U.S. History Chapter 2
 

The New Government:

  • The presidential election of 1789 was the first presidential election in the United States of America, and the only one to not take place in an even numbered year.

    The election took place following the ratification of the United States Constitution in 1788. For all intents and purposes, the enormously popular George Washington ran unopposed. The only real issue to be decided was who would be chosen as vice president. John Adams became the first Vice President of the United States.

    Only ten states out of the original thirteen cast electoral votes in this election. North Carolina and Rhode Island were ineligible to participate as they had not yet ratified the United States Constitution. New York failed to appoint its allotment of eight electors because of a deadlock in the state legislature.

    Before this election, the United States had no chief executive. Under the Articles of Confederation, the national government was headed by the Confederation Congress, which had a ceremonial presiding officer but no independent executive branch.

    The first presidential inauguration was George Washington's, on April 30, 1789. The US government was headquartered in New York City at the time, so the ceremony was held at Federal Hall in lower Manhattan.

    While Washington's inauguration was a large public event, it did not begin a tradition. The US government moved to Philadelphia in 1790, and Washington's second inauguration took place within the US Senate chamber on March 4, 1793.


     
  • The First United States Congress  
  • Cabinet  
  • Political Parties
    • Federalists
      • Alexander Hamilton
      • Powerful nation resting on balanced economy of agriculture, trade, financing, and manufacturing
      • Use government to help economy
      • Masses could not be trusted
    • Democratic-Republicans
      • Thomas Jefferson
      • Faith in the common people
      • Weak central government and strong state government
      • Individual liberties must be protected against all governments
     
  • A Century of Lawmaking For a New Nation - Library of Congress

     

  • Presidential Election of 1792
    The second presidential election in the United States, and the first in which each of the original 13 states appointed electors (in addition to newly added states Kentucky and Vermont). It is also the only presidential election that was not held four years after the previous election.

    Although Washington had been considering retiring, both sides encouraged him to remain in office to bridge factional differences; Washington was supported by practically all sides throughout his Presidency and gained more popularity with the passage of the Bill of Rights.

    The Electoral College chose Washington unanimously.

  • Conflict between England and France
    • American neutrality
      • Washington
    • Opinion divided
      • Republicans supported France
      • Federalists supported England
    • Jefferson resigned in 1793
    • England did not accept neutrality
    • Seized American ships and crews
     
  • John Jay's Treaty
    • Jay sent to England
    • Hamilton told British that U.S. had no intention of forming alliance with other neutral nations against Britain while Jay was threatening that it would
    • Jay was forced into signing treaty favorable to England in which they did not budge on the issue of shipping rights
      • The right of the U.S. to trade with nations at war with England
     
  • George Washington Picture Gallery
     
  • George Washington's Farewell Address
 
The Washington Monument stands 555' 51/8" tall. Construction began in 1850 and was finished on December 6, 1884.

One hundred and ninety-three Commemorative Stones are set into interior walls of the Washington Monument, donated to the monument in honor of the nations first president, George Washington.

Most of the stones date from 1849 to 1855. Sixteen stones date to the twentieth century. The last stone was installed in 2000. There is a stone from every state, and also from fraternal and community organizations, cities and towns, foreign countries, and individuals.

  1. On what date was Oklahoma's stone set in place in the Monument?
  2. At what level (feet above the ground) is the stone located?

    Note: you have to take the stairs (not the elevator) to see the stones. There are 897 steps from the base to the observation room!

