Nullification Crisis Assignment

This assignment is similar to the Missouri Compromise assignment in that to answer the questions you will need to use interactive maps, text of actual documents, and this time I'm also going to provide you with a chart.

In class we will put what you've learned from both of these assignments together and further discuss the commercial differences of the North and South and the widening rift that was continuing to grow between them.  We will focus especially on South Carolina and Calhoun (who Jackson did not murder, btw - he said one of the things he regretted in his life was NOT hanging Calhoun!).  We will strive to really understand why these tariffs made more serious than ever the threat of secession.  I want also to make sure you have a clear understanding of what 'nullification' means - this was not the first appearance of the idea of nullification, but it was the most serious.

Print out the assignment HERE.

Tariff of 1828 is HERE - the tariff begins at the bottom of the page.  You'll have to click 'next image' to page through the book containing the text of this tariff.

Tariff of 1832 is HERE - also beginning at the bottom of the page.

Interactive Maps of Slave Crops in the American South are HERE.  There are 5 pages of this website for you to go through and use as a reference for your questions - just click "Next" at the bottom of the page.  You have to click the timeline at the bottom of each image to reveal the changes over time.

Chart showing Occupational Distribution of 1820-1860 is HERE.

The South Carolina Ordinance of Nullification can be found HERE.

The Forging of A Union

One of the things that has struck me as I have read, and read, and read in preparation for this class is how tenuous the forming of our nation was.  I knew that there was tension during the Revolution between those who wanted independence and those who still considered themselves subjects of the crown.  And I knew of course of the secessions during the Civil War, but what I did not realize was that this idea of secession was a constant plague from the signing of The Declaration of Independence until the time of the Civil War.  The 'Union' was a very fragile union indeed!  This year we will walk through this forging - through the heat of fiery arguments, bitter plots and espionage, and even acts of treason which occurred before we hammered each other out on the anvil of our Civil War after which we were finally forged into a more solid union. . . . weren't we?  I'm still reading - I'll keep you posted!  So a good question to consider as we read and study is, "What has preserved the Union?"