. free speech

2. criticizing govt could be a crime

a. very unpopular

3. reluctantly signed by Adams

a. did it for his party

E. Naturalization Act 1798

1. process of becoming a citizen

2. increased residency requirement from 7 to

14 years

3. Federalists believed most immigrants became Democratic-Republicans

a. done to strengthen the party

b. actually weakened it

IV. Other Adams' facts

A. Well educated president

1. graduate of Harvard

2. extremely successful lawyer

B. Very patriotic

1. early opposed Britain

2. been an ambassador to foreign countries
during revolution

3. served two terms as VP

a. considered it a thankless job

4. had a national outlook

C. Wife was Abigail Adams

1. favored women's rights

2. once urged him to remember "the ladies"

D. Friend of Thomas Jefferson

1. surprising to some

2. 1812-26 wrote letters to each other

a. survived to this day

3. both died on July 4, 1826

LESSON TITLE THOMAS JEFFERSON

OBJECTIVES:

1. The students will be able to describe the details of
Jefferson's life.

2. They will be able to evaluate the election of 1800.

3. They will explain the process that led up to the
Louisiana Purchase.

LESSON SUMMARY:

The lesson will cover the election of Jefferson to the purchase of Louisiana from Napoleon.

ASSIGNMENTS:

1. Essay discussing the election of Jefferson and what
that meant.

2. Map work, Louisiana Purchase

NOTES

CREATED January 1994

REVISED

I. Thomas Jefferson 1801-1809

A. One of two true geniuses to be president

1. other is Lincoln

2. well educated

a. attended William & Mary

b. never graduated

c. partly self taught

B. Wife's name was Martha

1. died long before him

2. never remarried

3. bachelor in the White House

C. Master of so many things

1. plantation owner 2. lawyer

3. architect 4. politician

5. scientist 6. philosopher

II. Election of Jefferson

A. Served as VP 1796-1801

1. naturally a small role

B. Opposed John Adams in 1800

1. second face off

2. Aaron Burr running mate

C. Adams was defeated

1. had a difficult first term

2. not popular with the country

3. Federalists had created much of their own
problem

D. Serious Constitutional Crisis

1. Burr & Jefferson both had 73 electoral
votes

2. ties settled by the House of Representatives

a. Federalists would pick the president

b. clear Jefferson to be president

c. clear that Burr was to be VP

3. Feb. 11-17, 1801 House voted 36 times

a. tied 35

b. Hamilton finally forced Burr's defeat

4. destroyed Burr and Jefferson's relation-
ship

E. Aaron Burr, tragic figure

1. so close to the presidency

a. never spoke out while the House voted

b. didn't say he wanted the presidency

c. didn't give his support to Jefferson

2. this destroyed his political career

a. dumped in 1804

b. killed his chances for 1808

3. Destructive rivalry with Hamilton worsened

a. 1804 challenged Hamilton to a duel

b. over a personal insult

c. killed Hamilton in NJ

4. 1806 plot to create a new empire

a. wanted western territory to break away

b. New Orleans to be capital

c. discovered, arrested

d. tried for treason & acquitted

III. Marbury v. Madison 1803

A. Important Supreme Court Case

1. established judicial review

2. unspecified power of the court

B. Marbury was appointed to the bench by Adams

1. James Madison refused to seat him

2. Marbury was a Federalist

a. Madison, Democratic-Republican

3. Marbury sued

C. Supreme Court ruled in favor of Marbury 1. declared a law unconstitutional

a. first time that was done

b. not done again until 1858

2. Marbury didn't get his judgeship

a. court no power to enforce decisions

IV. Louisiana Purchase 1803

A. New Orleans

1. important city to the U.S.

a. French territory

2. controlled mouth of Mississippi

3. American agriculture subject to French
taxes

B. Strong desire to purchase strategic city

1. give U.S. control of the Mississippi

2. envoys sent to France

C. Napoleon entered into negotiations

1. needed cash at that time

2. wars of conquest had drained the French
treasury

3. more interested in European territory

4. offered all of Louisiana

D. Jefferson quickly approved the deal

1. millions of acres bought for $15 million

a. incredible deal over long term

2. largest addition of territory to U.S.