The Washington Monument

The Oklahoma Stone

John Adams' Presidency:

  • Presidential Election of 1796
    • Sectionalism
      • South
        • Thomas Jefferson - Democratic-Republican Party
        • (46.6% of popular vote)
      • North
        • John Adams - Federalist Party
        • (53.4% of popular vote)
    • At this point, each man from any party ran alone, as the formal position of "running mate" had not yet been established.
      • Jefferson became Vice President
     
  • XYZ Affair
    • French angry at Jay's treaty began siezing ships
    • Federalists want war
    • Adams sent 3 man negotiating team to France
    • Talleyrand appointed 3 low level people to meet with them
      • Americans dubbed them X, Y, and Z
    • French say no negotiations unless Talleyrand gets $240,000
    • Americans were irate
    • Navy Department was created and for the next two years there was an undeclared naval war in the Atlantic and Caribbean
    • High Federalists still wanted war
    • Adams waited and made peace with new French government in 1799
    • Adams political career was ruined
     
  • Alien and Sedition Acts
    • Passed in 1798 they were meant to quiet criticism of Adams administration
    • Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions
     

  • Presidential Election of 1800
    The election exposed one of the flaws in the original Constitution. Members of the Electoral College could only vote for President. Each elector could vote for two candidates. The candidate with the most votes became President and the Vice President was the person who received the second largest number of votes during the election.
    • Thomas Jefferson v. John Adams
    • Jefferson v. Aaron Burr in the House
    • Peaceful transfer of power
    • The Twelfth Amendment stipulates that electors make a distinct choice between their selections for President and Vice President.

The inauguration of Thomas Jefferson, March 4, 1801, was the first inauguration of a president in Washington D.C.

John Adams (the outgoing chief executive), who disliked the new city of Washington, left town for his home in Massachusetts and did not attend the inauguration ceremony.

The tradition later developed that the outgoing president would attend his successor's inauguration.

Thomas Jefferson's Presidency:
  • The Thomas Jefferson Papers - Library of Congress
     
  • A Fresh Start
    • New party
    • New style
      • More laid back, less ceremonial
    • First inauguration held in Washington
    • Jefferson's Inaugural Address
    • Cut the costs of government
    • Tore down Hamilton's financial programs
      • Internal taxes eliminated
      • Influence of the Bank of the U.S. reduced
    • Pardoned men convicted under the Sedition Act
     
  • James Madison was Secretary of State
     
  • Albert Gallatin was Secretary of Treasury
     
  • Marbury v. Madison
    • Judiciary Act of 1801 (Midnight Judges Act)
    • Judicial Review
      • The power of the courts to annul the acts of the executive and/or the legislative power where it finds them incompatible with a higher norm. Judicial review is an example of the functioning of separation of powers in a modern governmental system (where the judiciary is one of several branches of government).
     
  • The Louisiana Purchase
    • Spain gave Napoleon Louisiana territory in 1800
    • Jefferson sent Monroe to try and buy New Orleans
    • Napoleon had lost Haiti and saw no reason to keep Louisiana, he also needed money for war with England
    • Sold all Louisiana territory to Americans for $15 million
    • Lewis and Clark
      • Expedition from St. Louis to the Pacific
      • Sacagawea - Shoshone Indian guide
      • 2 years 4 months
      • Showed it was possible to travel overland to the west
      • Strengthened American claims to Oregon territory
     
  • Presidential Election of 1804
    Incumbent Democratic-Republican President Thomas Jefferson against Federalist Charles Cotesworth Pinckney. Jefferson easily defeated Pinckney in the first presidential election conducted following the ratification of the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
  • Hamilton and Burr
    • Burr ran for governor of NY in 1804
    • Took aid from Federalists who wanted NY and NJ to secede
    • Hamilton found out and revealed it
    • Burr lost and challenged Hamilton to a duel
     
  • Foreign Policy
    • War broke out between France and England in 1803
    • British and French siezing American Ships
    • Impressment
      • British
    • The Embargo Act of 1807
      • Hurt economy, very unpopular
 
The Jefferson Memorial was approved by a joint resolution of Congress in 1934. The design was approved in 1937. Construction began in 1939 and the Memorial was dedicated in 1943.

Cherry trees, presented to the People of United States by the People of Japan in 1912 as a gift of friendship caused delays in the planning of the Memorial because some of the trees were growing on the proposed site.

  1. How many cherry trees were in the initial gift from Japan?
  2. Approximately how many cherry trees are growing now?
The Jefferson Memorial

James Madison's Presidency: