Creating a Republic

Benjamin Rush’s words were spoken in January 1787. It reflected many Americans feelings on the American Revolution. Rush was a respected doctor that set up the nation’s first free clinic. He was very outspoken and earlier he convinced Thomas Paine to write his pamphlet, Common Sense.

“The American war is over: but this is far from being the case with the American Revolution. On

the contrary, nothing but the first act of the great drama is closed. It remains yet to establish and perfect our new government,”

1. Who wrote Common Sense and what was the main idea of Common Sense?

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With the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the Treaty of Paris their now was a need to set up a form of government for the American people.

Confederation of StatesOn May 1776, the Continental Congress asked

each colony to set up a government to protect the “lives, liberties, and properties” of its citizens. In July, the Congress set about to set up and organize a new national government.

State ConstitutionsDuring the Revolution most states wrote their

own Constitutions. A constitution is a document that sets out the laws and principles of government. States wanted a constitution for two reasons. First, it would spell out all the rights of all citizens. Secondly, it would set limits on the power of government.

Colonists were too concerned about putting too much power in the hands of a few people. To avoid this they divided the powers of government between an executive and the legislative part. Every state had a legislature that passed laws. The voters elected lawmakers.

Power in the legislature was divided between the upper house called the Senate and a lower house called the House of Representatives . All states except Pennsylvania had a governor, who executed, or carried out the laws.

2. Define constitution?

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3. What 2 main things would a constitution do?

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4. How many houses were divided in the new legislature and name them both?

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Virginia further limited the power of government by including a Bill of Rights in its constitution. A Bill of Rights lists freedoms that the government promises to protect. The Bill of Rights protected the rights of religion and freedom of the press. Other states soon followed Virginia’s examples and created their own Bill of Rights.

The state constitutions also expanded the right to vote. Now under the constitution you could vote if you were a white male over the age of 21. In a few states women and free African Americans could vote.

The American Revolution did not prompt a radical redefinition of the right to vote. In 1786, only two of the original thirteen states (Georgia and South Carolina) expressly restricted voting privileges to the eligible white population. The U.S. Constitution, written in 1787, recognized the authority of the states to define the right to vote. Between 1776 and 1860, about one-third of the states permitted voting by free African-American adult males.

Forming a National Government

Although the states have formed 13 separate governments, the Continental Congress drafted a plan for the nation as a whole. In order for America to be successful all of the states must be united by a national government. Writing a constitution that all the states would approve was difficult. The states were unwilling to turn over their power to a national government. After many debates, the Continental Congress completed the first American Constitution, The Articles of Confederation.

5. Which state added a Bill of Rights and why do think they did?

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6. Undress the state Constitutions what 2 requirements did you have to meet to be able to vote?

7. What our first American Constitution called?

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8. What year was the first U.S. Constitution written?

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Articles of Confederation

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Disputes Over Western LandsThe first dispute arose over the Articles of the

Confederation. All the states ratified the Articles with the exception of Maryland. They disputed the land between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River. Virginia and some other states claimed all the land to the West. Soon afterwards one state at a time they gave up their claims to the western lands.

Serious Charges Over the Articles of Confederation

By 1783, the United States had won their independence. The new nation faced many problems. From 1783 to 1787, the Americans had reason to doubt whether their country would survive. The biggest problem that the states faced was money. As a result of borrowing during the Revolution, the United States owed millions of dollars. It had no way to pay its debts. Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress would ask for money to repay these debts. However, the states had the right to turn down the requests of Congress.

5. Where did the states dispute land?

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6. What was one of the biggest problems we were facing the states after the War?

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7. Why did we owe millions and who do you think we owed this money to?

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During the Revolution Congress solved their problems by printing paper money. This paper money was called Continental dollars. Without gold or silver to back up the paper money, the paper money retained little or no value. As the Continental dollars became worthless the states printed up their own paper money. The problem with this was that most states refused to accept money from another state. This made trade between states difficult.

8. Why did paper money retain little or no value?

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A Farsighted Policy for Western Lands

Settlers in the western lands posed still another problem. The Articles of the Confederation said nothing about admitting new states to the United States. Congress saw a great need for a local government in the western lands or Northwest Territory as thousands of settlers moved there. To meet this need Congress passed two laws. Here are the two laws:

Land Ordinance of 1785- this law set up a system for settling the Northwest Territory. The law called for the territory to be divided into sections or townships.

Northwest Ordinance- This law set up the government of the Northwest Territory. This law also outlawed slavery in these lands. When the population in a territory or section reached 60,000 they can apply to the United States to become a state.In time five states were carved out of the Northwest Territory. The new states were Ohio, Indiana,

Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin

9. Explain the Land Ordinance of 1785?

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10. What was the main idea behind the Northwest Ordinance? How did it relate to our country?

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Northwest Territory

A Farmers Revolt

After the Revolution, the nation suffered an economic depression. An economic depression is a period when business activity slows, prices and wages fall, and unemployment rises. The depression hit the farmers hard. During the Revolution the demand for farm products was high. The farmers were eager to produce more food. They borrowed money to buy more land, seed and animals. As the soldiers returned to their homes the demand for farm goods fell. Many farmers could not repay their loans. The banks and courts seized the farms of the people that did not repay their loans.

In 1786 the unhappy farmers flared into a rebellion. They were determined to save their debt-ridden farms. Daniel Shays, an unhappy farmer gathered a force of 2,000 farmers and led them into a rebellion attacking court houses and preventing the sale of their property for payment of debts. When they tried to raid a warehouse full of rifles and gunpowder the Massachusetts army drove them off. This uprising was called Shays' Rebellion

George Washington spoke out on behalf of the farmers. He felt that the Articles of Confederation had to be changed to help meet the needs of the farmers during this crisis. On May 1787 the leaders of several states met to discuss this issue in a convention.

11. Name the 5 new states admitted the union because of the Northwest Ordinance.

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12. What is an economic depression and how could this effect a new country trying to remain strong?

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13. What happened to sliders farms who could not repay their loans?

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14. Describe Shay’s rebellion in your own words.

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15. What did the uprising of Shay’s Rebellion prove about the Articles of Confederation?

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