Introduction

On March 4, 1801, Thomas Jefferson became the first president of the United States to be inaugurated in Washington, D. C. For the first time, political power had been transferred to an opposition party; and, as Margaret Smith notes in the chapter 9 opening narrative, "in our happy country" the event had taken place "without any species of distraction, or disorder" (225). Jefferson's administration, emphasizing agrarian over commercial values, represented a more democratic outlook on government and American society than that of the elitist Federalists. Instead of dismantling Hamilton's economic programs however, Jefferson adopted a more expansive view of federal power, purchasing Louisiana and dispatching Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore the new western lands. White settlement continued east of the Mississippi as national sentiment pulsed with a wave of religious revivals known as the Second Great Awakening. By 1815 this surge in American nationalism had defeated a Pan-Indian alliance under Tecumseh and survived another war with England. In 1832, James Monroe, the last president of the revolutionary generation, announced the Monroe Doctrine barring European intervention in the Western Hemisphere, and the United States turned its attention inward. 

In order to understand the growth of national pride and the democratization of America, look first to the building of the nation's capitol. Next, follow the explorations of Lewis and Clark as they map the land and open the way for westward expansion. 

Web Activities

1.  In 1800 when the watercolor (above) was painted, the new capital city was isolated and unimpressive, a raw village of 3200 people. Most elected officials and diplomats complained about having to leave the cultural and commercial center of Philadelphia. How did the new capitol become a symbol of the new nation? Describe the architectural style. What decisions had to be made concerning its construction?  To find answers to these questions and learn about the building process, visit the following sites. 

• The United States Capitol Web site is extensive. You will want to spend time here, but for this activity first go to the main page and click on the building's "Construction History." On the new page that appears, "The History of the U.S. Capitol," select the narrative link. Read the sections "The Location of the Capitol," "The Selection of a Plan," and "A Brief Construction History."
• Pierre-Charles L'Enfant's 1791 plan for the city of Washington is one of the great landmarks in city planning. His Original Plan of Washington, D.C. in digital format is almost impossible to read, yet, review the companion text to explain its importance. What happened to L'Enfant (see biography link) after the plan was presented?
• Other sites containing related primary documents and images are, Building the Capitol for a New Nation, and Congress Finds a Home. Be sure to follow all links.

2.  Jefferson considered the 1804 transcontinental expedition, known as the "Corps of Discovery," of vital strategic and economic importance.  He directed Lewis and Clark to explore and map the territory, find a route to the Pacific, and strengthen American claims to Oregon. 

• As noted in a previous Web activity, historical maps are documents that provide clues to the historical landscape as the people of the time experienced it. One of the expeditions most significant contributions was the map Clark completed in 1810. It helped to shape the historical landscape for three quarters of a century and provided a crucial guide for all who followed. View Clark's 1810 map and read map notes.  What key pieces of cartographic evidence did Clark's map convey? What specific hope did it destroy? 
• Two PBS Web sites offer insight on the expedition. Find Lewis and Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery and go to "Inside the Corps." Follow the links to "Circa 1803" for an impression of the era. Then go to the "Archive" and select "The Journals" link. Use the finding aide to select several excerpts from both Lewis and Clark's Journals. (The Journals of Lewis and Clark is a complete online edition.) What topics are addressed with most frequency in the entries? What did you learn from the Journals about the lives of the Indian people the expedition encountered? 
• Compare the information on the previous site with New Perspectives on the West. Click on "Events in The West" in the left frame, then on the "Show Contents" in the right to bring up the timeline in the left frame.  Select the period 1800-1820 and follow the activities of Lewis and Clark through a series of internal links. What indication do you find on the timeline of the long-term consequences of the Corps of Discovery on American life? The short-term?
• Drawing from the Website resources you have examined, how did the expeditions maps, reports, and collections of artifacts frame the course of early nineteenth century westward expansion?

3. For most Americans the west lay east of the Mississippi, not in the remote expanse explored by Lewis and Clark. In the Trans-Appalachian west settlers often clashed with Indian cultures as both groups struggled to survive. One response to the urgency in the settler's lives was revivalism. The region became famous for a series of revivals, forerunners of the movement known as the Second Great Awakening. 