3. all done peacefully

4. deal expanded president's power

V. Lewis & Clark Expedition 1804-1806

A. Explored the Louisiana Territory

1. solidified American claims

B. Explored and mapped the Missouri and

Columbia rivers

C. Expedition was an incredible success

1. made accurate maps

2. established relations with Native
Americans

3. cataloged animal & plant life

VI. Expedition nearly ended in South Dakota

A. Americans irritated the Sioux

B. Sioux almost ready to strike against them

C. Sioux would have easily defeated the

expedition

D. Would have significantly changed history

1. Sioux would have gained a huge
stockpile of arms

VII. Nez Perce

A. Also could have destroyed the expedition

B. Soldiers were in terrible shape when they

reached their land

1. living off a strictly meat diet

2. each man ate up to 9 pounds a day

C. Nez Perce could have easily over powered

them

1. instead they took care of them

D. They left the weapons alone

LESSON TITLE Thomas Jefferson

OBJECTIVES:

1. Students will explain the factors which led to growing
problems with Britain and France.

2. They will study how Madison became and embroiled in the
War of 1812, and look for irony.

3.

LESSON SUMMARY:

Two things will be explained in this lesson. The first will be the final years of the Jefferson administration. The second will be U.S. involvement in European Wars, specifically the War of 1812.

ASSIGNMENTS:

1. recall worksheets, short answer essays

2. journaling on current events

NOTES

CREATED January 1994

REVISED

I. Problems with Britain and France

A. Napoleon in power

1. master of continental Europe

2. frequent war with Britain

B. U.S. caught in a great power struggle

C. Jefferson's policy to be neutral

1. most problems were with Britain

2. interference with American shipping

3. impressment reemerged as an issue

D. Embargo Act passed in 1807

1. ended exports to Europe

2. limited imports from Britain

3. supposed to hurt the English economy

a. cut them off from American food

b. cut them off from American raw materials

E. Results of the Embargo

1. hurt the American economy more

2. farm exports dropped way off

3. hurt American business

4. very unpopular act

a. hurt Jefferson's reputation

5. replaced in 1809

II. Final years of Jefferson

A. Retired to Monticello 1809 - 1826

1. started correspondence John Adams

a. exchanged remarkable letters

2. died on 50th anniversary of Declaration of
Independence

a. Adams died the same day

B. Founded University of Virginia

1. very proud of this

2. had been a scholar all his life

C. Mainly troubled time for Jefferson

1. no retirement plan for presidents

2. nearly bankrupt most of this time

3. 1815 sold all his books to pay off debts

a. used to start Library of Congress

4. estate fell into disrepair after his death

a. nearly torn down

III. War of 1812

A. British policy oppose Napoleon

1. France traditional enemy

2. finance opposition to Napoleon

B. Napoleon invades Russia 1812

1. broke their alliance

a. Napoleon felt Alexander plotting

2. assembled huge army, 600,000 men

a. largest he had led

3. Russians practiced scorched earth

a. avoided battles, retreated

4. October reached Moscow

a. St. Petersburg, capital

b. Alexander refused to negotiate

C. Napoleon must retreat

1. doesn't have winter provisions

2. Moscow accidentally burned

a. angered the Russians

3. November-December, disasterous retreat

a. Russians constantly harassed French

b. winter best ally

4. less than 100,000 returned

D. Napoleon's worst defeat

1. showed him to be vulnerable

2. reopened general European war

3. Alexander I's armies crossed German
frontier

a. pursuing Napoleon

4. British went to war at sea

IV. U.S. Involvement in the War of 1812

A. Problem with American ships being attacked

1. impressment was an issue

2. most naval problems with Britain

B. James Madison, president

1. wanted to avoid war

2. Congress favored war

a. lobbying Madison

b. had the public's favor

C. War Hawks

1. members of Congress that favored war

a. 2nd generation of American leaders

b. Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun

2. favored war for expansion

a. conquer Canada

b. judged this an ideal time

D. June 1812

1. Madison asks Congress for war

a. felt pressured into this action

2. Reason freedom of the seas

a. two days later Britain agreed to stop
its aggressive practices

b. no longer reason for war

c. time for messages to travel was
problem

E. War was a disaster for U.S.

1. lucky independence was not lost

2. Washington was burned in 1814 by British

a. why White House is white

3. failed to conquer Canada

4. basically lost war

F. Treaty of Ghent ended war

1. signed December 25, 1814

2. one last battle would be fought

a. due to slowness of travel

V. Battle of New Orleans, January 8, 1815

A. Fought after the war's end

1. ironic

B. Andrew Jackson, American commander

1. led pirates, crude western troops

2. had well prepared defenses

3. enemy underestimated him

C. Edward Pakenham, British general

1. little regard of American enemy

2. advanced across open plain to attack
fortified lines

3. took murderous fire

a. heavy British casualties

D. Important American victory in war

1. misled people

a. thought we won the war

2. Andrew Jackson national hero

a. soon enter politics