| Lecture 17: Transition to Democracy — Male Voting and Male Violence | |
| I. From “republic” to “democracy” — the rise of universal white male suffrage | |
| II. Tocqueville and the cultural problem of equality | |
| III. Myth of the self-made man and the cultural problem of masculine failure | |
| 1790-1843 | Expansion of White Male Suffrage |
|---|---|
| 1790 | Vermont was first state legislature to ban property restrictions on male voting |
| 1843 | Rhode Island was last state legislature to ban property restrictions on male voting |
| 1790s-1830s | expansion of white male suffrage alongside curtailment of free black male suffrage |
| 1776 | “All men are created equal” |
| 1843 | All (white) men are created equal |
| From Republic to Democracy | |
| republic | premised on property ownership premium on personal independence |
| democracy | premised on universal white male suffrage premium on social equality |
| 1820s-1830s | middle-class respectability |
| ca. 1825 | Colonel and Mrs. Little, Ulster County NY, by Ammi Phillips |
| 1829 | George and Abigail Reynolds, Amenia NY, by Ammi Phillips |
| ca. 1835 | Mr. and Mrs. Day, Hudson River valley NY, by Ammi Phillips |
| 1839 | Moore family, western Massachusetts, by Erastus Field |
| 1824-1828 | Presidential Elections |
| 1824 presidential election John Quincy Adams defeated Andrew Jackson AJ 42% of popular vote, but not enough electoral votes to win JQA 32% of popular vote Henry Clay 13%; William Crawford 13% Henry Clay supported JQA instead of AJ House of Representatives elected JQA Henry Clay became secretary of state | |
| 1828 presidential election Andrew Jackson (56%) defeated John Quincy Adams (44%) “spoils system” — systematic replacement of federal office-holders 1830s-1850s — “second party system” — origin of modern American party politics (not yet of modern American parties) | |
| 1804-1828 | Andrew Jackson |
| 1804 | Andrew Jackson homestead |
| 1821 | Andrew Jackson homestead, “The Hermitage” |
| 1828 | Robert Cruikshank, “All Creation Going to the White House” (Jackson’s inauguration) |
| 1775-1805 | Abel Clemmens |
| 1775 | born in New Jersey |
| 1790 | moved to Pennsylvania |
| 1794 | moved to Virginia, and married; wage laborer, farm renter, 8 children |
| 1805 | tried to move from Virginia to Ohio, but.... |
| Boxing as Entertainment | |
| September 13, 1842 | Christopher Lilly versus Thomas McCoy (Hastings, New York) 119 rounds, until McCoy died |