• Go to Religion and the New Republic at the Library of Congress. Read the "introduction," then scroll down and read "The Camp Meeting" section. Magnify and analyze the images "Religious Camp Meeting" and "Methodist camp meeting." In what way do these drawings confirm the idea that revivals brought a sense of uplift and comfort to the swiftly changing borderlands north and south of the Ohio River?
What was significant about the Cane Ridge origins? 
• Evangelicalism, Revivalism, and the Second Great Awakening by Donald Scott, summarizes the two distinguishing features of nineteenth-century evangelicalism. What were they? How does Scott contend the new style of evangelical leadership used the idea of a Second Great Awakening?
• For another view go to Ian Frederick Finseth's Liquid Fire Within Me. Read the section The Second Great Awakening and Rise of Evangelicalism. What evidence does Finseth use to support his argument that, "the revivalists of the Second Great Awakening irreversibly changed the religious landscape of the United States"? Does his interpretation confirm or correct information found on the other sites?

Additional Research Links

Jefferson in Power

• Return to the Tax Museum web site, to the section 1777-1815. Scroll down to the year 1800 and read about Albert Gallatin and Jefferson's plan to reorient the fiscal policy of the United States.
• To further understand the way the Supreme Court under Chief Justice John Marshall becomes a major institution in American political life, read the Marshall biography and follow the case links on the From Revolution to Reconstruction site at Rutgers. 
• Despite Jefferson's constitutional scruples, he completed the Louisiana Purchase and expanded the boundaries of the United States, hoping to strengthen the forces of agriculture and agrarian values. The treaty is preserved at the National Archives; see the Louisiana Purchase page. The Louisiana Purchase illustrated site at the Louisiana State Museum includes a photograph of the Sala Capitular where the official ceremonies of the final transfers of the colony were held. 
• Jefferson struggled to maintain neutrality. Read the 1807 Embargo Act, then visit two sites, Embargo Act Commentary and The Embargo Act to examine the economic and political effects and explain why the act was a diplomatic failure. One year after Congress passed the act, Jefferson continued to defend it. Read his interpretation of its effects in the second paragraph of his Eighth Annual Message to Congress. 
• Debate on Jefferson's "legacy" has been heated. Return to the topic first mentioned during your visit to Monticello in the chapter 6 Web activities, the DNA tests that led to the conclusion that Thomas Jefferson fathered at least one of Sally Hemings' children. For more coverage of the debate see the PBS Frontline Website Jefferson's Blood. In The History of a Secret Frontline traces the major episodes history of claims and counterclaims from the first public accusation was made in 1802 to the present. You'll need either QuickTime or RealPlayer G2 (or 7) to view the clips. The section The Jefferson Enigma looks at the changing views of historians. The site also includes a Frontline interview with Annette Gordon-Reed.

The Second War for American Independence

• The United States declared war (see An Act Declaring War Between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Dependencies Thereof and the United States of America and Their Territories) on Britain in June 1812. The following sites will connect you to both primary and secondary materials about the war.
• The Avalon Project : War of 1812 and Associated Documents includes the act prohibiting American ships from trading with the enemy, agreements for the exchange of prisoners of war, and Treaty of Ghent. 
• The War of 1812 is a standard summary of the war and its results.
• For an index of primary sources related to military aspects of the war go to War of 1812.
• The Battle of Horseshoe Bend: Collision of Cultures presents a National Park Service historic places lesson plan. You will find a good collection of excerpts from related primary documents in the Readings section.
• The Battle of New Orleans site at the Louisiana State Museum gives a brief summary of the battle and is well illustrated by items from their collection. 
• For a contemporary view see The New York Evening Post on the Victory at New Orleans (7 February 1815)  praising Jackson and his militia while indicting the administration for failing to provide for the cities defense.
• The index table for James Madison Center has internal links to a wide spectrum of events from Madison's life and era. Click on "The War of 1812" and follow the links. Be sure to read and compare the information from the sections An American Hero: Tecumseh , and Andrew Jackson: A National Hero - The Battle of New Orleans. 

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Improved Relations with Britain ~ The Monroe Doctrine

• The Monroe Doctrine, as an expression of the new sense of nationalism, represented the culmination of America's quest for independence from the Old World and assumption of leadership of the new.
• See the Monroe Doctrine, Avalon Project at the Yale Law School for the full text.