Chapter 13 study guide

Chandler Gilbert Community College

HIS 103

Answer the following questions as you read Chapters 13.

1.What happened in Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848?

Heralded as the first women's rights convention in the United States, it was held at the
Wesleyan Chapel in Seneca Falls, New York, on July 19 and 20, 1848. At that conference,
activist and leader Elizabeth Cady Stanton drafted The Declaration of Sentiments, which called
for women's equality and suffrage.

2.Where did the immigrants come from between 1820 and 1860? Why were there so many Irish
immigrants during that period?
Between 1820 and 1860 most immigrants came from northern and western Europe. The
potato famine in Ireland (1845-1847) brought large numbers to the United States. The
unsuccessful 1848 Revolution in Germany also created considerable emigration. Others came
from Sweden, Norway, Denmark, England, Scotland and Wales. Still facing poverty and disease,
the Irish set out for America where they reunited with relatives who had fled at the height of the
famine. Between 1845 and 1850, a devastating fungus destroyed Ireland's potato crop. The
"Famine Irish" represented the first major influx of Irish immigration into America.

3.There were several problems in the new cities. Why did urbanization produce so many problems?
Urbanization occurred rapidly in the second half of the nineteenth century in the United
States for a number of reasons. While the work was dangerous and difficult, many Americans
were willing to leave behind the declining prospects of pre-industrial agriculture in the hope of
better wages in industrial labor.

4.What were the characteristics of the reform movement? (who was involved, what were the “targets”
of reform).
The reform movements that arose during the antebellum period in America focused on
specific issues: temperance, abolishing imprisonment for debt, pacifism, antislavery, abolishing
capital punishment, amelioration of prison conditions (with prison's purpose reconceived as
rehabilitation rather than punishment). Reform movements happened around the world but started
in Britain and the United States. They focused on labor rights, social welfare, women's rights, and
working to end slavery. By the 1830s there were men and women like Frederick Douglass and
Elizabeth Cady Stanton who devoted most of their adult lives to reform causes. Three of these
movements remain especially well known.

5.What was the role of women in education? What was the temperance movement?
In the 1800s, women began to play central roles in education, as teachers and as learners,
in formal and informal education settings, on the frontier and in the cities. Temperance
movement, movement dedicated to promoting moderation and, more often, complete abstinence
in the use of intoxicating liquor.
6.What about prostitution? Who was Dorthea Dix and what movement did she start?
The most common form of prostitution during this time was streetwalking. Women who
performed this act were most commonly those who supplemented their daily income with money
they could earn by prostituting on occasion, but there were also some who used streetwalking as
their primary source of income. Dorothea Dix was an early 19th century activist who drastically
changed the medical field during her lifetime. She championed causes for both the mentally ill
and indigenous populations. By doing this work, she openly challenged 19th century notions of
reform and illness.

7.Who were the Mormons?

Mormons are a religious group that embrace concepts of Christianity as well as revelations
made by their founder, Joseph Smith. They primarily belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-Day Saints, or LDS, which is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, and has more than 16
million members worldwide.

8.Who were the abolitionists and what was their goal? Why were the effects of anti-slavery
activism so politically explosive?
An abolitionist, as the name implies, is a person who sought to abolish slavery during the
19th century. More specifically, these individuals sought the immediate and full emancipation of
all enslaved people. It intersected with sectional interests and created a national political issue.
The gag rule passed by Congress at Southern insistence was seen as a violation of the
constitutional right to petition angering many northerners. It had to do with social equality which
was a concept many whites could not accept.

9.In your own words, summarize the chapter. Imagine that your friend hadn’t read the chapter and
there was going to be a test on it. What were the key points? What stood out as “most important or
significant”?
● Heralded as the first women's rights convention in the United States, it was held at the
Wesleyan Chapel in Seneca Falls, New York, on July 19 and 20, 1848. At that conference,
activist and leader Elizabeth Cady Stanton drafted The Declaration of Sentiments, which
called for women's equality and suffrage.
● Between 1820 and 1860 most immigrants came from northern and western Europe. The
potato famine in Ireland (1845-1847) brought large numbers to the United States. The
unsuccessful 1848 Revolution in Germany also created considerable emigration.
● Still facing poverty and disease, the Irish set out for America where they reunited with
relatives who had fled at the height of the famine.
● Urbanization occurred rapidly in the second half of the nineteenth century in the United
States for a number of reasons.
● Reform movements happened around the world but started in Britain and the United
States. They focused on labor rights, social welfare, women's rights, and working to end
slavery.
● What stood out as most important is how Dorothea Dix was an early 19th century activist
who drastically changed the medical field during her lifetime. She championed causes for
both the mentally ill and indigenous populations. By doing this work, she openly
challenged 19th century notions of reform and illness.